Grandma's Funeral

I flew to Arizona, then drove to California with my Dad & Colby and his family. Even though we were going for such a sad occasion we had fun seeing all of our cousins, uncles, and aunts that we hadn't seen in so long. Grandma's funeral was really nice. It seems like funerals are always sad/happy family reunions.

Me and Nemi on our way to California. Super windy!

Colby striking a pose

Colby and Dad at the viewing

Our family

Major Spiderman Undie accident in the parking lot. I was there for moral support

Mom, Autumn, Nemi, and Sage

Sage was such a good boy. It was a long day

Graveside serviceDad, Louise, and BarrySage was determined to pull the flags out at the cemetery. Colby had to chase him all over the place. Lil' Devil! :)Uncle Jeff, Mom, Uncle Craig, and Grandpa OttoAll of my cousins together

Brian, Christopher, Ryan, Autumn, Colby, MichelleAll of the grand kids and great grand kids with Grandpa Otto

Christopher, Autumn, Ryan, Mandy, Keith, Colby, Nemi, Michelle, Sage, Grandpa, and Brian

All of the boys with Grandpa

Christopher, Keith, Brian, Grandpa, Colby, Ryan

Grandma Otto

My sweet tiny Grandma Otto passed away today. I'm still in shock. In recent years she had started to decline, but because I hadn't had the chance to visit her I never got to see my Grandma anything other than healthy, active, and alert.

My Grandma was an amazing little lady. Going to Grandmas was always such a treat. Icecream "Pushups" and 7-Up were always in stock in Grandma's Refrigerator/Freezer...and you didn't even have to ASK!! A dream come true!

My Grandma and Grandpa were always very active. I remember LONG walks every evening out in the California sunshine. Grandma loved to travel. She was amazing with a map. I think if "The Amazing Race" would have been around 15 yrs ago, she and Grandpa would have taken 1st place with no problem! They were world travelers. She never went on a trip without sending postcards while she was gone, then a care package to the kids when she returned. My kids have T-shirts from Grandma Otto from all over the country!

One of my favorite memories of Grandma was watching her put her makeup on before going to work at the Library in California. She always wore green or blue eyeliner. She would let me choose which color I wanted her to wear. I thought she was beautiful and felt important to be making such a big decision! Walking to pick Grandma up from work at the library was always fun too. Grandpa built a stroller that Colby could ride in and I could stand on the back of so our little legs wouldn't get tired. I remember thinking how lucky Grandma was to get to work in a LIBRARY! I'm thankful to my Grandma for instilling in me a love of books.

I am going to miss my Grandma Otto more than words can say but I'm so thankful for the amazing legacy that she left behind. I hope to be half the woman that she was. I love you Grandma...until we meet again....

Grandma Otto, Autumn, Camry, Mom

Grandpa Otto, Autumn, Camry, and Grandma Otto

Easton and Camry with Grandma. Giving them their T-Shirts she picked up on one of her many trips.

Grandma and Jace. She was always so good with babies. I'm so thankful that all of my kids got a chance to meet and know their Great Grandma.

Happy Birthday Mom!

Happy Birthday

to the best mommy ever!

Hope you have a great day! We love you and miss you!

Pay It Forward

I was the #2 blogger (I think) to make a comment on Marilyn's blog so I gotta play along...

{The Rules}

1. Be one of the first THREE bloggers to leave a comment on this post, which then entitles you to a handmade item from me - something crafty or yummy, who knows?! (anyone who knows me knows it's probably not going to be yummy....)

2. Winners must post this challenge on their blog, meaning that they will Pay It Forward, creating a handmade gift -anything!- for the first THREE bloggers who leave a comment on their post about this giveaway!

3. The gift that you send to your friends can be from any price range and you have 365 days to make/ship your item. This means you should be willing to maintain your blog at least until you receive your gift and have shipped your gifts. And, remember: It’s the Spirit and the Thought That Count!

4. When you receive your gift, please feel free to blog about it, sharing appropriate pictures and comments! If you are not one of the Top Three Commenters on this post, you can still play along.Go ahead and start your own Pay It Forward chain, and encourage your blogging friends to do the same! SO, REMEMBER...Pay it forward!

I Heart

Jace: "Mom is the only thing you do on Valentine's Day is eat heart shaped waffles, and heart shaped pizza?"

Me: "No. Valentine's Day is the day where you show and tell all of the people that you love how much you love them."

Jace: "Mom, that's a dumb holiday!"

In an effort to be grateful for those things and people I love here is a snippet of my "I heart" list:

~I heart Popcorn

~I heart Blogging

~ I heart going to the movies with my Sister in Laws

~I heart Hawaii

~ I heart texting my family in Arizona

~I heart clean, folded, and put away laundry (but not the process of)

~I heart my silly little boys

~I heart my incredibly sweet, responsible daughter

~I heart cut grass

~I heart a quiet fluffy snow storm

~I heart my 6th graders

~I heart babies

~I heart Olive Garden

~I heart my husband

The Evils of Facebook

Dear Blogging Buddies:

Some might assume that my blogging absence is due to my heavy work load...not so....it's FACEBOOK! I'm beginning to think it's the evil in my life! I went for a good month or so rejecting all of the invites I got over my email to join. I finally decided to cave...and here I am. Addicted. It's seriously ridiculous how much time you can waste without even realizing it. Don't get me wrong, I think it serves a purpose...you know....connecting old friends, etc. but really I've got to get a grip! So here is my pledge to be better at keeping up on my blog...if I have a long absence you might want to remind me by sending me a message via my Facebook page.

Signed:
Lost in Cyberspace

100 Days of Kindergarten

Jace wearing his 100th day glasses

I can't believe that my baby has been in school for 100 days! Time really does go by too quickly! Jace has the greatest teacher, her name is Mrs. Wyatt and seriously there is no better Kindergarten teacher in the world! She's this cute young Grandma with a Texas accent. She treats all of these little kids like her very own, and they adore her. For their 100th day in school their class had a 100 party. Every child had to take 100 of one item. Jace took 100 conversation hearts. I'm so thankful for an amazing teacher for my little mama's boy....I don't know if we would have made it to 100 days without her!