Happy Thanksgiving - 2010

What a magical day yesterday!  We had all the family over to the house for food, laughter and love, along with some parade, football and Nintendo.  After all, what would Thanksgiving be without Nintendo?  Our family is growing - with William, Kayley and Celia Renee joining us this year we number 15.  I look forward to the day when we top 50 with grandchildren running all over the place.

 It is nice to all fit into the dinning room.  Won't it be wonderful when I have to schedule the church?  It is really nice that we could steal the married children from the in-laws and have everyone together.  I don't know what we will do next year.  Forrest will be on a mission and the older children will probable scatter.  Maybe we will go back to Zion Canyon like last year.

 Good thing they have a beautiful mother.  Heaven forbid if they had to look anything like me.

 Thomas and Celia - We are looking forward to April 30th

" I think she needs her grandma" was heard several times yesterday.  It really doesn't matter who has little Kayley Irene, when grandma wants her grandma gets her.

 I think William James enjoyed his first Thanksgiving.  The thing I love about Will is that when he smiles - he smiles with every fiber of his whole body.  Thanks Tammy for a wonderful grandson.  Oh ya, you too Reese!

 What's This?  Me holding one of my grandchildren????  It is amazing what you can do while everyone else is comatose on the couch with tummies  full of turkey and stuffing.  You see, there is a method to my madness.  Cook good food, feed them more than they can eat, sit them on a soft couch and then jump in and steal the babies.  Watch out Kayley, you're next!

What's next?  Well here is a clue - "The stockings were hung by the chimney with care...."  Faith has spent hours adding the additional stockings needed this year for the upcoming holiday.  We have enough hooks for 22 stockings so we have 7 open spots.  My Christmas wish for my children - "Fill those hooks!"  But all in due time.

I have the most incredible family in the entire world.  Yesterday was a wonderful day that had me teary-eyed all morning.  I am blessed in abundance with gifts from on high.  I feel the love of my Heavenly Father and see His hand in all things.  My blessings are without number.  As we now enter full swing into celebrating the birth of our Savior, I pause at this time of thanksgiving to remember the greatest blessing of all - our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  May we all remember Him each and every day in all things and in all that we do.

Savior of the World

This year our family had an incredible experience.  It was last October the Stake President called Faith and me in for a visit - a kind of unofficial visit.  He told us that they wanted the Stake to perform Savior of the World and ask Faith if she had ever directed a play.  Even though she hadn't, she knew that this was something she had to do.  If Nephi could build a ship, she could direct this play.  With the help of the Lord things started to fall into place.  The next few months would be life changing.

Neither of us had ever seen the play, which is performed at the Conference Center every year.  As I listened to the music and learned the story my spirit was touched deeply.  The first scene starts with Zacharias and Elizabeth and the foretelling of John the Baptist and ends at the manger with the birth of the Savior.  The second act starts at the tomb and the resurrection.  Christ appears to the Mary and the Apostles and the play closes with His ascension into heaven.

 Well, one year later we were thrilled with the results.  Faith ended-up with a cast of 95 and assistants all over the place.  Charity was one of Mary's nieces, in the women's ensemble and in all the major scenes.  Christian was our boy soprano and sang in Hebrew.  Lexie helped on stage crew getting people on and off the stage, making sure props were where they needed to be and that everything happened at the correct time and in the correct order.

I had the privilege of playing the Apostle John, the third part of the Peter and James trio.  Faith did an amazing job working with the choir and cast.  With her assistants Karie and Sue they worked for 8 months to make this production the very best possible.  What an amazing group of talented people in this stake.  Mary and Joseph were awesome and their voices blended so well.  Elizabeth and Zacharias did such a good job and finally pulled it all together just in time for the first show.

The Apostle Thomas was so sincere in his emotions and feelings for the Savior as was Mary at the tomb.  The Savior was portrayed in such a  tender and touching manor that it sent chills through us all.

We viewed this play as an opportunity to share our testimony of the divinity of Jesus Christ with all those who came to see it.  We ended-up with almost 3,500 people attending the three performances.  I loved playing the part of John and feeling of his spirit and the incredible love that he had for the Lord.  I add my witness to his, that Jesus lives and that he will return.  He is the root and the offspring of David and the Bright and Morning Star.  And I echo John's plea - "Come Lord Jesus!"

Veteran's Day

Yesterday was Veteran's Day, a day when we remember those who have served our country in times of war.  As I pondered on this special day, my mind was drawn to memories of my father.  Dayle Wilson Cooper (1918 - 1973) was a Quarter Master Second Class assigned to the USS Little, a destroyer stationed in the South Pacific.  A Quarter Master tag-teams with the ship's captain and relays orders to the rest of the ship.

The USS Little was involved in two major battles - Iwo Jima and Okinawa.  At Iwa Jima dad was watching for the flag to be raised on Mt. Funabashi when someone asked him a question.  He turned and responded and when he looked back the flag was upright.  For all intents and purposes he was there and saw it happen.

At Okinawa they were not so lucky.  Four Kamikaze planes struck the Little and split her right in half.  She only took 5 minutes to sink!  Dad received some minor injuries but nothing serious.

Dad's younger brother, Ballard, was a bombardier in the air force. He was flying a mission over Europe and had just dropped all their bombs.  He looked out his window and saw flack just outside the plane.  Flack is shot-up in groups of three.  He saw the first explosion, then the second and just had a second to cover his face with his arms when the third on hit the nose of the plane.  His arms and flack jacket took the brunt of things as their plane went down.

There is a story that Grandma Cooper went to her mail box and had two letters.  One stated that her son had been shot-down over Italy and the other said that dad had been sunk in the South Pacific.  Not  a good day for mail.

I heard that Ballard was on a transport to the hospital when he heard over the radio that dad's ship had been sunk.

Dad had an honorable discharge from the Navy and was excited to marry his sweetheart Priscilla.  They had been introduced by a Navy buddy, Tony Francis,  just before they shipped out.  Mom was working in an airplane factory in California.  They only met for the weekend and then he sailed off.  Mom began writing letters and over the next year they got to know each other very well.

During the year mom had moved to Utah, so when dad reached Oakland he wrote and invited her down for a visit.  He proposed, obtained a six-day leave and made a very fast trip to Salt Lake, Pocatello, ID and Ely, NV to be married and meet both families.

I love my father very much.  I still miss him after all these years.  He was kind and loving, a great teacher.  He loved God and he loved his country, and spend his life serving both.

Family Photo Time

Our family went to Snow Basin for some current family photos. We are happy to have three new additions: William James Cooper, Kayley Irene Barton, and the beautiful Celia Renee, soon to be Cooper.

Comming of Age



Ever since I was little I always wanted a truck.  Well finally last winter Faith told me I could get one (yes, I had to get her permission.)  But having a truck is still manly even with your wife's permission.  Two weeks ago I joined Reese and Shane for a trip into the mountains to chase deer and camp.  Three days of cooking, hiking, cards and sharing stories and memories.  I also got to put my truck into 4-Low and hall Shane's 4-wheeler up with us.  It makes a man feel proud!  The only thing missing was a little blood in the bed, but other than that we had a great trip.  Thanks to Shane for being host, guide and sponsor of this year's outing.

Becoming a Techno Family

Faith said it was time for us to launch ourselves into the internet age and set-up our family blog.  I know Reese has a blog, so does Tammy, Alexis and Katie, why not me?  I am not sure ho winteresting, exciting or meaningful this will be, but I will do my best.  Stay tuned for dazzeling updates of all the adventures of the Cooper Clan.