Grandma Lucy Necklace & Kathy's Wedding Reception banners turned QUILT!

My Grandma Lucy loved jewelry.  Fun costume pretties.  Before she passes away she had labeled a lot of it with granddaughter's names, and then when Grandpa Jack died we went through everything dividing up the rest, taking turns.  I came home with several broken necklaces, pretty beads, but missing clasps, and one choker was too small for my neck, so I combined the beads...

...and made my daughters Grandma Lucy necklaces, using 26 gauge wire crocheted to hold the beads.

Fuzzy picture proof of delivery.

Emma & Dean's gift is a picnic blanket--with handle sewn into binding and a button closure.

Emma's mother-by-marriage made beautiful banners for their CA reception, perfect triangles zig-zag cut.

I auditioned a couple of different layouts...

And ended up deciding on an IKEA upholstery green fabric for the backing and a little on the front.

Ready for a picnic with a romantic wedding reminder!

 

Christmas Celebrating

Thanks to Uncle David Babcock's Guinness World Record Breaking event!  LOVE the shirts!

Sam started shaving this week...

Hairy fun (thanks to LJ!)

Ruffle scarves (more thanks to LJ)

Stairs with all of us...

Grandma Sandy found fun Tardis towels!

We struggled with lighting, too bright, shadows, and the tinsel wreaths were silly.  Everyone was a good sport, duty photo session, the one big thing I wanted this year.  THANK YOU for obliging.

Without sombreros.

Emma making sour cream fudge with spontaneous Grinch coloring.

Dean & Max making cinnamon rolls for breakfast.

Great Grandma Billie and Suzanna.

Stewart by the tree.

Christmas Eve couple photo.  Not a hat on my head, candy candle behind me...

UNTOUCHED crazy vibrant colors of the day.

Max in his Defiant sweatshirt.

 Stewart.

We tried the circle head shots, too bright, even in backyard on trampoline and shooting from the roof (John climbed up on a ladder to get above everyone).  No broken bones.

 

We watched family history old VHS video from Emma's first birthday, Max's first Christmas, Suzanna 4th (?) birthday with Babcock cousins over.  Uncle Michael interviewing Great Uncle Blen Stoker.  John & I as young parents.  Our various apartments and blessing homes.

I hope the kids got a sense of who we are as a family.  With 6 children the youngest don't know a lot of the stories of the older siblings.  And we wanted Dean to see how beautiful-cute his wife was as a youngster.  We laughed hard at Stewart & Emma jumping on the mini-trampoline, singing, eating ice cream, John throwing Emma up in air...All my babies had beautiful eyes and sweet chubby fingers and square feet.  Their sounds, coos, expressions are dear memories to me.  I love being their mom, then and now.

 

MUST TRANSFER VHS TO DVD/archive this year.  Goal #1 to back-up what we do have, and be better about group shots, taking pictures of the adults-not just the kids in the room...

I love my family.

Catch Up on Phone Pictures

Do you see the airplane at the top, hanging from the light chandelier, one for each of our faraway children coming home for Christmas!

My parents were here over Thanksgiving/Mom's birthday...Notice red "you are special" plate!  Suzanna, we thought of you!

We took Mom on early morning 25 degree walk to see local color!  We are bundled up, she is wearing my orange polar fleece...

All our children's living grandparents in one room!

Three siblings.  Roxie's temple quilt in living room now, David's paintings back in dinning room.  Gray stripes (wrapping paper) covering blue/green vertical stripes which may come back for Christmas, still deciding.

 

Couple photo.

Sister missionaries came to our parade!

Favorite Moments from the Weekend

 

Sister Lu from PA on left and her family were here last week.  Fun to see them!

We picked up Maxwell to come to Thanksgiving with us at Smith's mansion gathering home.

Mom & Dad trying to stay warm in the sunshine.

Cousin Charlene trying pickled okra for the first time.

Our love for reading comes from reading parents!

Happy Max helping to chop onions/celery for shrimp cocktail.

Roxie in the kitchen.

Sam looming over cousins.

Roxie interviewing Grandma Jane, asking about her childhood and writing answers in her journal.  Smith's dog is affectionate and likes to be in the middle of things.

Niece Alice wearing Metallica and identical twins nieces in Dr. Who t-shirts.

Count Your Blessings...

At our Thanksgiving family gathering yesterday, I brought my fun black notebook paper and "soufflé" pens.  More than one niece asked where I got the pens and wanted them on their Christmas wish list. 

I asked everyone to write a list of things they were thankful for or blessings in their lives.  Anonymously.  And that maybe we would guess later. 

