2015 Wrap-up--Beginning and End

            Here is where it gets confusing because I am going to start by reviewing how 2015 started, then I am going to skip the part I’ve already told about-August through November-and I will finish with the end of the year. 

            The year started with two grandsons awaiting arrival.  We had a baby shower for Katie at my house and it was a Dr. Seuss themed event.  She got a lot of cute stuff.  I helped get the nursery ready by painting the dresser white, making a banner for the wall, sewing a curtain, buying a rocking chair and making a pillow to go on it, and picking up a crib in Boise when I went over with three other teachers to attend a tech conference. 

     Daxton D. Murdock arrived on February 6, at 8:16 pm, and weighed 7.1 lbs.  We waited for him all day, so he took his sweet time.  I spent a couple of nights at Kate and Matt’s house and helped out by holding Dax a lot.  I made him his blessing outfit which was almost too small, but thankfully he only needed it one day. 

Katie and Matt with Dax

            Katie and Matt also went to the temple to be sealed in January.  I didn’t realize it, but they use the bride’s maiden name, and where she was 8+ months pregnant, Quinn said it had all the makings of a shotgun wedding.  Jacob and Amber were there, and we met up with Audrey and Angela for dinner afterwards. 

            When spring break came, Sandra and I took off for St. George.  Katie and Matt went down in their own vehicle and stayed at Matt’s parents place.  We took a hike with Dax that was fun, but full of other people.  San and I hauled back a bed in Quinn’s pickup for Audrey.  While we were there, Jeff and Sabra blessed their new son Max. 

            Later in the spring, Sandra and I drove to CDA for state golf.  We walked around the lake and climbed Tubbs Hill, and enjoyed watching the kids golf. 

            Summer meant a trip back to St. George, and from there we picked up Sandra at the Las Vegas airport and drove on to Mesa and stayed with Cindy and Steve for a few days.  I also made the trip to see Shakespeare with Deon and Kara.  We stayed with Amanda in the “guest house”, and saw Taming of the Shrew, Charley’s Aunt, and South Pacific—all good of course.  I helped Audrey with her nursery too. 

Some good lines!!

Gus's quilt (the stitching was amazing--back was minky)

This time I painted stripes for an accent wall (they turned out phenomenal if I do say so myself), sewed a crib skirt, curtain, and a quilt the way Audrey wanted it—foresty and huntery and I included denim from Grandpa Hedin’s jeans in it.  We also had a baby shower for Gus (McCrae) at Audrey’s house and she got a lot of nice boy things.

            One of the best things Kara and I did over the summer is plan an Amazing Race for our kids.  I sent out invitations and we planned six different stops around Bingham County.  It started at the Potato Museum, then to the gun range, then mom and dad’s old farm, then Riverside School, then the cemetery and back to my house.  I was a little surprised at how competitive the teams were—I mean run for your life—and Audrey was 8+ months pregnant.   Audrey and Angela won, but they all said it was a lot of fun.  I think the guys liked shooting dad’s 357 best.  After everyone came in from the race, we had a barbeque in the backyard.  The grandkids had a blast playing in the water—we had a ton of leftover water balloons and just had a hose running a trickle of water and that was enough to keep them entertained.

            I golfed more this summer than I ever have and we even went to Aberdeen and Mackey.  Here is where August came and the previous post with back to work, the birth of McCrae, buying the Vet, etc. 

            For Thanksgiving, Quinn and I drove the Vet to Mesquite.  We just hung out, ate at buffets, visited with family, shopped in St. George, and had a relaxing time. 

Selfie at Casa Blanca, Mesquite, NV (I won $10 on .05 poker machine)

The first of December I flew to NYC to meet up with Kristine, Mary Ann, and Linda.  We saw the Rockettes, went on a tour of Radio City Music Hall, watched Finding Neverland and Fiddler on the Roof, ate at some fun restaurants, went on a bus tour of the city, took a ferry ride around the Statue of Liberty, and did lots and lots of walking and talking.  We enjoyed ourselves so much; we want to get together every year.

When I got back, we had two busy weeks of school and then two weeks off for Christmas.  I went over to Burley to take Jacob and Amber their Xmas and since she had a homemade tree, I made the partridge for it.  We had a house full for Xmas Eve: Audrey’s family, Katie’s family, Sandra, and Thane’s family.  They all came back Xmas day, plus Chad.  We played a lot of games Christmas evening and it was fun being together.  Since then I have been kind of lazy—took down the Xmas décor, cleaned a little, made a quick trip to SLC with Quinn, and on the last day of the year, I made a wall hanging for my classroom.  Goodbye 2015.

I made the partridge for Amber's tree

A serious game of 13 Dead End Drive (Regan cried when her mother killed the cat)

Wall hanging for my classroom