I would never have thought it was so easy to build a dresser (with instructions of course)
It seemed to go together in a snap!!
I laughed at Josh's building techniques:)
He seems very pleased:)
After cleaning out the old dresser, he went from 5 drawers down to 3...and still has room:)
What are the chances that 2 sisters living thousands of miles apart would both go to different dentists 1 day apart to get fillings and both end up with bruises....on the same side of their faces....in the same place?????? YEP....it really happened. Just call us the bruiser sisters!!!
Aren't we a lovely bunch?? There were 17 in attendance....cousin Louann was here all the way from Alaska!
I made this for grandma back in the 70's....it was my very first embroidery. I loved it because it really reminded me of grandma....I found it a few days before the party.
This is grandma's cookie jar...I have posession of it. I may have blogged it a few years ago, but here it is again. It is lined with wax paper...I filled it with snickerdoodles....the family favorite we used to make when we would stay over with her and grandpa.
Aren't these beautiful?? Tom and Carol brought them for me....wasn't that nice?
After all the scores are tallied, fun little prizes are given...this year cousin Tom won...he is a VERY GOOD Scrabble player. I gave these minature cereal boxes with a little poem about Grandma out to everyone who came. Thanks for coming everyone....see you next year!!
I loved putting her hair in sponge rollers...she has such a pretty smile. 2 years old and adorable!!
Here she is at Easter time when she was 3 years old. I forgot how many cute little outfits she had and how much I loved fixing her hair and dressing her up.
This is one of my very favorites....5 years old and in kindergarden.
At 7 years old she began taking piano lessons...her passion. This was her recital dress.
1st grade and toothless!!! We are proud of the woman she has become....Strong in her faith of our Savior....strong in the love of her family....
For the past 16 or so years we have a special little tree that we set up in a corner on December 1st. Around it are 24 wrapped Christmas books and each night in December(before Christmas) the kids choose a book to unwrap and we read it together. Each year I add a new book and the kids always try to find it right away. Of course, it isn't such an easy thing to do because the books are put away the rest of the year and one tends to forget which book is which after a year has gone by. When all the kids were at home they would take turns opening one....searching hard to find the newest addition. Now it is just Josh....but still he loves opening the books...and true to form he only took about a week to find this years book..... Josies Gift...a sweet story about a girl, a blue sweater, and the true meaning of Christmas. All in all we have over 60 books. Santa books, nativity stories....paperbacks and hardbacks alike are always fun to read together as a family.
I love this plate. I have it proudly displayed in my kitchen...it was made with love by my missionary when he was 8 years old.
And THIS is my husband sporting his very special sweatshirt, made especially for him by my Aunt Adele. You see cousin Jane made all the women in our family red sweatshirts like this and we have been known to wear them to our annual "Esther Drew Memorial Scrabble Tournament" in December. Apparently Richard was whining last year how HE didn't have a sweatshirt.....Santa didn't bring HIM one. The other day Aunt Adele brought a package over....apparently Santa wanted him to have one after all. Thanks Aunt Adele....you are amazing!
We've done different things...beads, tinsel, garland....This year Josh wanted to put this gold ribbon on it. Now I want to share some of our dozens of ornaments that have special meaning to us...please indulge me for a moment as I go down memory lane.
This is from the year I was expecting Josh and we traveled to Texas to spend Christmas with my sister Debi and her family. Jenny got the chicken pox while we were there...for the 2nd time and we weren't sure we would be able to fly home on time. 
Jenny made this for us in 1st grade....sweet and toothless.
LaDena made us this one year along with a little stocking made of felt. 
My friend Melanie made us quite a few of these needlepoint ornaments our first Christmas in 1983.
I got this from my Grandma Drew many years ago...I think she told me it was made by my Great Grandmother Robb....it's 3 dimensional.
One year a sister in Relief Society made these for everyone...and she taught a class on how to make them....it's a lightbulb!
I bought this at the National Archives in Washington DC when Josh marched in the Inaugural Parade.
We bought several ornaments on our Church history trip.....this one has the Nauvoo Temple on it.
