Josten's Graduation

Josten, third in line. They stood to be recognized not only as graduates, but the newest officers.

They walked in last, in order to be set above the rest.
Josten graduates with his Bachelors
Receiving his degree
Proud family
I'm so glad that we were able to be here for Josten's graduation. Sadly, Jehkiah's second wedding reception was scheduled the same day so none of the family was present for this event. I was very emotional; so proud of all that Josten's accomplished. He's such a good man. The ceremony was particularly inspiring as the military came in last....just to set them apart from the rest of the graduating class. Then they had them stand (we all stood) so proudly as they swore these young men in. Officer Cornett...I like the sound of that.

Josten's Commencement

The family

Josten and John
John and Sarah, putting on his bars
Josten, taking his oath

Words of wisdom

Jayden and Josten

John and Josten

December 10th, we drove down to Moscow, Idaho to support Josten as he was commissioned an officer in the Army (2 Lt.), graduating from the ROTC. Dad and Sarah got to pin on his bars, which was the highlight of the evening. We are so proud of Josten--he's a good man, and great officer! Afterward, we all went to Shari's Restaurant for dinner and family time!

Jehkiah & Casey's Wedding

Only for our beloved children would we brave the wintry weather and treacherous drive to Utah for a wedding! Jehkiah and Casey were married in the Logan Temple Thanksgiving weekend. The temple is simply magnificent and holy. It was a beautiful sealing and they were surrounded by so many that love them. The reception was held at a little chapel about thirty minutes away where we, of course, endured the endless picture taking, etc. ha!! There was delicious food, good conversation and of course, the kids danced. It was a fun time for all of us. The weather took a turn for the worse so several family members left early to get on the road and drive home. Of all the weekends to have blizzard conditions! But, we survived it all and took home some great memories.

Jovi, Jayden and Shyane

Casey and Jehkiah

Shasta and Karen with the boys

John with all of his children
(except Jonbrock, who couldn't come)
All the groomsmen John and Katrina with the newly marriedMackenzie, Jayden and Shyane

Sightseeing in Utah

We were in "heaven" as we walked the grounds of Temple Square. After the Visitor's Center we went over to the Tabernacle to listen to an Organ recital which was absolutely phenomenal. We took in as much as we could, stopping briefly to meet up with Karen, Travis & the kids for lunch. After lunch, we went onto the Conference Center where we went on a meaningful tour. I say meaningful, because we had a young man join our tour (it was just the four of us). We spent over an hour together talking, explaining the history and sharing our thoughts with Joe. After seeing a PBS broadcast on Mormonism, he was so intrigued, he decided to come to Utah--on vacation from Canada--and check it out. The spirit was very strong and Joe was touched. He didn't want to leave when the tour was up. He asked a passerby to take a group picture of us. It was quite special. If you've never been to Temple Square, it's so worth a trip. The history alone is remarkable.

Thanksgiving Day

On Thursday, we left the Brown's and drove north to meet up with our kids. We shared Thanksgiving together at Javis' new home in Brigham City. It was wonderful to be with everyone. There was a lot of enthusiasm, good food, and plenty of activity and excitement for Jehkiah and Casey's wedding on Saturday.

Karen (looking a bit tired), Shyane and Tracen Javis and Liliana
The boys...hanging out
Shasta and Colson Shyane and Tracen Jayden, Breck, Mackenzie and Travis Just pull up a rug! We need a convention center to house our family events!

Utah Trip

After shoveling snow for our customers in Tri Cities (at 5 a.m.), we finally got on the road about 4 p.m. to begin our vacation. We made it to Boise before poopin' out and had to grab a hotel for the night! The roads were horrendous. We arrived in Utah the day before Thanksgiving and after touring the grounds of the MTC (missionary training center), Provo Temple and the BYU campus, we went to stay the night with our good friends, Bob & Lucy Brown (who are living with her parents temporarily). We haven't been able to visit with them in years so it was wonderful to see and enjoy family time with them. Lucy's parents were so hospitable and welcoming. We really could've stayed all day!

Father and Son John and Katrina Jayden, in front of the Temple Mom, Jayden and Dad, at the MTC Bob Brown

Jayden learning from Lucy's dad

Devin Brown

Bonner's Ferry Trip

Fun on the boat

Enjoying the ride

Braden making us pancakes

Jayden and Braden
Papa and the kids
Grandma Trina and the kids
The Baisden Bunch John, Katrina and Jayden

Papa and the girls

Taking a hike

We decided to spend a weekend with Shasta and the family before heading back into the routine of fall; school, activities and the holiday rush. It was so peaceful. We took a nice long hike on Saturday--venturing out with all the kids. They loved it and there were no mosquitoes!!! We just visited, watched Leave it to Beaver and played with the kids. Braden even made us pancakes for breakfast. Sunday, the missionaries came for dinner and we were treated to steak and key lime pie. On our final day, we spent the afternoon on the Baisden's boat. It was so nice just to relax.

Jayden's new trade

Looks like Jayden's found his niche...small engine repair. He was able to repair Dad's trimmer and then show Kenzie how to edge.

Breck & Sienna Come to Visit

Papa and Sienna on the skag
Papa teaching Sienna to cut the grapes
Papa and Breck having a "scruncher"

Uh oh...Breck discovered how to turn on the tree lights

Breck and Sienna playing in the dirt

Jayden still knows how to play too!

Breck and Sienna

I miss those kids already!!! We were so blessed to have Breck and Sienna come stay for the weekend while Josten and Sarah ran off to the Oregon coast for some fun! Admittedly, it's a little harder on me these days chasing two and three year-olds around but at the end of the day, when you see their sleeping faces, it's hard not to smile. Mackenzie came to stay just to help me out...what a sweetie! Colby was here for one night and went home exhausted...ha!! Our seven year old grandson couldn't keep up with Breck. We stayed pretty close to home but I cleaned out a section in my garden so Breck could play with the dump trucks. That's all he thought about was "playing in the dirt". We watched several kids movies-which I loved and just basically followed the kids around and played. Sienna braved a ride on Papa's tractor while he mowed the lawn. What beautiful little kids...thanks for trusting me with them.