Jar of Cheer. . .

So, I'm sitting at home on New Year's Eve with Gloria who is sick enough to stay home but drugged up enough to think she's feeling better and refuses to sleep.  Drugs are miraculous things when used correctly and they are certainly doing their job today!  Anyway, I've had time to think about the year and I can't seem to see the glass as half full.  I'm not a pessimist by any means but I kind of think 2012 kicked my butt.  I was walking through Winco today and, being the people-watcher that I am, I noticed all of the tired faces.  Seriously, everyone looked exhausted.  'Tis the season, I'm sure, or maybe it's just my not-so-rose-colored bifocals, but there seemed to be a serious case of weariness going on. 

However. . . . I know there are good, good things going on in my life, I just can't see the forest for the trees, so to speak.  So when I saw this picture on Facebook tonight, it gave me something to look forward to!!  I'm going to call it my Jar of Cheer and maybe I'll even designate a label on the Blog for all of the good things that I want to remember and be mindful of in moments like these when I'm just really not feeling it. 

I'm not making resolutions but I think this is a worthy goal to reach for.  A perfect reminder that life really IS good and that I have plenty of things and people to be thankful for!

Happy New Year!!

Tradition. . .

Every year, pretty much without fail, I have taken pictures of my kids along with a variety of others, through the years on Christmas Sunday after church.  Except for this year.  BUT, I took the camera to church on the Sunday AFTER Christmas so that still kind of counts.  This is what happened:

And then the battery on the camera died.  But I wasn't finished yet, so I took the rest with my Blackberry!!  These people are so patient. . .

Good times with good people!! 

Slumber Party...

Choosing one picture per day is going to be more difficult than I thought.  Maybe I'm incapable of reaching this seemingly simple goal!  Gloria had ANOTHER birthday party last night (still need to catch up on the others!) and we had a fun night of skating and sleeping over. . .

 

Unfortunately, this is the last picture of her in a healthy state for awhile.  She woke up this morning with all the signs of the nasty H1N1 virus and ended up in Urgent Care with a temperature of 103.  We've had a slew of illness in the family, including a hospital stay for Dick after Christmas with Pneumonia.  I'm feeling a little guilty that I didn't offer Rob more sympathy when he was feeling so bad the last few weeks but I'm pretty sure he and Gloria have shared their germies.  Here's to hoping Zach and I dodge the flu bullet. . .

Gloria....

Julia....AKA, Go Big or Go Home. . .

In my last post I said I am planning to post one picture each day.  Obviously, that doesn't include this one.  I also noted that I get bogged down in the details and that keeps me from posting things that are important.  Well, this post will prove what a dysfunctional blogger I am. . .

Back in the summer of 2011, we received an email from a girl named Julia who was a senior in high school and was requesting our help with her senior project.  She was very eloquent and very convincing.  After several meetings and lengthy conversations, we agreed to help her put on a benefit concert for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.  And we agreed to do it for free.  We don't do shows for free.  For cheap, maybe, but not for free.  She even convinced several of the most talented musicians in Boise to perform at her benefit concert.  For free.  She pulled off this concert in a BIG way.  She could have done a much simpler project and received an A but no, not Julia.

Her organization and creative skills made me want to devote a very long blog post to all of her efforts.  I didn't have time for the details, so the post lived only in my mind. Until now. . .

In May of 2012, we received an invitation to Julia's graduation as well as a VIP invite to a special dinner she was preparing for the people who had made the biggest impact on her life.  What an honor.  She could easily have grilled burgers and dogs and had Popsicles for dessert, but no, not Julia.  She prepared a fancy menu that included prime rib, asparagus and Creme Brulee' for dessert.  She cooked the entire meal herself and recruited her family to serve us in their spacious backyard.  She gave each of us a personal note to tell us how we have impacted her life.  She's pretty amazing.  (And has a VERY supportive family!!) 

