Another catching up post

I am so used to writing remarks on Facebook, and I forget to blog. So here's what has happened since Thanksgiving:

We enjoyed a quiet Christmas Eve and Christmas morning since this was the first Christmas in years that we didn't have kids/grandkids living in the house with us and spending Christmas morning here. So after we all got up and showered, Ray, Ryan and I went downstairs and opened gifts. We got a Wii this year and Ryan bowls everyday, he loves it. Amy & kids came over a while later and then Ray & Brandie with family came later. We had a nice turkey and ham dinner with the missionaries and another single guy from the ward. It was nice.

Ray, Brandie and Josh went home on Sunday but Anthony (16), Robert (7) and Alisa (4) stayed for the week. Amy moved from "just across the alley" to "2 blocks west of us" and Anthony was Amy's biggest help with the move. They now have a cute house with 3 bedrooms, 2 1/2 baths, dining room and a bonus room between 2 bedrooms which is the overflow toy room. And it is $300 a month less than the apt. The kids are both happy too.

New Year's Eve was a fun night also. We had the Dean family (m,d, and 4 boys) over for dinner and games. We just played games and ate snacks all night and we all managed to stay awake until midnight. We went out and made lots of noise and then we crashed. It was fun!

The new year started out well. We have beautiful weather in Blythe. Ray (with the help of a cabinet maker friend) made the grandkids a clubhouse for our backyard. It is a real nice house and I think they will have lots of fun in it. If I ever figure out the camera/computer thing, I will send a picture along.

I hurt my back (during Amy's move but not that I was moving anything, just unpacking a box) and was in bad shape for about 2 weeks. It was an old injury re-injured and usually heals on it's own after a few days, but this time it got worse daily. I finally gave up and went to the chiropractor and felt better in 3 days. In the meantime, I was useless around the house. I wanted to sit with heat/ice all the time. I read 2 books in five days and all my magazines. Going up and down the stairs was almost impossible. But all well now.

This last weekend, Di and Rich, Kathy and my mom and dad came for a visit. D & R slept at Amy's and the others stayed here. We had a nice visit with lots of talking and storytelling. We went to Quartzsite to look for a lady who was selling watch faces and Di was teaching us how to make the beaded bands that you interchange with the watch face but we couldn't find the booth. Mom had a hard time walking with her walker on the gravel/dirt, so we didn't stay too long. But once at home, we sat down and did some beading and enjoyed the sister time (yes, we missed you Linda and Rhonda). Thanks Di for your help. I ended up going back the next day with Ryan and kids to find that booth and buy my watch because I was excited to wear my new jewelry. We spent the entire day there, eating good stuff and visiting all the vendors. It sprinkled off and on all day and I thought it would keep the crowds away, but no such luck. But we had a good day and bought some silly stuff. My front door now has a sign that says "This house owned and operated solely for the comfort and convenience of the GRANDKIDS" It was between that and one that said "what happens at Grandma's, stays at Grandma's"

Anyway, that is the latest updates around here (even though it is all old news!) and I will try to be better at blogging on a regular basis.