Happy 2025!

Last Friday (December 27th), Jeff and I had a chance to reflect on all the events, holidays, activities, vacations, etc. from 2024. We decided to repeat a date from last year where we went to Walmart and split up. We each had to find one item to represent something from each month of the year (so 12 items total). Then we would have to guess which items corresponded to what month. I think what we enjoyed most was the time we spent reviewing the past year. We referred to the blog and reminisced on memories from those entries. It was interesting to see what stood out to each of us even with all the shared memories. 2024 was a pretty perfect year for us. I'm sincerely not sure how we got to be so blessed. I almost live in a little state of anxiety waiting for the bubble to pop. That's not to say that during the year there weren't hard moments or difficult discussions or times with tears, but overall we have a comfortable home with ample amenities, good health, loving family relationships, and more. We got to do a lot of traveling (Iceland was by far our favorite trip!) and a lot of playing. We welcomed a new grandson and a soon-to-be daughter-in-law. We are also anticipating the arrival of another granddaughter in April. Life is just really good right now. I love that our adult kids want to spend time with us. I love the chaos that ensues. Yes, it can be exhausting, but the memories created far outweigh the stress or fatigue I may experience. I love creating little moments out of mundane days. I love finding fun ways to gather those I love. I am learning to embrace all the moments because I know those moments change over time. There will come a day when silence replaces the never-ending noise; when it will be Jeff and I who are invited to gather with our adult children and their families rather than us gathering them here. The day will come when we sit back and watch our children create those gathering moments with their children. But until then, I'm going to embrace what we have created now. It took us a lot of years and hard work to get to where we are...and I'm just going to breathe it all in.

My basket...

Jeff's basket...he stumped me more than I stumped him.

I couldn't believe that New Years Eve was finally upon us! 2024 was over! It has been a pretty epic year... and we ended it with all the chaos and togetherness that has embodied our year. Whatever silences I felt during Christmas was non-existent during our New Years celebration...and I couldn't have been more happy. We had all the kids and grandkids with us...and they even spent the night! It was a full house for nearly two full days! We started our party in Delta. Jeff and the boys wanted to shoot the shotguns they received for Christmas so we decided to invite a couple of Jeff's ex-in-laws to join us. Jeff and I grabbed some hotdogs and s'mores makings then made our way to some sand hills just outside of Delta. Dallin, Jacob, Amber, the Irons, Mary & Larry Oliver, and the Hurtados met us there. We spent a good three hours soaking up the sun and blowing up clay pigeons. The boys had a blast! Jonas is actually a really good shot. He was certainly able to keep up with the others who had more experience. Carter and Everly enjoyed playing in the sand while the rest of us conversed.

After our shooting expedition, we headed back to our homes to clean up before meeting back at our house to ring in the new year. I prepared a counter full of food to graze on throughout the night. We filled our bellies then the boys decided that they wanted to go to the church to engage in an epic dart gun battle. Us girls (plus the little kids) hunkered down in the nursery room. The ladies played Phase 10 while Carter and Everly explored the nursery toys. It was actually a really fun night for everyone! 

After a couple of hours, we headed back to the house for a few fireworks and sparklers before an early New Years toast with Carter and Everly. Once the kiddos were in bed, we cleaned up the kitchen then decided to sneak into Grumpy and Gma Penny's house banging pots and pans so they could enjoy a bit of New Years celebration too (although I'm not sure it was enjoyed as much as endured...and laughed about). We all willed our way to midnight (the boys played some video games while the rest of us watched) where we enjoyed one final toast to the new year before going to bed. 

The party continued New Years Day. Laurin had to work but the rest of us leisurely got up and enjoyed breakfast. The boys then went out to the shop for another dart gun battle that somehow morphed into a forging experience. Jeff was pretty excited about his new forge and blacksmith tools. The boys had fun heating up the metal and experimenting with shaping it. When lunch rolled around, everyone came back inside where we snacked on whatever we could find while watching one of the bowl games. It was ASU vs. Texas. Unfortunately, ASU lost but they fought through to the second overtime! It was a good game. We then had one more round of shotgun shooting up on West Mountain then dinner and finally a movie to end the night. I purchased Wicked and everyone wanted to watch it again. 

I loved every bit of our New Years celebration. Each year starts with excited anticipation and hope for all the good things to come. 2025 will bring a new baby and new in-law to the family. It will also welcome Danny home from his mission. Other than that, I don't know, but one thing I do know is that as long as I have my little family with me, it will be another wonderful year!