Happy 36th Anniversary to us!

 

Because of COVID, our plans to go to Utah for our anniversary were cancelled, Dave and I celebrated our 36 years of marriage at home.  No one better to be quarantined with!!

                                                              April 28, 1984.  Logan, Utah

Seminary is suspended

Due to concerns about the Coronavirus, schools in our county (and much of the country) are closed for the next few weeks.  Our church is also suspending church meetings to help contain the virus.  That means that my early morning class of about 14 high school students won't be coming to my house for awhile.  Instead of 6:00am meetings here each school morning, we will begin online classes soon. 

Walk at Centennial Lake

Dave and I were able to get out for a nice walk near Centennial park before we had strict quarantine restrictions for COVID-19. First signs of spring!

Family get together for Andrea's wedding

For Andrea's wedding on January 18,2020, in Provo, Utah, all her siblings gathered. Kara and Luke flew in from New York, Erika and Tyler flew in with Everly from Boise, James and Tammy and four children drove from Seattle, encountering roads closed due to snowy conditions, Daniel flew from Maryland, Julia and Matt with Grayson flew from Virginia.  Andrea had flown to Utah earlier. My Mom and Craig drove up from St. George, Utah.  It was great to have a nice rental house where we could gather.

Relaxing together at the house in Orem.

James and Tammy with their four cute children.

Andrea and Dylan are Married!

 On January 18, Andrea and Dylan were married in the Logan City Temple (of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.) Andrea looked so beautiful and radiant in her white dress, and Dylan wore his Army dress blues.

It was a beautiful day.  It was wonderful that all our children could be there with most of their families, along with my Mom and Craig.

 Here she is with her sisters, and Dave and I with all our children (and our new son-in-law.)

We rented a large house in Orem for four nights, and most of us stayed together and had time to catch up with one another.  We feel excited for the chance to get together and celebrate Andrea, and having Dylan join our family!

Christmas 2019

 After Andrea's graduation, she flew home to spend a few days with us at Christmas-before flying to Connecticut to spend time with Dylan's family.  (How do I not have a picture of her?)  The three of us made our traditional gingerbread houses on Christmas Eve, along with the rice pudding with an almond, which Andrea found. The Swedish tradition is that the person who gets the whole almond is the next to be married, so that worked out perfectly, since this was about three weeks before her wedding.

Check out the popcorn on our tree.  I estimate that our kids strung it about 15 years ago.  I keep taking it our and enjoying it year after year!

And here's a picture of James' cute family in Washington.

Andrea graduates from BYU-Idaho

 David and I were able to fly to Salt Lake City and drive up to Rexburg Idaho for Andrea's graduation.  Her fiance, Dylan, also received his Associate's degree that day, but it was Andrea's day to be in the limelight for graduating with her Communications degree.  

We had fun enjoying the festivities with them.  The next day we helped them load their things into Andrea's car, and our large rental car.  We all drove down to Provo, Utah, where they plan to get married in January and live for the next couple years. Congratulations, Andrea.  You really distinguished yourself!

Thanksgiving 2019

 It was nice to celebrate with Julia's and Daniel's family.  Our feast was simple, and, like all our meals, was a harvest celebration with only plants. It's so nice to have some of our family nearby!

Autograph Signing at National Children's Book Fair in DC

Free Spirit had a booth at a Children's Book Fair in Washington DC.  I was invited to be at the booth and talk about my book with visitors.  We also had a book giveaway, and I was able to sign books for teachers, librarians, and parents.

 I especially enjoyed meeting up with Margie, my editor of about seventeen years.  She's given fabulous input on all three of my book series. And,  I loved meeting people and helping them find a book for their needs. It was nice to get a picture with some visitors and write a special note for a child. I'm always excited when I hear that my books are making a difference. :)

Claire turns 4

For Claire's birthday, Meg invited me to join them for a trip to the National Zoo.  A few of her other friends joined us. The weather was great, and we all had a fun time.

Andrea and Dylan are engaged

Andrea and Dyland met on their mission in Canada, and began dating in January while they both attended BYU-Idaho.  They were then apart for five months while Dylan did basic training. When they were back together in the Fall, Dylan proposed.  Andrea's engagement ring is a stunning ring that had belonged to Dylan's grandma. Congratulations.  We love you both!!

Baby Blessing: Grayson

          Andrea came with Dave and me to Julia and Matt's in Sterling, Virginia.

 Julia's sweet baby Grayson was blessed by Grandpa David.  He is wearing the same white outfit that his dad Matt wore for his blessing. Such a handsome boy with a great life ahead of him.

Sister Reunion

 Erika flew in with her daughter Everly, (11 months).  Kara drove from the beach in North Carolina with her family.  She and her four children stayed the week. (Jacob, 10, Blake, 8, Ava, 4, Liam 1 1/2.)

 Did you know Dave and I are beekeepers?  This photo was at the Howard County Fair.

 We went with Erika and Everly to the fair the first night she was here.

When Andrea came home from BYUI, she, Julia, and I went to the local ceramic place where we each painted a plate.

Erika and Everly:  We went to the bay for the day- about an hour away.  A very beach-like experience.  I can't believe we had never come before. 

Here's the group of us.  Meg joined us with Claire and Elliott. Dan got to see his sisters on Sunday when we all had dinner together.

 Here are two of the newest babies--Julia with Grayson (2 mo) and Erika with Everly (11 mo)

 The grandkids together (We're missing James' four kids.)  Left to Right:  Blake with Everly, Claire with Elliot, Ava. Liam, Jacob with Grayson.

 Dave and I were going out the door for church.  It was fun to have so many of our children together again!

New York: Our trip to Kara's and Cumorah

     In July, James, Tammy and their four children flew into Baltimore to see us. We drove up to New York in our two cars, stopping first in Albany, where Tammy served part of her mission.

           


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Then we headed to Saratoga Springs to see Kara's family.   We visited and went to a lake with them.                                                                         

Then we all drove three hours to Palmyra for the Hill Cumorah Pageant.  The pageant depicts the history of the Americas from 600BC to 400 AD, which is detailed in the Book of Mormon.  And, the Book of Mormon records, which were buried in this hill for centuries,  were found through spectacular means and translated by Joseph Smith.

Despite lots of rain on the way, we had a great night for the show.  Here, we were talking to the cast as we waited for the show.

These are views from the top of the hill.

We walked through the nearby Sacred Grove.

                            The next day we also stopped at other historical sites.

                     It was fun to be able to show these important sites to some of our grandchildren.