Month: November 2024

12/31/23

Throughout the year Lizzy wrote down things that brought her joy and she read them all on New Years Eve:

Mom and Rachel started it with her early on in the year but Lizzy stuck with it all year! Here were mom’s:

And Rachel’s:

We watched the New Years Eve celebrations on TV and got ready to toast in the New Year with some sparkling cider.

01/01/24

New Years Day Adventures: We each picked something we wanted to do today and then we did them! Mom made us “fireworks” pancakes (sprinkles) for breakfast:

We went to a local swap station (free stuff):

Then we went to a hike (Mom’s choice) we have never been on before:

We had some candy canes for energy:

There was a lot of flooding:

We made it to one of the river overlooks:

This little bridge was less than sturdy:

Then we went to a thrift store (Lizzy’s choice) we had never been to:

Next stop Krispy Kreme Doughnuts (Dad’s choice)!

And we went out for lunch (Rachel’s choice):

That was an awesome way to celebrate the New Year!

12/19/23

Mom gave us a pre-Christmas gifts for the travels:

And we are on our way!:

Dad is on the wheel:

The window clings are going up:

The final configurations:

Time for singing:

And dancing:

And having a good time!

12/20/23

Making progress:

We stayed in a hotel near the Appalachian Trail and so the next morning we can do some hiking!

12/21/23

We were ready to go hiking except Dad accidentally brought two left foot boots so he had to hike in the only other shoes he had, his moccasins!:

Off for our first real winter hike (although there is no snow on the ground):

We had to cross the Railroad tracks to get to the trail:

Mom loves hiking on the Appalachian Trail!:

Dad and Lizzy climbed up to get some icicles:

It was a steep climb down:

They slid down to the trail:

Now that’s a big icicle:

It’s sharp too:

We made it to our first viewpoint:

Mom and Dad were pretty happy to be on the Appalachian Trail:

It was a bit of a steep climb:

We made it to the top:

Rachel was enjoying her audio book:

Time to stop and explore:

Lizzy went inside the cave:

She’s back!:

Lizzy and Sullivan made it out to the furthest point for a good view from the top of the mountain:

Beautiful views at the top of the mountain:

The top of the mountain ridge-line is quite rocky:

Lizzy and Rachel hiked ahead of us a bit and we found them here:

Lizzy is quite the climber:

We made it back!

Dad’s Moccasins did great on the Appalachian Trail. Dad officially received his trail name: “Moccasin”

Mom gave us another surprise gift for after our hike:

Our AirBNB in Geneva, NY:

We made it to Grandpa Ed and Grandma Joyce’s house (Mom’s Dad and Step-mother) and we met their new German Shepherd Nina:

NY pizza is perfect for a birthday celebration! Grandpa and Grandma celebrate Lizzy and Dad’s birthdays when we visit at Christmas since we both have December birthdays.

“Happy Birthday To You”

Make a wish!!

Time for cards and gifts:

A “Wild and Crazy” card:

Lizzy’s turn:

Grandpa and Grandma always have such nice cards!

Gift time:

More gifts:

Lizzy’s room:

Rachel’s room:

12/22/23

We slept in while Mom and Dad went to the temple:

Mom and Dad were very happy the temple was open!

When they came home we went to our cousins’ house in Canandaigua, NY:

We played the card game Anomia:

It was a lot of fun:

We visited with Gabe and gave him his Christmas present:

He likes space things so he liked the shirt we got him and the treats too:

12/24/23

We drove out to Fayette and went to the Peter Whitmer Farm for church. This is the church where Mom, Grandma in heaven, Aunt Karen and Lizzy were all baptized.

Then we thought it would be fun to go ice skating so we drove to Geneva to the ice skating rink:

Unfortunately It Was Closed.

So we went to Grandpa and Grandma’s house and put together a new puzzle:

Dad made Chicken and Dumplings for dinner and it was a big hit!

Then we played a question game mom lead:

We went back to the airbnb and played a knock each other over game with Dad:

It was so much fun!

12/25/23

Christmas Day! Grandma Joyce with help from Grandpa Ed made a wonderfully delicious Christmas meal!

Lizzy bonded with Nina:

And then we exchanged gifts starting with handmade Christmas cards for Grandpa and Grandma:

A gift for the both of them first:

Then we shared some individual gifts:

Nina got some gifts too!

Grandpa and Grandma had gifts for us too:

The treat bags are always a big hit!

Lizzy actually puts seaweed snacks on her wish list!

There were snacks for all our pets too!

Time to play with Nina!

12/26/23

Time to head back to Florida. Making progress:

12/27/23

We made it home. Luna was Very Excited to see us!:

She always greets everyone individually. Time to say hello to Mommy!:

“Santa” came:

Luna’s stocking first!:

Bunya next:

Windy and Miss Kitty next:

Windy hides under the desk unless Mom is home alone:

Now for our stockings!!

Time to open our special gift box about Jesus before we open all the gifts. this is to remember the reason for this holiday.

First gift: Spotify (music app) for the family!

Handmade cards from us to Mom and Dad:

And cards to each other:

Gift from Lizzy to Rachel:

And a gift from Rachel to Lizzy:

We got Mom some gifts too:

Dad’s turn:

We got some gifts for our car:

We had a wonderful Christmas!!

12/15/23

Two days ago we had a Christmas Young Womens activity at Sister Driaza’s home. They surprised Lizzy with cupcakes for her Birthday:

She was definitely surprised!

We all sang our best version of “Happy Birthday”:

Make a wish!:

Then we had hot chocolate, snacks and watched a holiday movie!

