I am a photographer. And, as a photographer, I really appreciate a poser. Last week, on the 22 of December, another little poser was born. I have 8 now. When Nana gets her camera ready, my little posers light up and start giving me the camera faces. Look over here little posers and give me a cute face for the camera. Little Ivy Mae Stailey fits right in with all the rest. Her parents, Hilary & Jason will have to agree. A beautiful, healthy baby girl is born. And we are grateful to Heavenly Father for sending her our way. Little Ivy joins her cousins, Brett, Jaron, Teegan, Clayton, Taya, Boston and Shereen, all POSERS they!!
We had a wonderful Thanksgiving celebration on Tuesday the 25th. Because of the shower on Saturday we thought we would do ours early and then our kids could go to their in-laws on Thursday without any scheduling problems. There was basketball and Sudoku and earlier in the week we played Pit and Apples to Apples, just to name a few of our favorite games. We ate a little late because I underestimated the timing on the turkey. But in the end we were all stuffed with food and new memories and a deeper love for our families. The Lord has blessed us this year. Though it has not been easy, we have learned to understand things we could only learn by His help. We are so grateful for all we have. And we are learning to understand, in Elder Wirthlin's words to 'come what may and love it.'
What a weekend we had with Hilary & Jason here for a visit. It all started with Twilight, a must see. Then on Saturday we had a shower for Hilary. Her baby, Ivy, is due the day after Christmas. It was so much fun to see old friends and we are grateful for the sweet generosity of Hilary's friends and family. Harmony, Heidi and Karen made some delicious food and a good time was had by all.
Certain evenings can get very loud in downtown Cork, Ireland. But not on a weekend like you might expect. Oh no--try a Tuesday or Thursday night. You see, Cork, is the town that UCC, (University College Cork,) claims as its home. And a sweet home it is. And where university life is, night life is sure to follow. Thing is--these kids go home on the weekends. So they do their partying during the week, between testing, I'm sure. Since we spent our time in Megan's downtown apartment, (did they call it a flat?,) we got to experience the downtowns audible traffic. No matter--there was nothing I did not love about Ireland!! Thanks again, Megan & Andrew!! 
This past summer some of the family went to Idaho to visit Clint. He was working on a job in Driggs. It was such a short distance from Jackson Hole, the Tetons and Yelowstone that we took a day trip over there. The scenery was spectacular, the weather perfect and the wildlife was everywhere. Just thought I'd take a trip down memory lane with some images of the day.
We had a quick visit last weekend from my nephew, Cade, my brother-in-law, Larry and their good friend Curran. It is always fun to have them visit because we dearly love to laugh. I had never met Curran though I have heard crazy stories about him the past 15 years. At times I thought maybe he was pure fiction-but he was not. They are great kids and we welcome them anytime. I love having company in our home, especially the kind that cleans up before they leave. But the best part is that good company puts a smile on the face, brings back memories we may have forgotten and just makes life a little sweeter along the way.
It is not always good to have Nana watch the kids. But I swear I only left them alone for a few minutes. Teegan draws very fast. Does it really matter that this is permanent marker? I make a plea to you all--does anyone know how to remove this?? I am waiting until Taya's parents get home instead of removing it now. It is a good thing that they are taking a parenting class while I watch them. Can't wait to see if they told them how to deal with this kind of thing. Ah the memories of childhood.
This week I hosted a "Nana's Sleepover" with four of my 7(almost 8) grandchildren. For two nights the Bryce kids, Brett 7, Jaron 5, Teegan 5 and Taya 3 stayed with me while their parents, Collin & Harmony went out of town. We had fun coloring, dancing, reading and fit school in there somewhere. Although Brett did miss one day with a touch of the Bug.
