Christmas can come now

This last Thursday Jessica invited me to go to the Tabernacle Choir Christmas concert and I am so glad that I was able to go. We went with her mom and Lori Heusser, we had fun at Taipan before we went to Salt Lake and then we went to eat and we probably should have found a parking spot before eating. We were in traffic for longer than we wanted to and ended up having to run to the conference center so they wouldn't give our tickets away. When we got into the conference center there were no seats left in our section and we were thinking we wouldn't get any seats at all. We found 4 seats next to the wall and thought, "Oh, great we spent all of this effort to get here and we just got these seats where we won't be able to see anything."
Well we were wrong because the concert was amazing and the sound was perfect and it was a wonderful night. In fact there was a song that the tabernacle choir sang that I thought, if I died it would be all right because I was already in heaven because the sound was so angelic. Thanks Jessica for inviting me now Christmas can come!

We celebrated Ryan's birthday on Friday night and went to eat at Cafe Sabor and then went to Isaac and Mary's to watch Dark Night. It was a late night but it was fun .The night wasn't complete until we had an ice cream cake from Cold Stone.

Happy Birthday Mr. 55!!

It's someone's Birthday!

This person never wants a big to do about his birthday and if he knew I was telling everyone that it is his birthday he would be embarrassed. But since he doesn't read this very often I am going to tell everyone that it is Ryan's birthday! I can't tell you how much this person means to me and he is the love of my life. Really, life without him would be not worth living, I am so grateful for him and all that he does for me and his family. I know we knew each other in Heaven because when we met the bell's started ringing.

Happy Birthday Mr. Jones you have made my life complete! I love you!!

Guess who's Birthday??

Yes, today December 8th is Jon's birthday and I wanted to be first to wish him a very happy day! Let me tell you a little bit about Jon. He is living in Hershey PA where he is in his 3rd year of medical school. For those who know anything about medical school he is a very busy man. He is the husband of my daughter Mel and they have 2 beautiful children whose names are Jaedon and Olivia. Jon and Mel met at Utah State when Mel was just finishing nursing school and Jon had about 3 more years before he graduated. He was the most eligible bachelor from Delta Utah and Mel met him at her work. He had always said he would not date people who he worked with so he waited until he had finished working at Sunshine Terrace before he asked her out. When he came to pick Mel up at the house Mel had informed me that it was just a date and it was "no big deal". The moment I saw him I knew differently and there I was standing in the mud in the flower garden meeting my future son in law. There is just something special about Jon when you meet him and as I watched how kind and caring he is around others and saw the fun little tease and grin that he gets when he talks to Mel I knew he was somebody I had hand picked for Mel. He always puts others before himself and is just about the best medical student in the United States (I'm not joking about this.) I am so grateful he is in our family and I can't ask for a better son. So on this day Jon I hope you have a great day and thanks for being such a great husband for my daughter and such a great Dad to my grandchildren!

Ask Jaedon, he will say he is the best Dad ever! Look what he won for him.

Yes, after Olivia was born Dr. Jon had to test out his assessment skills, Livy will agree as well that he is the best Dad ever!

Happy Birthday Jon!

Hope you have a very great day and know that we love you!!

Hansel and the gingerbread house

Kace and Tydon came up Friday night to stay the night while Rachel and Nate cleaned their grout and resealed their tile in their kitchen. We had started making a gingerbread house the Saturday before but Kace had to leave before it was finished. So of course the first order of business was to finish the gingerbread house! Kace couldn't wait to get started and because Tydon had just woke up he wasn't up to much but just wanting to eat the candy. Kace decided that I should put on the frosting and he would put on the candy and we couldn't stop until it was all finished. When I had seen him on Wednesday I had asked him if he was ready to finish his house and he said," do you have any fish?" meaning Swedish fish, I answered,"no, but I will get some." Well I had a big bag of fish and we definitely ate more than we put on the house! He then wanted to eat himself (he had made a gingerbread snowman representing him and Tydon and had put it in front of the house.) I told him that he had to wait until his Mom was able to see it and of course the first thing he did when Rachel came was say, "See my house Mom", and then took the snowman and started eating it.

You can see in this picture that Tydon is still half awake but not too tired to eat!

The house was still there the next morning and the Christmas mice had not eaten it during the night.

In the afternoon after playing in the hot tub and eating lunch we realized that Tydon was being very quiet and we went through the house trying to find him. I thought he was probably in the play room but after looking we found that he wasn't there. Caitlin went outside to see if she could see him but I told her that he didn't have any shoes on so he shouldn't be far. She looked for a few minutes and then looked up on the hillside and saw Tydon marching up the mountain after the dogs, bare feet and all. Remember those deer pictures that Ryan always takes, well the little speck on the hillside is Tydon. We got him down and put his shoes on and he spent the rest of the afternoon exploring with Kace.

Kace had to have a picture with Millie and her Santa hat. We had a lot of fun with Tydon and Kace and Tydon was very well behaved. As soon as Rachel and Nate came in the afternoon he saw Rachel and just started to cry. He had not cried the whole time he was with us and I don't know if now that his Mom was here he could just let it all out or what but the rest of the night he kind of had a hard time.

