What was your relationship with your family growing up?

We were close.  That comes from moving a lot.  There were times when we had our squabbles and were irritated with each other but for the most part I can truly say that Marianne was my best friend all through my life.  Bob and I had a close relationship too.  It is interesting because we tended to bring everyone to our house.   I didn't really like going to other people's homes unless I was babysitting.  The only two houses I ever really spent time in when I grew up were the Collie's and my friends Marabee's.  I was just much happier bringing everyone to my territory.  Mary Hornbeck, when we lived in Maryland, always wanted everything at her house but I was never comfortable there.  I went over there mostly just to pick her up and then we would meet in a yard - kind of no man's land. I think that is why when my girls were teenagers that I liked everyone over at our house all of the time.  It is how I grew up.

We did a lot of things as a family.  We went on family outings on Saturdays and if Dad had an assignment, we went with him on Sundays.  Our vacations were always together.  We always had lots of other people over so I guess that is where I got my cue that it was okay to fill the house up to the rafters for game nights or whatever.

I am happy to say that Marianne and I still very close.  We can pick up where we left off whether on the phone or in person.  Bob and I are a lot the same way but it just doesn't happen as often.

Happy Birthday to my niece, Christina Dittmar.  Hope you have a wonderful day, a good interview and an incredible year.  We love you!

What's your favorite memory of your dad?

One of my most favorite memories of my dad is that he would take me places instead of Mom from an early age.  Mom would get sick and be bedridden and Dad would have tickets to the symphony or opera.  I would go instead.  Dad would carefully teach me about what were going to listen to or see and we would head off.  I loved those outings and I learned to love classical music because of them. It is probably my favorite genre of music to this day.

When I was 10, Dad had a big conference in West Berlin (at the time it was behind the Berlin Wall).  Grandma and Grandpa Brugger were going and Mom was going with Dad.  Just before the conference, Mom was hospitalized for a few days and couldn't go because she was still recovering.  I got to go instead.  I felt so grown up!  We were there 6 days and I had a wonderful time.  Dad's meeting took up the morning and then we had the rest of the day to sight-see.  One of my best memories with my father as a child.

The summer before I went to college, I was having kind of rough time and so I was fasting.  I was trying to puzzle through some dilemma by myself.  Dad came to me and said, "Tell your very own personal father what is going on."  I did and was able to see that what was bugging me was not that big of a deal.  Ever since - when I have a problem I need to talk to Dad about that IS a big deal, I tell him I need to speak to my very own personal father.  He knows then that I need his undivided attention.  This doesn't happen often but it is code between the two of us. 

My other memory that I love of my father - though this is not a childhood memory - is how delighted he was to hold each of my daughters as a newborn and each of my sister's daughters as newborns.  I was not privy to my brother's children's births except for Katherine and he was delighted with her too.  I was tickled at the total adoration he had for them.  He would visit with them on his lap for the longest time  - whenever he got the chance.

What's your favorite memory of your mom?

My first favorite memory of my mom was just after Marianne and I got the dollhouse.  Marianne was only 2 and really didn't care about it but I loved it.  One afternoon I was playing with it and Mom stopped what she was doing and spent the afternoon playing with me.  I don't know that she ever did that again but that has always been special.

When I was senior in high school, my English Teacher divided out a group of students and basically started an advanced English class.  I was in it and loved it.  Towards the end of the year, we had covered everything, so he had us read contemporary novels.  We were to read 2 a week.  These were not lightweight reads.  I got a little bit behind and needed to read The Grapes of Wrath in order to get an A in the class.  The problem was that the test was the next day.  Mom and I marathon read from the time I got hom from school - all night long -  until 3 in the morning to finish the book.  I got an A+ on the test because I even answered the bonus questions correctly.  I remember being surprised that my mom would offer to read with me that night.  But after being a mom, I realize now that is just what loving moms do.  I would do it today for one of my children or grandchildren in a heartbeat.

Who were some of you favorite relatives and what made them special?

For some reason my Aunt Norma Allen and I have had a special relationship from the time I was born.  It isn't really Aunt and niece but more sisterly.  She has been my big sister my whole life.  Aunt Norma has been my go-to person when I needed a shoulder to cry on forever.  My first memory of Norma is lying on the linoleum with her as we were trying to stay cool in an un-air conditioned house in August in Texas.  I was supposed to be taking a nap but Aunt Norma and I were talking.  I remember Mom had the fan blowing on her and it was just before Marianne was born.  A very annoying habit I had was to wake Aunt Norma up - I would lift her eyelid up and say, "Aunt Norma - are you in there?"  She never seemed to mind.  When I did that once to my mother, I got spanked with a wooden spoon.  You did NOT wake up Mom when she sleeping!  It is funny because to this day, I call Aunt Norma up to vent.  I also call her to just to visit - so hopefully I don't come off as the whiny - needy niece!  We see each other and pick up where we left off.

