HAPPY 21st BIRTHDAY CODY!

 
Move your cursor over the match and wick to light the firecracker.  Oh yeah, turn the sound on too!

Ally's daddy has a birthday and the fireworks are just too loud for her!  Shhh!  Baby crying...quick! Turn the sound off!
Happy Birthday Cody!

I know it's not Christmas......but I just felt like a little Hallelujah! today!

You will love this!  Watch this famous flash mob video and then check out website for Alphabet Photography.  Ahttp://www.alphabetphotography.com/?gclid=CILcrOnd4qYCFQqAgwodTQec0w

Tim's Visit

Daniel and Tim

Almost two weeks ago my cousin, Tim Larson, came to visit us.  He stretched a trip to Las Vegas, where he was playing in a soccer tournament, into a trip to California and spent a little time with the cousins.  It had been a few years since I had seen Tim and this was a good time.  We reminisced.  We had family dinner together.  The cousins went to Yosemite.  It went by too quickly and before we knew it, Tim had to head back to Las Vegas and hop on a plane to Minneapolis.   
Thanks to Tim, I have a few pictures.  (And Tim is only in one!)  But most of the pics he sent me have crashed with AOL's email.  And my camera?  Not charged, not available.  Kicked myself for no pictures! 
I indulged in many sweet memories during Tim's visit.  His mom was one of the finest ladies I have ever known.  What a joy it is remembering my aunt alice and her family...and to have Tim visit us!

I love my kindle!

Jayme gave me a Kindle for Christmas and I treasure it!  Nice case with a light.  I can read in any lighting or in the dark.  I now have access to any book I want to read, anywhere, any time. A new book downloads very quickly.  There are thousands of free books and the purchase of books is less than I would normally pay.  I love it!  I put on my ESV Bible, which is my study Bible I use at home. Easy access to scriptures at any time, regardless of where I am.  The font can be changed if necessary, but I find it so easy to read just the way it is.  At home, when reading, I keep a dictionary next to me but Kindle has dictionary included and it is so easy to look up a definition without leaving the page or losing my place.  I just read "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett.  A good book, by the way.    A big advantage for me with the Kindle is I no longer have to carry a book with me.........or a big bag of books!  And yet I can read whatever I want.  Love it!  I highly recommend kindle!

Cousins take a trip to Yosemite



Dan and Tim



It's Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

"I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."

"I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made straight and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together."

  "I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit together at the table of brotherhood."

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Click here to find more quotes by Martin Luther King, Jr

Elk, Turkeys, Pheasant, Three Bald Eagles, Deer and Buffalo!

three deer among many seen that day

this was interesting.....buffalo in someone's yard

en route to canyon

happiness is....

the wild elk come down in winter to feed

 

Caution:  A glimpse of the wild Rocky Mountain Elk, that is if you can mange looking at this video without getting dizzy!  Could not hold my arm steady for the life of me!

This was a couple of days before we left Utah and it was a perfect day.  First of all, spending it with James and Jayme was delightful!  We stopped for lunch in Logan and then went on through the canyon and the sights were incredible.  The river was high and running very rapidly.  The animals we saw were breath-taking.  Not once, not twice but three times....a bald eagle!  Wish I had been quicker with camera, but no pictures.  We drove to a ranch where the wild Rocky Mountain Elk had come down for feeding.  Our plan was a sleigh ride among the elk, but this particular day sleigh riding was closed.  It did not damper our spirits one bit.  The beauty of the region was too powerful!  The entire day is best described as a memorable experience.  We are blessed!

Wisdom teeth out this morning........

Big Beautiful Smile Stays

Jayme is the Grandma!

What a pretty, youthful  and amazing grandma she is!  Shannon got the best when she got Jayme for a mom.  I got the best when I got Jayme for a daughter!

Thought for today:

"If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world."  C. S. Lewis

Pooh Head

cutest baby on the block

 

and her beautiful mommy!

We had such a good time with our family.  This particular night Dutch and Jayme went to a Jazz game in Salt Lake City.  Everyone else was doing something or other, and I had the best time with Shannon and Ally.  They came back to our hotel and we had a suite so it was very comfortable.  Shannon took a bath and curled up with a book and Ally and I played and sang and cooed and smiled and fell in love all over again.  She is such a happy baby.  She reminds me a lot of her Grandma Jayme when she was baby.   I was in 7th heaven.  All evening.  The entire trip was like that.  Until 3:00 a.m. the morning we left for home (via Las Vegas, of course)  and drove through a snow storm....that was a bit scary.  But my Florida man was in the driver's seat .........and though he didn't grow up in snowy  weather, he was quite magnificent at the wheel as we drove between  25 to 40 mph in falling snow, icy roads  and fog......for hours!   God is so faithful in His protection of us!  "You are my God,  and I will praise You!  You are my God, and I will exalt You!"  Psalm 118:28

Make your own photo collage

Happy Birthday Alexandra Smith! You are one sweet girl!

Not so long ago Alex was 14...........and look at her now!

Alexandra is 17 years old!  Gorgeous smile.  Talented girl .  And just as lovely inside as she is outside!  Happy Birthday Alex!  Enjoy a Starbucks on me today.

This one's about Emily Dean and her Nana and Papa.....

 

Dave's and Debbie's arrival was the highlight of Emily's Christmas!

Together Again......A Perfect Moment!

Joy all over Emily's face 'cuz she's with her Papa!

Emily with her mama.......can't take her eyes off her Nana and Papa!

The good looking parents of this adorable great granddaughter of ours..........

Ally with her mom and dad on Christmas Day

Cody and Shannon

Check out this video.  She has won my heart....the cutest little baby girl with  the happiest disposition and those cute chubby little legs!   

Psalm 127:3 "Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from Him"

Ally is a gift from God.  Last Sunday we were in Utah and we all went to church where precious little Ally was dedicated to the Lord!  What a blessing to be there and be part of this.  A sacred time for our family.  It was a lovely service.

We came out of church and there was snow!  What a wonderful surprise!

Wet.  Cold.  Unexpected.  The snow was beautiful to us California people!

Jayme and I drove home together.  Yikes!  We got stuck!  The unexpected snowfall and the snowplows have not cleared this street yet. 

Yay cell phones!   Jayme  calls...and some big guys were there in minutes  and pushed us.  Snowplow also came out of the blue from the other direction.  And we hit the road....in it's cleared path....on the left side of the street. Out of our way everyone......on a mission here to get up the hill! 

We made it up the hill and home.  It was a lovely drive.

Happiness is spending Christmas Eve with Ally!

Too Cute you are Miss Ally Hall!

Who is the happiest?  Ally or the Dutchman?! 

Ally  love's her great grandpa!

 

Check out this video!  Playing with Ally.....James just home from Iraq is on the phone in the background.  Christmas Eve preparations are in full swing as we look forward to an evening with family...celebrating the birth of our Lord. Jesus. 

What a Christmas!