Greater Than a Strong Tree

• Alder
  Alder, part of the birch family, is a softer hardwood from the Pacific Northwest. Consistent color, stability, and uniform acceptance of stains and finishes are some of the characteristics that have made Western Alder a preferred wood for furniture. Its elasticity makes it ideal for carving intricate details. Ranking second only to oak as the most commonly used wood, alder offers the look of many fine hardwoods at a value price. source

Who knew that by marrying into Brian's family, I would end up with a last name hiding a brilliant analogy?  If you know me or talk to me much (or read my blog consistently), you know that analogies are generally my communication of choice.  So I lapped it up when my mother-in-law, Jean, introduced an analogy tied to my name.

Be Strong was the theme of our Alder Family Reunion.  Be Strong like an alder tree.   Jean put together a touching, beautiful family home evening and shared it with us while we were all nestled together in a little cabin up in Eden, Utah.  She even wrote a song, people, and mailed it out to her whole family weeks in advance so we could all learn it to be able to sing it that night.  A song about being strong, about sticking together, about loving each member of the family for who they are and what they do, and about letting the Alder name be a strength in each of our lives.  It was peppy and easy to learn (even Miles knew all the words by the end) and listening to those six little grandkids sing it was maybe the highlight of the reunion for me.  Oh how I hope they stay strong...

At the end of the lesson she pulled out a thoughtful gift: five pieces of alder wood, one for each of her children, cut and stained by her hands, each one adorned by a metal plaque engraved with a message: Be Strong.

Throughout the week, she found time to pull aside each grandchild on his own and talk about his life.  About what it means to stay strong and how he, personally, could do so.  I love it when my children get reinforcements from the outside.  When they see that mom and dad aren't the only ones encouraging and expecting them to make good choices.

She also planned a ton of fun things throughout the week.  A hike - complete with a checklist of things to find,




A puppet show - complete with color-you-own puppets,

White shirts for all the kids - complete with sharpie markers, rubber bands, and bottles of rubbing alcohol to turn them tie-dyed,

And lots and lots of relaxing time on the shores of Pineview Lake - complete with an entire bin filled with new beach toys.

The duck looks fun, right?  It took forever to blow up...30min? 45? (with three of us working simultaneously) and wasn't even a big hit with the kids.  At least Brian liked it.  And take a look at how high my brother-in-law, Chris, has his little Emmy!  He did it over and over and over again (enough times for me to see it a couple of times, realize it would be a cool picture, get my camera out from it's backpack, take a practice shot, fiddle with the settings, and snap). I'd call that a weeks worth of work-outs.  Then again, that's probably why I'd never be able to do it in the first place.

You wouldn't have believed the amount of cotton floating around in the air.  The top left picture shows it a little bit.  It was actually kind of pretty...not as gross and annoying as pollen, I have to say. I also love the bottom left picture... Brian's little brother, Dave, just as he's getting a face full of the football Brian threw for him to catch.

So many people I love... thanks for a great week, Alders!