Sarah Anne Nielson Tuttle and Lloyd Tuttle were also very special to me.  I loved going to visit them.  Grandpa Tuttle always took us up in the mountains for cookouts and on jeep rides.  He was extremely patient and everything a grandpa should be.  Grandma was also incredibly wonderful.  She became Omi when my children were little because suddenly there were so many grandmas in the room!  We had to differentiate somehow.  She loved her name and loved her grandchildren and great-grandchildren.  Even her stepchildren and step-grandchildren were loved as dearly as her own flesh and blood.  She is the one that taught me that often we are related only by love.

I was also close to my Grandpa George Brugger.  Grandpa was a man that loved to work and serve others.  He was the epitome of a strong priesthood holder and someone that my own father emulates.  Grandpa was a little more patient than my dad though.  I don't know if that was something he learned or it just came with him.  Men are not usually compassionate.  There are some but it is not a normal characteristic of a male.  My Grandpa Brugger was truly compassionate and full of Christlike love.

What did you want to be when you grew up?

When I was little, I wanted to be a mommy.  That pretty much stayed with me always but in the back of my mind there were other things I wanted.  When I was in third grade I wanted to be a nurse.  I pretty much stuck with that until I was a Candy Stripe volunteer the summer before my Junior year.  Suddenly I realized they did the dirty work and I knew that was not for me.  So I changed my mind to an airline stewardess.  I had applied to United and even been accepted to their program when I met Clyde.  It became a moot point when I chose marriage over a career.  You could not be married and a flight attendant in those days - so it was either Clyde or United.  I chose Clyde.

I thought that being an elementary school teacher might be nice until I substituted for 5 years.  Then I decided I would rather teach High School.  I came within 1 year of that dream and we moved to Utah. Family came first right then and I am glad it did.  I needed to be a mom and wife at that time.  It paid off with closer relationships with my daughters and a better marriage with my husband.

What were some of your pets and what made them special?

The first pet I remember was when I was 4 years old.  I was given a gold fish for my birthday.  I think about it now and think what an odd present for a 4 year old but nonetheless it was a gift.  For Christmas my mom had been given a new watch and in those days watches came in cases like fine jewelry.  She gave me the box and I put doll clothes accessories in it and my treasures.  I thought wouldn't it be nice if the fish had wonderful bed to sleep in - SO - no more fish.  My mother was appalled that I would do such a thing, Dad just laughed and said it was a life lesson - whatever that meant.  I just blew it off because I had only had the fish one day - I was not attached.

We also had a black Cocker Spaniel named Courtney O'Reilly III.  Reilly was a wonderful dog and I loved him.  Mom decided just before Bob was born that he was too much bother so he was given away to the Sparrow family.

We didn't have any pets for a long time until we moved to Washington DC and we have told you about Dolly and Kitty.  Our next pet was Ching.  She was a full blooded Siamese cat and she was beautiful.  Our whole family loved her, especially Mom.  She was sweet and seemed to know when someone was sick.  She would quietly sit with you until you were better.  We all thought she was my cat when in truth she belonged to us all.  Some teenagers drove up onto our lawn late at night - almost to the front door to run over her in their car.  They did this to several other animals in the neighborhood and it turned out they were high on drugs.  A couple of families prosecuted them.  Mom and Grandpa George Brugger were so devastated that they were teary for days.

We got Ming. Ming was also a Siamese Cat.  Ming had such a bad kink in her tail it had to be surgically cut off because it got in the way of her bathroom habits - leaving her only about a 3 inch tail. Mom always had her cats de-clawed but after Kitty - only the front claws were removed.  Ming had one claw and she knew it and used it.  When we were in Ephraim, there was Great Dane named Twiggy that was the terror of the neighborhood.  Ming quickly put Twiggy in her place.  She would bring birds and mice and leave them on Marianne's and my pillows.  She was so thoughtful.  We had to leave her behind when we went to Germany.  Ming was really the last family pet with Marianne and me full time at home.  We had Lady but she didn't appear in the family until after I was married.

What were some of the best presents you received as a kid?

I loved the baby dolls that I received for Christmas.  My two favorites were a Madame Alexander Baby Doll that Mom named Carolyn and a small baby doll that I named Chocolate Anne.  I think I have both of them in storage still.  Chocolate Anne was the last baby doll I received that I played with.  I had another tiny baby Madame Alexander doll (6 inches) that I loved but about 6 weeks after I received her as a gift, Mom had me give her away - always with the promise that she would be replaced.  They never made her again.  The sad part of our gifts is that they didn't want things - they wanted money.  I was not supposed to hear that part of the exchange but my room was next to Mom and Dad's.  I don't think Mom had ever had anything blow up in her face like that before.

The Christmas that I received my first Barbie was pretty incredible.  Thereafter that is pretty much the only doll I ever got again.  Dad thought we should have a doll at Christmas - no matter how old we were. It became kind of a joke after I was married.  My most favorite Barbie ever was one that had wigs and you could change her hair into basically 4 different styles.  I loved that doll and I loved Midge - Barbie's best friend.  Dad had built us a dollhouse when we lived in Texas and Barbie fit in it - just barely.  When we were in Washington DC and things would become too overwhelming - I would go into the basement and rearrange the furniture in the Barbie house and dress the dolls.  I could get lost doing that for hours.

