Rachel's New Ornaments

We, like so many others in the world, buy one or more ornaments each year for each member of the family.  These are Rachel's new ornaments.  We bought a cookie ornament for each of us.

This ornament represents Rachel's 1st Christmas on earth.

Star Bunting

I am like a star shining brightly,

Smiling for the whole world to see.

I can do and say

happy things each day,

For I know Heav'nly Father loves me.

150,000 Miles

As humans we count our "milestones" as years.  Homer, our Trailblazer, as with any other vehicle, can measure his life in actual miles.  Homer reached 150,000 miles on our way home from Texas.  Previously he reached 100,000 miles just weeks before Doug and I were married 3.25 years ago.

Here are a few things that Homer has "seen and done" in the last 50,000 miles.

• Trekked to Texas...five times.  Saw parts of Wyoming, Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico along the way.
• Visited Disneyland...once.  Saw parts of Arizona, Nevada, and California.
  
• Went to Pocatello, Idaho a couple of times.
  
• Enjoyed many trips to Provo to see family.
  
• Gladly took numerous trips to the doctor and hospital, resulting in 2 baby girls.
• Endured thousands of errands.
• Cheerfully went on plenty of Sunday afternoon drives.
• Suffered beatings from off-roading.
  
• Stood perfectly still during his semi-regular car washes.
• Tolerated the mess caused by more meals eaten in his seats than I care to admit.
• Waited patiently while we attended the temple.
• Escorted us to two weddings and two funerals
• Merrily delivered cookies and candies to neighbors, family and friends.
• Persisted through snow storms.
• Kept his cool through blistering heat.
• Voluntarily gave rides to young men and scouts.
• Suffered illnesses of his own that required mechanical attention.
• Gave up the comforts of his garage for nights camping under the stars. 

Homer continues to stand at the ready, waiting to be of service.  We are thankfully for such a great vehicle.  We hope that he will be with our family for 100,000 miles more.

Dallas Zoo Adventure

While visiting family over the holidays we decided to go to the Dallas Zoo.

The adventure begins with my Dad taking time off of work and Sydney, my 7 year old niece, getting out of school early.

When we arrived we were directed to overflow parking.  As we inched towards the lot we began to wonder if coming on dollar day was such a good idea.  It was going to save us more than $40 but would we pay the price in sanity?  Sydney, our 7 year old niece, was the deciding factor.  She had her heart set on going to the zoo.

It was Rachel's first trip to the zoo and although she wouldn't remember it, we thought she might have fun looking at the animals.  She loves watching Zoe.  But, as you can see from this picture she hardly noticed anything in a cage.  She wouldn't even look at this 14' tall giraffe.

Rachel loved kicking her legs and watching the swarms of people and strollers.  I guess you could say she liked the zoo, as in the proverbial "there are so many people, it is a total zoo."

It was fun to watch Sydney listen as her Granddad talked about the animals.

It was fun knowing that we were sharing this "first" with Rachel.

And as our adventure closed we were all exhausted and happy to go home.

Thanksgiving 2009

Our little gang loaded up the Trailblazer and headed away from the sunset.  And  26 short hours later we arrived in Italy, TX.  We were a little worse for the wear but eager to be with family.  It was so fun to introduce Rachel to everybody.  We had such a good time that we forgot to get the camera out and take more pictures.  Thank you, Texas Gang for the great time.

Rachel met Granddad South

She hadn't seen Grandmother South since she was 2 weeks old.

She had tons of fun meeting aunts, uncles and cousins.

We all played,

we went to the zoo,

we hung out,

and we slept.

 

And no Thanksgiving would be complete without eating more than we should have.

(not pictured) 

Daddy's Hat

You always here of walking in someone else's shoes.  This time Rachel wanted to try on Daddy's hat for size.

She was overjoyed by all the fun things he does and his accomplishments.

She was saddened by the trials, stress and fears he endures.

And it made her happy about all of the life she has yet to live.

Family Pictures

This set of family pictures were taken on November 7th by Shaun Mitchell of Oak Hill Studios.

Our Family...

  

Doug and Jessica

Jessica

Doug

Rachel and Mom

Rachel and Dad

Rachel