Our New Baby: Christmas Love

I wish I had the expertise to really make this picture big; I'll try to do better in the future. But we are so grateful for our new little Christmas blessing: Robert Andrew Gardner.

Robbie was born December 18, after a very long and difficult labor--difficult for him, because his heart rate went down so much with each long contraction. Several times it looked like Melodie would have to have a C section, and we prayed multiple times during the day for both of them. Our little Robbie has relatively few negative anomalies--he is nursing quite well, and seems to be gaining weight. He is adorable and cute and wonderful, and we are grateful to have him here. We are also grateful for Melodie's courage, and grateful for Caitie's healing gifts and generosity, coming to work on Melodie so that a C section was not necessary.

More later... I'm having a blast with the family!

Happy Birthday to Our Jeff!

Yesterday was a special day for a very choice man--our favorite son-in-law, Jeffrey Holland Wright. Happy 25th Birthday, Jeff!

I met Jeff last year when he was Caitie's "best friend."--there wasn't any real romance, so to speak (at least, not from her perspective). She told me she thought he was incredibly handsome and super nice. But I'm glad the friendship part of their relationship is what developed first. Caitie had time to watch how Jeff handled problems, how he served, how he genuinely cared about people, and how trustworthy he is.

Then, over time, she realized she was in love with this guy. I'm so grateful for Jeff. A few weeks ago, Caitlin told me that every morning she wakes up and can't believe how blessed she is to be married to Jeff.

So they've only been married a little over 3 months, but I'd like to share some of the things I love about Jeff:

1. He is focused on serving.
2. He ADORES Caitlin--and he shows it.
3. He is willing to move out of his comfort zone to provide for her.
4. He is a willing and helpful worker.
5. He is full of kindness.
6. He is even tempered.
7. He is very bright, but
8. He is modest about it.
9. He is loyal and honest.
and 10. He fits perfectly in our family. (I love that he loves to sing!)

So, for now and for all eternity, I'm grateful that Jeff is part of our family. And--sorry, I can't resist it, even though I know it's so old--I'm glad Caitie married the Wright guy!

Breakfast, LAUNCH, and Dinner

Whew. One thing I have been learning, as I've made the adjustment from writing daily in my journal to posting more often on the website, is that my daily life doesn't typically provide fodder for a daily posting. There's a lot going on, of course, but it's just kind of challenging to take the time to think of a topic and write something worthwhile. For those who do, I salute you.

But today, I can tell you about what has been consuming our lives for the past week: our launch of Stan's new supplement line, Primivia Nutritional Supplements. As of this entry we have 108 orders for our FREE--note that--FREE bottle of supplements.

The concept of giving supplements away free is Josh's brainchild. He couldn't sleep, he was so excited about the idea. We discussed the pros and cons at length together as a family at Thanksgiving. The consensus was that when people get on the products, they will want to stay on them because they'll feel so much better. So, to get people on them, we had to create an offer so compelling they couldn't refuse.

This "compelling offer" has taken most of our waking thoughts and energies. Poor Dave did not sleep at all the night before the launch went live. We were testing links and checking prices and writing sales letters right up until the final moment. I actually did something funny--I sent everyone on our list a live link to the site, so we had about 10 people jump our launch beginning time by a few hours! The whole thing wore us out and rejuvenated us at the same time.

I have to confess that it is really exciting to see line after line on my account read "a new order was placed for Stan Gardner MD," and get new traffic to our site (way more than ever before), and I think this is a good start for an ongoing program that will help a lot of people. Heather even put a link on her blog! Pretty awesome to have a family that supports our crazy business ideas . . . or comes up with them in the first place!

Goal-Diggers, Plots and Planners

Last year, we were visiting Matt and Brit, and they showed us the exciting progress they had made on their goals. They created a chart that they posted in their bedroom of their financial progress, with space on the sides for their physical fitness goals and other achievements they wanted to accomplish during the year.

Well, it took us a while, but I'm pleased to report that I have become a "goal-digger." I dig this whole system! We drew a giant goal thermometer on a poster board and hung it over our door, so we can look at it any time we want. The thermometer contains our ginormous (to use Heather's word) financial goals, and we put little boxes to the side for our other goals.

In past years, I've gotten a little bit discouraged, because it seemed like every New Year I'd realize that I was rewriting the same old resolutions (could have saved the paper and just used it over and over). THIS year is slightly different: I have almost learned how to play two hymns on the piano (I keep track of the times I've practiced in my little boxes); we have driven to Pennsylvania and found grave sites of my ancestors, I have finished the ENTIRE Bible cover to cover, read Jesus the Christ, and the Book of Mormon.

