Sorry Nana!

What do you get when you add holiday packaging peanuts and kids?

"Oops.... a few got away from me Nana ....sorry!"

Carter Wayne.... love that little boy "too" much!

Don't believe everything you hear...

I was told by someone that Christmas Day was the best day to fly.

("So quite....hardly anyone in the airports.")

So...I booked my Christmas trip and decided to fly home on Christmas Day.

Wrong... it was nuts!

Crying children, loud people that want you to overhear how wonderful their life is,

cranky flight attendants, long lines and not so "Merry" travelers.

OK.... now the blessings of my trip.

I wasn't home alone this Christmas without my sweetheart.

My friend Sherral took me to the airport, babysat my car, and picked me up again.

I got to see eight of my sweet grandchildren that live in California!

I stayed with Angela & John.

Took John to lunch for his birthday.

Sat at the beach and soaked up sunshine and Vitamin D, 

while watching grandchildren run and play and discover a half eaten shark...

We traveled to see new sweet baby Ellery.  (One week old)

We visited with Amanda's parents in El Centro.

Ate our traditional Christmas Eve Dinner...

ham, twice baked potatoes, Aunt Shawna's Yummy Salad, peas & rolls!

Witnessed the magic of Christmas through a child's eyes...

Was spoiled by my daughters...

Visited with my friend Kelly at her home after landing.

Michelle and Judson drove from Park City to see me at Kelly's.

Talked or heard from all our kids!

Drove home safely.

(Sleep in my own bed!)

Once again, the blessings outweighed the craziness!

My feelings about the loss of Alain 

have begun to feel very personal.

I'm not sure how much I will blog of my struggles, heartaches, triumphs,

challenges, fears, hopes and disbelief in the upcoming year.

I will continue to move forward, but again,

grief  is an individual and private struggle in so many ways.

 

I don't know if I will ever feel whole again.

Maybe....

but I don't know.

Alain was a wonderful, wonderful person.

So loving and giving and kind.

So humble and willing to do whatever he could to bless my life.

Wish I could be as strong as he would want me to be.

Very, very grateful for friends and family who have hung in there with me

and touched and blessed my life in ways that I am still astonished by.

May you feel his tremendous love....

What will you give for Christmas this year?

The Saviors life provides a perfect pattern for each of us to follow.

He gave freely, lovingly, and without any expectation of receiving.

As a result, the lame could walk, the deaf could hear, the blind could see, 

the infirm were made whole,

and even the lifeless were given breath.

But ultimately, Jesus Christ gave his life for each of us.

 In return for the redeemers thremendous love,
let us give to him the only gifts that are truly ours to give,
lives of service, obedience, love, forgiveness, faith, and gratitude.
In doing so we will be blessed, receiving yet another gift from the Lord. 
                                                                                          (Rolling Hills Ward Bishopric 2010)

Merry Christmas 2011

Thanks to all of you who truly have touched my life for good!

Announcing 11 in 11...

This is our newest granddaughter Ellery Christine.
She is number 11 in 2011! 

She is the sweet little daughter of Amanda & Brandon.  

She makes #5 in their family!  

Looks like heaven ran out of baby eyes again, and she got those beautiful, 

big brown eyes like her brother Joshua!  

What a sweetheart.  

(Perhaps her Papa got to send her off from heaven with a big hug and kiss!)

Welcome Ellery!

I'm coming to see you next week...

 Christmastime has been a little difficult for me...

Everything about this season represent family and love.

I  don't know of a better person than Alain, who cared so much about both.

I am so grateful he touched my life with all that is good.

(And I'm trusting that he knows how much I love and miss him!)

Food for Thought....

It would have been Alain's 51st birthday last week. 

I heard a story about a family that lost their husband and father in a car accident.

They decided to remember him each year on his birthday

by eating his favorite foods.  

The kinds of foods we love can sometimes define us in a way.... 

I remember stories about one of my grandmothers. 

Her homemade bread and roast dinners on Sundays were some of the most precious memories

her family had of her.  

I just read last night that my other grandmother was beloved for her homemade ice cream....

...we're talking the 1930's and 40's.  

They would go get ice from Bear Lake when it was frozen over,

haul it home and store it in a root cellar 

so they could have homemade ice cream on the 4th and 24th of July. 

One time she made it for a church social and my uncle went to get his...

and it was thin and runny.  

He spoke up to the ladies and said, "I don't want this...  I WANT MY MOM'S ICE CREAM!"

He felt like the women were trying to pawn off the not so good stuff on the kids,

and he wasn't going to have any of it..

He had chopped through the ice, drug it to the root cellar and put saw dust all around it

so he could have

"His" mom's ice cream.  

Precious story!

I decided to try the idea this year.  

Again I use the expression bitter/sweet! 

Alain's mom and his two sisters Chantal and Joce and their families came over, 

along with my daughter Jamie, Aaron and grand kids, 

my sister Tam and the Cook family.  

We had an evening of eating BBQ chicken and many, many of his favorite snacks.

Raisin Oatmeal Cookies, Black licorice, cashews, sunflower seeds,

Chocolate Caramel Macadamia Nut Turtles, Oatmeal Cake,

Frito Boats, Symphony Toffee Bars, and Homemade Caramels!

Each food had its own time and its own story.

My granddaughter Paige woke up at 6am the morning of his birthday.

It was still pitch black outside.

She was SO excited to eat 

french toast with peanut butter for breakfast.

Anna, another granddaughter, asked her mom if she got to stay home from school!

 Again...precious!

I am touched by family and friends who were kind enough

to share another "first" with me...(both here and far away)...

without him!

Wow....December already?

Wow...it's December already. 

I do like the sound of December. It should be a happy month... unless it reminds you of something sad.  November was always a sad month for me because my dad died in an airplane accident.

December... no matter how hard we try to make it stick around,

will always fly by.

The millions of plans and projects probably won't happen,

but that's OK.

It's good to have plans and dreams and wishes...

even if ....