Pinewood Derby

Ryan and Dada have been working very hard on building a Pinewood Derby car for the scouts race. There were 40 cars competing. The race was held on a long ramp that extended across the gymnasium floor. Each car raced a number of times against the other cars until it was determined which cars were eligible to compete in the finals. Ryan had won first place in all of his preliminary runs. In the finals he came in second place during one run. He came home with the trophy for 2nd place and a blue ribbon for participation. It was truly exciting. We are all so proud of the hard work and good results experienced in the Pinewood Derby.


This is Ryan's best friend, Jack.

Christmas Day, 2011

Our Christmas couldn't have been better. The children were so happy to see the beautiful display on Christmas morning. Just seeing how happy they were on Christmas was the greatest feeling. The day was full of fun, presents, family and love, love, love. We even had Mikelle here which was super.

Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve was very memorable this year. Ryan received a phone call from Santa asking him to be Santa's special helper. Santa had bedding for Sarah and wanted to make Sarah a big-girl bed. He needed Ryan's help to do so. Ryan and Dada rushed home after dinner at Grandma and Grandpa's house to find a package outside the back door. An elf had left it there for Ryan. It was full of blankets and pillows. Ryan and Dada got to work turning Sarah's crib into a bed and decorating it with the new gear that Santa brought. Ryan was elated to have such a task. Later that evening he showed his hard work to his sister. She thought it was beautiful. What a wonderful night.

New jammies from G'ma and G'pa

Sarah in her new bed

Christmas Card

This is my favorite picture of Ryan and Sarah together this year. I didn't send out Christmas cards, but if I had this is the image that would have graced them. Merry Christmas to all!

Happy Thanksgiving

We had a small and quiet Thanksgiving this year. After dinner the children decorated the Christmas tree. They had a lot of fun doing this. I sat back with a glass of wine and just watched them fill the air with magic. As a result our tree was very bottom-heavy this year.


Sarah was less than thrilled to be in the picture.

Halloween

Ryan was a Phantom, but was frequently mistaken for a Jawa. He was happy to be considered either. Sarah recycled the Chicken costume and was adorable! They both really enjoyed their Halloween this year. The weather was mild and pleasant for trick-or-treating.


Jeremy and I went to a Halloween party as the "Shuffle-bot" and "Zipper face". Obviously, we were a hit.

Sweetness

Oh, I love these children!

Autumn in Lambs Canyon

The colors were brilliant in the canyon this year.

Sarah is thrilled whenever she is on the cabin swing. She soars high into the tree-tops.

Lagoon

The kids love spending time at Lagoon with their cousins. There is no better recipe for happiness.

Ryan and Laney Sitting in a Tree...

This is Laney. She was one of Ryan and Markie's best friends in kindergarten. Surprisingly, she also applied and was accepted to the Mandarin program at Spring Lane Elementary. She and Ry have maintained their close friendship. We had Laney over for a play-date after school one day. I took the kids to TCBY for a frozen yogurt treat. It was a blast. On the way home I glanced in my rear-view mirror and saw Ryan motioning to Laney to come closer. Then closer again. Eventually she was close enough for him to quickly reach her with his lips and plant a kiss on her cheek. This made Laney blush at first, then she returned the gesture. Before I knew it they were exchanging kisses on the cheeks, foreheads, and lips. FIRST GRADE? I was not prepared for such acts of kindness this early. Don't girls have cooties anymore? I thought I had at least four more years before I had to worry about kissing. Kids these days!

1st Grade

Ryan started first grade this fall. He was accepted to the Mandarin Immersion program in the Granite School District. During each school day he spends half his time with an English teacher and the other half with a Chinese teacher. They study the traditional elementary curriculum in both classes and learns with a teacher who only speaks Mandarin in one of his classes. He is completely immersed in the Mandarin language for about 3-4 hours, five days of the week. This program boasts fluency in reading, writing and speaking by the completion of 6th grade. It truly is an amazing opportunity. Ryan absolutely loves this program. He is a few months in now and can count as high as you can imagine. He can also have a conversation with his teacher about who knows what. I try to keep up with him, but there is just no way for a 34 year old to absorb the language the way a 6 year old does. He is well on his way to greatness. Congratulation, Ry. *Wa-I-Nee*

Lynne Patrice

Only four weeks after taking drastic measures to prevent myself from developing the life-altering sickness of breast cancer, my beautiful sister Lynne Patrice lost her battle with the disease. She fought for eight years and at times seemed to have conquered the illness. In the end, her body just couldn't fight anymore.
I drove with my parents to Klamath Falls, Oregon to attend her memorial service. Klamath Falls is a small town in a rural area of the state. It appeared that the whole town came to honor Lynne at the service. She had definitely made an impact on the tight-knit community of Klamath Falls.
It is a heart-wrenching event to loose a family member. I know that in the end Lynne had come to terms with cancer. She was aware that she had fought as long and hard as she could. She certainly had accomplished many wonderful things in her short life. She had a loving marriage to Thom, the father of her four children. Only six weeks before her passing she danced with her oldest son, Matt, at his wedding. She will be missed terribly by her family. She was only 54.