A Gift from Above

John (Jack)Angus Chappell arrived in the early morning hours of February 2, 2013. This little guy is the baby of my little brother, Dan, and sister in law, Jess. The fact that he arrived healthy and whole is nothing short of a miracle. Early in Jess's pregnancy she had an ultrasound where a problem with their baby's heart was detected. The outcome was grim. Dan and Jess were told that the bottom two chambers of the baby's heart were not pumping blood. They were told that the baby would probably not live much longer, and they were sent home with very little hope. They did research on the internet about the problem that their baby had, and were discouraged. The best they could hope for was that the baby would live long enough to be delivered and that he would immediately have to have a pace maker put in at birth. Even with that scenario his life expectancy wasn't great. Appointments were made and specialists were called in to try to figure out the best approach for Jess's pregnancy going forward. When Dan sent me a text telling me that they were having a boy, I texted back that I was so happy for them, and was happy that the Chappell name was being carried forward with another boy. With the birth of another boy in our family, my nephew Braxton could relax a little (Braxton at that time was the only boy in our family with the Chappell last name). The whole time I was texting Dan, he knew about the baby's heart condition, but he didn't say anything. When I learned of the problem from my mom, I felt horrible. It must have been like getting salt rubbed in a wound for my brother to be reading those words. I called to talk to apologize for my insensitivity, and to offer him support. He was heart broken, and so was Jess. Dan said that he had not wanted to worry the family, but I assured him that we were there for them, and that families are meant to support one another through difficult times. The doctors had told Dan and Jess that there wasn't really anything that they could do for them until later in the pregnancy, so they were left hanging for several weeks. I'm not sure how far along Jess was, but I think she was about 25 weeks along when they were scheduled to meet with the high risk doctor for another ultrasound. The morning of the ultrasound, my brother had a vivid dream right before the alarm went off. He dreamed that he was sitting with our dad, Gus, and that our dad told him that he shouldn't worry about the baby because he was going to be just fine (I'm not sure of the wording my dad used, but when Dan told me about this dream, I thought that the words my dad used in the dream sounded just like the Gusty we all know and love). Dan woke up feeling as if everything was going to be okay. They arrived at the appointment, and the ultrasound revealed just a slight murmur in the baby's heart beat, but that the bottom two chambers of his heart were fine! The same girl who had performed the initial ultrasound was the girl who performed the second one, and she was astonished. The doctor tried to explain it away scientifically. Science did not correct baby Jack's heart--Heaven did. Heavenly Father answered the prayers of our family, and gave us a miracle. I strongly believe that my dad, Gus, was part of that miracle! My dad, who always took care of his family on earth, continues to do so from Heaven. In honor of my dad, Dan and Jess named their little guy John ANGUS Chappell--what a perfect name, for a perfect little boy. Maybe he will someday tell his kids about how Once upon a time in old Cottonwood Heights there lived a boy named Angus. Maybe he'll play stinker ball with his boys, or tell them to "read em" when he wants his socks off. Whether he does or not, I'm sure my brother will remind him always of what a wonderful grandpa he had, and about how his grandpa continues to watch over his family from Heaven. Happy Birthday, little Jack! You are perfect!

My dad's two namesakes: Caden RICHARD Pace, and John ANGUS Chappell. February 3, 2013

Another digital scrapbook by Smilebox

My Beautiful Family!

The Gus and Peggy Chappell Family

The Chappell Grandkids

From Beyond

No one can tell me that our loved ones aren't present in our lives after they pass on to the other side of the veil. I have witnessed the loving support of my dad time and time again over the last two and a half years. I KNOW he is still with us, still watching out for us, and still loving us even now. I miss him everyday, but I am comforted by his continued presence in my life.

Last year I went back to college. Before he died, my dad encouraged me to go back to school, and I don't know if I would have gone back after all this time if it weren't for his encouragement. This may sound funny, but I say a prayer before every test I take, and I ask that my dad might help me during my exams. I have felt him with me in the testing center at Weber State, and I have answered questions correctly that I know I couldn't have got right on my own. I still talk to my dad everyday. I jokingly tell him that it's because of him that I'm having to learn all this stuff, so it's up to him to help me out. We're both getting a college education :)

This semester I am fortunate to be taking an English class with my daughter, Alyssa. I have enjoyed having her with me in school. I never imagined I'd be going to college with my kids. Our last assignment was to write a seven page paper on six of the essays that we have read so far this semester, and connect the essays with a common theme. It's been many years since I've had to write a paper of this magnitude and I was a little intimidated. One of the requirements for the paper was that we had to have a "hook" that introduced our theme and captured the readers attention. I have pondered and worried about this paper for six weeks. One night a couple of weeks ago, I went to bed with questions about the upcoming paper running through my mind. That night, as I was sleeping, I had a very vivid dream about what the hook for my English paper should be. In my dream I was talking with my dad, and he suggested that I use my seventh grade teacher, Mr. Dyson as an example and that I could bring in the mnemonic device that Mr. Dyson taught me over thirty years ago. When I woke the next morning I knew what my hook was going to be, and I knew what my theme was going to be.