I still have about 20 more boxes to check off with the workout section (which is cutting it pretty close), and I'm supposed to read books by C.S. Lewis and Emerson. I'm working on one with Adam Smith on the Wealth of Nations--not an easy read! But the big deal for me--what I really dig--is being able to keep track of making real progress.

On a side note, Stan's planner was lost while we were in Pokie. For us that's tantamount to disaster. Case in point: yesterday was Sunday. We came home from church pretty tired, and wanted to change out of our church clothes into jammies. Fortunately, the realtor had asked us to make the condo available for someone to come look at it, so we stayed in our suit and dress. I threw some pot pies from Costco into the oven for an easy dinner and we waited until the people came to see the house.

We were nonplussed when the doorbell rang a second time while the realtor and his group were here. It was a family coming for their son's patriarchal blessing! Yikes! They had made the appointment months ago--and it had been recorded in Stan's planner and forgotten. We remarked to each other afterward what a tender mercy it was to have the realtor bring some people by--or we would have been sitting in our jammies, eating pot pies, when they came.

Minding the Gap

This morning I read the text of a talk I heard in September about "Minding the Gap," by Barbara Thompson. It is a terrific reminder of many aspects of life, including our relationship with God as His daughters, and our relationship with each other--even our relationship with ourselves. This last concept particularly caught my attention as I thought about various areas of my life where I want to "mind"--pay attention to--the "gap"--the discrepancy between an objective and something else that distracts me from my objective.

Say for example, I wanted to "mind the gap" between what I know about health and how I choose to spend my time, eating healthy and exercising. Or "mind the gap" between wanting to be able to play the piano and how I choose to spend my time practicing (or not). You get the idea.

So I decided to make a short list of a few of the areas where I want to be more mindful of the gaps in my life. I could probably go on for pages, but it usually is most effective for me if I create a short and manageable list, so here goes:

I'm going to "mind the gap" more in these areas:
1. Ideas and Action
2. Budget and Unfrugal Expenditures (my spell check tells me "unfrugal" isn't a word. Tough).
3. Being Fully Present with People and Trying to Get the Most Done in the Least Amount of Time

Duh! It Only Took Five Years!

This has to be an admission of dumbness that very few people can boast about (and in my case, it's not boasting). I can't believe it took me five years to figure this out--and it all became obvious this morning. Here's the deal: for YEARS I have been faithfully writing in my journal every morning, sharing pithy little thoughts and meaningful stories, along with insights I've gained along my life journey thus far. My thought in the back of my head was that someday, when I'm gone, someone would discover this box of dusty old journals and study them profusely to gain all my knowledge. Duh.

What about technology (as they say in Napoleon Dynamite)? Here's what I wrote:

..."it occurred to me that by writing every day in my journal rather than in my blog, I am missing a lot of opportunities to share pictures and aspects of my life with family. I think I will continue to write in here [my journal] occasionally, but I'm also thinking that my words might be of benefit to people before someone finds my journals in some deep box somewhere after my life is over. Might be nice to share my experiences and what I've learned while I'm still here to explain myself."

So farewell, Journal writing. This is now my journal. Forget that you won't see it in my handwriting. If you want to see how I wrote...check out the dusty boxes in somebody's attic.

Contagiously Charismatic Christian

This past weekend, we celebrated a wonderful occasion with Joel and Heather and their family, when little Spencer Aaron Gardner was blessed. There will be more on that little guy later, but for now, I want to celebrate a very special little guy who is getting bigger all the time: Christian David Gardner! Christian makes me smile constantly. I don't know of a more good-natured child. He is always chuckling at something, and his sense of humor is... I don't know how to describe it... he just seems to get the subtle ironies of life, even at the ripe old age of three. He has a depth and wisdom far beyond his years.

On my cell phone, I keep a message that Christian sent me many months ago, when he could barely talk. I listen to it when I am discouraged or lonely. Joel dialed my number, and then Christian said, "Hi Gammie. Love you." Oh how I cherish that message! It makes me tear up just to write about it. It's amazing the lift that gestures like that can give, especially coming from someone as wonderful as Christian.

