WHERE MOST OF THE STATE OF UTAH SPENT THEIR PRESIDENTS WEEKEND...

Want to do something fun, action packed, and calorie burning, 

that NO ONE else will decide to do

on a 3 day weekend in sunny,

St. George?

Then do not  go on a hike

above the city on the red hill

like we

and 1000 other people did.

  

 On the plus side, I discovered that: 

 And that kids have endless engery,

and no fear....

This part of the hike, we like to call the narrows....

Most have trouble squeezing through,

and women like me simply say

"no freakin' way am I going to have a solid rock wall

 against the back of my head,

and another solid rock wall against my face..."

This is not for the claustrophobic.......

(think 127 hours but in a smaller pace...)

However, getting through and back into the

sunshine, you feel

on top of the world. 

Or so I've been told.

Why wasn't Bumma in this picture?

I'm sure it has nothing to do with the

fact that she wouldn't fit....

right.......

I'm sticking with the

 claustrophobic excuse....... 

They don't believe me either.....

OUT WITH THE OLD....... AND IN WITH THE NEW

My first experience of out with the old,

this year, was when my heat pump

went kaput

and I had to buy a new unit.

I guess after 28 years the old one decided it had
done enough work.
I feel that way too sometimes.

Next we moved our office of 15 years,

Leaving the old office was emotional...

Seriously,

Who would want to leave ALL this?

For this......

The new nurses station...

My old office, which shows my desk the

 cleanest it has been in 15 years.

This is my new office....

everything isn't unpacked yet..

But the things that are,

I have trouble remembering where I put them.

Even the bathrooms are sleek and new.

The most important room:

The kitchen, with a full size fridge.

For the first time in 25 years!

Dr. Stucki, my friend and boss for 25 years.

Me, trying to hold back the tears

As I prepared to leave my old office for the last time

I repeat, tears flowed as I left my office

for the last time.....

Ok this is the best I could do for the "act all emotional" scene.

 Now I'm left wondering

when they will start to replace the old and bring in the new

in the employee division....

I'm in serious trouble when that happens. 

CHRISTMAS 2011- IDAHO HO HO

Christmas 2011 started with a fabulous

piano recital by 6 year old Macie...

followed by the infamous antics of

this guy...........my buddy Dalan

keeping us entertained

since 2006.......

He is a jokester,

 an amazing Engineer, 

and all around entertainer.... 

Khloe is the boss of this household,

and doesn't hesitate to let you know it.

While she looks pretty harmless here, she knows exactly

how to get what she wants. 

Mr. Peeps comes as soon as the tree is decorated each year

 to watch and report back to

Santa

If the kids are naughty......

(case in point)

or nice.

Mr. Peeps hides in a different spot in the house every night

and the kids look for him as soon as they wake up each morning.

Sometimes, Mr. Peeps is a bit mischievous himself,

and plays tricks on the kids....

Like painting their noses red while they sleep!

Making gingerbread houses took a lot of concentration....

skill, and will power....

to actually get the candy on the house,

instead of in the mouth...

(case in point)

The finished product

Some of the candy actually made it on to the house.

On Christmas Eve the neighborhood children

 presented the Nativity story....

some of the actors, really got in to their parts....

and some of them.......

not so much..........

It was sweet reminder of

What Christmas is all about.

Christmas morning patiently waiting for the go ahead

from mom and dad.........

The 1st job of the morning is to look for the Christmas pickle

hidden somewhere on the tree....

Whoever finds it, gets to open the first present.

 

Winner......

Dalan

2nd place...

Macie

3rd place.....

Khloe didn't quite understand that it was a contest.

She started opening hers 1st anyway.

As stated earlier,

she knows how to get what she wants.

 

Gram Cracker and her new DVD player.

(Many thanks to the Shepherd family!)

All the Christmas pictures are courtesy

of the Grantham family,

Gram Cracker loves her new camera!

Also many thanks to the Park family

 for the new ladder

which I have been wanting for a LONG time,

as well as the awesome gift card to one of my favorite stores...

Barnes and Noble...

'cause well educated and greatly vocabulized is what I is....

 

 Everyone seemed extremely happy with their gifts...

"What size is it?"

(an inside family joke)

was heard only once....

(case in point)

A new picture for daddy's office 

a silly pose taken with the new camera....

And Christmas was over for another year.

I left IdaHO HO HO on Christmas Day

and 6 1/2 hours later,

enjoyed another Christmas celebration

at Grandpa and Grandma Greats....

aka..... mom and dads.

Our family is now so big that it took 3 shots

to get the entire room photographed!

That's a lot of family,

especially since 15 of them weren't there....

(case in point)

It was a wonderful Christmas,

Now it's time to start a great 2012!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!