Broken Arms and Recitals!

The first week in December, Tyler, Tiffany and family went to Colorado on a ski trip. They were having a wonderful time with all of Tiff's family and the girls were doing great at skiing and snowboarding. On the last day there, Kylie fractured both of her arms! Poor Kylie! One arm was worse than the other and took a little longer to heal, but she recovered well from it.

 Kylie was supposed to play at this piano recital with Lexi, but because of her arms, was not able to. The girls are doing so well on the piano and I hope they keep up the great work. Someday, they will be so thankful that they know how to play the piano! I wasn't able to be at the recital, but Papa was able to.

 Lexi also had an orchestra recital, which Bryan and I were both able to attend. I was out with some real estate clients, but made it just in time. It's fun to be able to go to these concerts!

November 2013

Dinner at Lynn & Cherie's House

 

Lynn, Cherie, Ron, Annette, Ron, Karen, Bryan

We are excited that Bryan's brother, Ron and his wife Susan are moving to Arizona. Ron got another job with State Farm in Tempe, since they were shutting down the Salt Lake offices. Ron moved here in October and is renting a guest house from my friend Dawn. Susan is still in Utah because she is committed to teaching pre-school until spring. They will have to live apart until then.

As of November, with Ron moving here, 4 of the 8 Watkins siblings were living in Arizona. However, Annette and Ron decided to move to Washington, so there will now be only 3 siblings in Arizona again. It was fun telling everybody that more of the siblings lived in Arizona than in Utah - for a short while.

Lynn and Cherie had us all over for a farewell dinner for Annette and Ron. We loved getting together and enjoyed Lynn's little fire pit, as the night was a little chilly. We all worked hard to get Annette and Ron's house packed up and cleaned so they could move. Darrin and his son, Ben, flew down to help them with the move and to drive the moving truck up to Washington.

Time Out for Women - Salt Lake 2013

I have gone to Time Out for Women in Phoenix for the last few years. I thought it would be fun to have my Mom and Kathy fly out here to go with me this year, but then I found out Ann Romney was speaking at the Salt Lake Time Out for Women, so I decided to fly to Utah and go to that one instead of Phoenix this year. I was hoping Holly could come down from Boise and go with us, but it was too hard this year with a baby. I invited all of the Utah family to go with Kathy, Mom and I, and I was thankful Shauna and Melinda were able to.

Time Out for Women was fabulous and we all enjoyed it so much. It was Friday evening and all day Saturday, so we stayed in a hotel Friday night right across the parking lot from the event. I'm so thankful we were able to go together. It was uplifting and inspiring, as usual.

When I first arrived in Provo, Kathy was there to pick me up at the airport and she didn't know where Mom was. Her car wasn't in her garage that morning and she was supposed to come with Kathy to pick me up. So, we were pretty worried about Mom. After Kathy picked me up, Dennis called her and told her that Mom had just called from the Emergency Room and we should go there. So, we went to the ER and there was Mom. She has been having quite a few problems with her heart. She recently got a pacemaker and has had several visits to the ER recently, so it wasn't a complete shock that she was in the ER. The doctor discovered that she was possibly low on oxygen, so he ordered full-time oxygen for her. 

When we got home later that day, the oxygen was delivered and here is a picture of Mom with her new friend, Oxy, as we call it. Of course, she wasn't happy about being on oxygen for the rest of her life and having to cart Oxy around with her wherever she went. She was concerned about taking all of the equipment to TOFW, but she was a trooper and went along anyway. It actually was an advantage to us as far as getting into Time Out for Women because she was able to go in the handicapped door and we got really good seats without having to wait in line for hours! So, thanks, Mom!

 

 As it turns out, Mom doesn't need to be on oxygen full time. She has a monitor that helps her know when she should get some more oxygen. This is a huge relief to her and we're thankful she doesn't have to be on it full time. She also now has some smaller tanks that she can carry around with her- and when she's at home she has a machine she can hook up to and doesn't have to use the tanks. It's really hard to see all of these changes happen to Mom. She's been so healthy and active for so many years.

 Thanksgiving Day

Thanksgiving morning, we got the turkey in the oven and then we went shooting out in the desert with Ty, Tiff and girls. It was fun to use our guns and get more familiar with them. 

Then, in the early evening, we had our Thanksgiving Dinner. We had BJ's family and Tyler's family, plus Bryan's cousin, Ken Scott. We had an enjoyable time together. The kids were at their usual noise level, and we love having them here. Everybody helped with the meal, so it was easy for me.

