Luke's Grandpa's Funeral

(Written by Luke)

Not a happy topic, writing about a funeral, but it was a happy weekend. Of course there was crying and mourning, but there were also many happy reunions. I hadn't seen some of my cousins in several years and they all had new babies to meet.

I was very close with my grandpa. He always told me I was his favorite and lovingly called me "Luke the Drifter." His health had been declining for several years and it came as no surprise when he passed. I am thankful we had time to prepare so it wasn't too difficult for anyone. Grandma seemed to be doing very well and that also made me glad. She asked me to say the prayer to dedicate the grave, which was a great honor. She said it was because I was grandpa's favorite.

Grandpa had many loved ones present and the services were great. I also sang a song with my mom, brother and sister as part of the service.

Grandpa left me 2 things: one of his many guns and a tie pin. I value the tie pin more because it is the same one he wore to the temple when we were sealed with Jaxon.

I loved my grandpa very much and am sad he will not be around to talk to or visit. No more cheesy jokes around the table playing his favorite game dominoes. No more fixing his electronics just to have him call the next day to ask me how they work. I know he is in a better place and will no longer suffer and I look forward to the day I will see him again.

On a separate note: We have a new niece! Hayden Paulene was born on the 25th and she is super cute. We can't wait to meet her in person as soon as my brother comes down to visit.



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A Few of Jax's Favorite Things

Our baby is getting so big! I love watching Jax explore the world and he makes me smile every day. He is great at tormenting loving on Baxter. His favorite place to be is on his daddy's shoulders.

 He enjoys splashing around during bath time and trying to drink the water. He loves to watch out the window and be outside.

He loves to squeal, make loud noises, run around, give kisses, and to be the center of attention. He loves the credits of movies. We aren't sure if its the scrolling black and white words, the music or both but he gets mesmerized by the screen and dances (his dancing involves waving his right arm). His favorite books are "That's Not My Dinosaur..." and "Are You a Cow?" We read them over and over. He walks around all day saying "Da-da", "Daddy", and "doggy". When you try to get him to say Momma he just smiles at you like "thats a funny word". Such a fun cute little guy!



Happy New Year's 2014!

2013 was an awesome year for our family and we look forward to all that 2014 has to offer. We ended the year with friends, food, and games. It was supposed to be an ugly sweater party but we were the only ones in ugly sweaters. We didn't quite make it until midnight. Having a baby definitely limits how late you can party but we wouldn't have it any other way.

New Year's Day we went out ice fishing with some of Luke's co-workers. Luke enjoyed pulling kids in a sled behind the 4-wheeler and the kids never wanted him to stop. It was super cold and windy so we didn't last very long. Jax didn't like that he couldn't use his hands in the gloves and couldn't walk in his snow boots. On the way home Luke decided to ride on the sled behind the truck. He even survived going over a cattle guard. I thought he would let go but he didn't; he thought I would stop but I didn't. Fortunately he survived.

 Friday night we got about 8 inches of snow and decided we had to play in it. We went sledding with some friends. The weather was perfect! No wind and lots of fun. We weren't really sure how Jax felt about it. He made a passive face every time we went down but then was always grabbing for the sled when we were standing around so we think he liked it. Later we went swimming and saw some of the people we were sledding with. One big party all day. This was the second time Jax had been swimming. He got cold and his little chin was quivering most of the time but he liked splashing around.