My Mother and memories

Yesterday, my sister and I went to the funeral home to dress mom! We also asked 2 of my mother's friends, and 2 of my very dear friends, one of which was our Relief Society President. I have never had this experience before so I was not sure what to expect and right before it was time I started getting a nervous stomach. The day before another of my friends had come and taken my mother's temple clothes to wash and press so that she would look her very best.

I think I was a little nervous as to what she would look like, but when Ruth & I walked into the room, the funeral home had done an amazing job on her makeup and she looked beautiful! That made us cry for a moment. But we were very happy with how she looked! We started with prayer and then went to work. Everyone told me that it would be a spiritual experience that I would never forget. And it was exactly that! Getting her ready to meet her Heavenly Father and Savior again!

Then my mother's hair dresser, who is also one of my mother's very best friends!!!! You know you tell your hair dresser things you would not tell anyone else, so he is a trusted friend, he came and did her hair. Once her hair was done, her glasses and her jewelry on.....it just looked like she was asleep and that she would open her eyes any moment! But she did not, and she was very cold. But her spirit was there! I know it!

While everyone (my siblings & myself) are here we are trying to take care of things that we don't want Dad to have to do after we are all gone....taking things to goodwill, making sure all his clothes are washed, ironed, and put away etc.. etc.. and I loved that Elizabeth said to Daddy, while we were working in his bedroom last night, "Dad after you get done at the Temple every Saturday, we should start the tradition of you coming to my house for dinner before you come back to Ft. Worth" I loved that she had thought of that. And I know my dad loved the idea!

While we were up at the hospital with Mom one of the stories my Dad told us that none of us knew, was that when my mother married my father she had a full ride scholarship to Julliard, and to another college that was like the 4th best college for music and she turned them all down and married my Dad and became a mother! She did go to BYU, or course, but still!!! We knew she has always loved my father, but that really told us to a degree that we had never known before!!!!! And also told us how much she loved each of us as well!

After dressing mother yesterday we went to Sonic in honor of her and got 2 route 44 diet cokes, and while we were talking I said that I really had hoped that Mom would get to have great grandchildren before she passed away and then Ruth said, "Well, Mom always told everyone that she auditioned her children in the delivery room......now she will be able to audition them before they come down to her family" and I loved that thought very much! So I will be getting some very talented grandchildren some day!!!! whoohoo!

Anne Marie is in town now (my oldest) and I just hugged her for a long time when she got here! I need my children around me right now. I'm anxious for Allison & John to get here as well! We got the kids a motel room as its a little crazy and full at our home and my siblings that live in Plano and Rowlett, have house fulls as well, so Anne Marie invited me to stay with her last night and I went with her and I know I fell asleep mid sentence of telling her something, and didn't wake up until 10:00 am the next morning when I had to get ready to go to work. I had been running on very little sleep and I think that did more for my coping ability then anything to get 1 really good nights sleep!

Allison loved all the pictures of my mother in her wedding dress and had wished actually that my mother still had it so she could have worn it....after Allison had picked out her dress, my mother told me, "I knew she would pick a dress that was all lace, because she liked mine so much" I think it made my mother happy that she felt Allison had picked a dress to be like her!!!

It still surprises me what silly things catch me off guard and make me cry! But I know this is all part of the process!

Thanks again to all who are bringing, food, flowers, cards, and phone calls.....they are very much appreciated!