When I had my appendix out, Grandpa George Brugger bought me a magnetic puppet stage.  The figures were about 1 1/2 inches long and it told 4 or 5 stories.  My two favorites were The Emperor's New Clothes and Swan Lake.  The Emperor was done in China.  At first I was a bit put off by that and then fell in love with the exotic and beauty of the pieces.  I had always liked the story so I played with that one a lot.  The Swans were actually ballet pieces.  Dad played me the ballet and told me the story - using the pieces.  I think that is why that one was special.  Mom was so afraid that I would lose the pieces that she would only let me play with it occasionally.  When we moved to Germany - quite a few of my toys did not make it over as well as some of my clothes and this was in that box.  (The Collie's moved the same time we did and they pressed charges.  Turned out one of guys would box things into private boxes and take them home or sell them.  After that Mom and Dad stood and watched the packers pack.)

When I was 16 for a combination birthday/Christmas present, Dad sent me from Korea a beautiful watch and an amethyst ring.  I thought they were the most beautiful gifts I had ever received.  (I don't think Marianne and I received dolls that year - come to think of it.  Marianne might have but I didn't.)  These are the gifts that stand out in my mind.  Marianne and I bought record albums for each other and I get misty eyed listening to that music on Pandora. 

 A funny gift from Grandpa George Brugger is that he bought Marianne and me both negligees.  I tell people that and it kind of creeps them out but he did it because we wanted them and he loved us.  We felt so beautiful in those.  I wore mine until it was shredded.  They were gowns and cover-ups.  One of my friends said all I needed was the tiara and I would have been set!  I am sure I was quite the sight in my beautiful blue gown and huge fuzzy pink slippers!

What was your favorite holiday as a child?

The next question is: What was your favorite holiday as a child and how did your family celebrate it?

My favorite holiday has always been Christmas.  For the early part of my life, the tradition was to put up our cut live tree on Aunt Norma Allen's birthday.  That kind of went by the wayside after our first Christmas in Germany when all of the needles of the tree were on the floor long before Christmas.  No matter what my parents did, they could not keep the tree from drying out.  There after the tree went up the week before Christmas in our years in Germany.  Stateside it could go up early and stay green all through the holidays.  One of the standing traditions was that we all entered into  where the gifts were together.  This was easier in some homes than others but nonetheless the tradition stood.  

When we were in Germany our first year, we had some good friends - the Mebius family.  They had three boys.  Donald and Walter were Marianne's and my age.  They told us about the tradition of St. Nicholas.  It has been in a tradition in my family ever since.  The mission president was Theodore M. Burton.  One of the sister missionaries was German and she told us the story of Advent.  That too has been a tradition in our home to this day.  

Having aebleskivers on Christmas morning is also a tradition that goes back to my father's maternal grandmothers family.  That tradition is being carried on by our family too.

I love decorating the house from top to bottom.  I look forward to someday having a house of my own again and being able to decorate more than a 1 foot tree.  I could not sleep on Christmas Eve as a child and in truth am not much better now.  When we lived on Infantry Post in San Antonio, on Christmas Eve, when the MP's would do their rounds - they would shake sleigh bells after midnight.  I will never forget that sound and knowing that Santa Claus had really come.  I think that is why I was so reluctant to quit believing in Santa Claus.  Oh wait - I never quit believing!

Happy Birthday Chris

 I interrupt answering questions and reminiscing for these birthday wishes.  Happy Birthday Chris.  We are thrilled to have you for a son-in-law and love you very much.  We hope that 2013 is a great year for you.

 I kind of snuck Pam's birthday wish in after one of my lengthy posts last week.  I would like to do it properly here - though belatedly.  We love you, Pam.  We are very proud of you and hope you have a wonderful year.

What Kind of House Did You Grow Up In? (Chapter 8)

My Senior year in High School was spent in a three bedroom apartment on the second floor in Heidelberg, Germany.  It was painted a horrible green color.  Mom usually conned the housing people to come in and paint her housing cream or white but she couldn't get these people to budge - so Marianne and I painted it with the help of Buddy Collie and his friend that were touring Europe that summer.  We also cleaned up the maids room up on the fourth floor so Buddy and his friend could stay there.  It turned into our seminary room for the next school year.  This was the second summer we went to Switzerland and camped out under the Jungfrau in Interlaken.  Mom and Dad spent a couple of days in the Bern temple but the owners of the camping area fell in love with Marianne and me.  We had a cheese fondue dinner with them (they showed  us how to make the cheese fondue) and then they took us to a local play of William Tell.  It was done in the same way as the Mormon Miracle with everything done on a hill except we (the audience) were protected in a wooden enclosure from the elements.  We also returned to Trummelbach Falls and all sorts of wonders that made this our all time favorite place to go on vacation.  I discovered Daphne du Maurier's book Rebecca that summer and I think that is when I fell in love with mysteries.

