Priceless

After arriving at her house for the New Year's Eve celebration I wandered up the stairs to find where she was.  This was the image that I found when I started to her room.  Just priceless.

BYU basketball ESA

This game was so much fun.  Kerry and I were assigned seats fairly high in the arena but Rebecca had great seats in the student section which was virtually empty because it was Christmas break.  We watched and were going to try and sneak over but they were checking tickets very carefully and we wouldn't get away with it.  At least we couldn't until half time and we just walked through and went and sat by her.  We were only about 5 rows up from the floor and when the team took time outs we could almost hear some of the coaches and players.  I could get used to seats like these!  BYU won this game easily and Tyler Haws scored 42 points breaking his own father's record by two and would have done more possibly if Coach Rose hadn't taken him out.  It was a blast to watch. 

The Christmas Sweater

(I don't like to do posts that have me in the majority of the pictures, or any, but this is an exception)

As we gathered at our house for our traditional Christmas Dinner I was handed another gift to open.  I thought we were all done and then I realized everyone in the room was watching me.  I wondered what Kerry was up to this time!

        When I got to the tissue paper I could hardly believe what I was seeing before my eyes.

On our trip to Ireland in one of the first shops that we went into I fell in love with a sweater but because we were just beginning I decided not to buy it, there would be so many more shops to go into through the trip. And  it was a little more than I had planned to pay. At every shop after that I compared everything to that sweater.

 In Omagh we stayed with a missionary couple and she asked if there was anything that I had regretted not buying already and I told her about the sweater and she laughed and said it happened to everyone. From then I just thought about it as "my wish I had sweater."

 

                                              And there it was right before my eyes.!!!!

Literally all I could do was cry when I saw it, so I hid my face.

This is such an awful picture of me but I just looked at him and called him a "turkey" as he sat there with the biggest grin on his face.  I also know how much effort went into finding that sweater.  We couldn't remember the name of the shop or even the little community that it was in.  Kerry retraced our steps through the many pictures we took and found it. 

It's hard to see in the picture how beautiful this sweater is, but it is even more beautiful than I remember.

  To make this story even better on Christmas Eve Kerry got a phone call from Jessica telling him that the postman had left a note telling them he had tried to deliver a package and that they could pick it up the day after Christmas.  Kerry told them not to worry about it but Dave went and chased down the postman to get the package so that I could have it on Christmas. 

The Christmas Sweater is a beautiful gift and now a very sweet memory.

Cute Moment--Tanner

              Just watching these two react to one another, actually to see them both this still is kind of amazing.

"T's" first Christmas Program

Today was "T's" preschool Christmas Concert.  Preschoolers are so dang cute and try they so hard to try and figure out what is really happening.  Liv was right there with him in the learning process.

While trying to keep a straight face we couldn't help but grin as he "preformed!"

He is such a cute kid!

Let the Christmas Season Begin

We were given the opportunity to attend the First Presidency's Christmas Devotional and had enough tickets for all of the adults in our family in the Utah Area.  It turned out that Rebecca, her roommates, and some friends ended up going with us but it was a wonderful experience.

Each year the Mormon Tabernacle Choir does a Christmas Concert with special guests as a narrator and a vocal personality.  This year it was announced that Tom Brokaw was the narrator and Alfie Boe the vocalist.  I was so excited about both and hoped I would get tickets in the draw and entered.  The time to put names in was clear back in October and I had actually not given it a lot of thought until the day the tickets came, I was so excited. So just a week after the Devotional we returned to the Conference Center to attend this concert.  We had four tickets but because of conflicts our adult children could not go on a Thursday night. As our special guests we took Kerry's Mom and Caleb.  It was a beautiful evening and because the"Candy Bomber" was a highlight I am sure Caleb won't forget this night.  I had goose bumps as Alfie Boe sang "Let Him Live."  I could have listened to him for a very long time.

What a great way to begin the Christmas season.

Emerson's blessing

On the 9th of December Emerson was blessed.  It was a very quick trip but we were really happy to be there.  He was beginning to smile and respond, talk, and so cute.

 We went to the local mall and the girls played and rode the merry-go-round.  I even got to ride with Nora this time! We also went with them to their ward Christmas breakfast, which I think is a genius idea.  Clara wasn't afraid of Santa at all and unfortunately  I missed a picture with Nora and him.

 Rebecca can never get enough time with Charlie either.

 As soon as I saw this picture I fell in love with it.

It was a fun weekend and great to be with the family and it all went too fast! As we prepared to leave for the airport Nora fell apart, she said "I don't want my best friend to go."  I didn't know if I could leave after that or not.   We were grateful to be there for this sweet little boy!