I really wanted to post all of the photos and describe the meal in detail but I didn't have time so it didn't get written.  Until now. . .

And that brings me to this day, December 28, 2012.  Julia contacted us about a month ago.  She had some big news and wanted us to be a part of it.  During her first week or so of college, she met someone special and they were getting married.  She told us about her ideas for the reception and asked if we would help.  Of course we could.  This is what she wanted:

She could have put a few flowers on the tables and used the speakers in the gym but no, not Julia.  It was a beautiful reception with a crowd of friends and family wishing the new couple all of the happiness in the world.  I think we were pretty fortunate to meet Julia all those months ago and I look forward to seeing where her creativity and organizational skills take her.

 

Blessings on you, Julia and Justin!!

I Live, Therefore, I Blog. . .

So. . . I have high hopes of getting back to the root of my blog this year.  I got a sweet little thing called an Ipad for Christmas and the first app I installed was Blogger.  My original goal was to take a picture everyday so that I would have a snapshot of my life.  So, in theory, I should be able to snap a picture with my new gadget and load it straight into Blogger and write about it.  In theory. 

I've done a quick review of my blog this morning and here are my stats:

Start date:  December 31, 2006
Total number of posts as of December 26, 2012:  1,645
Posts in 2007:  357
Posts in 2008:  289
Posts in 2009:  280
Posts in 2010: 248
Posts in 2011: 317
Posts in 2012: 63

Top Labels (I look at these every so often and am always happy to see that there are more labels for friends than there are for events!  It's usually pretty close but friends always win!!):
Friends: 359
Events: 325
Gloria: 295
Family: 219
Zach: 213

Obviously 2012 was not my best blogging year.  2012 was just a tough year all the way around.  I have high hopes that 2013 will be an improvement and I hope to track that by posting a daily picture just as I had intended when I started this blog in December of 2006.  The problem to consistent blogging for me is that I get bogged down in the details.  AND the stacks of pictures that pile up and want to be posted in an orderly fashion.  So, just for my own sense of order, I plan to continue to post retroactively the photos that have been languishing in my Picasa folder as I have time and, maybe I'll even post a link since many of them could go back several months.  But, no promises!  Mostly, I'd like to just post in real time and see what happens.  I love to write and I love to have a record of my life.  I mostly post light and fluffy but when I look back on each post, I can read through the lines and go back to those moments and know that nothing lasts forever.  And, generally, that's a good thing.

So. . . here's to a new (and better) year of living and blogging!!!

Decor. . .

I'm only posting these pictures for future reference.  One of the practical things about my blog is that I can look back on it to see how I did things in the past.  I use it for that more often than you might think.  Gloria helped me decorate this year and we pulled out WAY more stuff than we usually do.  I've become a minimalist in my old age because I've discovered that the more you get out, the more you have to put away.  I'll use my sister's description of her own decor to describe ours: "It's like Christmas threw up all over the house". . .  At least most of ours was contained in the kitchen. . .

I'm writing this post on December 31st as I put all of the decorations away.  I enjoyed having them all out for a couple of weeks but I'm looking forward to empty counter tops again!!

All Because Two People Fell in Love. . .

On November 16th, 2012, my parents celebrated 50 years of marriage.  I think that's quite an accomplishment!!

Thankfully I have a sister who is organized AND creative so we decided to throw them a little bash on November 24th to celebrate their huge accomplishment!!

We had a family tree theme and Shelly found these branches (on the side of my house from a recent pear tree annihilation, but that's a whole 'nother story) and she painted them gold and added photos and decorations:

Zach sketched this tree which we used for a guest book. . .

Each guest pressed a thumb into an ink pad, left their mark somewhere on the tree and then signed next to the print. It was beautiful!

Our colors were purple and gold mostly because the church we held the reception at had beautiful new purple table cloths.  It worked out great!!

Family pictures. . .

Original cards from the wedding 50 years ago, lovingly arranged by Ethan. . .

The reception was held on a Saturday from 10 am to noon so we had a brunch menu with all kinds of yummy things on it.  (I have to give Shelly credit for just about everything on here- she came up with the menu and all of the fun ideas on how to make it happen.  Did I mention I'm so thankful that she's organized and creative and that she just lets me come alongside to help carry out the plan??)

These are "fruit pizzas".  They are snickerdoodle cookies with cream cheese frosting topped with blueberries and strawberries.  They were delicious!

Veggies. . .

Fruit. . .

Yummy cupcakes. . .

NON-ALCOHOLIC wine. . .

Frosty punch. . .

 

We also had biscuits and gravy (a HUGE hit) and a baked potato bar. . .

 

We were pleasantly surprised that EVERYONE we invited, with the exception of the out-of-towners, showed up!!  It was a full house!!! 

Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves.  This is my Uncles Gary and Gale (my mom's brothers) talking to Rob. . .

This was my favorite aunt growing up.  Aunt Pat was always willing to sit and listen to my adolescent self talk about my latest adolescent problems. . .

My dad's cousins were there.  We usually only see them at funerals so this was a really nice change!  We always seem to take up where we left off. . .

I think my mom enjoyed herself. . .

 

This is my dad's Uncle Marvin.  When I was growing up, my grandma Violet (my dad's mom) would take us to see Marv and JoAnn just about every time we would visit her.  They had a cozy house with a swinging wooden back porch door that would bang shut no matter how hard you tried to stop it.  They were some of the most interesting people I knew growing up.  Marv had tattoos, they both smoked and (probably) drank.  They were kind of loud and brash and their house always had interesting smells.  I loved visiting them.  My Aunt JoAnn died a few years ago and I had the privilege of singing at her funeral. This was the first time I had seen Marv and his boys since then.  We always vow to get together more often but, then, we never do. 

This is my Uncles, Dennis and Gary, two (out of four) of my mom's brothers. . .

This next photo just makes me smile every time I look at it.  My mom and dad have been friends with these other two couples for as long as I can remember.  I would guess that they have only missed a handful of New Year's Eve parties together and they continue to get together on a regular basis to play games, laugh and (probably) commiserate over their children and grandchildren.  Neil and Carol are on the left (I married their son, Scotty, in Kindergarten) and Marlene and Marlin are on the right (so many good memories of time spent with them that it would take another post to even begin!):

 

This is just one of several pictures taken before they could stop laughing and just smile for the camera!!

 

This is my Uncle Lloyd- one of my dad's brothers.  My Uncle Nelson lives in California so we don't see him very often.  My dad and his brothers are so very similar that I just have to stop and stare sometimes. . .

This is Lloyd's wife, Sherry, signing the guest book with a little direction from my Aunt Rachel who is followed by one of my favorite cousin's, Sharron. . .

 

Everyone seemed to be happy to be there and to have the opportunity to catch up with family and friends. . .

 

Of course, we had to take some family pictures.  These are the Kearns:

And, of course, Us:

 

 

 

 

I've debated about including this next set of pictures but, really, I would be remiss not to.  So, just to clarify:  this EMPTY bottle contained NON-ALCOHOLIC wine:

 

This is my precious girl.  She is all Sweetness and Light. . .

Except for when she's not. . .

These four cousins have always been close.  Except for the years that Gloria and Ethan seemed to hate each other, but hey, they love each other now, so it's all water under the bridge!!!

All I wanted was a sweet photograph of my kids with my sisters kids. . .

 

Shouldn't be that difficult, right?? 

 

Wrong. . .

 

On so many levels. . .  

But, at least it was entertaining!!!

 

 

 

 And. . . this was the best of the batch!!  (and I love it!!)

 

I bought my parents a photo album that says:

 "Family, all because two people fell in love". 

 

I know that I can think of at least 4 reasons that I'm grateful that they did!!