Thanksgiving in Oregon

    It's been the weirdest week. It feels like it's been a total of three weeks but this post will be dedicated to our Klamath Falls Thanksgiving activities. It's been a great trip with lots of laughs, good food, and more cousin time then these kids ever dreamed of.

Charlie's first plane ride with Grandpa Jim and she loved it.

The kids can't get enough of the zip line at the Larson's.

 

And Grandpa's newest toy is a huge hit with all the kids.

 

Thanksgiving day prep and wait.

 

Dinner did not disappoint. All the favorites!

 

And you can't spend time with the cousins without a little poker.

And a little game of "cards against humanity" for the younger kids.

 

A little trampoline fun.

A couple fun crafts with Great Aunt Terry.

Halle's version of a Thanksgiving dessert, Chicken in a Biskit crackers with whip cream. Yum! 

And you can't visit grandma Elaine without a good old fashion food push/breakfast.

    Such a fun time and lots of laughs with the Baker side of the family. Only wish we could get together a little more often. Happy Thanksgiving now on to the Christmas traditions.

Happy and sad

    Last Saturday wasn't the birthday celebration we had hoped for, for Greg. Sadly, only hours of returning home from our overnight stay in Provo, we found out our good friend and neighbor had taken his own life. This is the husband of one of my favorite people and walking partner and it's been a rough week! There are really no words but I've included the two memorial notices that were held and are being held on his behalf just for my own memory more then anything else. 

    On a happier note, Kayli and Tanner are expecting Baby Girl Wendel #3 in the Spring of 2023 and we couldn't be happier for them.

Cupcakes for Greg, courtesy of Kayli.

From 4 to 5 to before you know it.

 Girls rule!

This vigil was pretty cool and definitely a great tribute to a man who spent countless hours on the baseball fields.

It doesn't feel real.

    How do you help? How does his family go on? It's all too much and being human is about the worst idea sometimes!

Friends, family and big numbers!

    Charlie was super happy to be able to attend her good friend, Adam's, baptism last Saturday. She also had the best time, with most of her Kmetzsch cousins, having a pre-Thanksgiving dinner at her Aunt Kristin's house.

 

Lots of yummy food & fun!

    And this weekend we're celebrating Greg's birthday! The big 5-0! The two of us went to Provo for the night and had a great dinner at Ruby River Steakhouse. It was fun and now we'll be doing a little more celebrating with the kids and friends the rest of the weekend.

He loves their prime rib.

And I can't resist the filet mignon.

And Charlie made some cute notes for her dad.

    It's nearly impossible to believe we're in the middle of November, although the weather is helping persuade us that winters nearly here. We're looking forward to the rest of the months activities, especially a trip to Oregon and hopefully another great Thanksgiving dinner.

Halloween and a new ride

    Another successful and fun Halloween. 

Aunt Charlie the pretty vampiress and her favorite 'Beau-peep and sheep'. 

Last Halloween parade for this Domino's delivery boy!

Even uncle Isaac and girlfriend, Morgan, got in on the fun.

 

Cute 'Beau-peep' and her sheep. 

Harley the sheep.

Designated city escort.

Time for all the friends to trade and count up their loot.

    And Isaac bought himself a temporary 'ride' until insurance figures out what they're going to do with his wrecked Toyota MR2. Check out this vintage 1992 Honda Civic! Pretty sweet!

Lots of rust, bondo and missing parts, but it runs and gets good gas mileage. Totally worth $700

    So there you have it! A fun Halloween and now the countdown to Greg's big 5-0 birthday begins!

Driveways, piano recitals and birthdays

    The extra driveway is pretty much in and looking good. Charlie and McClane had their last fall recital with their piano teacher, who is leaving with her husband in January for a Senior mission to France. And Isaac is officially out of the teen years and is the big 2-0.

 

 

 

 

 

    Another week of fun for us. Still no word on Isaac's crashed car but he did buy himself a 1992 Honda Civic for $700 that he will bring home eventually and I'll post photos when I can. Apparently, it's not the finest-looking vehicle, but it runs and gets way better gas mileage versus the Armada. And Mark is, most likely, buying the little Trailblazer from Isaac so I'm sure Isaac will start the hunt for another car because he needs two vehicles for some reason. So that's the latest and greatest.

Fun and no fun and more fun.

    Charlie had two amazing Saturdays in a row. Last Saturday she spent a fun-filled day at the scarecrow festival/Cornbelly's with her good buddies, the Lopez boys. And this Saturday she spent most of the day with her Atkinson and Smith cousins. She was in cousin heaven for sure!

 

 

  

 

    Carter is the chill uncle who Harley loves to sit with.

 

 Sadly, Isaac's 'new' car was hit by a crazy driver Wednesday morning. The guy hit a Prius and then Isaac and then took off but thankfully he was quickly found and made to be responsible. He actually was in a work truck so there was insurance and all involved should be made whole, eventually. The crazy thing is Isaac just lent his Trailblazer to Mark, whose truck broke down Sunday, so this accident is definitely a major inconvenience but I guess he can drive our Armada if the weather won't permit him to drive his motorcycle. At least he has one or two other options and hopefully it won't be long before Mark gets a new car and returns Isaac's more practical vehicle.

 

 Greg really wanted to take the Avalon on a road trip so we made a quick trip to Meridian to visit the Atkinson and Smith families. It was a fun if not very short visit and the car drove like a dream and is definitely much more fuel efficient than the Armada.

Youngest and oldest.

Fun times.

 Crazy Ella and Charlie.

Cousin raking party.

    So there's the latest and greatest. 

Selfies/filters and fun.

    Not the most exciting week but I did find a few silly photos on my phone, thanks to Charlie, and I also received a couple fun photos of Carter, who is enjoying a few days in St. George for fall break with his buddy, Keaton. The rest of us are laying low while the entirety of Utah County travels the countryside clogging up lines at Disneyland, or crowding the camping locations throughout the state.

When you're bored at church you take filtered selfies with your dad.

 

Wow!

Two buddies having a good time.

St. George, another crowded location during Utah's fall break.


Just hanging out.

    So that's the highlights. We'll see what another week brings.