Let the Packing Begin

As I began thinking about decorating for Christmas this year I have decided that I want to simplify and not put out the Christmas China for the entire month.  I also decided that I could start packing up some of the dishes and put to some of the Christmas stuff on the black china hutch in it's place for the season then afterwards we can put the hutch in the storage unit to make the space in the dining area look bigger!  I think the fix it and sell it shows on HGTV have put too many ideas in my head.  Plus there are so many dishes to pack.  This is just a small start.

As I was packing I looked up and realized that Quate wasn't loving what I was going it was as if he had a sense that things are changing, he does not like change.  He doesn't even like when I decorate for the Holidays!  Is he in for a shock.

Hawaiian Rescue

 After being in New York, Ireland, Kansas, Zions, and Disneyland with very little time a home I have wondered what we could have been thinking by planning so much at one time.  I don't know how I would have done any of it any different and I certainly wouldn't have given any of it up.  But to it mildly I am physically exhausted. Coming to Honolulu with Kerry was like a rescue for me.  Time to relax and catch my breath, the only downside is that Kerry had to return to work.  In the upper left picture we watched a helicopter fly men into this area on the mountain on west Oahu.  They were bringing them from a point much higher on the mountain and the busing them out, quite fascinating and what a ride!  The lower left picture of Emma is from Jessica showing us her tumble off of her bed and into the nightstand.  Apparently it bled quite heavily and required stitches and so did "Beary"  I hate when the little ones get hurt.  Also in this collage Kerry has been in this "new" office since March and still hadn't hung the pictures on the wall yet so we did it together.  I think he waited to see if he was going to be moved yet again, this being the fourth office in a five year time period.

Nothing says restful like a beautiful Hawaiian Sunset sitting by my sweetie!

Pot o Gold?

I have been in Honolulu for almost two weeks and this is the most beautiful thing I have experienced yet this trip.  I look out the window of our hotel room and there it was.  As I grabbed my camera it turned into a double rainbow.  It was amazing.

So Comfy Reb!

Natalie and Dave invited us over for dinner after church.  When we got there the kids were still napping. A little while after we got there they went upstairs to wake them.  "T" really had a hard time waking up so he went and snuggled up on Rebecca on the couch where he promptly went sound asleep again.  It was really cute and he slept for quite ahwile. 

My Monsters 2012

Disney 2012

After much planning and anticipation we finally made it to Disneyland with Natalie, Dave and the kiddos.

The trip was fun despite the fact that both kids were too small to ride most of the Carsland rides and that all but Kerry ended up with the stomach flu.  Watching the reactions of the kids was so much fun.  We managed to get up close and personal to McQueen without even planning on it, the expression on T's face was the best but it happened so fast that we didn't get the picture.  Disney puts on quite a Trick or Treat for the kids!  It was a fun third birthday for T.

T's third

We celebrated "T" for his third birthday a little early as a family because he will be in Disneyland on his real birthday.  I have never seen a kid who loves to be sung to as much as this guy does.  His Jake and the Neverland Cake was so cute and the outfit Natalie made him was a big hit.

Caleb's merit badges

So proud of Caleb he earned so many badges they asked him to slow down, seriously when a kid is motivated who would ask him to slow down.  He loves to learn and this makes it even more fun.  Way to go Caleb!

Zions Fall 2012 (Part one)

Between Kerry and myself there are so many pictures that bring so many memories of this trip so I had to simplify by doing them in groups as much as possible.  Most will be family and a little scenery thrown in.

More to follow

Zions 2012 (Part 2)

Pride Rock lives on in the next generation!

I have to admit as I have gone back to Zion's the last few times I have been engulfed with saddness as the park changes and some of the landmarks are gone or have changed.  This trip helped that as we introduced the next generation and created new memories and the love of the park.

Memories:

1.  The term "deer cow" is now a part of our family as Emma saw a buck wander through the parking lot at the hotel late the night the arrived and that is what she called it.

2.  Caleb fell in love with Zion's and as we looked at the topographical map at the exit of the park he realized he had only seen a small part of the park and said he wanted to come back and see more.

3.  Rebecca playing hide and seek in the hotel room with the little ones as we fixed breakfast.  They found her folded up in the linen closet!

4. Watching the little ones scamper up to the "hoo doo's" and remembering our little ones doing the same thing over the years.  Loving that some of our kids still like to climb up on them, together.

5.  Tanner jumping out from behind the rocks and roaring at us to "scare" us as we wandered back from the Emerald Pools.  He really did scare a few people that weren't with us and they were great sports.

6. Jack wanting to investigate EVERY  little plant on the way up to Emerald Pools.

7. Rain, hard rain that threatened to keep us indoors and away from the hiking trails. 

8.  Lot's of little ones in very tight quarters and pretty patient parents as well.

9. Family time, priceless!!!!!