You can barely see Sadie next to Sam, then Hannah, Shannon, BJ, Tiff, Ty, Kylie, Lexi, Ken, Bryan. It was a nice and relaxing Thanksgiving and we loved having some leftovers for the next few days.

Owie on my finger!

The Saturday after Thanksgiving, Bryan had just put up the outside Christmas lights and he left to help clean the church. I opted to stay home and decorate for Christmas. I was carrying some boxes into the house from the garage and I tripped over a box that was in the driveway and fell right on my left hand. My pinkie knuckle was completely turned around, as you can see from the pictures. I called Bryan and he came home quickly and took me to Urgent Care. The doctor took x-rays and it was obviously dislocated, so she twisted it back where it was supposed to go. I knew she was going to have to do this and I was dreading it more than the immediate pain that I felt. I held my breath and held the nurse's hand while the Dr. twisted it back and it was done - just like that! I wore a splint on it for a week and it healed surprisingly quickly. It didn't even bruise as much as I thought it would - since I bruise easily. I guess I should have gone to clean the church instead of stay home to decorate!!

Phoenix Suns game

We went to a Suns game the night of my finger accident. I wasn't sure I felt like going at first, but decided I might as well sit there instead of sit at home. So, Bryan, Ron and I went to the game. We sat up in the boonies, but it was fun to go to a game in person. We rode the light rail there and back.

October 2013

Kylie's Volleyball Games

We were able to go to a few of Kylie's volleyball games. It's so fun watching her play and seeing how much she has improved since last year. I obviously stole this picture from Tiffany's blog because I never remembered to take my camera with me to the games. So proud of Kylie!

Visit from Kathy

My sister, Kathy, came to Arizona and stayed with us the week before Halloween. She mostly visited her son, Brady, who lives here and had fun playing with her grandkids. It was fun to have her here in the evenings though. One afternoon we went shopping and I thought it was fun that the saleslady at Dress Barn put our names on the doors of the fitting rooms!

Realtor Fall Festival

Kylie went with us to a Real Estate fall festival. Lexi and Sadie were invited to a Halloween Party and BJ's family was busy, so Kylie was the only one who could go with us. It was fun to have her along with us. Bryan's brother, Ron, was also able to go with us. There was food tasting from a lot of different cuisines. Here is a picture of her all decked out in the freebie handouts she got!


Trunk or Treat

We had our annual Ward Halloween Trunk or Treat this year and had a fun time, as usual. Even before we were in the same ward as BJ and Tyler's families, we tagged along with the kids. But, now that we're all in the same ward, it makes it very convenient. Our ward got permission to use the school grounds for our dinner and activities and then we used the school parking lot for Trunk or Treating. It worked out great!

Halloween
On Halloween, we went to The Labor's house for dinner. Every Halloween, they prepare hamburgers and hot dogs for everyone who comes by their house. It's amazing and so generous of them to do this. We have gone there almost every year that we've been in Arizona. After we ate, we went trick or treating with Tyler's girls and then sat in front of BJ's house with him while trick or treaters came to their house. Shannon and the kids were trick or treating with a friend from work. It was a perfect fall evening and a lot of people had fires going in their little portable fire pits. Here are some pictures I got before trick or treating at the Labor's house.

Kylie in front of their scary entryway.

Lexi. What happened to our princesses?

Sadie was a zombie

Shannon made Sam the cutest train out of cardboard and it even had a light!

Brodi was a turtle, but she wouldn't put the shell on her back.

Hannah was the cutest lion ever!

Beautiful Maine!

We were able to have a very fun trip to Maine and enjoyed visiting with Michael, Mallory, Madie and Finn. It was a beautiful time of year to go to Maine because the autumn leaves were gorgeous. Everywhere I looked I could have taken a picture! Here is a summary of our trip.

We arrived on Oct 1, Mallory's birthday. So, not only did she have to spend her anniversary with her inlaws (at our family reunion in August), but she had to spend her birthday with us!!

We rented a minivan so we could all go places in one vehicle. Finn was waiting in the car while we got ready to go see Michael at work.

 This is the view from Michael's work.

 Jackson Labs - a beautiful setting for Michael to work in.

 We walked about 5 minutes from Michael and Mallory's house.....

 and came to this!

 They're very lucky to live so close to the ocean.

The area they live in is very wooded and smells so good.

We went to downtown Bar Harbor. This tree was so pretty - pictures don't do it justice!

 A few pictures of downtown Bar Harbor.

 There is a cute park in the middle of town.

Bryan and I went for a ride while Mal and the kids were resting and Michael was at work.

 
 We came to this beautiful park. It was so stunning!

