Tyler Zoo,April 24,2010

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Sixteen months old

a fun visit

Friday when I got off work, I traveled to see Ashley, Shaun and Avery. We had a great time. Saturday, Ashley, Avery and I did a little shopping around town and had some lunch together. I bought Avery a little pair of sunglasses and as you can see in the slideshow below, we had a lot of fun with her. That afternoon, Aaron and Erin came and joined us. Aaron and Shaun played with Aaron's new X-Box. While the kids went out Saturday night, Avery and I hung out together. I cherish the time I get to spend with my kids and granddaughter. I wish Mike could have been there too but he had to work all weekend. Below is a slideshow of pictures taken while I was there.

Christmas Day 2007

This was such a fun Christmas for us. Having my family together meant a lot to me. Christmas was even more special this year because it was Avery's first. She loved the lights on the tree and mantle. We all took turns opening our gifts and I really enjoyed watching Ashley open Avery's gifts for her. She had so much fun. I found Avery a gloworm just like the one that Ashley was attached to as a child. After we finished opening our gifts we had breakfast together. I always make Aaron a cinnamon biscuit cake on Christmas morning, its his favorite! We watched movies,ate a lot and just enjoyed each others company. Aaron had to leave early to go to work. I missed having him around, but was thankful he could be there to open gifts with us and share breakfast.Mike's mom and dad stopped by for a few minutes to visit. My mom and my brother Dal came over later in the evening and ate with us and we opened gifts with them and had a good time together. I really loved this Christmas with my family. I hope we will always get to be together like this on Christmases to come. We will have Christmas with Mike's family this weekend.

Dala comes to visit

This past week, my niece Dala came down for a few days to visit with her dad, grandmother and her aunts, uncles and cousins. We always enjoy our time together, especially her and my daughter Ashley. Neither have sisters, so they have been like sisters to each other over the years. They are close to the same age, and have been close ever since they have been born. Dala lives in Kentucky, so we dont get to see her but once or twice a year. Usually in September for our girls weekend, and then during Christmas most years. This was her first time to meet Avery also. We are so glad you got to spend a few days here Dala, and hope you have a safe trip home for Christmas!

Class of 77

This past weekend Mike and I went to our 30 year class reunion. It was a lot of fun seeing classmates that we hadnt seen in years. Everyone had a great time. Brenda put together an awesome slideshow for us. We are planning another one in 5 years. We had a pretty good turn out but are hoping for more at our next reunion.

Thanksgiving Day

Here are pictures taken yesterday on Thanksgiving Day. We spent the day at my Mom's. She cooked an awesome Thanksgiving lunch for all of us. Mike's mother joined us too. His dad was out of town on a hunting trip and wasnt able to be there. We had a lot of fun. We played some Bingo(I'll post about that later!)It was a wonderful Thanksgiving Day for my family and I.

Congratulations Aaron!

Today our son, Aaron graduated from the police academy. We are so proud of him! He really studied hard and made good grades. He made a lot of new friends while he was at the academy. We will be moving him into his apartment this weekend, and he starts his new career on Monday. We love you Aaron and are very proud of you!!

Avery's first visit

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Avery came for her first visit this past weekend. We had such a wonderful, relaxing time. We were able to spend a lot of time with out little grandaughter. Saturday night we put the crib in our bedroom so that Ashley and Shaun could get a good nights sleep. I really enjoyed getting to do that,although I couldnt do it every night! Avery is 3 weeks old now, and she is growing like a weed. She had several visitors drop by to meet her. Her great-grandmother came and had dinner with us on Saturday night. Paul, Kim and Max came by for a nice visit as well as Mike's cousin Linda. I'm looking forward to lots more visits from Avery and making special memories with her.

Happy Halloween

Our GRAND little pumpkin!

Make your own slide shows and scrapbooks

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Sunday, our dear friends had another shower for Ashley. She got so many wonderful gifts, and it was fun visiting with friends she hadnt seen in a while. Erin led us in a couple of games. One of the games, she gave everyone 3 clothes pins and anytime during the shower if you said the word "cute",whoever heard you could steal one of your pins from you. At the end of the shower, whoever had the most clothes pins, won the game. Mary was the winner, as you can see in one of the pictures. Another game we played was guessing with a piece of yarn how big the baby belly was! Kim won that game! Everyone had a great time and Ashley and I appreciate all the gifts and everyone that came.Thanks Kim for all the pictures you took!

Our Cruise

This past April, Mike and I went on our very first carribean cruise. We had a wonderful time. I didnt want to come home! It was the most relaxing vacation I think I have ever had. We made some new friends too, that we stay in touch with. We never really did anything special on our 25th anniversary, so this was a late celebration of that. I cant wait to go on another cruise soon!