Thanksgiving With Family

Our day today, this Thanksgiving, was really enjoyable.  We had our children, their spouses and their children all together at the Elements Restaurant in Logan, UT.  The food was wonderful and they accommodated us in a private little room all to ourselves.  The grandkids had a great time and in the confined space their behavior was exceptional.  Our newest grandson was there, all 2 weeks and 2 days of him.

We had our Thanksgiving prayer together and really enjoyed the familiar atmosphere.  Later we visited my younger brother and his family.  Our parents were there with them.  They have a new daughter in law and the couple seems happy and extremely dedicated to one another.  We had a wonderful day and all of us hope yours was too.

Urban Coccoon

I came across this link via Instapundit.  (Where would we be without Glenn Reynolds?)  It is from Forbes Magazine.  Why Urban vs Rural?  This may give a piece to the puzzle.

Miles Made It

We received a text from our son Ben early this morning indicating that his wife Melissa was going to bring a new child in the world.  We made it up to the hospital an hour away just in time to hear the little cries of our newest grandchild.  It was a poignant and wonderful time for us all.  Miles Benjamin Oman is the name that have picked out.  He was 7 lbs 11 oz and 19 inches in length with some fairly impressive hands.

I looked at my son look at his son and saw the tears slowly making their way down his cheeks.  I grabbed him shortly after and told him that he now knows how I felt when he was born.  He just couldn't stop smiling.   The mother is doing fine and we have high hopes for good health and much happiness for them all.

Although we may not reach the same number of grandchildren as many of you our friends, what we cannot reach in quantity we make up and surpass all the rest in quality.  Cheers to you all.

A History Lesson at Work

I had a man in my office today to whom I have had the privilege to provide my professional services for more than two decades.  He is a native Norwegian.  He was born in 1929.  For some reason it came to my mind to ask him when he was born.  He told me and then I asked if he was there during the early 1940's when the Nazi's invaded Norway.  He said he was a young boy then, an early teenager and he remembers it vividly.  He related an incident when the German army was throwing anti aircraft fire at bombers coming from England.  He said that sometimes they would fall to the earth and then explode.  One night, it was 1 AM and there was tremendous noise during a bombing raid and suddenly there was a big explosion across the street.  He said a lovely family lived there, but fortunately they had left for the country leaving an older gentleman there.  The explosion killed him.  But he went on to say that he thought that he was going to die for sure that night.  Then he said the worst thing was the Gestapo.  They were brutal; they would rape the women and torture the men.  But, he said he remembered the everyday, run of the mill German soldier as nice people who were there because they had to be.

Recently this man's wife has suffered a stroke and she requires his help.  The greatest thing he said during his visit today was that "she is my first priority".  And so it is and should be.  Later that afternoon I kind of said to my staff members who were listening to his stories.  "Quite a history lesson, huh?"  They all said they couldn't imagine living through something like that.