The Davies Family

Shoe Shine Time : A Reflection of my Dad

2011-07-01T21:05:00.000-07:00

I was frustrated and angry. My younger brother who had been living nearby had decided last minute to move to a different state. He left me a note saying that everything he did not want he had put in my shed and that most of it was just a bunch of trash. I was in no mood to go through a messy shed and a bunch of boxes full of junk. I had just had my third child via C-section two weeks earlier and was still in a bit of pain, but the anger I felt out weighed the pain and I wanted a clean shed again. I grudgingly walked out to the shed and started going through the boxes. He was right it was just a bunch of trash.
As I pulled the next box that needed cleaned closer to me I noticed it was full of a bunch of plastic Wal-Mart bags and crumbled papers, but in the corner of the box there was a small Kiwi shoe polish bag sticking out. I grabbed the bag a little too eagerly. It was my Father’s shoe polish bag and I remembered it well all though I had not seen it in many years. Four years before, my father had passed away suddenly from a brain tumor, we had no idea was there until it was too late. I missed him. I had a few pictures of him, but nothing that was once his. I anxiously opened the bag and took out a polish tin. I opened the tin and sniffed the polish. It was the smell I remembered; My Father’s smell. Emotions and memories flooded my mind as I held that little shoe polish tin. I started pulling out all of the contents of the bag; another polish tin, two wooden brushes (one to apply the polish, the other to shine the shoes), a rag, and some ultra-brilliant shine spray. I remembered sitting next to my Dad watching him polish his military boots before he headed to work. I was only five or six years old at the time but I can still remember the conversations we had while sitting there on the floor of that old Air Force base kitchen.
I think the best memories I have of him are of all the times we sat and talked together. He was a good man and very wise, but he did not think so. Humility was his greatest attribute. During shoeshine time, he would tell me stories of his family who lived across the country, Stories on how his grandparents came here to the United States from Hungry. I remember his smile and laugh when he would tell me about his brothers and the goofy, boyish, pranks they would play when they were kids. However, shoeshine time was not just meant for fun conversation it was also the time my dad would lecture me on how to be nicer to my siblings. Dad was a religious man and had a scripture for everything even when it came to arguing. There was more than one occasion were he pulled out the same scripture for me to read and asked me what I thought it meant and then would discuss the consequences if I did not change my behavior towards my brother and sister. I memorized that scripture just by how often I had to read it to him. After several years, I think it finally clicked and I found my self no longer reciting it.
As I grew older, I would no longer sit and talk with my dad as he polished his shoes instead, our whole family would go out on the front porch in the evenings and just sit and talk about anything. I loved listening to the kindness in my father’s voice as he talked to us kids and I appreciated the way he intently listened to our teenage questions and ranting. He was patient in that way. I often wonder if I will have his listening quality towards my own children as they grow up. I was lucky to have that in my life; our conversations and his advice helped me deal with the struggles of everyday adolescent and teenage years. His stories kept me interested in my family, different cultures, religion and education.
Perhaps I was silly to have all of these feelings from just finding a simple, old shoe polish kit. Perhaps I was just being emotional; after all, that was perfectly normal considering my physical state. However, the fact still stands that that shoe polish kit is still very important to me. I keep it safe on the top shelf of my closet where I am able to find it easily whenever I want to remember those precious childhood memories of my father. I often think that finding that shoe polish kit was symbolic for my life. While my father polished his shoes, he was also polishing me, my life and my values. I felt sad that my brother had discarded such a sentimental item. I wondered if He had something else of my father’s that he cherished. Whatever the reason was, finding that old kit changed my mood that day, just the same way our conversations from the past would. The anger I had felt earlier disappeared into gratitude towards my father. Because of those memories I was no longer upset with my brother, which is what my father would have wanted. He was polishing me that day, just as he had done in the past.

Latest project

2010-08-22T15:06:00.000-07:00

Why buy new furniture when you can paint your old stuff? I was pretty excited about this and loved how all my Living room furniture turned out. Maybe I should paint my kitchen cabnets! Just a thought :) I love paint!