Christian is a terrific big brother. I asked him the name of his new baby, and he says it proudly: "Spensa Aawon." If you ask him if he loves his new baby, he will tell you yes, and he really does. He's so cute with the baby!
He's also wonderful playing with Camryn, who shepherds him around doing all kinds of crafts and games with him, and he loves to wrestle and laugh with JD. I love being around this adorable little family. They are a great source of joy to us, and we will miss them when they move to Pocatello.

Happy Birthday Christian! Love you!

Emmie and Me (or We)!

How do you describe a person whose life is a treasure? How do you describe an angel who loves little children, who is kind, who is beautiful inside and outside, who loves the Lord and her family (as well as pretty much all people in the world), who is constantly striving to be better, whose smile lights up the world around her? Those words describe our Emilie Anne Gardner. Emilie became a cherished member of our family after five sons had already joined us, and just before the blessed birth of her little sister Caitlin. She was a delight from the very beginning. The nurses decorated Stan's office with hundreds of pink ribbons and laces, and the hospital put two bows in her gorgeous dark hair. When she was about 5 months old and could sit up, I took her outside and set her on the ground while I planted some raspberry bushes. I turned around to see that she had picked up an earthworm and was licking it as it wriggled, held tight in her hand! She has always been fascinated with the world and its wonders.Emilie grew up with a love for music. She pretty much taught herself how to play the piano. We got her into voice lessons when she was about 10, and she took off with that talent as well. Before going to college, Emmie starred as Emma Smith in the musical theater production "Kirtland: City of Gathering and Glory," an absolutely thrilling experience for all of us. It was there that we discovered her amazing performing abilities. Her radiance seemed to embrace everyone in the audience. I am so excited that she has the opportunity to perform as a Young Performing Missionary in Nauvoo this summer. It will be yet another amazing blessing in her life. Emilie has been blessed with six terrific brothers and a wonderful sister, who all adore her. Her 5 big and 1 little-big (translate: younger but way taller) brothers have protected her and pretty much screened all would-be suitors, a role which Caitlin now fills as her roommate and best friend. I asked Stan for his input about Emilie for this blog entry, and he said, "talented, love of people, incredible teacher of children, knows a lot about the Gospel--a Gospel scholar, beautiful on the inside and the outside." (notice we BOTH said that) "She melts peoples' hearts with her voice and her piano playing." He added, "When she's on the Kajukenbo mat (a martial art), she really kicks _ _ _ _!" I could probably spend days expounding on how much we all love Emilie, but you can probably see for yourself, just looking at the pictures. Happy Happy Birthday, our beloved Emmie!

Marvellous Melodie :)

Oh how we all love this girl! Melodie is a joy to have in the family, and she does a terrific job as wife, mother, homemaker, teacher, violinist...the list goes on. I could come up with probably several hundred more roles that she performs with equanimity (my $5 word for the day). I think one of the most fun things about Melodie is that she really listens to her children's conversations. She makes note of what they say, and she always responds. I will be sitting in blissful unawareness, oblivious to the fact that one of the children has said something in undertones, and Melodie will immediately respond. I have never been able to master the transition from my thinking sphere (or you can call it escaping sphere) to listening, without making a conscious effort to leave the one behind and go for the other. But Melodie is able to cross over without any seeming difficulty at all. Her children know she hears them and appreciates them. She also shares their fun little insights with us, which makes it much more bearable to be so far away--when I know I'll get at least a fraction of their adorable remarks.

The way that Josh and Melodie met is remarkable as well. How Josh ended up as a Young Performing Missionary in Nauvoo is nothing short of miraculous--he did a crummy audition (or at least so he says), turned it in at the last possible moment, and wrote an illegible application form that the missionary in charge of selection had to call me to translate for him! Divine intervention, for sure. We went out to Nauvoo to watch Matt and him perform, and Melodie was the first Young Performing Missionary we met; we went to a fireside and she came around during the "get-acquainted" number. We loved her the instant we saw her. The more we got to know her, the more those feelings grew.

By the end of the summer, Josh had fallen in love, and she knew that she was supposed to marry him through some very choice experiences. He and Matt arrived home, and Josh brought Stan and me upstairs so he could tell us about this amazing sister missionary; that he was supposed to marry her, but he had no idea how to go about courting her. Well, unbeknownst to us, she was sharing pretty much the same information with HER family. Long story short, they got together for a date three days later--Josh drove from Montana to Salt Lake for their date--and they were basically engaged, almost before they called each other anything other than "Elder Gardner" or "Sister Larsen." Four beautiful children later, Josh and Melodie have established an adorable family. Melodie is the heart of their home.