We had a three bedroom apartment but Grandma Tuttle came to stay with us.  Mom and Dad ingeniously put up bookcases to split one of the large bedrooms in two (we still own 2 of the book cases).  Omi and Bob shared a bedroom but each had their own room.  It worked out beautifully.  They in essence had the Master bedroom.  It had a built in vanity with drawers and louvered mirror.  I loved that set up and have dreamed of it in my house of dreams forever.  I still might do it - life isn't over yet.

This was truly the last home I had with my parents.  I met Clyde in this apartment over Christmas break when I came home for Christmas from Snow College.  We moved to San Antonio, helped Mom and Dad get moved in and left the next week for Snow College, then I got married.  I never lived at home again.  In truth this was also Marianne's last home with Mom and Dad too because she came to Snow College the year I got married and never looked back.  Clyde and I moved back with Mom and Dad in transition of moves for anything from a week or two to a few months but that would never be my home again.

What Kind of House Did You Grow Up In (Chapter 7)

After our 16 months in Ephraim, we were off to Germany again and even back to Bad Vilbel to live.  Dad was going to be at the 97th General Hospital again and we were all thrilled.  We were not on the economy this time but in military housing in a duplex.  We lived right on the edge - right across the street from the public bus stop and literally across the street from the first place we had lived when we lived in Germany the first time.  I loved it because I kind of picked up where I left off.  Peter Schoen was prepping for college and his little sister Mai was in the equivalent of middle school but the family was thrilled to have our family back.  I was good enough to be in the honor choir at the high school and between that schedule and going to early morning seminary, I never rode the school bus - which suited me just fine.  We loved seminary and from there we walked to school.  I made sure everyone came by making my dad pick everyone up.  I never asked him if he would - I just volunteered him.  I realize as a parent how cheeky that was but I just knew he wouldn't mind (he probably did but did it anyway.  I would have.)  I loved being in MelloTeens - the honor choir.  I had to keep my grades up in order to be in the group.  I realized that no matter how hard I tried, I would never get better than an F in Algebra - so I talked to the counselor - after having a half dozen tutors that gave up on me - and switched to economics.  That was a much better fit and qualified as my math requirement.  I saw no reason why I wouldn't graduate from Frankfurt High School and really got involved.  I was also very involved in the stake as the Stake Laurel representative and helped put together two youth conferences and 2 stake temple trips to the Swiss temple.  I loved it.  

Our house was the duplex that my sister pictured on her blog.  We had a Siamese cat that knew how to open doors.  She would literally  open the door for anyone and anything (especially other cats!).  So Mom and Dad got rid of her.  To be honest, I was too busy to even feel bad.  I was simply gone too much too notice.  I would often leave at 5:30 in the morning for seminary and not get home until after midnight from a concert.  I thought nothing of grabbing the streetcar and then the bus to come home.  I never called my parents to come and get me.  I cringe when I think of that now.  But I felt perfectly safe.  

At the end of the summer after my Junior year, Dad got orders to move to Heidelberg, Germany.  This was the second time he was moving to further his career but also because the Lord needed to get me out of a bad situation.  We were to move into a big house but Mom knew there was no way she could handle the stairs and the upkeep - so she chose a 3 bedroom apartment, instead.  Off we went on a new adventure to Heidelberg.  I had been in a different school every year since 6th grade and would be again.

What Kind of House Did You Grow Up In (Chapter 6)

After 18 months of drama and trauma in Denver, Dad got orders to Korea.  This was the first of two times we were moved to not only further Dad's career but to get me out of a sticky situation.  If we had stayed in Denver much longer, I would have walked away from the Church and who knows what else because of all the stuff going on in my life.  Ephraim, Utah and going to Manti High School was the perfect solution for me right then.

We rented an old polygamy house that was barely habitable at the time.  Mom and Dad put a lot of work in it but it was the only place in Ephraim that was one floor and Mom just could not do stairs with her medical conditions (she had also hurt her back and been in traction in Denver).  I had bought an old wrought iron bed that weighed a ton - at an auction house in Denver.  I was going to have it sandblasted and keep it forever.  It became my mother's bed in Ephraim and then she gave it away just after Clyde and I got married.  I never did get to sleep in it or use it.  Anyway - I remember icing Mom's back with ice we kept frozen in the freezer in orange juice cans, so she wouldn't be in much pain on that bed.  She spent a lot of time in that bed.  She did her time in the hospital while Dad as gone too and Grandma and Grandpa Brugger came over from Price, Utah to stay with us.  I stayed with Omi and Grandpa Tuttle in Manti during those times.  Grandpa Brugger did teach me how to drive his car though and that was fun.  He was very patient with me.

