This is my niece Melissa; isn't she beautiful! I love this picture of her. Melissa was born on October 10, 1985, that is when I became an aunt for the first time; I was twenty-seven years old. Just over a month ago Melissa gave birth to a beautiful baby daughter and I became a great-aunt for the first time. That is what I refer to as a tender moment. My parents have 12 grandsons and 11 granddaughters, Melissa is the fourth grandchild and the oldest granddaughter.
Melissa was born nineteen months before my daughter Ashleigh. At Easter time in 1988 they were the only granddaughters out of seven grandchildren. By coincidence that Easter, Melissa and Ashleigh both had new Jessica McClintock (Remember Gunne Sax?) dresses so Margie and I took them to get their picture taken together as a gift for Granma.One of my favorite stories about Melissa occurred when she was just a toddler, some of the family went to meet Alan, Marivic, and Christopher as they arrived at the Salt Lake airport for a visit. Uncle Alan was complimenting 2-year-old Melissa on how how cute she was and how big she had gotten since they had last seen her, Melissa's response to Uncle Alan...."and potty trained too."
On the day that I received Melissa's high school graduation announcement in the mail, I was quite confused when I opened it and read Melissa Nicole Marsden. I knew that Melissa didn't have a middle name, but apparently she had always wanted one, so she decided to give one to herself (I believe she even named herself after Nicole Kidman ).
I have watched Melissa grow up and she is an exceptional young woman. Last year Mike, Caitlin, Granpa, Granma, and I spent a few hours in Las Vegas where Melissa met us for dinner. Granma was telling Melissa a story and I was impressed with how Melissa listened intently and without interruption as Granma was talking to her. I think being a good listener is a talent.
Melissa is loyal and devoted to family, and she is also very proud of her heritage. I love (and share) her enthusiasm about the family and I would say absolutely with no doubt, that if our family had a cheerleader, it would be Melissa.Melissa attended BYU-Idaho and that is where she met her husband Adam. Their story is unique; Adam came to Melissa's apartment thinking he was picking up another girl for a date....and the rest is history, they were married on August 5, 2006.
They moved to Las Vegas soon after their wedding, and they just purchased their first home last month.Things to know about Melissa: She is tender hearted. She loves un-conditionally. She's loyal. She's happy. She has faith. She is trusting. She keeps a spotless house. She's committed to home and family. She is wise with her money. Shortly after she became engaged, Melissa spent several months in Russia teaching kindergarten. She has been in several countries including England. She loves Uncle Mike's impersonation of a gorilla (now). She is anticipating her graduation from UNLV in December. She's going to be a teacher, but first....she will be a stay-at-home Mom. We all love Melissa Maloo, and are so grateful that she is in our family.
Melissa's family: Melissa, Adam, and baby Hannah
10 comments:
Oops! Typo. I'm pretty sure Melissa was born in 1985 and that Lesley was not 27 in 1995. I'll always remember the first time I held newborn Melissa. I set off an alarm of some monitoring device attached to her. And I remember she loved the movie Titanic but hadn't even seen it cuz it was PG-13 and she wasn't yet 13. It seems like just yesterday, and now she's a mommy.
Thanks Alan....I let that one slip right past me.
Melissa has grown to be such a wonderful woman! I loved the opportunity I had to bond with her the summer before she got married and we would drive to Leger's to work together. We would laugh and tell jokes and she would tell me all sorts of stories about planning her wedding.
I'll never forget when she and Adam came to my houses for a party on Thanksgiving Night when we played a game and it was Adam's turn to be "it" and ask questions of us all. He was really trying to concentrate on what to ask and Melissa said, "Awww... that's his thinking face!" It was hilarious!
How fun to be starting their family and buying their first house at the same time! We bought our home a couple of months before Max was born and it just really made me feel like we were moving into the family stage in our lives.
It was so fun to me to see Melissa featured on "Family Friday." Melissa is a beautiful and amazing daughter. I continue to be amazed at what she does. I have to agree with Les about Melissa being a cheerleader for our family. She is so supportive and devoted and I love that about Melissa. She is also spectacular big sister to both Megan and Sean. Even though they live in Las Vegas, she strives to always build family relationships. It has also been wonderful to watch her being a mom. Hannah is a very blessed baby to have Melissa as her mom. I am very impressed that Melissa will finish her degree in December. It has been a huge goal for Melissa for a long time. Way to go Melissa!! I love you...and you do amaze me.
Tim Says: I have to first say to Lesley that I am impressed with her powers of observation. Many of her remarks are not things that are obvious to the casual observer. Melissa is an incredible person with a great sense of humor. She is fiercely devoted to family and is such a loving daughter. I love how she can tease me and make me laugh. When she was little she and I would pretend we were other characters. She would come up to me and say "who should we be?" Then I would say, "Gepetto and Pinnochio?" "No." "How about Mickey and Minnie?" "Nope." "I know, Scarecrow and Dorothy." "Yeah!" Then for the next little while I would sing and talk like the Scarecrow and she would be little Dorothy. "Oh joy, rapture, I have a brain!" You should have seen me walking around like my legs were full of straw. Thanks Melissa for making life so fun. I'm still your Scarecrow, don't ever forget that. I love you.
Its MEEEE! Thank you for your sweet words about me! This couldn't have come at a better time! I've had a really difficult week trying to adjust to my final semester and leaving Hannah for such long periods of time...I just really needed this :) I would love to be our family cheerleader! I think we are AWESOME!!! I'm glad to know I am loved and that even though I'm far away you haven't forgotten about me :)
P.S. Uncle Alan, its funny you remember my obsession with Titanic...I still watch it every chance I get (like last weekend when it was on TV)
I love reading this post about Melissa, and all the comments posted. Yes, it's amazing that she is now a Mom herself. I still remember her as a little baby and a little girl. I baby sat her several times when she was a toddler and she was so fun. I remember that she didn't like to take naps and wanted me to tell her stories instead. She probably didn't understand my then really thick Filipino accent but she was a very good listener, and apparently still a very good listener until now. A memory of Melissa that stands out to me was at the beach house when she was young teen-ager and she lip-synced to Shania Twain. She was very good and I was very impressed, and I remembered thinking, "Oh, my gosh, she is a Marsden."
I remember one time we were camping and I was commenting about being a Ditty and giving an example of whatever, Melissa chimed in with then I am a Ditty because...... and had a similar experience to mine. That made me feel good that she wanted to be recognised as part of her Irish family. She always does things to make me feel good, has included me in her life and calls to check up on us. Even last year when we were in Casper, WY I got a call from her making sure we were alright. She treasures her family, and loves to be with us. You can't go far wrong when you love and cherish the family you came from. Love you Melissa :o)
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