 
 Unfortunately, due to the government shut-down, Acadia National Park was closed. However, we were able to park along the street and walk into the park to this beautiful lake.

 Papa and Finn

 Madie trying to skip rocks.

 Finn wanted to go into the water so badly!

 They finally stripped him down to his onesie and let him get his feet wet.

 We were thankful that Michael was able to take Thursday and Friday off while we were there. On Friday, we decided to drive down the Maine coastline. This picture is in Camden, Maine. We stopped there so Madie could ride her bike and stretch her legs.

Camden, Maine

We also ate lunch there.

 In Freeport, Maine, we saw this beautiful building and realized it was a McDonalds! I got my camera out just in time to get a quick picture.....

 However, I googled this picture of it because I wanted to make sure the picture I took was actually a McDonalds! It definitely isn't your ordinary McDonalds!

Michael was excited to go into this 3 story LL Bean store in Freeport, Maine. It was a beautiful store!

Inside LL Bean, they had an aquarium with a bubble you could sit in. Finn loved it, but it took a lot of convincing to get Madie inside the bubble.

After Finn went in, she finally decided it might be okay - although still a bit nervous.

Michael, Madie and Finn inside bubble.

We arrived in Portland, Maine and walked around town for a little while. It is another beautiful city.

Then, we went to this - I think this was the highlight of my day! Cape Elizabeth lighthouse.

Madie climbing the fence.

Mal and Finn resting on a bench.

I couldn't stop taking pictures of this lighthouse, as you can see!

Mal, Finn, Michael in a tree in the park next to the lighthouse. Madie didn't want to be in the picture.

Michael and Madie running in the park. After we visited the lighthouse and the park, we went back to Portland for dinner. Then we drove back to Bar Harbor - a 3 hour drive. It took us about 6 hours driving to Portland because we took the scenic route, but only 3 hours home on the freeway. It was a very fun day.

We were in Maine for General Conference weekend and in Maine, it doesn't start until noon. So, on Saturday morning, we took a nice walk along Carriage Road in Bar Harbor. I could just imagine carriages riding along this road and wondered if movies had been filmed here.

A creek along carriage road

Madie on the bridge.

This bridge is so beautiful!

Roots from a tree. Amazing!

On our way home from the walk, a lady on a horse rode by. I couldn't find my camera fast enough, but did get the rear end of the horse before she went around the bend!

Some of the views from carriage road.

This beach was across the street from the entrance to Carriage Road.

Also on Saturday, we were able to go to an apple orchard to pick apples.

Madie choking, I mean loving Finn!

Then, we went to this beautiful nursery to get pumpkins.

Looking for the right pumpkin......

Madie found the pumpkin she wanted!

On Sunday morning before conference, we drove to a lighthouse near Bar Harbor.

Madie looking at the ocean.

I love Madie's outfit. She had a cape on before we left the house, but decided not to wear it to the lighthouse! And, by the way, she cut her own hair about a month ago. I think she can pull this pixie haircut off really well - much as I miss her beautiful curls!

Picture at the lighthouse.

Oh, so beautiful!

On our way home, we stopped at a butterfly garden. We didn't see too many butterflies this time of year, but Madie loved the swing!

She wouldn't look at me, so I had to stick the camera under her head and take this picture!

Butterfly garden.

Papa modeling Madie's hat.

Michael and Mallory are in the middle of projects around their house. They have a cute home and it will be even more cute when they do all the things they want to it. They have this amazing greenhouse in their backyard. It is HUGE!

Story time with Finn. He loves books.

Monday morning, Mal had an eye doctor appointment in Bangor, so Bryan and I got to watch the kids. I had to take this picture of Finn because this is what I loved looking back at when we were in the car. He loves the blankie Aunt Holly made for him and as soon as he gets his blankie his 2 fingers go in his mouth.

Madie had pre-school and before we picked her up, we drove around to get a few pictures of more leaves. It was a windy day and a lot of the leaves were blowing off the trees, but it was still beautiful!

Madie goes to pre-school at the YMCA and we got this picture of her when we went to pick her up.

Monday night, our last night there, we finally had lobster! You can't visit Maine without having lobster!

Then, we got ice cream at this cute shop downtown.

And guess what??? They even had Lobster Ice Cream. Yes, we tried a spoon full of it, but it wasn't something I would have a full ice cream cone out of.

 We loved our trip to Maine and look forward to going back soon. Much as we don't like Michael, Mallory and kids being so far away, it is a beautiful place to visit. Thank you for making our stay so pleasant, Michael and Mallory. We loved every minute of it!