my personal history

this assignment is crazy! i was only required to write five pages worth, but i discovered that five pages hardly covers anything! i started at the very beginning and have been writing down everything i can remember. it's crazy how many memories start to surface! so i think i'm supposed to post the whole thing. there are some pretty embarrassing stories :P so don't laugh! haha :) i am not even close to being finished writing my whole personal history, but this was a good start!


My Childhood

My name is Amy Christine Stowers Openshaw. I was named after my great-great grandmothers Amy Cheney and Christine Hansen, both on my mother’s side. I was born on October 16th, 1990 at 7:59 am to Richard Harry Stowers Jr and Samantha Ann Gauthier Stowers. I am their oldest child, with three younger siblings. Alison Kathleen is 21 months younger than me, born on July 22nd, 1992. Ryan Tilford is next and the only boy, born June 25th, 1995. Kelsie Richelle is the youngest, born May 19th, 1999.

My father is the oldest child of nine. My mother is an only child. My dad’s parents are still living, and both of my mom’s parents have passed away. My extended family on my dad’s side consists of three uncles, all married with children, and five aunts, of whom three are married with children. I am the oldest of all my cousins, which come to 24 and counting. My dad’s family gets together often so I know most of them. The extended family on my mother’s side has never been very close and so I do not know them very well except for stories and some faint childhood memories.

I was born and raised in Rexburg, Idaho and have yet to move away. My parents were attending Ricks College when I was born. My mom was in the Interior Design program and has told me stories about her time there. She has said that she used to take me to class with her and that one of her teachers called me Peanut because of the way I was wrapped up! The first place I lived was the Rexburg Plaza apartments, which are still standing and known by the same name! Alison was also born while we were living there. I can’t recall any memories personally but I have been told stories and shown pictures of our time there. My mom has told me about hobo spider infestations that didn’t quite reach our apartment because we were high enough up that the hobos couldn’t migrate. We have pictures of an Easter egg hunt and a baby shower for one of my mother’s friends that took place there. I’ve also been told stories of how I would get into the garbage can after my dad had thrown away his Wendy’s Frosty cup at lunch times. Mom has a few pictures of this as well. My mom has been friends for a long time with Vonda Smith and I know that she and her son Jared lived in the Rexburg Plaza apartments too. I faintly recall playing with him and Alison. My mom has pictures of the three of us together.

We moved from the apartments into a small two bedroom home on Center St. It is a small white house with brown shutters and small steps to the front door and also the back door which is located on the side. There is a sandbox in the backyard where my siblings and I would play. My parents were renting this house from an older couple who lived in the house next door to the right. I remember them being referred to as “The Landlords.” Mother has often repeated a story about an incident where I became concerned after she had been away for a short while and called the police saying that I didn’t know where my mommy was. Even though she had told me that she was just going next door real fast to pay the rent!

I remember a time when my dad and I were sitting on the sofa in the house and Dad told me to be extra quiet. We sat patiently and soon enough a mouse went racing across the living room! It was exciting. We have lots of pictures of our time in the house on Center St. I don’t remember it, but two of my dad’s sisters lived with us in the house for a time (before Ryan was born) while they attended Ricks College. My brother Ryan joined the family while we were living there. It made for cramped space! I vaguely remember sleeping on the top bunk bed in the front bedroom with Alison on the bottom bunk and Ryan on a mattress that slid under the bunk. We used to play together fairly well most times. I remember there being lots of games of make-believe! We especially liked to play house and Barbie’s.

We have lots of pictures from our time on Center St. Including pictures of me brushing and playing with my Grandma Lu’s hair (my mom’s mother). Pictures of my sixth birthday, Easters past, lost teeth, and extended family’s visits. One of my earliest memories of my mom’s parents took place at their cabin in Montana. The cabin was built by my Grandpa Jim and Grandma Lu. They were one of the first families to build on the mountain. The cabin is about 20 miles from the closest town, Darby. My mom spent a lot of her childhood and teenage years there. We didn’t visit the cabin a lot during my childhood because of strained relationships between my mom and her father. But I do remember spending time there for at least one Christmas. The cabin is a two story, with only two and a half rooms. The main floor is one big room with the kitchen on the left as you walk in and the fireplace and seating on the right. the kitchen table has been in the middle of the room for as long as I can remember. My Grandpa Jim kept a lot of stuff and there used to be hats on every single log that went across the ceiling! To get upstairs you have to climb a metal ladder that is positioned next to the fireplace. It isn’t very sturdy, but it works! The upstairs is small with a queen size bed (two twins pushed together) and then a small loft where my mother slept as a child. When we visited, my siblings and I would sleep up in the loft. There is a large window that looks out into the driveway. I remember looking out at night after going to bed and not being able to see anything because it was so dark! There used to be no lights on the mountain except for those of the neighboring cabins!

The Christmas I remember there was a good one. I had asked Santa Claus for a porcelain doll. When we woke the next morning, a brand new porcelain doll was the first thing I saw after coming down the ladder. It was beautiful! I also remember going sledding on the road that wound up the mountain to the other cabins. Winter on the mountain is beautiful, all the snowy trees and fresh mountain air. Grandma and Grandpa also had a few dogs (one at a time) that I remember. Big beautiful German Shepherds! They were kept outside on a line that ran from the corner of the cabin all the way down the driveway.

My earliest memory of attending school is from kindergarten. I attended Adam’s Elementary in Rexburg, which is still standing and still part of the Madison County School District. My kindergarten teacher was Mrs. Stanford. I faintly remember sitting at the table closest to the backpack cubbies, and the door, with several other children coloring with crayons. I remember that my favorite school lunch was chicken nuggets. The cafeteria is small, and the playground is huge. I also remember one time in second grade. My class was in the gym playing and our teacher, Mrs. Parkinson, got frustrated because we weren't listening to her when it was time to line up to go back to class. That was the first time I have ever heard a teacher yell in an angry way! My sister Alison and I were allowed to walk home occasionally, and one time while we were walking we came across a $50 bill! The route we took to get home (which by that time was the trailer in Millhollow Trailer Park) was through the school playground, across the Rexburg North Stake church parking lot and field, and through the old Madison high school parking lot. We had just gotten to the church field when I turned around and spotted the bill up against the cement retaining wall that separates the parking lot and the grass. I tried to convince Alison to keep it a secret but when we got home she told mom what we had found and mom confiscated it. She taught us a lesson of honesty. She called the Stake president, told him what we had found, and said that the person who lost it could call us. I remember being disappointed that I couldn’t keep it! I can’t remember if anyone called to claim the money or not, but it was a lesson I’ll never forget!