The house we lived in is now known as the Polyg house and is still being used as student housing at Snow College.  It is also a landmark.  It is divided right in half with living quarters on either sides of the long kitchen.  We had it so there was the Living/Dining room and TV room on the left of the kitchen and then three bedrooms lined up on the right of the kitchen.  No one came in the living room door - everyone came in the kitchen door.  I think there were doors to every room but we blocked them all but the Living Room and kitchen to make room for things like beds and couches.  We actually loved living in the house and several years later, Aunt Norma and Uncle Frank Allen lived in that house for a couple of years.

Ephraim was a blessing on so many levels.  We had a wonderful ward and I loved school and seminary.  It was nice to be able to do anything you wanted and go anywhere you wanted by just walking.  Mr. Lee's store was the best place in the world and every day that I went to get the mail for mom at the post office (it was where the city building used to be on Main Street) I would swing into Mr. Lee's for some embrodiery or something else to do.  Plus Nancy and Mr. Lee were just such good friends. (Mr. Lee's is where the large eating area of Roys is now).  It is interesting that the friends I made then were the friends that I picked up again when we moved back 30 years later.  And we did practically pick up where we left off.  Living in Ephraim - both times - was the best time of my life.

It was hard having Dad be gone that year but I had Mr. Lee that watched over me and Brother LaMar Hanson.  It is interesting that when I came back to Snow College, they would once again pick up the roles of fathering me.  When we lived in Ephraim in the 90's they didn't need to father me but their friendship was still strong and much appreciated. 

We kind of knew that after Ephraim we would probaby be heading back to Germany, because Dad had been doing some high powered diplomacy work while Korea.  He was promised pretty much anything he wanted and we all agreed we wanted to go back to Germany.  So in April of 1969 we headed back to Frankfurt am/Main for 3 more years.

What Kind of House Did You Grow Up In? (Chapter 5)

From Washington DC we moved to Denver, Colorado.  My mother so wanted a house of her own and had my Aunt Norma and Uncle Frank Allen pick a house in a new housing development for her.  She and Dad made the final decisions when we got there.  Mom was excited about living in Colorado for several reasons: 1. She was just hours away from her parents in Utah. 2. She was back in the mountains and she was positive that would bring her health back. 3. Aunt Norma lived  just a few minutes away (for the first few months and then they got orders for England).

There were a few things that Mom did not check on before moving into the house.  She assumed that since it was so close the Fitzsimmons hospital that we were part of Aurora, not Denver.  Turned out she was wrong.  I was in one of the worst Junior High Schools in all of Denver because of the segregated bussing that was instituted that year.  We were also not in the big military ward but a poor (as in poverty stricken) branch.  I hated my church experience there so badly that I have completey blocked it out.  I know I went.  I know I participated but I remember nothing except looking at a picture of Christ on the wall and knowing that He was my friend and would be my friend wherever we moved.  That brought me comfort every week as I sat in that classroom.  My school experiences were even worse.  The house was great but when you are in the 8th and 9th grades, how much time do you get to spend at home?  I found myself spending more and more time in my room and not wanting to come out.  Mom was in the hospital more and more and I really resented that.  I did not have a good relationship with my Grandma Brugger and she would take charge every time Mom went into the hospital.  Grandpa Brugger tried to buffer us but I am sure he got tired of that role.  Denver was a two year nightmare in a beautiful home. 

We spent the first 4 months of our stay in Denver, first in a nice apartment in downtown and then in a motel room with a kitchenette just outside of the military post (that was kind of sleazy).  Mom wanted to be onsight with the house to make sure it was done to her specifications.  I - to this day - think things would have gone faster without  her there.  When I watch "Sleepless in Seattle" and they joke about the woman that keeps wanting the cabinets changed and walls moved - I know that was my Mom!  She had the Living Room wall moved (a retaining wall, by the way) twice that I know of.  She changed the formation of the kitchen cabinets from the model home and she changed the way the family room was laid out after the slab was poured.  But she did get the house exactly how she wanted it.  She lived in it for 14 months.  Then we moved to Ephraim, Utah while Dad went to Korea.

I have been concentrating on the houses so much I forgot to wish Pammy a Happy Birthday yesterday!  We love you and are very proud of you - no matter what day we send our love.

What Kind of House Did You Grow Up In (Chapter 4)

My sister, Marianne, has told about the next house we moved into to on her blog.  It was in Silver Spring, Maryland and was in a style called Colonial Saltbox.  It is still there by the way.  Every time we are in the area - I have Clyde drive by it.  I showed it to my daughters when we went to visit the Washington, DC Temple when we lived in North Carolina, when they were very little.  Clyde and I went by there one other time since then.  It is not too far from the temple or the beltway.

There were some interesting things that happened in the this house.  As Marianne said, we got a Beagle named Dolly.  Dad warned Mom when she got Dolly that Beagles barked, but Mom was convinced she could train Dolly not to bark.  Beagles are bred to bark so needless to say that was an uphill battle.  Mom even had Dolly's vocal chords clipped.  Dolly just sounded like she had a broken carburetor and couldn't quite get started but it didn't diminish her noise factor.  I loved that dog and cried and cried when we gave her to our veterinarian, Dr Painter and his family.

