My parents at Kristi and Mario's wedding at Wolf Lakes. Summer 2008
Hawaii May 2008
3 years ago yesterday Dad and Nedra were sealed for time and all eternity in the Fresno Temple. Blaine Thomas was their sealer. It was a VERY special day and nothing short of a MIRACLE! As many of you know my real mom and Dad have been divorced. Unfortunately Dad suffered a broken heart a couple times before meeting Nedra. Since meeting her he is happier then I've EVER known him to be. They are the happiest couple I have ever met. I truly believe Nedra is my Dad's reward for sacrificing so much for us as our father. I don't know of any other couple that appreciates and loves eachother more then they do. I couldn't have imagined a life for my Dad as good as his reality. They deserve every bit of the love they share. I LOVE you both and I'm so grateful to be on the receiving end of the blessings given to those with happily married parents! I believe in happy endings!
This is a side story that I was tempted to write about earlier but shied away from posting it because it might seem to insignificant to many of you. It was definitely not insignificant to me. I got a call a few weeks back from Dad and Nedra. (When ever we have a phone conversation usually Dad AND Nedra are on the phone. Because of Dad's hearing loss he uses speaker phone. I think it's cute and it always seems to be really convenient too.) Dad said that he and Nedra were talking and Nedra said she wanted to take me shopping and to get some clothes for my kids for school. I said she didn't need to do that....Dad interrupted me and said "If Nedra wants to take you shopping you LET her take you shopping. When would be a good time for you?" Who am I to sass? We went shopping that very night as soon as Paul got home from work. First Dad dropped Nedra and I off at Hancock Fabrick because they were having a sale on patterns. (Nedra is going to start giving me sewing lessons in October). While we were there Garth and Barbara stopped by and invited us to go to dinner. As soon as Dad returned e all went to Applebees, then off to Old Navy then to the Sierra Vista Mall. Barbara (my sister-in-law) joined us. It was a lot of fun. We found a jacket for Cannon, shirts for my girls to wear in family pics this fall, and a jet shirt and pants for my baby Jet. Nedra also grabbed a few outfits for Logan (one of my nephews). After all that Nedra said we should look for a shirt for me to wear in the pictures. While I was trying a shirt on she scanned the store for more options for me. She found a perfect ribbed, cream, 3/4 sleeve, V neck. I was totally spoiled!
My point is this.... When I was growing up my friends would be wearing a cute new something...I'd compliment them and they would tell me their Mom got it for them or they went shopping with their mom. That sounded so great to me and I just looked forward to being that kind of mom someday. I didn't realize I'd someday be on the receiving end of a mothers love in that way. I'm tearing up a little while I type this. I WENT SHOPPING WITH MY MOM TOO. Nedra has done many grander things for me before. To name a couple of them....taking me to Womens Conference, Hawaii, and a few more I am sworn to secrecy for. (Sometimes my parents will do something for us and tell us we aren't allowed to let our siblings know. We don't tell but we joke that we all have our secrets that are between us and Dad and Nedra. It's equal, I'm sure, just gifts given in different ways, at different times, spread out between the 8 (Nedra has 1 of her own) of us. Honestly, they probably can't remember half of their "secrets" or keep track of them at all.) Anyway, for some reason the shopping trip meant a lot to me. What ever trails I went through growing up I consider it to be worth it. I KNOW how good it is to have Nedra, not just in my Dad's life, but in my life. She has taken us all under her wing and is a perfect mother and grandmother for our family! I can honestly say I wouldn't change a thing about the way life went because of the way life has worked out for the Zambrana's! There isn't a single one of the 7 of us that doesn't completely love and adore Nedra!
This post has ended up much longer then I intended it to be. To sum up my thoughts....Congratulations to my parents for their 3rd anniversary of being sealed in the temple! I love you! Thanks for all the HUGE and seemingly little (but HUGE in my heart) things you do for me. You're a piece of heaven on Earth.
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Happy Endings or shall I say Happlily Ever After......
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
12 comments:
I love Aunt Nedra too! She is amazing! I believe she is happy with your Dad too! What a wonderful thing marriage in the temple is!
I'm grateful for temple marriges too!! It's seriously such a blessing!!! You guys are awesome, you always look so happy and beautiful!!
Krista, that is so sweet! I could not read that without tears flowing. I love Dad and Nedra too and I am so thankful to them for the ancors they are in our lives and the rocks they are for the Zambrana clan (Charles included)! It is a wonderful blessing to have them as parents and grandparents to our children.
Wow...this post just leaves me in awe. I'm feeling so many different things. In regard to your parents...if we only knew sometimes what is around the corner, huh? In regard to you...I thought of you as a little girl not having a Mom to take you shopping...and how it must have felt to know other little girls were having that experience. Such simple things the rest of us take for granted. Then I think of who you are today and I see the work of a loving Heavenly Father. I see this very strong and loving woman who is continually reaching out to others to give of yourself. What a autobiography you could already write! I hope you do someday, if you haven't already, write down your story. Then when your children are older they will appreciate you even that much more than I'm sure they already will.
I told you that during my Mom's funeral I thought much about you. She came from a mother who gave her a horrendous childhood, yet she was strong and determined not to repeat the mistakes of her mother. Because of my grandmother's determination she gave my mother a very loving childhood, and the rest of us have benefited for generations. All because of what my grandmother did to turn things around.
You so deserve all the happiness you have in your life now.
What a wonderful post! I had to read every word it was just so sweet. Sometimes things don't happen the way we planned them to, but sometimes they are even better than we plan on! What a wonderful woman Nedra sounds like. What happened to your biological mother?
My mom lives in Kerman. I don't talk with her much. I don't hate her either....so don't think that...but we aren't close.
Amen to everything you said in that post. Nedra is probably the best thing that happened to dad and all of us. I am so grateful to have her as a mom.
its true, i love aunt nedra sooooo much!! we are all sooooooo lucky!! don't we have like the coolest family in the world?? its true.
ok, so about the room thing: sounds pretty sweet. im saving up to get my own car for now. it may be a bit before moving out becomes a viable option. BUT, when it does, you will hear about it i am sure. thanks though!
This is so sweet. Congratulations to them on three wonderful years and I am glad that you got spoiled a little bit too. You do such a great job about being a great mom, you deserve some of it back. What a fun, wonderful evening and I am sure it will be a fun memory forever.
P.S. Now I can't wait to see your family pictures in the fall!
Everybody knows how fantastic the Gage family is...how smart of you to join it! :) Nedra is a special spirit and a true blessing to many of us.
That's beautiful! I love everything you said about Nedra and how you felt shopping with her. Everyone deserves a Mom that adores them. I think she is fantastic, too - I love your parents! Congrats to them on the anniversary of their sealing.
very sweet tribute. it really is fun to see them together. they are adorable. i'm so happy for all of you! :)
Post a Comment