Vernal

2010-08-22T14:54:00.000-07:00

We've had a little more time to burn lately since we've had these few weeks off school. It's been really nice. So we went to Vernal to see Eric' sister Lindsay and her cute family. We had a blast during the short time we were there. The kids loved playing with there cousins. We went swimming, sand railing, and ate the best hamburgers ever! Lindsay is one awesome cook! I'm not a big meat eater, but those hamburgers were amazing!Thank for having us out, you guys! Love your guts :)

LASIK

2010-08-22T14:25:00.000-07:00

A few weeks back I had Lasik surgery done on my eyes and they're doing great. Those first few nights I had to wear some goggles to protect my eyes. Brockie found them and thought they were pretty cool. I just had to take a picture....He's just so cute!

Abby and Eliza's luau birthday party

2010-08-22T14:09:00.000-07:00

This birthday party was a lot of fun. The girls just love the Lilo and Stitch movie and so I wanted to do a party for them centered around that theme. So we did a luau and since their birthdays are so close to each other we combined them, which was also was a lot of fun. We had a pinata (I know, that's not Hawaiian!),played Hawaiian music, Ate pizza (also not Hawaiian),Sand Castle birthday cake and ice cream. It was a good time :)

Bear Lake and Soda spring geyser

2010-08-22T13:48:00.000-07:00

We went camping in Idaho with Eric's family. We went to Bear lake and and then we went and saw the Soda spring geyser. We had a great time and really had a blast at Bear lake. The kids were so cute and loved every minute we were there.
We were also very excited about the geyser....until we got there and found out it was a man-made geyser (lamo) But, I guess the history behind it is acctually pretty interesting. Some pioneers were drilling for a hot water spring that they were hoping to use insted they found a cold water spring.So, It was still fun and still looked way cool.
It was really our first offical time takeing the kids camping and I think it went well...they really seemed to like it. We are looking forward to taking them camping again next summer.

Summer vacation in Idaho

2010-08-22T13:42:00.000-07:00

For a few days in July we went and visited my parents, sister, brother in-law and got to meet my new nephew in Idaho. We had a great time Going to the cabin, playing games,4-wheeling, boating/tubing and of coarse, chasing the chickens:) Enjoy the pics! They make me laugh every time I see them!

Preschool Graduation

2010-08-20T10:03:00.000-07:00

So, this isn't a very good picture, but it's of Abby getting her certificate from her teacher. She really had such a great few moths in this class and she just loved her teachers. We started at the very beginning of the school year in a private preschool and that didn't work out so well so by January we had her enrolled in a public school preschool. She was able to get all the help she needed. By May she had just excelled by leaps and bounds. She can even read a bit on her own. Thank you, Miss Jessy and www.starfall.com! Is it silly if I got a little teary eyed at the Graduation? I'm so proud of her!

Random Spring Fun

2010-08-19T14:27:00.000-07:00

This spring was a difficult one. We really couldn't play out side all that much because it was so rainy and cold pretty much every day. But we found some things to entertain ourselves, like going to the Air and space museum on Hill AFB. The kids love that place! We need to go back.

Brockie's 1st Birthday :)

2010-08-19T13:52:00.000-07:00

Everyone should read...

2009-08-09T14:39:00.000-07:00

...This book! I bought this on CD and I'm loving every minute of it! What an eye opener for the current situation our county is in. I don't have much time to talk about the whole book, but if you are worried about our country and the kind of care our so called public servants are giving it, then READ THIS BOOK!

Happy Birthday Eliza! You're 2!

2009-07-11T17:25:00.000-07:00

Cute pics of the kids

2009-06-04T22:17:00.001-07:00

Long time no posting.

2009-05-31T18:49:00.000-07:00

So, I am not very good at posting all of the time. It feels like life gets so busy and I forget that I even have a blog.
Since my last post we put our house up for sale; hoping to find a newer home with 3 bedrooms on the same floor and a 2 car garage. This in and of it's self is time consuming! I never realized just how hard it would be to keep my home clean all of the time with three kids. I find myself freaking out about the littlest things, like marshmallows smashed into the carpet, jello and yogurt finger marks along the wall going to the bathroom, or food on the ceiling.(I don't know how it got there!)My husband thinks I'm a basket case! Sorry, Hun! I hope we'll sell it soon.
Anyway, along with this is the everyday living. We are enjoying the time we have with our kids. It's fun to watch them grow. Abby and Eliza just adore Brock and like to hold him all of the time. They are just such sweet kids! So on that note, here are some pics of the kiddos.