The rest of the pictures are of our Christmas decorations, the tree is up and decorated so it is getting to feel a lot like CHRISTMAS!

Mr. Jones asked if we were having a green Christmas because I had so much green everywhere but I just like the color this year for some reason and it kind of carried it's way through the house.

Okay, here is some red! I love everything about Christmas and especially the reason we celebrate it, for without Him my life would truly be nothing.

Now that Thanksgiving is over...

These pictures are from Saturday when Kace and Tydon came up with Nate to go pheasant hunting up the canyon. Tydon has such a cute pose and knows just what to do when a camera is in front of him. Kace started his gingerbread house but will have to come back up to finish it, he was ready to eat it before it even was put together.

After our Thanksgiving dinner we had to play "Rock band" and it was fun because everyone got involved. I just sang because I am really, really, bad at the drums and the guitar.

Mary and Isaac do quite well and the rest of us just try to keep up.

Mac and Jess and little Millie.

Mac and Isaac posing for the camera, yes Mac is pinching the dogs ears.

Mr. Jones was pretty good at the drums and was getting into quite the rhythm.

This is before all of the food was on my plate. I should have taken an after photo but I was too full to move.

Ready, get set, go, we almost are ready to eat!

Mac had to try the turkey before hand and he had to keep telling us all of the gross parts that the Philippine people eat on a bird. Yes, we are very spoiled and we waste a lot of food.

This was right after we took the turkey out of the roaster it was a little crispy on the top but it was really moist and yummy! WE have so much to be grateful for and it was a great holiday and we are looking forward to the next great holiday, Christmas my favorite.

Happy Thanksgiving

I have a new toy, it's called a cricut machine and it cuts all kinds of shapes like you can't believe. I have had a lot of fun playing with it and decided to make some Thanksgiving place cards so I made one for all who would be at Thanksgiving. After I finished them I wasn't sure how they would stand up by the plate. I found some pumpkin picks,(the ones with the wires in the bottom) I pulled out the wire in the bottom and used some needle nose pliers to make a curly cue to hold the place cards. I think they turned out pretty cute and yes I made skinny turkeys for the girls and fat turkeys for the boys. I hope all of you have a very happy day eating and being with family and loved ones and to all of you that I can't be with on this Thanksgiving day I just want you to know you will be missed and I am very thankful for all of you.

Humble Pie Night

Okay, so Rachel got a special pie from the Morby's on pie night. It was all wrapped up like a very nice pie and when she opened it there was just a few crumbs and this reminder... We love you Rachel! I just wonder what it will be like next year when the Seniors from Utah have all graduated and moved on and BYU will have there main offense back to play in the game right before Thanksgiving. I wonder what kind of pie Rachel will bring to pie night next year? hmmm
We had a very fun night at pie night and there was definitely enough pies to go around and then some. They were delicious and we all felt like we had our fill. Kace loved all of the pies and went back for 2Nd's and 3Rd's and he ate every bit. Yes, all of the pies were good, I think my favorite was Val's peach pie. It took Tydon awhile to wake up and about the time he was ready to leave he finally got going.

We had fun talking with all of the cousins and telling our stories to each other.

Mark treated us all to some of his guitar songs and I especially liked the first one that he learned. For all of you that missed it maybe he will play it at the Christmas party and you can hear how good he is. I was impressed, way to go Mark you made it a really great evening.

Happy Thanksgiving to all !!

Mary looks like she ate too much pie but she has a better treat coming in January!

We can't wait!

Check out Mel's etsy shop

Mel has a cute shop with cute things to buy and make. Check it out here.

I am thankful for...

