The Christmas Tree

Drake and Santa at the Christmas Tree Lot
(Drake was a little scared of Santa.)

Playing with the trees and trying to decide which one to pick!


Dad loading up the tree!


Decorating the tree with mom!


Mom's masterpiece! Viola!

Uncle Ben's Bike

In November, we went into the city to visit Uncle Ben. We ate some down home cooking, chicken and waffles at Little Skillet, Yum! Drake loved riding Uncle Ben's bike and riding on his skateboard. Uncle Ben Rocks! (He also watched Drake while he napped so Sam and I could do some shopping in the city, Nice!)

The Lillians

Our friends we knew when we lived in Michigan, The Lillians, came to visit us in November. It was so fun to see them. They have two cute little girls, Lucy and Brynn, and Drake was in heaven!

The passing of great man

On November 14th, as I was getting ready to walk out the door to work, I got a phone call from my mom. She was sobbing and saying, "He's gone, he's gone". At first I didn't realize what she was talking about. Then it hit me. My grandpa, the only one I had really known my whole life (my other grandpa passed away when I was two) was gone. I dropped to floor, hugged my little guy and cried. It was a sad day and I rushed off to work (the show does not go on with out me) and mourned for my mom who had lost her dad that day.


The consolation to this kind of thing was that I got to see my family when I otherwise wouldn't have. We stayed in a huge vacation rental home in Lehi, UT (of all places!) that had a hot tub. Sam and I had not brought swim suits so underwear (or in Sam's case a shirt wrapped around himself) made do to enjoy snowy evenings in the nice warm tub with family. I enjoyed cuddling with my new nephew and watching Drake and his cousin play so cute together. It was great to see my family, immediate and extended.


We had some really great services (viewing, funeral, grave dedication) for my Grandpa. He was so well loved and respected. He had been a volunteer fire fighter for many years and it had been a true love of his. My cousins and I sang "Daddy's hands" (not very well, might I add-but who gets a lot of practice in these situations?) and my mom sobbed through the whole thing. My grandpa's casket was transported to the cemetary on an old fashioned fire engine that my grandpa had helped the fire dept procure. It was so neat to see. They also gave him one "Last call" at the grave where the fire dept went out over the radio on a speaker honoring his memory. It was really neat to see so many people honor such a great man.


The next day, my sister had to get up early to head home before the snow storm hit in the mountains and that was really disappointing. It was just too little time! Most of the family though headed to the Fireman's museum so we could leave his medals there next to his Father's. Drake had a blast playing on the Fire Trucks as you will see. He was truly a light during a somewhat sad time.


I am thankful that families are forever.

Grampy and Drake

Dad and Drake

Technically he wasn't supposed to be playing on all these trucks, but who's going to say no to this cute little guy? We got Drake a Fireman piggy bank to always remember his Great Grandpa by.

Catching Up

I really want to be a better blogger. Sometimes I ask myself, Why? Is it really that big of a deal? I was thinking about my son's significant moments in life ie crawling, teething, walking, first words, etc and realized I only had a vague idea as to when these things happened. I felt sad that I had not written it down that day (or shortly thereafter- in some cases I have here). I really want to document his important life's moments so our whole family can view his and our life's history. This is why I say it is a big deal and why I should make it more of a priority. So, please bear with me for the next week (that is my goal) while as I try to make up for the past few months of absence.