Brock's blessing day

2009-05-07T11:47:00.000-07:00

We had such a nice time last sunday with some of our family and friends at Brock's blessing. He is such a little sweet heart. These are just a few pics. My mother-in law made the cake and his little blessing outfit. Aren't they just adorable?!?!

Brock Steven Davies

2009-04-13T09:44:00.000-07:00

We had our baby boy! He weighed 8 pounds 11 ounces and was 20 1/2 inches long. He is such a sweet little guy and brings so much joy to our family. We just love him!

In memory of my Dad

2009-03-12T12:10:00.000-07:00

The 13th marked 4 years since my dad passed away. I don't mean to sound depressing at all, I just want to share some memories of my dad that I've been pondering on this last week. For all those that knew him, knew what a good man he was. He was a gentile giant; always kind, quick to help someone in need, would never say a mean thing about anyone, and loved his family.

I was talking to my grandmother the other day and she told me that Aaron, Sierra and I were my dad's life. That he loved us and was always so proud of us and that when he talked about us he always had a light in his eyes. I am so lucky to have been raised by someone who loved me so much.
I remember when I was engaged my parents threw an engagement party for me and Eric. After everyone left my dad pulled me aside and just wanted to talk. We walked into the field on the side of our house, it was muddy and I was in heels so he gave me a piggy back ride. He told me that he still saw me as a kid in pig tails and couldn't believe I was getting married. Then with tears in his eyes told me I would always be his little girl.

Another memory I had was when I was first pregnant with Abby. I was sick a lot. My dad was not much of a phone talker, but he called me all of the time then because he was worried. Then would tell me he was happy to be a grandpa soon. He never saw Abby, he passed away when I was 4 months along with her, but he set such a good example of what I wanted to be like with my kids.

He was really pretty cool if you ever got to talk to him you would understand. He was well traveled, very intelligent(He actually liked math!), competed in power lifting a lot in his younger years and did extremely well, and was still so humble and meek about everything. He wasn't a boaster.
I have so many more memories of him, these are just some things that happened not long before he died. I could spend hours and hours talking about him.
I am so grateful to have such a wonderful dad.To me he set the perfect example of love, humility, sacrifice, love of learning, love for our Savior Jesus Christ, and love for his family.
I love you, Dad.

Brock's room

2009-03-03T17:57:00.000-08:00

The date is set!

2009-03-03T16:03:00.000-08:00

We will be having our baby boy on April 8th at 1:00 pm. I am so excited! Not much longer to go, but I still have so much to do. Guess I better get in gear :)

My little Angels

2009-02-20T10:40:00.000-08:00

Last night Eliza slept in her big girl bed for the first time. I wasn't sure how it was going to work out, but it went very well. She only got out of bed once and what she did was pretty cute. It was about 2:00 am and I heard a loud thud and then heard Eliza cry just a little. I ran upstairs to see if she was okay and expected to see her on the floor asleep, playing with toys or just walking around. When I didn't see her doing any of these things I started to worry, I couldn't find her. Then I saw her. She was snuggled up next to Abby in her bed. How sweet is that?!?!

Sometimes the things my girls do or say take me off guard and really surprised me.

Last month Abby said something that touched me. For several weeks before my mom got married I had been trying to explain to her that she was going to have two Grandpas on my side of the family. I would tell her that Grandpa Bryon lives on a farm and that Grammie was going to go live with him and that Grandpa Dave use to work on the Airplanes we live next to on Hill AFB, but that he his in Heaven right now. I was pretty sure she understood that because She would point to the picture of my dad and tell me that he worked on planes. Then one day I was getting her dressed and out of the blue she said "Baby brother with Grandpa Dave." I was quite for a minute because I got a little teary eyed, I was so surprised that she understood more than I had thought.

I am so blessed to be able to have these sweet little ones in my life. They are so close to heaven, so innocent, so loving. I learn more from them than they do from me.

Mom's wedding

2009-02-14T19:35:00.001-08:00

Here are just a few pics from my Mom's wedding. It turned out to be such a wonderful day. I am so happy for her and just love Bryon and his family.

Some awesome news!