Atonement, I am thankful that I had a Savior who knew how imperfect I would be and made it possible to return to Him by atoning for all of my sins. I am also thankful for airplanes, aunts, April (the month I was born in), all of His creations, and apples.
Baptism, because then I can make the steps to make it back to Heaven. I am thankful for babies and their sweet smells, my back so I can walk, beds so I can sleep, Book of Mormon, my body even though I judge it harshly, books, Bryce, breathing, bread, bishops especially the one I have now, and blessings that I receive everyday.
Christ, I am so thankful for Him and all that he has blessed me with, children they are the bright spot in my day and my life and I am so grateful for my own, cars so I can get where I need to be, Christmas so we can celebrate His birth, candy it makes my life sweeter, camping, I know Ryan will wonder about this one but I have lots of fond memories of our camping trips, Carson, Caitlin, cousins, clothes, computers, canyons, cherries, chocolate and the coolness of the summer breeze.
Daylight, I love when the sun first comes up in the morning and the peace and beauty of the day, daisies, day lilies, dianthus (these are all flowers), Dads and especially the one that I have. I don't know a more humble man and he has brought me so much joy. I am grateful that I was named after him so I guess I would add Don and Donene to the list and I am thankful for Doug.
Eternal Life, I am thankful that I have that to look forward to because how sad would it be if this life was all that we had. Everyday life and the surprises it brings each day. Eternal companion, I am so grateful for him and that I have the opportunity to spend the rest of my life with him so far it has been a pretty good trip. I am thankful for Evan, examples that I have had in my life, ears to hear, education, earth, and the excitement of each new day.
Fathers, I have mentioned the one I have and of course I love the father of my children, and I love the Father that I have in heaven. Family, I love my family and I am so grateful for the one that I have been blessed with they are definitely the brightest spot in my day. I am thankful for food, flowers, fruit, fabric, football games, furniture and just having fun.
Grandparents, I am grateful for the heritage that I was born into, what great people they are and what sacrifices they made to become the people that they are. I am thankful for gardens, grandchildren and green grass.
Home, holidays, the joy of hearing, hiking, honesty, my health, and of course hot tubs.
I am thankful for Isaac, ice cream, and having insurance.
I am thankful for Jon, Jaedon and Jessica.
Kace, knowledge, and knitting.
Layne, laughter, and lakes.
My mom who has always been there for me and is one of my best friends, Melanie, MacArthur, Mary, moonlight, memories, mountains, music, money, mothers, movies, milk, and I am so thankful for my mattress.
Nathan, night and the nativity.
Olivia, ordinances, ocean, and listening to organ music.
Priesthood, parents, prophets, parties, people, piano, pioneers, peaches, paint, and I am so thankful for my pillow.
Quiet, quorums, and quilts.
Ryan, Rachel, Rainee, rivers, righteousness, rain, and rocks. When Mac was little he said in a prayer that he was thankful for rocks, he was very sincere about it so I began to look at rocks in a whole new light.
Scriptures, smells, seasons, sleep, shelter, shoes, sunsets, sight, summertime, and the newness of spring.
Tydon, teachers, trees, truth, temples, testimony, trials, telephones, and what would I do without toilet paper?
Understanding and universities.
Virtue, in world where virtue is not cherished I am so thankful for virtuous young women. I am thankful for vacations and vegetables.
Wisdom, warmth, women, waterfalls, and warm showers.
eXcellence.
Young Women, yellow, and yarn.
Zzzz's especially at this time of night.
Yes, I am blessed and I definitely have so many things that I am thankful for at this time of Thanksgiving.

Bittersweet

I don't know if others feel like I do, but callings in the church are interesting. I have always felt that you can't get too possesive of the calling that you have because it will be changed soon and it will just be someone else's turn to have that calling. Also I find it funny that when you get a new calling you cry and then when you get released from that calling you cry as well. You cry when you're called and cry when you're released. Well today is one of those days when you cry when you get released. Our Stake YW Presidency was released today and it kind of is a sad day because I have had such a wonderful association with these three women. When I was called I hardly knew them and now they are my best friends. We have spent countless hours praying and working together for the YW leaders and the YW of the Franklin Stake. So I guess it is kind of a bittersweet day. I will be happy to be able to spend more time at home on Sunday and not worry about the YW activities but I will miss working with these women and the YW in the Stake. I think of the Trek, girls camp, ward conferences, Stake leadership, Stake youth council, Tri Stake dances, Standards night, Evening of Excellence, New Beginnings, Presidency meeting, trips to Salt Lake, Senior dinner, Super Saturday, speaking in wards and in Stake Conference (this is definitely something I won't miss). and the Priest and Laurel acitivites and wonder what I will do not worrying about what comes next. I will enjoy as I said being home more and getting to know more people in my own ward.
Today was fun because Mac, Jessica, and Isaac showed up in Sacrament meeting and surprised me just because they wanted to come and visit. Jessica had made chicken enchilada's so I didn't even have to worry about making dinner. Thanks Jessica! Because I had been released in Sacrament meeting I didn't have to leave for our YM, YW meeting and was able to stay for the whole meeting, otherwise I would have missed their surprise. So there are good things that happened today too. So thanks to these wonderful women Pam Petterborg, Annette Hansen, and Pam Keller, it has been a fun three years working with you and I have learned a lot from all of you. Because of this release I may not see these women for awhile and our relationships will change but I will always have the happy memories which I will always be grateful for.

Thank You it has been GREAT!

Fall Colors

I thought I would try this scrapbook page because it was one that was pretty quick to do. I don't know if this will show up on the page or not. Ryan will probably want to tell you more about this but I have to add some of the comments that Kace made. When he came back from looking for the deer with Nate and Ryan, I asked him how big the deer was that they found and he said, " Oh, about 2 inches." I then quizzed him again and he said,"Well maybe it was 4." Then while I was gone Grandma Shaw called and he was watching cartoons and so he answered the phone and told her he had found a "forked horn." I love the comments that come from the mouths of babes.

Happy Birthday Jessica!

Today is Jessica's birthday, yes she was born on Halloween and she probably has had many birthdays that were over looked because everyone else was celebrating the day and not her birthday. I just want her to know how happy I am to have her as a daughter (in-law). She has been the best thing that ever happened for Mac. So have a very happy day and we hope that you have a Happy Halloween too!

Isn't she just the cutest baby!

Happy Birthday Jessica!

We Love you!