Lots of love on Mom and Dad's Birthday

Something cool about my parents: they share a birthday. February 23rd is a holiday in our family. On this day, 64 years ago, my Dad came earth-side. Exactly one year later, Mom followed suit. As I spoke with Dad on the phone earlier today, there are things that are difficult to put into words, but I'm sure we were both thinking about the many birthday's he and Mom have shared, and missing her on this one. In my mind, the two celebrations are one and the same - today will always be "Mom and Dad's Birthday." We probably celebrate birthdays in Heaven... fun fact, but I always think of July 4th as "the day I left to serve a mission." And in the sense that our mortal lives are a mission, but longer and more dramatically capped, by birth and death instead of a plane ride, I draw parallels between the mission and mortal life. I mean, my time in England as "Sis. McClure" was kind of a different world - there was this separation from my family, there was this focused purpose, direction, goals...in a way it's a microcosm for mortal life. So I like to think.
Anyway. I think of Mom celebrating the day she arrived on earth to begin her mortal mission. Now, will she celebrate her homecoming day? I have no idea. I don't know the exact day I returned home from the mission. Sometime in February. Why do I not know that?? Was it because I was returning to the known, versus embarking into the unknown? Musing aside, I know Mom missed her parents terribly and reuniting with them was a great moment for her.
Back to birthdays: I wonder what kind of party Mom had to celebrate this day. A quilting party? :) Was there violin playing? Was there watermelon? Mom has always loved watermelon, even when she was little. In fact, Grandma used to buy extra in the summer just to ball it and freeze it to have when her birthday came in February. They didn't have year-around everything produce like we do nowadays. I heard that story for the first time last summer, when we were making her watermelon smoothies a lot because they helped her cough, and I thought that was such a tender, telling detail that story was. Isn't a mother's love an amazing thing??

Let's give Grandpa credit too, for being a great Dad! Another story I heard  last summer: Grandma had a difficult recovery after she had Mom, so her mother came to help out. But Grandpa insisted that he be the one to change the diapers, give the baths, and be the baby's main caretaker. That was not a thing men insisted on in those days, but he certainly did. Our Grandpa was a sweet, good man. I miss him.

Dad was his mother's first child, as Mom was the first in her family, and the apple of his mother's eye. We had a long discussion once about the trouble he got into when he was a kid. We had to ask, because we got to comparing notes and none of us could recall any bad stories about Dad as a kid. The picture Grandma paints of Dad is pretty much perfect. He is pretty much perfect now, so it's easy for us to believe he was an angel child. BUT.  He did punch his sister in the stomach one time. It went something like: he was wearing something of hers and wouldn't give it back so she went and put on something of his and therefore he punched her in the stomach. Let the record show: the man is flawed. :)
 I'm sorry I don't have any pictures of you in diapers to post, Dad. I thought about sticking one up of Danny and passing it off as you though. Thought about it. I'll just use a couple of my favorites.

We love and wish you both a happy birthday! I didn't get it together to do our annual birthday music video this year, sorry! I know you will miss all that musical talent and what not! But Joe and Riley are sending you a very special bit of stamped and colored artwork (your guess is good as mine... Maybe Mickey Mouse? We have Mickey stamps, so that's probably what they were talking about).  Be so excited! ;)

Love,
Heidi