Today, we got our papers back. Before our teacher handed back our papers, she went over some of the things that the class did right, and some of the things that we still need to work on. As she was talking about the "hook," she said that she wanted to read the class her all time favorite "hook". She told the class that it was the best hook she had read, out of all the classes she is teaching, this was her favorite..."Kings Play Checkers On Fine Grain Sand is a mnemonic device that represents the order of animal classification. This mnemonic stands for Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, and Species. My 7th grade science teacher taught me this saying over thirty years ago, and I remember it after all this time. My science teacher knew how to bring learning to life, and he opened the minds of his students to all kinds of new possibilities." This was MY hook! The hook I dreamed about...literally, my dream was the mnemonic for animal classification, and the influence Mr. Dyson had on my life. Which led me to my theme...how individuals are influenced by their teachers. Again, I was reminded of my dad's continued guidance in my life. Because my hook was so random, and far out there, I KNOW that this was one of those situations where I could not have come up with the theme and hook for my paper on my own. I KNOW it was through my dad, in a dream, that I was inspired to write what I did. So today, with gratitude, I say GREAT JOB GUSTY for another paper well written! All those years ago, you were so great to help Paula out with her essays. She always managed to get an "A" on the essay that the two of you wrote together (and inadvertently so did I, because I copied her essays two years later!) Now I guess it's my turn to be inspired by your brilliance! Thank you, thank you, thank you!

My paper was on the influence a teacher can have on person's life. For me, the greatest teachers in my life have been my parents. I'm so thankful for my mom's patience and selflessness. I'm grateful for the moral lessons that my dad taught me through his stories of "Once upon a time in old Lyman town, there lived a boy named Angus". I'm thankful for the love of a family, and for the gift my family is in my life.

I might seem off my rocker and up in the night for having conversations with my dad. But I dare anyone to tell me I'm imagining his continued presence in my life!

Christmas memories 2010

Wow another Christmas has come and gone! I've enjoyed my time off from school, and have enjoyed having my kids home with me. I spent most of the last week being very sick, so that kind of put a damper on my holiday. Other than being sick, our Christmas was very nice. The kids seemed to really like their gifts and spending time with cousins. Christmas this year was so much less stressful thanks to Lor having a paying job. I know Christmas isn't about the gifts or spending money, but lets face it...having some money during December does help. We were happy to have Ryne (our foster son) with us on Christmas Eve and Christmas morning, and hope he enjoyed his time with us also. I'm sure it wasn't the same for him without his own family, but I hope we were able to make his holiday happy anyway. My washer broke down the first week of December (very poor timing), so that's what I got for Christmas. Our new washer and dryer (I had to have a matching set!) were delivered on the 23rd and I love them!

I went with my mom and Shaylee this year to the luminary at the cemetery. The people at the Valley View Memorial do such a great job at lighting over 4000 luminaries every December. This year the rain had extinguished the majority of the luminaries, but my mom and I got Dave's and my dad's lit back up okay. I made a homemade ornament to hang on the tree at the funeral home in memory of my dad. I burned his name into some wood, which was something my dad did all the time, so I thought it was a fitting tribute to the old boy.

My brother Scott wrote a poem about my dad this month also which I'm including in this blog...Scub I hope that's okay. I loved your poem and think I should share it. No worries, this blog is mostly just my own little blog and is only shared with a few select people.

Gusty

A man of many attributes for which he could be named
But among his most loved, the moniker, Gusty, with fondness was proclaimed.

For within his character, affection so profound
That to be his recipient made you feel more important than any king crowned.

He is my Dad, the great man, Gusty,
A collector of all things sentimental, old and rusty.

You see he didn’t value gold, silver or money
Only that in this world that is sweeter than honey;

“The best things in life are not things,” he would often relate.
Pearls of wisdom, that only now that he’s gone, I truly appreciate.

I miss my Dad more than words can express,
But I take comfort knowing he’s in a better place, nonetheless.

Time goes by and some memories fade
And for all his shortcomings, well, they are simply outweighed

By the legacy he has left me with and example above all,
But let’s not forget “Lyman boy stories”, “pop the kitty,” and oh yes, “stinker ball.”
Scub

Christmas Eve was spent during the day in Logan with the Pace clan, where we had a great lunch, and then exchanged white elephant gifts. It was great to watch Jeff open a dolly that says "mama"! The boys got to do the dishes afterwards and they were hilarious as they sang slave songs while they washed. Of course a trip to Logan would not be the same without William's famous blessings on our car as we get ready to leave.

We always open P.J.'s on Christmas Eve, and an ornament that Grandma Chappell gives to the kids every year. Caden and Shaylee put out cookies and milk for Santa. This year he got graham crackers and milk because I was too sick to frost the sugar cookies. Once again Caden could not sleep to save his life. But he was lucky enough to be awake about 1 a.m. when he heard Santa out on our roof! He said that he would never forget that experience! He was so cute, and I love that Santa is still real for my little guy.

Christmas morning our power went out about 6 a.m. Because all the kids sleep with a fan going, they were all awakened by their fans turning off. It was too dark to open presents so I told them all to go back to bed for a while until we could see what we were doing. I was lucky enough to get about an hour and a half more sleep. Cado and Shaylee woke me with the news that Santy had been to our house and that he even wrote them a little note. We got up and had our breakfast, a must at our house before opening presents. Then the kids lined up at the top of the stairs until they got the go ahead to go downstairs and open their presents. Caden and Shaylee are so fun to watch on Christmas morning, and I think everyone was happy.

After opening our gifts I went back to bed for an hour or so (sick as could be), while the kids played with their toys and electronics. We left for West Valley at about one and spent the rest of the day with the Chappell's. My mom always does so much to make the day nice for everyone. We had a great dinner and opened presents. I love spending time with my mom, brothers, sisters, and their families. I wished I had felt better, but it was fun to watch the kids play and listen in on everyone's conversations. Family really is what this life is all about!

This year I am so thankful to a Heavenly Father that hears and answers prayers, and for the birth of the Savior. I'm thankful for my wonderful family...children, husband, mom, brothers sisters, nieces, nephews, in-laws, and friends. I'm thankful for the plan of salvation, and for the resurrection. I thankful for the knowledge that I have that I will get to be with my Dad and children again. I'm thankful that I know my Dad is still with me, and know he had a great Christmas too.

2010 in review

Create a scrapbook design

Create a scrapbooking design