It's Debbie's Birthday

Debbie is having her birthday today. I won't say how old she is, but I will say that we are the same age for the next 2o some odd days. That was always fun for us when we were kids. Not many other kids could say they were the same age as one of their siblings. (Of course Louyre and Louse could say that also) Anyway, it was fun for us. Debbie was always my best bud. We lived far away from other people, and we had lots of responsibilities as little kids. We got friends who lived in Shumway when we got a little older, but Debbie and I pretty much remained best friends until we graduated from High School. After that our lives kind of took seperate roads, but we have always been friends. Mom and dad expected lots from Debbie and I. Louyre and Louise came a few years after us, but by then Debbie and I already knew how to do it, so why bother and make Louyre and Louise learn anything. By the time the 3 younger kids got here, it was worse. They actually got waited on. Ha Ha Mom and dad taught all of us kids to love food. I don't know why they couldn't have taught us to love something else like TV (Ha Ha) Anyway, we were always good eaters. Debbie had the hardest time. We are all so very proud of her because of her tremendous weight loss. I am horribly jealous. She looks so good. She has always been a good girl, and we are all jealous of that. She has always made the good and right choices. She has always been the most devoted. I always wished that I could have been as strong as her. I never was, and never will be. I love Debbie very much, and she is still my best "bud" (of course she will have to share that title with Wayne now, because he's my best "bud" also. Happy Birthday Debbie. Debbie never had kids of her own, but Ashley has Debbie's middle name of Diane; Dakota's fir name is actually Debbie, and Adelaide was born on her birthday. That makes it legal for her to claim them as her own.

Our Little Puffy hairdo's

Debbie and I were in different schools this year, but we both had one favorite dress, and so we both got to wear it for our pictures.

The glasses were the top of fashion, but ask Debbie, they were a

source of much teasing unfortunately

This picture was barely save in time. I love this picture

I also have a picture that looks similar to this. Mom had a

tendency to do all of our hair the same each year.

Whatever was the easiest.

Never what looked the best.

I made Debbie's dress (thank you) but Ann Shumway get the

credit for her hair. Debbie could never say no and mean it.

Debbie actually posing fo a picture ????

This was about the time she did her surgery.

She is a whole different person now.

Debbie is those fine glasses again

Debbie's senior picture. At least she was smart enough to

keep her glasses on (someone else wasn't) She also

wore a necklace. Maybe they just used me as a experiment.

Debbie has more pictures than all of us, because she got to

take school pictures every year, sometimes twice.

She does always look good though

This is one of my favorite pictures also.

I love the purple dress. Nellie and my kids think it is icky

but me and Debbie like it, and who counts the most.

Debbie in another school picture

At least her newer ones look better than some of the older.

The older were cute though.

Debbie graduating from BYU.

She's the only one to graduate from college.

That's something to be proud of.

She won't agree all the time, because she still

makes less money than pretty much everyone else when

they were working their "other" jobs.

She still did it, even though everyone told her she

could never graduate from BYU because it was TOO HARD

for someone who couldn't see

In Debbie's older years she got brave with animals.

Of course, she probably touched frogs and snakes as a kid also.

She even has a picture with a snake around her neck somewhere.

Debbie always said she was dad's boy and so she had to

act like one, and I'll have to admit that sometimes

she did.

Debbie graduating from High School in 1974

She went from here to Beauty School in Utah where

she spent the next 2 years. She finished that and came home

and earned money to go on a mission. She came home from her

mission (honorably of course) and went back to work to earn

enough money to get her into her first year at BYU, and then

got scholarships after that to keep her there. She should be

really proud of accomplishing all that. None of the rest of us did.

Ask Vance about his time at BYU.

Nellie was better at BYU than Vance, but

she didn't stay for long.

Debbie on her mission in Greensboro, North Carolina

I had 3 kids by the time she got home off her mission.

I know smetimes she thinks she missed out, but kids are

pretty hectic also. Sometimes I feel like I missed out on lots

of stuff also, because I got married and started having kids and

it limited what I could do for many years. It's funny how our choices

define what happens for the rest of our lives. Those choices make

us who we are. I wonder what would have happened to all

of us if we had made a few different choices ???????