12/16/24

Oh Christmas Card:

Later that evening we had our Ward Christmas Party at the church. Lizzy led the music for the opening song:

Then Lizzy directed a live Nativity performance!

Lily was the Star:

Rachel was a shepherd:

Dad was one of the wise men!

Adam was the little drummer boy:

Santa!!

Patricia was excited to see him as well!

Daisy, Patricia and Lizzy with Santa:

Rachel made a quick visit too:

That had an ice/snow rink inside!

12/17/23

Christmas with Joy Flowers:

We shared some homemade Christmas treats with her:

She shared some treats and gifts with us too:

Cindy (Joy’s Daughter) joined us too:

Merry Christmas Joy and Cindy!

12/09/23

We made some cupcakes for fun:

We decided to have a pre-birthday celebration for Dad:

Happy Birthday Dad!

Make A Wish!

Lizzy wanted to decorate the rest of the cupcakes for funzies:

12/10/23

Happy Actual Birthday Dad!

Handmade cards is a tradition!

This year we did hand decorated gift wrapping as well:

Luna Dog was sure something here was surely for her!

A Music CD Dad Wanted:

Now a card from Lizzy:

She always includes iconic gift clues in her cards:

This one was a doozy!!

With lots of twists and turns:

And questions too:

Oops, Mom didn’t get a full shot of the card, but it was iconic!

Another music CD Dad wanted:

Now Mom’s turn:

Mom decorated the gift wrapping a s well:

A Deep Fryer Dad wanted:

Happy Birthday Dad! We Love You So Much!

Later that evening we had the Araque family over to celebrate Lizzy and Dad’s birthdays:

Lizzy prepared the strawberries for the strawberry shortcake Dad made:

Time to bring in the cake!

Since Dad made it we let him blow out the candle:

Miss Kitty was enjoying the company:

Patrician and her family brought lots of festive balloons:

Lizzy’s gifts first:

Dad’ gifts:

We had a very nice time celebrating our birthdays with the Araques!

12/14/23

Happy 17th Birthday Lizzy!!

An assortment of essential oils from Rachel:

Lizzy love the Big Bang Theory (TV Show) so she got A Big Bang Game. The emotional responses that followed:

Lizzy also got a new laptop before her actual birthday to replace the one that fell from the top bunk while she was sleeping.

Lizzy also got a Big Bang Theory shirt from her Aunt Elynn and Uncle Garret:

And a card from Grandpa and Grandma Beck with some spending $:

She read us the card:

Thank you Grandma and Grandpa Beck!

We Love You So Much Lizzy Have A Wonderful Birthday!!

12/08/23

The Tanners coordinate this event every Christmas and have invited us to participate again!

This year Lizzy and Rachel performed the song “Last Christmas” complete with choreography and festive outfits:

Awesome performance!

12/03/23

Lizzy attended the District 12 Thespian Festival and Districts Competition:

She came home with two wins: an Excellent and a Superior!!

Congratulations Lizzy!

11/24/23

We decided to try a different cut your own tree farm this year. We drove almost an hour to Anthony, Fl to “Kandy Kane Christmas Treeland” farm. It was a drizzly start to the day but that wasn’t going to stop us from getting the perfect tree!

Or maybe this one:

Yes, this one:

They provide little saws and dad was on the job:

That was easy:

Luna was so happy to be out with the family!

Of course we walked to the farthest end to find the perfect tree so we had to drag it to the front:

It’s a family farm and the young boy in the middle was in charge of our tree. First they shake out the tree to get out bugs and dead needles:

Then they wrap the tree for safer transport:

Then they carried it to our truck:

The young boy refused any help at all he was very committed to the job and carried it all the way to the truck. Dad was really, really wanting to carry it for him but he was doing a great job without help!

This was a very nice farm and we will likely come here again!

The next day. . .

Time to decorate. First we spray some snow on the branches:

Dad put on the star topper and Mom put the traditional bird and nest in the the tree (symbolizing good luck, home, and new beginnings. Finding a “bird’s nest” on your tree is considered a sign of prosperity and happiness). 

Dad’s role is to put hooks on the decorations and hand them out for placement on the tree:

The color scheme was white and red this year:

The tree is officially trimmed!

Cheers! (with some sparkling grape juice)

Mom was busy with all the other decorations to bring the Christmas Spirit to the house.

11/29/23

The Young Men and Young Women got to decorate the outside of the church building:

12/01/23

Mom got us Advent Calendars again (a tradition as far back as we can remember):

12/02/23

Elf on the shelf shenanigans:

11/23/23

First thing in the morning we of course did the 2 mile Run/Walk Turkey Trot with the Tanners and several other families:

We then had the Araques and the Tanners over for a Thanksgiving feast. The table was set and the guests were arriving:

We even set a place for Luna Dog to eat her meal!:

Later that evening we all went to a Drive In Movie Theater. It was Lizzy and Rachel’s first time:

The Movie: “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes”(2023) 

We had trouble getting the sound system to work and it was a bit chilly outside, but it was still fun!

11/14/23

Mom and Dad are getting ready for another Appalachian Trail backpacking trip and they gave each other some early Christmas gifts for the trip. They were preparing their backpacks when Mom came in with Santa hat and bells to surprise Dad:

Dad was definitely surprised:

And happy because it was a new sleeping pad:

Dad was imagining a good night sleep on the trail!:

Two Days Later:

They were on the trail!

And the next day too:

11/08/23

We had a Young Womens Activity where we had a gingerbread building competition. The girls were separated into pairs and they were each given a kit.

The judges (Paul and Dad) carefully deliberated , not knowing who made which creation:

The Winners Were: