Happy Birthday Baby!

Well, he's not a baby, but he's my baby. And I just want to honor my guy on his special day. This isn't the place for a whole history, so I just want to hit a few highlights, like he was such a beautiful baby! John Milby Rogers was born in Cedar City, Utah, while his folks and older brothers lived on a ranch near Enterprise, Utah.

The photo of John with his dad, William Edward Rogers, at the livestock auction in Cedar City is a real favorite of mine. John was the fifth son of six.

When John's younger brother Doug arrived, his mother Gwendolyn Bushman Rogers was really hoping for a little girl after five boys, so she just pretended to have a daughter for a couple of years! Our family loves this photo of John and Doug, with his little ringlets, bracelet and curls... especially now he's a heavy construction guy with a wonderful family of seven!

John grew up in St. George, Utah and most wouldn't guess, but he started his acting career early with his childhood friends Rick Miles and Jon B. Fish, singing, "I'm Gettin' Nothin' for Christmas," with classmates Janet Allen, Jaleen Steed and Tanya Spilsbury. John is in the middle on the right (duh!).

The family lived up on the highway across the street from the "Desert Kitchen," a cafe the old-timers of southern Utah remember well. Some exciting episodes during the 50's era were run-away semi trucks that had brake failures while the drivers were eating at the DK. At least four plowed through the Rogers' front yard, to the right and left of the home, with three hitting the Shady Acres Motel next door!

John enjoyed sports and especially making huts, caves and forts with his childhood friends. Swimming in "Polio Pond" was another great summer activity for kids in those days. I love this photo of him taken when he was twelve and made a Deacon.

His life and the life of his family was altered greatly when his mother passed away from cancer when he was only eight years old. From then on, he lived in many different places with his dad and also his older brothers.

He went from Boulder City, Nevada, to Seattle, to Phoenix, to Orange, California, and finally graduated from Provo High School. He shared an apartment with his brother Bruce and other BYU college guys and was self-supporting when he was 16. He delivered groceries for Smeath's Market his Senior year.

While attending Brigham Young University, John decided to serve a mission for the LDS Church and was called to the French East Mission in 1967. The photo below was taken about that time. (Notice the inscription "Yours For Eternity." Kinda makes me jealous of his girl, Linda Kay... who didn't wait for him, obviously!) But he loved France and his mission headquarters was in Geneva, Switzerland. He served in a number of areas including Marseilles, Lyon, Salon de Provence and Geneva. John learned to speak excellent French during those two and a half years. He got his first interests in printing and journalism as the mission printer. He also learned many skills and developed an interest in French cooking. (Oh, am I so glad! He's an excellent baker and we both enjoy our backgrounds in the restaurant business.) His father was a butcher and cook and my mom was a cook too.

(Look at that gorgeous head of hair!!)

When he returned from Europe, he continued his education, married and began raising a family. We are very blessed to have seven children between the two of us. We love them all so much and each of them and their families are special to us. John became an excellent printer and eventually a newspaper man. There was a time when he was reporter, photographer, ad salesman, production guy and pressman... as well as the General Manager of various community newspapers, and eventually the Daily Spectrum in St. George. Today he works for Enterprise Newspaper Group and fills the positions of salesman, COO and Executive Vice-president.

John has a funny sense of humor that many do not see. The caption to the news photo above reads, "A mysterious silver knight climbed aboard his black steed preparatory to venturing into the Halloween night. Some say the horse, normally docile in Dick's Cafe parking lot, thundered up and down Main Street at midnight with the unidentified swordsman, highlighting old Celtic holiday festivities in Dixie. The report could not be confirmed." Ha! Ha! I can confirm that JR showed up on my front porch in this outfit only three days after our first date! He's been my knight in shining armor ever since!

John and I went on our honeymoon to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. We like to travel and see different parts of the country and world. John is a big sports fan, and his favorite team is BYU. He used to play a lot of fast-pitch softball, but these days he enjoys following and playing golf. He loves spending time with family, both our immediate and extended. We enjoy going to family reunions, learning about family history and genealogy. John is lucky to have five brothers as his friends. They don't live close by, but the bonds of brotherhood mean much to him. John has almost always been involved in Scouting, and presently is the Scout Committee Chairman in our Ward.

From youngest on the left is Doug, John, Bruce, Richard, Will and Clair.
The photo below was taken a few years ago at a family reunion in St. George. All of the Rogers kids (except Zachary), and grandchildren were able to attend.

From left is Mitchell and his wife Lisa, Michelle and her husband Trevor, Mike's wife Courtney and Michael and Marc on the right. His grandchildren present at that time were Fisher, Bailey, Chason and Kaleb. Mike and Court had just announced they were "expecting," and that turned out to be his granddaughter Tru.

One of the things I appreciate most about my hubby is that he's a peacemaker. He always is kind and patient, even when others screw up (especially me). John is the greatest helper a wife could ever have and always pitches in with any household chores that need to be done. He can fix almost anything and loves to garden and grow things. He's a little weird too... you know, a little OCD. He likes to count things, like ceiling tiles, how many steps to this place or that, or how many bricks on a wall! He puts ice cubes in his milk and leaves the lid off his aftershave. He does a crossword puzzle every night and likes to read spy mysteries.

So, now I know you will ask for the password to my blog again, so you can take out all the embarrassing things and photos I have put in. But I won't give it to you - just deal with it! I love you dear, and hope you have a really good year!