2009-01-25T15:40:00.000-08:00

My sister is engaged! She was proposed to yesterday by an old missionary companion of my husbands. Cool, huh? His name is David Robinson. Congrats you guys and welcome to the family, Dave! We are so happy for you guys and Love you too :)

Going private

2009-01-20T21:31:00.000-08:00

Hey, I've decided to go private. So if you want to keep in touch post a comment w/ your e-mail address.

My girls

2009-01-20T06:36:00.000-08:00

7 months prego pics

2009-01-20T06:29:00.001-08:00

I normally don't like to have pics taken of me while I'm prego, But I figure I should get over it. It is after all a beautiful part of life even if I feel as large as an elephant and walk like a penguin. HAHAHA

Marijuana Bust

2009-01-16T07:49:00.001-08:00

This is just a cool pic of Eric with some members of his crew.
They pulled a guy over and this is what they found. That's a lot of Marijuana!

Pluming Victory

2009-01-15T12:47:00.000-08:00

So we have been having some pluming problems with our kitchen sink and bathtub faucet. My in-laws got us a really nice kitchen sink faucet for Christmas and installed it on Monday.(Thanks you guys! We love ya!) Since then Eric has been on a roll. Him and is dad fixed the bathtub and then last night Eric redid the kitchen sink by adding a dish disposal and hopes to put in a dishwasher soon. Might I add that he did all this without getting upset! Everything went smooth! I am so proud of him! Now all the pluming issues are gone! What is cute is to see his little victory dance when he's finished with his projects. Good job, Hunny! What a man!

100 days!!!

2008-12-28T18:32:00.000-08:00

Okay, I am now in the hundred day mark of this pregnancy. I remember my sister in-law putting up a similar post on her blog when she hit this mark and she will be having her baby in a month. (so exciting!) So, posting something like this seems to help the prego days go faster:) All in all this has been a very good pregnancy so far. I haven't gained much wait, no swelling, I really never got sick, and little Cal is doing great, kicking like crazy and measuring larger that expected. It seemed like over night my belly popped out, so my back is sore, but other than that everything is great! I'm hoping the next 3 months will be good too. I am so excited to see this little one :)

Pic

2008-12-28T18:20:00.000-08:00

So, this is my mom's fiance, Bryon. He is such a great guy. We are so happy for my mom and to have Bryon part of the family. They will be getting married on February 7th.

This is one of their engagement pics I thought was so cute. Isn't my mom beautiful ?!?! I hope I look that great when I'm in my 40's !

One awesome weekend!

2008-12-14T16:38:00.000-08:00

Eric and I have really enjoyed the last few days. Some good friends of ours were baptized and confirmed this weekend. Along with some other good friends we were able to attend the discussions with them. They were golden from the beginning and it has been so wonderful to be with them and support them though this new and exciting time. I enjoyed seeing their faces all bright and happy. It was all in all an awesome experience! We love you guys!
Also, most of you know that my father passed away almost 4 years ago and has been very hard on the family especially my mom. We love and miss him so much. But, my mom has been dating a wonderful man from Idaho who has also been widowed for some time too. We just love him. He is so sweet to my mom. And they make a great couple. Anyway, They are now engaged and will be getting married sometime early February. I couldn't be happier for them. Love you guys, too:)
We are just so happy for these couples and excited to see what the future will bring for them. Congrats you guys!

Making our gingerbread house

2008-12-03T09:32:00.000-08:00

I have the cutest little girls!

2008-11-28T19:36:00.001-08:00

Abby loves eating snow!

Eliza has the sweetest smile!

Eric's Family Tradition

2008-11-28T19:18:00.000-08:00

Every year the day after Thanksgiving Eric's family likes to go up to Idaho to cut down Christmas trees. This has been a fun tradition we've enjoyed. The hard part is trying to find a tree that doesn't look like something off of Charlie Brown. But, being in the mountains with the kids, seeing them play and enjoy trying to find a tree is a lot of fun and makes it well worth it. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for a great time and for starting such a fun tradition!

A Thanksgiving recipe

2008-11-22T14:08:00.000-08:00

This Pecan pie recipe is a family favorite I grew up with and it makes me pretty happy my husband loves it too. Enjoy!