Some times I start things with no clear idea how to implement them, or execution/finish.  My practical consultant (husband John) said I could just call it an art project.  I wanted to glue these black scraps of paper in our family "Book of Blessings" a gilt-edged monstrous Bible I cavalierly altered.  No, it wasn't a family bible.  But now it is!  We are blessed with an abundance of paper-copies of scriptures that we can carry around easier than this huge tome.  And I could imagine this book as an art relic, personalized.  Like a huge scrap book.  Documenting tender mercies and things we are grateful for as a family.  I left the spelling and parenthesis, but used brackets for art work descriptions.  Can you guess contributors?

family
music
books
warmth of sun
wind in car with windows rolled down
stars
mountains
color!
paint
truth
Gospel
prayer

home
family
temples
food
safety
time
prayer
scriptures
chickens
friends
patience
a faithful partner
creativity
color
hope
warmth
comfort

Gospel
temple marriage
children
cats
insulin
democracy & freedom
family
sunshine
missionaries
modern medicine
bishops & others who serve in demanding callings
trees
azaelas
roses
chocolate
automobiles, telephones, email, internet, facebook
reconnection with old friends

family [heart smiley face]
additions to family [wink]
food (especially the pie)
temple
clothes
pets
house (shelter)
money
everything
Doctor Who

food
colors
water
friends
books
new people
salt
dogs
nature
shrimp cocktail
everything
words
sight
space
sun
moon
stars
this pen
pressure
family

love
forgiveness
light & color
salt
toys
laughter
sunsets & sunrises
children
helpers
freedom
books
cooking for other people
family and cousins
hugs
cars
Book of Mormon
Elder Bednar
cell phones and texting and Skype!

Plan of Salvation
Atonement
Birth to goodly parents
sealing in temple to choice spirit
missions
other opportunities to serve
loving family

family
food
shelter
clothing
friends
school
pie
hollodays
phones
tecnolegy
games
rooms

family, my house, bed, friend, food

family
a home
food
clothes
pets
The Gospel
Friends

electricity
socks
music
computers
freedom
watches
water
cookies
birds
trees

American rights
family
religion
right to vote
shelter
food
sanitary conditions
technology
friends nature
life

mom
dad
friends
aunt
grandpa
grandma

food
family
friends
a house
daddy
mommy
clothes

I am thankful for food [picture of raining or snowing clouds and sunshine]

The support of my family

My family [heart]
The Earth [heart]
Sisters
My dog
temples
home
food
friends
color
hope
love [heart]

Grace
I am thankful for:
family
friends
gosple
food
Home
books
warm coats
rain & snow
Animals
sight & glasses
Trees
Temple & Church
A day to give thanks
technology
fudge
salsa
stores
farms

Mom
dad
brothers
cosins
clothes
shoes
food
teacher
the church
electronics
Pintrest
MSP
shoes
nail polish
friends
candy
money
trees

I am thankful for my family because they are nice to me and Jesus because he made our world he also made my Life he also helped us make our temple he also gave me comfort he also Let Me have frinds he let me have a family god will be nice to me.

Blessings/Things I am thankful for: 
*how my family has grown over the past years, not just with family, but with friends also
*patriaricle (sorry if I did not spell it right) blessings, that I can read mine whenever I want and that it can help me when I need it.
*That my dad is such an amazing cook!  and that I can learn from him so that I can become a good cook as well
&no matter all of the difficult situations, we always get through them
*FOOD!
*Doctor Who!
*Seminary sunrises

Food
family
computer
America
Pie
ties
flowers
school
Moon
tables
Pens
books
people
turkey
carpet
tile
cousins
grandparents
relitives
church
dress clothes
Not Fish
Grass weather
plates
pencils
mechanical pencils
corndogs
pizza
ramen
oven
microwave
band
TV
movies
Entertainment
Mice
cats
dogs
Fish (alive)
dogs

Blessings
Life health doctors family spouse children grandchildren in-laws taste sight hearing smell touch mobility intelligence understanding revelation atonement freedom choices time friends opportunities warmth coolness variety food cooks fire electricity technology peace books computers courage prophets priesthood temple trips animals birds beasts schools churches stores government scriptures

My parents, Dad happily eating pickled okra, a Smith family tradition! (I was surprised at how tasty it is!)

Wishbone Winner

Sam & Roxie squared off, each pulling the turkey wishbone we ate before Stewart & Suzanna left for school at BYU, Provo (we celebrated Thanksgiving with them in August since they aren't coming home until December).

 

What determines who wins?  Is it constant pressure, more pressure, sudden jerk your direction, weakness in the bone?

We asked Roxie what she wished for.....

I am sure Sam wants more turkey & a rematch!