We also had a cat named Kitty that Mom had completely de-clawed, front and back paws.  She still climbed and would sit on the garage roof and look in the Master bedroom window.  On a wintry day, she fell of the roof and broke her back.  Mom never had her cats de-clawed front and back again - only on the front.  She was devastated.

When I was in the 7th grade but Marianne and Bob were still going to the elementary school that year, someone set the elementary school on fire and caused major damage to the school.  The students had to be bussed and divided up among other schools for the last few months of school.  Bob thought it was cool and Marianne was almost hysterical she was so upset by the whole thing. 

I had my first paying, stay at someones home babysitting job when we lived here.  I thought I was hot stuff.  I would also help the second counselor in the bishopric's wife with her family on  Sunday's during Sacrament Meeting because she had 4 very small children and a new baby and there was no way she could handle everyone with her husband on the stand.  That pretty much became my standard practice until I had children of my own.

I remember one summer that Bob decided he was going to have his room be on the sleeping porch.  So he moved his stuff out of his bedroom and out onto this screened in porch.  I quickly moved my stuff into his room - so I could have a room of my own.  We did this before Mom could veto the idea.  Dad thought it was great.  It only lasted for the summer because Bob couldn't stay there once the weather changed but I loved that space that was all mine and only mine!  That was the summer I read Mrs. Mike  and fell in love with it.  I also read Gone With the Wind and Calico Palace that summer but I was not ready for them yet.  I was just leaving 6th grade and didn't have a frame of reference for anything important in the last two books.  I was just proud I read such long books!  I think in part that the reason I love Mrs. Mike so much to this day is that it takes me back to that magical summer where I had my own space and life was good.  By the next year Mom would start being sick at least 3 or 4 months out of the year for the rest of her life.  It had only been a few days or weeks up to the time.

We lived in the Washington DC area 2 years and were there during the Centennial celebration of the Civil War.  I think we went to most all of the battlefields from Georgia to Pennsylvania.  Dad was really into this.  It was becoming another green field to me.  We saw the New York World's Fair while we lived there too.  It was quite amazing.  When Dad finished up his time at Walter Reed, we moved to Denver, Colorado.  That started a whole new saga in my life.

What Kind of House Did You Grow Up In (Chapter 3)

The four bedroom apartment was the last place we lived in Germany.  My Grandma and Grandpa Brugger were given the Master bedroom and it was a good thing because Grandma got really sick.  I realize now that this illness - that paralyzed her for almost 6 months, probably caused her great pain for the rest of her life.  I was not very charitable about her aches and pains in my early teenage years and thought she was complaining to get attention.  Grandma and Grandpa ended up staying with us a year because my mother was not going let Grandma get on the plane unless she could walk.  Grandma was walking with braces on her legs and two canes but she was walking. 

Marianne and I got a set of phones in this apartment that were basically 'Princess Phone' walkie Talkies.  We thought we were the coolest people on earth because we call each other from one room to the other and pretend we are princesses, Cruella DeVille, the sister from White Christmas, etc.  I guess because our mom was sick so much - we had it in our head that you played 'Big Lady' in bed.  So whenever we used the phones, we had to be propped up on pillows and lying in bed.  It makes me laugh to think of that now.

I remember lying on the floor on the gold rug that Marianne has in her house now - and listening to classical music on Dad's stereo system.  Marianne and I had been taking piano from Frau Berner and I did not like her.  I realize now that because of my dyscalcula, the notes would float and change places - but we had no concept of that then.  I would practice (Mom would not let us NOT practice) and then Frau Berner would come and accuse me of not practicing and praise Marianne for how well she had practiced - when in truth we had both practiced.  I decided to play the violin.  Frau Berner helped my parents find Herr Schwarkopf (that means literally black head and he did have black hair!) who also happened to be the first chair violinist at the symphony orchestra in Frankfurt.  I loved playing the violin and quickly learned that one line did not float around like 2.  Playing the violin with Herr Schwarzkopf was one of my happiest memories in that apartment.

It was in the apartment the I found out JFK had been killed.  It is interesting how I found out because it is kind of like the movies in old neighborhoods where people are yelling from balconies.  That is exactly how my mom and I were told.  We are coming home from a Primary activity and someone yelled to Mom from across the street, then someone else came out on their balcony and started talking about it.  My head was whirling and at that point I just remember this cacophony of sound.

The next summer we moved to Silver Spring, Maryland.

What kind of house did you grow up in? (Chapter 2)

Right after the small apartment in Bad Vilbel we moved to the fourth floor walk-up apartment in Frankfurt am/Main, Germany in a housing area called Platenstrasse.  The apartment was temporary housing until we could get into one of the nicer apartments.  It had originally been maids quarters and had been converted to family living.  It had 8 small bedrooms and the bathroom was split.  The bathtub was in one room and the toilet and sink in another.  It had a large living room and very small kitchen.  This is the first that I realized that Mom was not well.  She would get sick and disappear into the hospital for a few days at a time.  We had young couples that would come and take care of us and a part time maid named Gerda.  I didn't like her but it took a long time for Mom to realize that our dislike of her was grounded before Mom finally fired her.  It was in this apartment that got glasses for the first time.  I loved the fact that I could see!

I thought of that apartment as a fairy castle in a lot of ways.  I also loved it because it was a garret.  It had the tiny garret windows with the sloping ceiling and I had just read The Little Princess along with several other books with the protagonist in the attic - so it just played into my fantasy.  However it was too far for mom to climb so we moved to a first floor three bedroom apartment about 9 months later.

The most memorable thing about that apartment was that is was across the street from Laurence and Sally Neuberger.  I was in heaven when they had Todd and I practically lived there.  Todd's favorite person in the world was Bob, though.  One of his first words was Bobby.  Todd was my first babysitting job - I was 10 years old and got to watch him while he napped (Sally was across the street with Mom).  The other memorable thing about this apartment is Marianne and I washing the dishes.  For some reason we could not go and just wash them.  We took hours washing the dishes!  (It didn't help that Mom did not clean up as she went.  Omi was constantly telling her that life would be so much easier if she cleaned as cooked).  Granted we played to the point that water was so cold the grease had coagulated on the surface!  I remember one time that we took 4 1/2 hours to do the lunch dishes.  We never got to go out and play on Saturday afternoons because were doing the dishes!  To this day, I hate doing dishes - even with a dishwasher.  But now you understand why Marianne's memory would be of a dishwasher.  Suddenly we didn't take hours anymore.  After we had lived there about 9 months, we got word that Grandma and Grandpa Brugger were coming to live with us for 8-10 months.  We needed a bigger apartment.  So we moved to a 4 bedroom in the building just behind where we were living.

I will continue with more on that tomorrow.  For anyone that is interested - approx 198 days left before we leave Rhode Island.  I don't know if a countdown is helping me or putting me in a bigger panic!

Happy Birthday, Marcus

Today is my oldest grandson's birthday!  He is 11.  Time is flying.  We will be on our mission for his momentous 12th birthday but I am sure he will forgive us.  Happy Birthday, Marcus.  We are proud of you.  We hope you have a wonderful birthday and a great year.

My Memories

For Christmas, Pam sent Clyde and me little books that have made us think.  The title is simple - it is My Mom and My Dad but it is the subtitle that is cool and that is "His/Her stories and words".

Because the book is so small there are some questions that cannot be answered in the space allotted.  I would also like my sister to answer on her blog with her take the questions.  I think that would eye opening to everyone that reads our blogs.  I was not the only one that grew up in our family.  It would be fun to have Bob's take too but I don't see that happening any time soon.  I am actually giving different answers than I did in the book.  Pam can do with the book what she wants but the answers change the more I ponder them.  Fortunately there is no wrong answer.

What kind of house did you grow up in and what was the old neighborhood like?
We moved A Lot!  The first house I remember was just off of Fort Sam Houston, about a mile from the hospital.  I remember lying on the floor in the afternoon of late summer to cool off and talking to Aunt Norma.  Mom was very pregnant with Marianne at the time - so I was really little.  I remember her getting mad at me because I wanted to sit on her lap and she kept telling me she didn't have one!  This is in the days before air conditioning.

When we lived on Infantry Post on the other side of Fort Sam Houston, we had 2 window units about 2 years after we moved there - because that was when Mom was pregnant with Bob.  One went in my parents bedroom and the other went in the living room.  The was a duplex and for the most part our connecting neighbors were always close friends.  I loved living on Infantry Post because I just kind of ran wild there. I had a group of friends and we literally just ran in and out of each others houses all of the time but we lived outside.  I would get so mad when we had to come in for naps.  I now understand that we were coming in at the hottest part of the day for our own protection.  The nap was for my mother's sanity.  We lived on Infantry Post for almost 6 years.

We lived in Germany for 3 years and lived in 4 different apartments.  The first one was a small 2 bedroom apartment in Bad Vilbel, just outside of Frankfurt.  I finally learned how to ride a bike there because it was a flat surface and a courtyard too boot.  My best friend was a Romanian refugee named Peter Schoen (his family moved from Romania just before the Russians took it over and put it behind the Iron Curtain.  His father and mother both were professors at one of the university's in Frankfurt).  For the 2 months we lived there, Peter and I did everything together and he took me all over Bad Vilbel.  I picked up German quickly because he patiently taught me.  My most fun memory of that apartment was my father (Archie Brugger, Popi,) had a unique way of making paper airplanes.  They stayed aloft for quite awhile.  He made my brother, Bob and Peter, each an airplane one evening and they were playing with them outside.  Peter showed his to a friend and Dad made the friend one. Pretty soon there was a line outside of our apartment and out into the courtyard of young people wanting an airplane.  I remember being so proud.  Dad made airplanes until his hands hurt but he couldn't disappoint these kids.

This post is long enough and I will continue it tomorrow.  I also want to report that except for my interview with the Stake President and my Doctor submitting my medical - all of my mission paperwork is done.  The Doctor is waiting for Clyde's test results to get in and he will submit ours together but in essence my work is done!

