Team Hochstrasser: November 2011

Grandma Donna

My Dad's Mom, Grandma Donna, was born on October 22, 1924. She passed away on her 87th Birthday, October 22, 2011. We knew her mission in this life was nearly complete, when I was able to drive down to Clinton, Ut and see her for one last time. I sat by her bed and held her hand. When it was time for me to go I kissed my Grandma Donna good bye.

She was a lovely woman. I can say that, because at her 80th birthday I was voted to be the grandchild (out 55) who looked the most like her. (as a child at least). I will always associate the color teal with her, and will never forget her lovely teal bathtub and bathroom.

Fortunately all of my family was able to come for the viewing and funeral. We played host, and it was nice to have them close. Two days before the funeral I found out I had an ectopic pregnancy and they operated that evening. It was a blessing to have them here. It was a hard thing to go through, but I saw tender mercies all along way. I'm grateful I was able to attend the funeral the day after I came home.

Family is what gets you through the ups and downs of this life. Love these girls SO much!

Each of the grandchildren was invited to take a flower from one of the arrangements at the burial site. Good choice Jared!

Me and my hubby... to Eternity and Beyond

I love this one. Dad is looking down on his mother's grave stone... and smiling. He knows Family relationships continue beyond the grave,

and THAT is something to smile about.

All of the cousins who were able to come.

I guess we all grew up... we don't all fit in the tub together like we used to.

The rest of these pictures are a trip down memory lane, courtesy of my sister Melissa. Thanks for the memories.

Grandma was elected the Tomato Queen after all!

Loved playing on these swings when I was little. Looks like I have lots of fond memories to hang on to.

Danny, the Champion of the World

Danny, The Champion of the World!
(That by the way is the title of one of my favorite children's books by Roald Dahl). Well, Danny may not be the champion of the world, but he did earn his Bobcat award at scouts. After his first Pack Meeting, the troop headed off to "Little Bear Bottoms", our local corn maze. The maze wasn't the coolest part however. What was really impressive was this massive tower of HAY.

It was filled with tunnels. (Which I was too chicken to go in... ) ALL my boys loved it though, especially Ryan!

Ryan climbed all the way to the top to take this shot, and then he jumped down onto the mattress you can see off on the left! Glad I still have a husband.

Got to love this guy.

We eventually made it to the maze.

Halloween Chaos!

For UEA me and the boys headed down to Salt Lake to see Wendy. Lynda had some time off work and was able to come too. Fun, Fun, Fun! Our Mom would always make us sugar cookies for Halloween and we just had to keep up the tradition! (I like ones with Skittles the BEST!)

Before

During

After

It was a great, STICKY, (hence the blurry pictures... Joshua!) success!

For Family Night we just had to Bob for Apples! The boys have improved since last year.

We even let Joshy have a turn this year.

We could have just ate our apples and called it good... but why do that when we could make Caramel Apples! (with Sprinkles and Reese's Pieces on the bottom)... Oh, I'm making myself so hungry!

Of course we also picked pumpkins. Lynda, Wendy and Dah-Dee-Doh came along for the ride too.

I always have to get my "Cinderella Pumpkin"... maybe I'll grow my own next year! People do things like that out here. :)

Look at all those Trick-or-Treaters in our yard!! Yes, I did run out of candy, but not until the very end. Phew!

My BOYS! Happy that the boy's robot costumes got done... happy Josh had a great hand-me-down costume to wear! RRrroarr!

What would Halloween be like with out a bunch of fun projects too!?! This of course added to the chaos, but the results were quite fabulous. Check out jellyrollgirl.blogspot.com for all the gory details!

Our Trip to Paradise

We have a little joke in our family... We don't live in Paradise, but we can see it from here. Having said that, Paradise is the next town down the road south from us. In my opinion it makes Hyrum look like a big city. All the same, it is a beautiful little town in the country! A great place for a drive in the fall.

Apparently Cache Valley is not a booming metropolis for apple orchards. It seems back in Wisconsin we had a lot to choose from (Door Creek Orchards were our favorite), but not here. Fortunately there was a little orchard in Paradise.

We got to eat as many apples as we "needed", and were able to enjoy the company of hens and roosters while we picked.

I think some of the apples were poisoned... these people are acting crazy!

On the drive home we drove up by Porcupine Reservoir. LOVELY!

We of course had to end the day with some home-made apple pie. Delish!

Family Photo Shoot Fall 2011

The first Saturday in October(aka General Conference Weekend) is our traditional family photo shoot. We have always had good weather and this year was no exception. However, one thing was different this year, instead of driving into the country (we already live there) we headed up into the MOUNTAINS.

Here are the highlights from out little outing. The boys were mostly all smiles and we all had a little fun in the process. The worst part was the luring smell of cooking bacon and pancakes coming from the camp-ground across the street.