What an Easter!

Easter is such a special time for so many reasons of course.
This year the LDS church put out a beautiful video reminder of the most important reason.

There is also another thing that I think about every Easter season and that is family. I love my family and am so blessed to have the opportunity to be with them eternally. In particular I think about my Grandpa Cole. When I was probably 8 or 9 years old (?) my Cole Grandparents came to visit in NM for Easter (or something else around that time, details are fuzzy to me). They gave the family what seemed at the time to me a HUGE Easter Bunny. Which I thought was soooooo awesome. My Grandpa Cole gave me special instructions to take good care of it, so I did.

See?! I still have it! I love that I still have it and get to have my children play with it every spring season and have that sweet reminder of my wonderful family.

Another thing that I think about every Easter Season happened 7 years ago. You see I had met this sweet guy that I was kinda totally in love with. I had met his parents on our first date and it was about time that he met my family. My parents however were living in Singapore at the time. I had decided to head down to Utah for the Cole family Easter Celebrations and invited him to come along and meet my family. We had a great drive down talking and just being together, time was precious between school and him being in a show. When we got to the Salt Lake area I called my sister to double check what I was supposed to bring, the conversation went something like this.

L: So how many rolls should I get?
R: Well the 36 bag probably isn't big enough.
L: Yeah, but should I really get the 72?
R: Well, let's see if we figure 3 a piece...
L: I guess I should just get 72 rolls then
J: ....Why would you need 72 Rolls?! 36 should be plenty!
L: No it won't.
J: Why not?
L: For my whole family?
J: .....
L & R finish their conversation and hang up.
J: .... What exactly do you mean your whole family?...
L: Well, Robyn & Mike, Donald, G&G Cole, Aunt Amy, Uncle Scott & kids, And the Barrett Family (I can't exactly remember who else was there sorry siblings if you were left out- I was a bit... distracted ;)  )...
J: So when you said to meet your whole family....

Apparently he had not gathered that he was not just meeting a couple family members but rather was being thrown into a full fledged Cole family gathering. Ha ha ha ha :)

I guess that he somehow survived, Maybe even enjoyed the crazy because he stuck around... Well there was that one time we almost broke up but I that was before this (and for the record it was because we were too much in love- makes total sense right? Ha ha, I didn't want to be a teenage bride but Heavenly Father had different timing in mind and I'm glad)

A few weeks later we were engaged

and then married & sealed  8-8-08 in the Bountiful temple.

After we had been married a while Joe told me that before we had left Grandma & Grandpa Cole's house that day Grandpa had talked to Joe and said that he hoped to see him again. Now to those of you that didn't have the honor of knowing my Grandpa in this life that might not seem like much of anything. Those of you who did, know that this was a major stamp of approval! Joe only realized how much those few words they had shared meant after he had been in the family for a while.
Although he was often a man of few words (unless they involved dead ducks and their underwear, or big toes...) I like to think of him as my magic Grandpa.  He had an ability to show love like few do, his service was almost imperceptible but always what was needed and great. He would always remember what we all liked or didn't like to eat when we would come for dinner. He had a magic ability to make M&M cookies appear after dinner- I have never been tall enough to see them on top of the fridge ;)
I think the most magic thing about him though is that even though I don't get to see him anymore I know that I will get to see him again. He made the amazing choice to marry my beautiful Grandma in the temple and raise amazing children in the gospel who have in turn done the same for their children. I do not simply believe that I can see him again, I know it. I know that my sweet children had the amazing opportunity to meet him before they came to this earth and I am sure he told them to tease me to no end, and then remind me that they love me :)
So you see, Easter is pretty awesome to me. I know that because He lives I can be eternally united with my family, even my magic Grandpa- and yes, Joe will see him again too :)


I hadn't really planned to write all of that but sometimes things swirling in your head are better written down :)

But guess what else made today an amazing Easter?! They announced that a temple will be built in Bangkok Thailand! My home! I definitely screamed when they announced it and made my 3 yr old quite concerned. My neighbor claims they heard me and I do not doubt it! I keep alternating between tearing up from joy and just smiling about all the great work and eternal joy that will occur because of a temple of God being built in the land of smiles. I love the Thai people sooooo much! BKK all the way ;)