Melodie is talented, gorgeous, fun-loving, kind, and interested in everything good. I love hearing her play the violin. We love watching for her when the Orchestra at Temple Square performs.

Melodie is a pure soul. She puts her whole self into everything she does. I have never heard her speak an unkind or judgmental word. She is a treasure. She is an inspiration. I am reminded of the scriptural passage in Proverbs 31:10-31 about a virtuous woman when I think of Melodie. Have a wonderful birthday Melodie! We all love you very much!

Jumping Jupiter! It's Jarom!

I'll never forget the delight I felt, seeing this bright-eyed, red-haired, clever little guy for the first time! Jarom is a treat to know; a wise soul who is entranced with the world around him. He is always thinking and always coming up with intelligent ideas.
This is Jarom with his Aunt Brit, who doubles as his cello teacher. Can you tell how much he loves her? At one point it was thought that maybe Jarom would be interested in a different instrument, but cello is very exciting and fun for him. How awesome is that, to have lessons from your aunt! Jarom has been entranced with all aspects of music. He loves learning about notes. Melodie wrote that one day he had arranged two oval rubber bands on the bathroom floor and said, "Look Mom, it's a an A and a G!" (I'm not sure if I remember the correct letters). She realized he had imagined a musical staff.
That gives you a clue as to the bright mind in this little guy.

Another thing that I love about Jarom is that he is so kind and helpful. I don't think I have ever seen him be unkind to his brothers or his sister. He is always very thoughtful and generous; always sharing. He surprised his mother Melodie by taking all of the wet laundry out of the washing machine and putting into the dryer, including a dryer sheet, at the ripe age of 3! When he had completed his task, he called for her to come see and was delighted at her enthusiastic appreciation of his work.

Jarom loves his dad and uncles too. He enjoyed being up in the air with Uncle Nathaniel, while Adam and Joshie were held up by Uncle Steve and Josh. Jarom likes to go up high.

I don't have a super large picture of Josh and Melodie and their family, so please forgive my blurry, swiped version from Facebook! They are a wonderful family, and Jarom is a wonderful part of it. Happy Birthday on February 10, Jarom! We love you!

Adorable Joshie

Our adorable Joshua James was born one year and a few days ago, on January 5, 2008. He has been warmly welcomed into a loving family and is the third son and fourth child of Josh and Melodie. Happy birthday Joshie!

I have seldom seen a child with more smiles and enthusiasm at being alive. Joshua is loved by his big brothers Adam and Jarom and his big sister Rachel. They make sure he is happy and they love to bring him toys (or exchange toys with him if he is playing with something they would like to play with :) !) He was born at a very busy time for his mom and dad; Melodie was pregnant with Joshua when she and Josh came to Ohio and several other states for a Mormon Tabernacle Choir tour. Despite the confusion and chaos that are an inevitable part of a busy home, Melodie manages to meet his needs beautifully and he is secure and happy, a precious little boy. I don't know how she and Josh do it, but they do it!

Here is Josh with Josh. These two have a special father-son connection that goes beyond having the same first name. I think Josh the dad is becoming more comfortable with being a dad. I have enjoyed watching Josh as he prepares meals, changes diapers, and gives baths and reads stories. He is doing a good job. He and Melodie have done a good job figuring out how best to manage their many time demands and determine their goals as a family.

For Halloween, Joshua was apparently a pumpkin. He is so cute! I have missed being able to be with our grandloves. It was so fun to see him when he wasn't very old and had a long tuft of hair on top of his head.

Joshie is a cuddly, smiley, happy little boy. Happy Birthday Joshua James!

Our Lovely Lori

Lori Caldwell Gardner joined our family on December 29, 1995, and we are SO glad David found her! I don't know what is wrong with my picture transfer-ability, so you may have to squint to see Lori. These pictures are super small, even though I upload them as large! Anyway, Lori is absolutely wonderful!

Oh how I love this girl! She's a terrific wife and mother, always full of good ideas and always welcoming. I'm sure that it is a daunting matter to face an influx of Gardner Clan invading their house, but she's always excited to have us (or at least she puts up a really convincing front!).

