KEELY IS HERE

Our Little Keely Shae Draper arrived on January 23 at 12:11 am weighing in at 6 pounds 11 ounces and 18 1/2 inches long.


Mom and Dad could not be happier!!!

Counters - Woo Hoo!

After the shower (see post below) Ken tore out all the laminate counter tops, unhooked the plumbing for the installers the next day.
It's pretty shiny so hard to see the finished product with all the reflections . . .
Island before . . .
After . . . note the construction dust and hand prints . . . ha ha I'm a stellar photographer
Bar between kitchen and family room . . . before
After. . . . I am tickled! You'll just have to come over and see it in person. Ha ha

Lindsay's Baby Shower

She's ready to go! She and Cody have had a motto this year . . . "WHY WAIT?" This past week, Lindsay's motto is "BRING IT ON!"
We had so much fun with family and friends! We are so glad Betsie could join us all the way from Tennessee!
Our Stephanie is just one month behind Lindsay and having a girl too.
Emma and Jennidee were the stars of the show! (no i don't know which is which - I am thinking J left and Emmer's right?)
Thanks so much Juli, Quinn, Jill for helping with the shower. Here is the story of these baby dolls: Last Monday, Lindsay texted me to tell me she had had a terrible nightmare the night before. She dreamed she had given birth to three plastic baby dolls. Everyone around her acted like that was just normal and Lindsay was SO MAD in her dream!!!! Of course these had to be part of the decorations!

Caleb Tastes Peas!

He is so brave! Even though he gagged a little, he just kept at it wanting more and more!!!

CHRISTMAS DAY!

We awoke to a cold house (power out) and the wind was howling. You Spokanites will think this whimpy but we did have 8-12 inches of blowing snow. Spence, Mark and Spade came over to help start shoveling. Lindsay and Cody got stuck a couple of times on their way and Rob and Jill had rain at their house just a few miles away - freaky.
Everyone made it through the snow and we all opened presents and ate ham and funeral potatoes. It was a nice, nice day in spite of the weather.

The next day, Ken got the John Deere heavy duty model snow blower. Toni's philosophy on that: either we will have it for the BIG SNOW STORM, or just by buying it, it won't dump snow again this winter - - - win/win either way!

LUX AETERNA

We are passengers on this spinning orb. We North Americans begin a rapid tilt away from the sun on June 21st of each year. Along about October, nature tries her best to perk us up with bright gold and yellow leaves but cold soon blows their weakened hold leaving bleak bareness. By mid-December try as it might, sun's rays are weak and short lived and we shiver through dim days. In some bygone century, it evolved that we would celebrate Christ's birth amidst this darkest solstice time. So it happens that we modern North Americans are drawn in from the dark and cold to bask in His light and love--a light that never dims, a love that never fades; eternal in its expanse, brilliant in its warmth! "The Light, the Life, and the Hope of the world!" Merry Christmas ALL!

. . . . try try again

We have an appointment Thursday 10:30 at the title company. That day happens to be our 30th anniversary. I hope, I hope, I hope. Tomorrow happens to be Tuesday, two days before closing again just like in April, Tuesday, two days before closing (that irony will not be lost on most who are close to me). I went to a funeral last Friday of a dear elderly ward member and was chatting with my good friends the Neiders. We talked about trials, their purpose, their protracted length, their seeming to never end. They know all about trials. Kory said, "after all, this is 'school' and if we got to the end without learning all we were supposed to, we would probably feel left out." I've pondered all weekend that comment. We really would feel cheated if we got to the end and had never been called upon to endure. So we embrace the trial as fiercly as we hate it. We would never knowlingly choose our trials in our human state of mind. Sometimes we just get tired and neither embrace nor hate them, just rest, regroup and hang on. Each trial WILL eventually end one way or another and then we are ready to move on to the next 'class', better prepared for what's ahead . . . hoping for a little 'nap' in between.