Carianne and The Blue Danube

When I was 7 1/2 months pregnant with Carianne, I played classical music all of the time.  My favorites at the time were Strauss Waltzes and A Midsummer's Night Dream.  I also loved Copeland.  One day I had a mug of Postum on my stomach during "The Blue Danube" and all of the sudden I realized that 'the baby' was keeping perfect time to the music.  I did it later when Clyde came home and it happened again.  Whenever "The Blue Danube" played for the rest of my pregnancy, Carianne would beat out perfect time through the piece.  It became quite a party trick!  The Young Men and Young Women loved it when she did it - but she only did for "The Blue Danube". 

After Carianne was born and she would get really crying - we would put that music on and it would calm her.  She didn't so much tap out a rhythm as she had invitro but would quietly lay there as if she was concentrating on the piece.  Even when she was older - if it played - she would get quiet.  I don't know how it affects her now, but Clyde and I cannot hear it without smiling and remembering that from before her birth, that was Carianne's song.

New Year Resolutions

I rarely if Never make resolutions in January.  I make them in April and October during General Conference and occasionally on my birthday.  I sometimes make goals during the year - which are basically the same thing but this year out of necessity I am making 2 resolutions in January.  1. Get our mission papers in by the end of January and 2. Get in shape for our mission.  We only have 209 days until we leave Newport.  I have spent almost 11 years trying to get out of here and now I am panicking because we don't have that much time left.  The time has come to get my act in gear and get a move on.  The papers are almost done.  I have to finish up my physical and get my dental check-up.  We still have our interview with the Stake President.  Clyde is a bit behind me.  I am now off of the obese list and overweight.  That is a bit of a relief but I need to do better than that.  I need to amp up my exercise and burn a few more calories every day.  I am setting what in essence are monthly, weekly and daily goals.  That way I think I can manage this.  If the picture is too big - it would be too overwhelming.

My Nativity

 Three or four years ago, I took some of my Christmas money and bought myself a Schleich Nativity set.  It came with the baby, Mary, Joseph, an older shepherd and a shepherd boy and 3 Wise men.  The next year I bought the fencing that went behind it.  I thought this would a fun set if ever I had grandchildren close enough 'to play ranch' with.  (That is an inside joke with my daughters and me.  We had a little boy that would come over and play with my sets but it was always Josephs ranch).

 Here is The Family with some animals that the Pfiester children bought me.  Noah insisted that I have a pig because all farms have pigs!  So we lovingly call it our 'kosher pig'.

 Nathanael made sure I had a dog.  I added the lambs this year.

 I also added camels for the Wise men this year.  They are just plain camels with no trappings but we pretend that all of that was taken off to get to the gifts.  If you notice - the camels have legs (my daughters know this is important).  This is an odd angle because of where they sat in my window.  I couldn't get a decent shot.  At least you get the idea.  As an afterthought I added a picture of the shawl I did for the Boston Temple below.  It has a picot edge.  I didn't know how to do that when I made Heidi's shawl.  

Birthdays and Anniversary in December

 I spent December dedicating my blog to Christmas.  Here are some Birthdays that were neglected because of that.  On December 1, Heidi had her birthday. I knitted her a shawl.  The above picture is the shawl all spread out.  It is an ecru color so it goes with everything.

 The above picture is the dishcloths and the hat plus the shawl that were Heidi's birthday present.

On December 29 was Carlye's birthday.  She turned 12.  She is my oldest grandchild and oldest granddaughter.  Here is a picture of her with Bella, Evie and Dane from last summer.

On December 29, Clyde and I celebrated 40 years of marriage.  It snowed so hard that we couldn't go out to celebrate but it did remind us of our actual wedding day.  We had a fun evening together and are so grateful that we have been on this journey together - good times and bad.  We spent the evening preparing our Primary lesson and working on our mission papers.

Ring Out, Wild Bells

This hymn marks the joy and resolve of a new year.

It was written by Alfred Tennyson when his dear friend, the gifted Arthur H. Hallam died at the age of 22.  Tennyson worked through his grief by writing a series of poems called In Memoriam. "Ring Out, Wild Bells" is one of the poems from this long work.

Crawford Gates had loved the poem "Ring Out, Wild Bells" from childhood.  His aunt had read the works of Tennyson to him and he loved them.  He loved the line "Ring in the Christ that is to be" because it asks us to rise to the full stature of Christ within ourselves.

Ring out, wild bells, to the wild sky,
The flying cloud the frosty light.
The year is dying in the night,
Ring out, wild bells and let him die.

Ring out the old; ring in the new.
Ring happy bells across the snow.
The year is going, let him go
Ring out the false, ring in the true.

Ring in the valiant men and free.
The larger heart, the kindlier hand,
Ring out the darkness of the land;
Ring in the Christ that is to be.

{For those of you that have a book on the history of LDS hymns - there is much more on this hymn.}