For me, it's fun to share the story of how she and David got together. They had a couple of classes together at Utah State: I think they were gymnastics and ballroom dance maybe? Lori, you'll have to correct me on that if I'm wrong. Anyway, David got his mission call (it came to our home in Billings Montana) and he went around, asking everyone he could find if they would bring him out so he could personally open his call. No one took his generous offer of free gas, except for kindhearted Lori. They arrived at about 3:00 in the morning, exhausted from the drive, after having narrowly avoided hitting a moose on the road. We were very impressed with Lori: her personality was so engaging and she was wonderful to meet, even at that super early hour. I remember Stan and I saying to each other, "It's too bad she's not going to be around when David gets back from his mission!"

Well, through a series of miracles, Lori WAS around when Dave got back, and he was a goner right from the start. Actually, I think they fell in love sometime around the middle of his mission, and it was just a matter of time before they moved forward to marriage. Lori and Dave have five absolutely adorable kidlets: Joseph, Sarah, Jacob, Bekah, and Emily. We love being with their family.

Lori is always finding amazing deals. She knows where to get great coupons, and she has created a stash of awesome gifts and presents for the family with some of her wonderful purchases. She feeds the family beautifully with wonderful homemade breads and home-canned or frozen peaches or strawberries. One of my favorite meals is crepes at their house. I imagine Lori will get those for breakfast herself in the near future if not today, because I think crepes are the family special birthday breakfast! This is Lori with Melodie, Josh's wife. Lori is holding their youngest, Emily. I love how all of "our girls" get along so well with each other. When we are all together, it seems like heaven to me.

This is a picture Lori took of herself with the Mac computer. I'm glad she doesn't REALLY look that way! I love watching Lori and David dance. They are really good. Unfortunately, I don't have a picture of them dancing, but fortunately, I can edit the blog if I find a picture later! Lori, the happiest of birthdays to you! We love you and are very grateful for you.

Sensational Steve

派克汉尼汾流体传动产品（上海）有限公司
中国上海浦东金桥出口加工区
云桥路２８０号
201206

This is Steve's address in Shanghai, if anyone would like to try to copy it and send him a birthday card :) And here's a picture of Steve with his wonderful, almost fiance Alina:

To try to describe Steve, you have to have an amazing vocabulary. He is highly intelligent, thoughtful, service-oriented, straightforward, funny, enthusiastic, has a zest for life and is very inquisitive, creative, athletic, caring, and completely dedicated. He has a drive and determination that serve him well in any endeavors he attempts. He is not the kind of person you could put in a box and label. He is definitely his own man. As one of the performing missionaries in Nauvoo said, "Steve is one guy who has a lot of layers."

Those are some of the things I love about Steve. His 29th birthday is coming up on the 22nd of January. Happy Birthday, Steve! This is one of my favorite pictures of Steve. He and Caitie are holding Adam and Jarom.

He is an awesome uncle and a great brother. His nephews and nieces adore
him. They all look forward to the times that Steve comes back to the U.S.
I know they are excited (we all are) to meet Alina, Steve's sweetheart, whose Chinese name is Yue Yang (did I get that right, Steve?).

Steve tells us that when you make the "victory sign" in Asia, it kind of means that you are smiling.

From the moment Steve was born, he has been a lively, eager, delightful, full of life person. I feel deeply privileged to be his mother. In high school he would dive into the dumpster across the street from the office building where he cleaned. The dumpster was from a florist shop, and every night he would gather flowers that were still fresh and make beautiful bouquets, which he and his siblings would anonymously deliver, often past three in the morning. I had the honor of helping him to apply for the Montana state Discover Card Gold Scholarship, where I learned for the first time that Steve had set a personal goal to perform an act of service each day. I believe he still does that. (By the way, he was awarded the Gold Scholarship--but that's another story!).
When Steve served his mission in Romania, he literally exhausted himself, giving his mission everything he had. His mission president told me he wished he had a hundred more like Steve. Then Steve went to Nauvoo, just 3 days after returning home.

Steve and Emilie on the day we took Elder Nathaniel Gardner into the Missionary Training Center.

At BYU-Idaho, Steve took top honors in debate on a national level. He decided on a lark to take a Chinese class, and ended up discovering a passion for learning and teaching languages. His Chinese students love him and clamor to have him as their teacher. For the time being, though, he is learning business, doing work for Parker Hannifin in Shanghai.

Oh how we all love our son and brother and uncle Steve! I could write enough more to fill a book (or bookshelf), but suffice it to say: Steve we love you very much and are so grateful you are part of our family! Happy Birthday! And just remember: everything you learn that helps you grow (or saves a sand castle) is worth the SACRIFICE!!!!!!!!!!!!