Grandma Drew was famous for her snowflakes and other creations. We have ALOT of these on our tree and love thinking of her each time we put them on...she is missed!!
I was working in Josh's class the year he did this...I put the kits together.
Jon's in the 2nd or 3rd grade here. The pretzels are getting fragile.... we haven't eaten them yet!
Aunt Adele made this very fun Santa and suprised us with it one year....many years ago.
INSTEAD.........they came to me!!! And though I was not up to doing alot, we did manage to make a memory at BIZI Farms for Sadie and Jenny's first ever trip to a pumpkin patch. Uncle Josh came along too!
Mostly I sat around loving on Sadie while being pampered by my family. I picked up this little walker at a garage sale this summer and it came in very handy for feedings. Sadie is such a happy girl:)
I received lots of beautiful flowers during my hospital stay for Ventricular Tachycardia, where it was determined my heart is healthy and strong....I just have an electrical short somewhere..... I'm a mystery.
I've had lots of cards, visitors and get well wishes from friends and family alike...... I feel very blessed. 
Yesterday I got this super cute happy face vase and minature rose bush from my niece Kristie and her family in Kentucky. It made my day!! Thanks everyone!!
We decided on Lincoln City Oregon. We love all the beaches, but our very favorite place to stay is just overlooking the ocean. We can see it from our window and our hotel has stairs going down to the beach. Our first day there was beautiful!! We walked along the beach for several miles and there was the most beautiful sunset!! I didn't have my camera...but the 2nd night I did and though there were alot of clouds it was still very pretty!
It was a very relaxing weekend. We played games at our little table and looked out at the view, shopped at the outlet mall, ate at our favorite restaurants, and watched movies late into the night. We drove around scouting out houses to rent and making plans for the day we will have all our kids and families with us for a reunion. Won't that be fun?
I love driving through the coast range...could anybody doubt the reason why we love living in the northwest??? 
Even the seagulls add beauty and splendor as they ride the wind over the water and land on the beach looking for food.
He LOVED playing legos and K'NEX, and climbing his tree.
Here he is 11 years later. Now he's driving and is old enough to date. It's hard to believe my baby only has 2 years of high school left. And by the way....11 years have passed and he's STILL sweet and innocent...(though maybe a little sassy at times)
Raccoons were an everyday occurrence. I did NOT see any of the rats we were told were running rampant at the camp (thank goodness), though I did get a picture of a raccoon.
We were VERY careful not to leave any food out anywhere...but on our last night we had some chocolates in a heart shaped box that we forgot to put away during campfire. When I remembered it Ericka and I ran back to our camp and this is what we found. Our raccoon friend had so very carefully opened up the kisses we had in the box (footprints found in box) and we are sure he had one BAD tummy ache that night!!
We were very busy each day, but we did get a chance to walk down to archery...I wanted to earn my bullseye bead, but after 10 shots, I didn't make it and we had to get back. I did however have a nice huge bruise on my arm that is just now about gone 2 weeks later.
Everyone asks me what my job is at camp...well....since I'm there as part of the Stake YW Presidency I begged for something to do a few years ago so I could tell people I really do work at camp. I am Ericka's assistant (she's over the unit leaders and also my tent mate and one of my closest friends) and we have tons of fun doing all the stuff for our unit (the stakies). This year I also set up the camp store each day that the 4th year girls run. Here Ericka and I are cutting up snacks and bagging them for the girls to "buy" with the points they get each day. Don't you LOVE the hats...after all we were the "Queens of Heart" 
Each night the stake leaders would have fun sitting by the fire talking and getting crafts ready for the next day.... and I must say we would get a bit giggly....(more like hysterical).....One day I got to our tent and there was this huge rock on my air mattress. To weed out who did it I mentioned to everyone I saw that someone had put a HUGE rock on my bed and it had popped my air mattress (it didn't really) Sis. Van Epps.... our fearless leader said "we put it on so carefully"!! HA!! I caught her. She had actually assigned Bro. Nuffer the job of finding a good rock for me....and it took 2 of us to carry it. It was all in fun! Richard sprayed it for me so I now have it outside in my rose bed out front. Camp was fun and spiritual and just a great time....in spite of all the critters and noise.