Pie crust ingredients:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup cold butter

3 to 4 tablespoons cold water

Filling Ingredients:

1 cup light corn syrup

1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

3 eggs

2 tablespoons butter, melted

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 (4 ounce) package (1 cup) pecan halves

Instructions:

Heat oven to 375* F. Combine flour and salt in large brown; cut in butter with fork until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. stir in enough water just until flour is moist. Shape into ball.

Roll out dough on lightly floured surface into 12 inch circle. Fold into quarters. place into 9 inch pie pan; unfold, pressing firmly against bottom and sides. trim crust; Crimp or flute edge. Set aside.

Combine corn syrup, brown sugar, eggs, butter, vanilla and salt in small bowl. beat speed, scraping bowl often, until well mixed. stir in pecans by hand.

pour into crust. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes until center is set. Cool completely.

Serve with whipped cream or ( my favorite) french vanilla ice cream.

2008-11-14T20:18:00.000-08:00

This came from my friend's blog. I just love the way she put this. I had to laugh! Everyone should check out her blog. just click on moms for america on my blog roll and it will take you there. Anyway, here is what she wrote:

Friday, November 14, 2008

Change of mind
So I decided to change my mind about Obama...i mean how could you not like him!Gone are the days of personal responsibility; with an Obama Nation it is okay to make mistakes, His Government has promised to take on the consequences. My husband and I realized that with all the great promises Obama has made, we will always be okay in our financial situation...even better! I mean we can go buy a 400,000 dollar dream home, a 60,000 dollar dream car and even though we can't afford this, it is okay b/c according to Obama, not only will we be bailed out but we deserve this and guess what the GOVERNMENT will pay for our financial disaster!!We also will get FREE healthcare...EVERYONE will get FREE healthcare...isn't that so awesome!! (althought, in the wee dark hours of the night, i wonder where exactly this money will be coming from...gee i sure hope not from our hard earn money, b/c then it would not exactly be free...)Our country's economic system will improve not just for us but especially for our children; with his plan to slowly abolish a free market system by allowing government to control everything, just make sooo much sense...I mean just look at how well our government has been able to accomplish things in the past (can't wait to see what they do to our healthcare)!!This whole thing about redistribution of the wealth, it sure does not take a genius to figure out how this will CREATE more money for the middle class and our troubled economy...No more terrorism and wars to trouble our country with; I hear from all of Obama's community organizing events, he has become quite an extraordinary negotiator.He is also a pretty popular man these days, as it seems every celebrity in our high moral society of Hollywood has adamantly endorsed him.Lastly, he is really someone for everyone; he is muslim, christian (probably catholic as well), white, black...(ann coultar, talks more on this).So please ignore those silly conservatives...They will tell you he is just a puppet to the secular progressives-he is now at there bidding....they will tell you that he is one of the most liberal voting senators in Washington, they will also tell you that he has ties with some pretty bad people...just ignore these lies, and just be complacent to the change that will slowly take place in these next 4 years.

I just love your blog, Cami! Keep up the good work!

Happy Anniversary!

2008-11-08T06:25:00.000-08:00

Sunday will be our 4 year anniversary. It didn't take long after we first met to realize that we wanted to be married for time and all eternity. We were married only 3 months after our first date. It amazes me how fast the time has flown by. It feels like we were married just yesterday, but still amazing how many things can be accomplished in that amount of time. We have 2 beautiful little girls and a baby boy on the way, Eric has a good career so I can stay at home with our kids, and we have experienced so many things together that have been both challenging and enjoyable. I am so blessed to be married to such a wonderful man. He is so patient and sweet to me (especially while I'm prego) , our girls and to everyone in my family. I am so blessed to have him in my life. His smile and goofy sense of humor brightens my day. I couldn't have asked for a better best friend and eternal sweetheart. I love you, hunny.

Halloween Fun

2008-11-01T16:43:00.000-07:00

So cute in their costumes.

A festive dinner. ( Chili in a carved out pumpkin.)

A spooky lunch Eliza just can't wait to eat.

This was an idea I found in a parenting magazine I thought would be fun to try. Gummy worm jello, hootwiches, and scary tomato eyes w/ veggie dip. Yum! Doesn't it just sound so delicious?!?! The gummy worm jello was actually pretty gross, but the hootwiches were a hit!

