ABOUT OUR SON, WILLIAM...

Everyone knows how proud I am of all of my kids, David, Wendy, Lindsay and Joey...but not a lot has been said about our 'kids' by marriage. It's time to add them to the list of Blessings in our lives.

We met Will about six or seven years ago when we visited with Wendy who was at Camp Pendleton, Ca Marine Training Center. Will met Wendy during her Field Medical Combat Corpsman Training, as he was serving as a Corpsman at the same time. They "hit it off" and the rest is History. When we had a dinner date with Wendy and Will at a Dana Point restaurant, Allen said that of all the Men Wendy had dated, he believed Will was the "pick of the litter' and he Approved.

She wasn't home in Visalia long, when Will moved to Visalia from Las Vegas where he was working in the Medical Field. He tried his hand at our business, but it didn't suit him and then he went to work with Allen setting tile. It wasn't long before Will obtained his General Contractor's License in California, and began a commute between Visalia and Santa Rosa, where his brother had set up a number of jobs for him. Will's brother, Erik is a Professional Painter and has been for many years.

Two years after that initial meeting at Camp Pendleton, Will and Wendy were married in Three Rivers, and a few years after that, little 'Emily' was born. Will had two children, Jon and Ashleigh by a prior marriage and that seemed like a good 'bonus' for this old Grammie. Wendy of course, had Jordan who grew up in the company of Grammie and Papa.

It was a lot of fun to take several of my Grandkids to Disneyland a few years ago...and without telling too much on myself, I allowed them all to get drenched one night in a little area of the California section where warm water spouted up here and there in sort of a 'bugland' water garden. Something their 'wiser' parents would probably never allow.

Of course, seeking a total set of dry clothes for all of them in Disneyland, including shoes...was no small task, but we all ended out alive and well...except that the bag with all their wet clothes and shoes was lost....and the memory of that time will always be 'priceless' for me.

Jon has lived on and off with Will and Wendy over the past five or six years, but at 16, he returned to his Mom's home in Sacramento and is still there. Ashleigh is very attached to her Mom and Step Dad, and has never lived with Will and Wendy, but comes to stay during vacations and holidays, may be coming to visit soon. They are all really good kids and I love them.

So, between his and hers and theirs...there are four kids...including little 'Emily' of course.

Will has always been the first of anyone to volunteer to help us when he could. He helped put a roof on our old house, and another roof on Lindsay's Duplex...worked on the Skyline home with Allen doing a lot of heavy lifting, and helped put the roof on the Beach House in the storms. He was going to give us a few days of his time and ended up giving several weeks.

Of course, Wendy and Will are our only kids that live here in Oregon near us so far, so we're aware of their comings and goings more than anyone else on a day to day basis. When we bought the Log Home here, Will again gave a lot of his time helping us...between the paying jobs in Idaho and on the Coast...and down in Santa Rosa.

Will is one of the strongest men I have ever seen in my life. He tore out the old bath/shower combination downstairs, replaced it with a gorgeous shower... and installed a new jacuzzi tub upstairs, built the deck, installed the granite and marbel and basically remodeled the whole upper floor...trying to do the things that would be too difficult for Allen, or would take too long for Allen to do. He climbed 24 feet into the air to remove the old lights...hang the new fans and lights..dangling like a monkey from heights that would make Allen or I woozy.

Will is also very, very FAST at getting things done as well. I know that he got irritated with me, as Allen did too...during this Log Home Project...because I was very, very picky about everything that was being done. Allen even told me that if I were a paying customer...he would not ever work for me! Imagine that! No doubt Will felt the same way, but he isn't much for confrontation, so he sort of disappears when he gets irritated with old "Mom" here.

When he found out that we had no water, his good heart got the best of him and he came out to help get whatever needed to be done...done as he was worried about me and Faye facing life with no water for days on end....in spite of his hurt feelings over my 'pickiness' on this house.

When our son David got into a bind building a Tournament Scoreboard for a Golf Course, Will came to rescue him too, although David admits he hasn't turned such favors in Will's direction himself.

Will had a few days in between jobs so came out to cut wood and I heard the chainsaw up at the shop buzzing for hours, but then...it all has to be cut into smaller pieces to fit into our wood burning stove which we use once or twice a day when it is cold.

A few days ago, following a series a five Northwest Pacific Storms pounding the Coast, in the middle of Storm number four...Will was chopping wood in the pouring rain and filled the wood bin with it. We had recently purchased an Electric Log Splitter which was helping Allen a lot...but Will didn't bother with such a contraption.

He just put a log up, and with one swing...it became split in two. This went on hour after hour...and as Allen handed him large logs from the truck bed...Will continued into the dark...in the pouring rain....and cold....Wham, crack and into the wood bin, and within two or three hours, we had enough firewood to get ahead of the game for a spell. He took a load home to the family as well, but now they have to start working on next season one of these days, and that means falling some trees...or cutting up those that blew over in recent or old storms on the property.

I finally made Allen get on his Stormy Weather Suit knowing he might catch a death of cold, but Will wasn't having any of that. You can see above in the close up photo and his back was soaked, and it was dark. I can't wait to show you the before and after photos of the upstairs and my bathroom as he is going to finish up installing the faucets and the plumbing for the bath and sink tomorrow. It will be great to not have to go downstairs to brush my teeth! lol

I've said 'thanks' to Will many times over the years...but I can't remember ever publically acknowledging how much I appreciate all the help and hard work he has done for our whole family since he joined it. It is long overdue.

We don't always see 'eye to eye' on child rearing, and I admonish Will and Wendy for not taking enough time in their own lives to have fun and play...but I think they might be "getting it" at long last. The other day they went hiking and riding the ATV's and discovered the end of our property on the West side...and a hunting Camp with horses ready for the Elk season opener.

He wants to get a 'buck' with his bow and arrow, and if he does go out hunting...and there is a buck around, we'll all be enjoying some venison 'jerky' in the near future. Will is a good man, with a good heart, and is still the perfect match for my daughter.

It would be good for Allen and I to spend a little more time letting Will know how Blessed we have been by his help and concern for any project we take on. He's given us 'the Gift of His Time' more than any of our own children have without expecting anything in return...and hopefully, he knows that we've been more supportive of him in many ways than his own family has been able to do as well.

That is what 'family' is all about, and that is why God is good all the time. Will has made the load a lot lighter and the journey more fun. It really feels great to give Will the credit for all his contributions to us...even if it is long 'over due'.

You're a great son, Will. I love you more than you will ever know. Thanks for everything!