Happy 31st Birthday, Jonathan!

One of the things we like about you is your kindness to children. This picture is of you and Camryn around 2002. This picture shows your countenance as we see it. We like that you never met a stranger, like your maternal great-great-grandfather, Hoken, and your paternal great grandfather, Basil. You can meet friends wherever you go. We like that you are confident, kind, caring, and cute. An alliteration, since alliterations are sounds, not letters according to Wiki. We like how you are so helpful to others, fixing things for people, going the second mile for them (the neighbors, and old ladies, and old neighbor ladies, and people with English language questions where you make their cell phones work, and your installing things and fixing of things).

Good luck with your studies, we are rooting for you! We hope you like the snow right now.

We love you.

Congratulations, Elijah!

Elijah was baptized on September 11, 2010. Congratulations!

Randomness, Part 2

How are these for random pictures? Since I never have had time to organize pictures, I'm lucky to even have them in picture albums of any kind, let alone scrapbooking--now that is a time-consuming hobby that I'm very proud of all you hobbyists who can take the time and have the talent to do it--I figured that if I'm ever going to get anything up on this blog it will have to be random. I think (a nameless relative) calls the Norlunds all or nothing kind of people. Since all is now out of the question, this is just short of nothing. But better than nothing, right?

So here goes: Above is a picture of Cami and Patti at a Hannah Montana concert at Stadium of Fire in July 2008. Marty and I went, too, but I get to choose the pictures. :) It was a very hard thing to get tickets (thanks to Steve, who made it possible). The memories are that it was a lot more fun than we would have thought. The stairs were very tiring, and the crowds were overwhelming. It took us way too long to get there because of the one road into Provo from Salt Lake.

The next picture above that is Marty in July 2008, just for posterity sake (by the way, all of these pictures are July 2008 in Utah).

Above that (can you tell I'm not good at arranging pictures in this blogosphere? ) is a cute picture of Lily at Joe's Crab Shack--no, no, wait, that's McDonald's.

Then comes Sam in a pool that Mark and Beverly and family dug for them for the summer in their back yard. Cute pool! And then one of Sam being generally cuddly and loveable.

Last is Lily in her smocked July 4 dress. No, I didn't smock this one, I saw it on clearance at a kid's store in the mall in Salt Lake, now what's the name of that mall--had to look it up--Trolley Square. We had the kids, Lily was sleeping, so we took turns staying in the car with her. Sam liked outside best.

More randomness later.

School is In...

I'ts time for our Latin phrase(s) of the week: Today's phrases are taken because it is graduation time.
Congratulations to the seven plus Clifts who graduated or are graduating this semester: Kristin Clift, Jennifer Shaw, Ryan Shaw, Alan Clift, Melissa Aurich, Sarah Clift, BYU friend Karma Kerr, gradeschool friend, Courtney Innes, high school cousin, Darren Clift, and CNAs Aubre Norlund and Amber Norlund.
So we have three Latin phrases in honor of our graduates.
First is: • Summa cum laude--adverb or adjective [literally, "with highest praise"] with highest distinction.
Next is: • Magna cum laude--adverb or adjective [literally, with great praise] with great distinction.
And, of course, • cum laude--"with honor" (direct translation: "with praise").
Good luck to all of you Clift family and friends graduates and remember to "carpe diem" (car pay DEE uhm), [Latin], “Seize the day”; (enjoy or make the most of right now). Have a wonderful week!

Flashback Friday

Danielle and Steven Andreasen (niece and nephew) have a GREAT idea on their blog--Flashback Friday. I think I'll use their idea on our blog, too. A picture and a memory posted on a Friday. Thanks for the idea, Dani! Love you, Auntie Peggy.

I'll start with our wedding day. A random memory I have from that day is that my mouth muscles hurt from smiling so much. The ceremony was sweet, the reception was at my mom and dad's house in the desert (they had a big house that included an indoor patio with a waterfall).














One of Marty's random thoughts about the day was when the temple sealer grabbed our hands, he had grabbed Marty's hand in such a way that it squished his ring into his fingers. It was JUST KILLING him. It was hard to listen in all that pain!

Marty made the decorations--he's artistic, as well as engineerish--and it was good to see so many friends/relatives. The receiving line was in the living room, and dancing was in the family room and into the indoor patio. Marty made our cake stand. Sister Eyre made the cake for us.

Sister Wilcox (in the green dress) got everything ready while we were at the temple (4 hours south). My mom made my dress. My veil and shoes and the cake topper were from her wedding in 1954. The bridesmaids' dresses and flowers were from Patti's wedding.






















My brothers, Carl and Ken, and Sister Bullock made up a combo of accordion, drums and organ. Thinking about that combination of instruments seems like it would be awful, but the music was very, very good. Kind of like a cruise ship jazz band.






















My new sisters in law sang us "More Than the Greatest Love," which was "our song."  That is my Great Aunt Norma sitting down next to my dad. And from left: Louise Clift, Annette Clift, Christine Aurich, Maurine Nuttall, Juleen Clift.

Below is a picture of us reading our cards and looking at our presents. One thing I would change is that someone else opened our presents. Cards got lost (even though Sister Mortensen had a great 3x5 card system to keep track of these things) and thank you cards were never sent to a percentage of people. Now I always suggest the wedding couple open their own gifts, and when working a present table at a reception I bring scotch tape to make SURE the card is securely taped to the gift. My son Jon and his wife, Michelle, took a picture of themselves opening every single present for extra memories. So thanks 32 years late for your wedding gifts. :)

Our car was VERY decorated, including it being filled with newspaper, and the horn was tied to the lights (we were asked if we were okay by the police when we were at the side of the road later, turning off the horn. We had to explain that it was our wedding day and what someone had done. The officer congratulated us and went on his way.) Marty remembers when he locked up the car after the temple it wasn't fully latched. He never dreamed that "people" would take advantage. We thought about decorations on the outside, but surely not a car FILLED with newspapers. (And by the way, our car was already packed to go to BYU the next day.) He thought he was sneaky enough to hide the car in the garage. No luck.

We stayed in a hotel in town our first night, and the next year we went back there for our anniversary. But our visit was shortened by the lumber yard right next door (yes, I mean RIGHT next door) burning down in the middle of the night. It was lumber, it was huge, and we had to go.