A day at the fair.

2008-11-01T16:21:00.000-07:00

Okay, so the fair was a month or so ago. But I couldn't find the USB cord to my camera till now. I just thought these pics were to cute to pass up.

Gotta get a pic with the UHP car.

"Come on Mom, another pic!?!?!"

Abby just loves horses.

Gotta love those quotes

2008-10-29T19:46:00.000-07:00

"I fear for the future when ...

*The Central government owns more than one-third of the total land area within the boundaries of the fifty states. (Now owns 60%)

*When the Central government owns and operates more than 3,000 businesses and commercial activities in competition with it's own private citizens. (Now owns 10,000)

*When the functions of the federal government are carried on by 2,000 major operating units. (Now 6,000)

*When the Federal Government directly lends $1 for every $5 lent by private banks. (Now $3 and keep the bail out in mind)

*When in 1913-15 a couple making $10,000 paid in federal taxes $60, but in 1956 a couple earning $10,000 paid $1590 in federal taxes. (Now $4,000 for every $10,000)

*When 25 years ago the Federal government received 1/4 of all taxes collected in the United states. Today the government collects 68% of all our taxes. (Now 88%)

*When 25 years ago federal, state and local government took 14% of national income. Today 35% (Now 65%)

*When I see an affluent but complacent citizenry paying little or no attention to these and many other socialistic trends in America. "

~ Ezra T. Benson

Just another quote I found interesting. I just love Pres. Benson. Keep in mind that He was the Secretary of Agriculture at one time.

Just so Happy!

2008-10-29T08:17:00.000-07:00

So, I am now 17 weeks along so far. This is a pic of a baby at the 17 week mark. It's very interesting. All he needs to do now is get bigger.We are so excited to have this new baby. Some friends of ours gave us a bunch of cute baby boy clothes the other day. ( Thank you so much you guys! ) I had so much fun looking at them, washing them and putting them away. It is so fun how everyone in our family is so excited for this little on. Abby is so cute when she talks about her new baby brother and Eliza just loves babies. She always has a baby doll with her.The happiness and excitement a new baby can bring is just so much fun :)

Politically Involved

2008-10-28T13:40:00.000-07:00

If you couldn't tell, I have been very politically minded lately. (hmmm I wonder why?!?! Note the sarcasm.) Anyway, Politics have been a big topic in our house lately. Here are some quotes and topics we have been discussing.

"Like every other form of state directed activity in the Soviet Union, education is conceived as a weapon serving the interests of the communist party, and dedicated to a single objective-the victory of the Soviet System."
~Khruschev

"Give me a child for 8 years and it will be a Bolshevist forever."
~ Lenin

"Free education for all children in public schools."
~Tenth plank of the Communist manifesto by Karl Marx

"Could the education system in America be used for similar purposes? Once that system is consolidated into one central source of authority, finance and direction, it is entirely possible... there is absolutely nothing in the Constitution which authorized the Federal government to enter into the field of education."
~ Ezra T. Benson

So, for those of you that like Obama because he wants "universal preschool and college education" rethink weather it is Constitutional or not. And just how much of YOUR power you are willing to give to the Federal government.

I will be listing more soon, I just ran out of time.

Another quote :)

2008-10-26T22:27:00.000-07:00

" Even small changes made in the name of "progress" might under mind Constitutional liberties."
~ Elder Levi Edgar Young

Political thought for the day

2008-10-25T14:18:00.000-07:00

"We must never forget that nations may-and usually do-sow the seeds of their own destruction while enjoying unprecedented prosperity. If we lose our freedom, it will be because we did not care enough-because we were not alert enough-because we were too apathetic to take note while the precious waters of our god-given freedom slipped-drop by drop down the drain."

~Pres. Ezra Taft Benson

Baby Brock

2008-10-24T19:28:00.000-07:00

It's a BOY!

2008-10-24T19:05:00.001-07:00

We are just so excited lately. We are having a little boy. I am a little more prego than I thought so he will be born more around the end of March beginning of April. Eric and I have had a boy name picked out forever. So, his name will be......(drum roll please) Brock Marshall Davies. We love this name! It's just so masculine. So, here are some pics from the ultra sound. (Thank you Lindsay for the great idea!) It's just so cute :)