Christmas Day 2010

I just noticed that many of the details of our annual Christmas celebration are documented on "Evestigation", so I will try to add a slightly different spin in this posting.



Bubby knitted a hat for Lydia Jane, gave it to her, and we see her modeling it in this photo.



We didn't get lunch ready quickly enough. The result, some serious chocolate consumption by the irrepressible Chee.



Bubby has been really excited for this day to come. While we were in Chicago this July, she went into the American Girl store and picked this doll out for Kate. Unfortunately she happened to spot it during one of her visits in Cedar City this fall, so she was expecting it. On Christmas Eve, she dug through the presents under the tree until she located it (based on the shape of the wrapped box), and announced that it would be the first present she opened. Her Mom decided that it might be fun to tease her a little, so she took the doll and hid it.

On Christmas morning, a very concerned Katie informed her Mom that one of her presents was missing! She looked like she was on the verge of tears, so the doll was quickly retrieved.

She does look like she is pleased. These two are now inseparable. Katie took her doll, Emily, to church today and was informed by a member of our Bishopric that although the doll looked a lot like her, she was certainly the prettier one.



Dress ups for the little girls were a big part of the Christmas gifts. Here is Maggie in one that Aunt Rosalyn gave her. She was quite a sight.



Bubby found this one for Lydia while we were in Big Bear, CA, in September. She was pleased.



Jake's big score was this gift to him and his Dad from Bubby and Poppy. We were told that the big draw was to allow the whole family to stream Netflix to their TV. I am suspicious, however. I think that there may be some regrets for allowing the thing in their home down the road. I am not a big fan of video gaming.



Auntie Rosalyn graciously put a lot of time into some impressive dresses for Emily. You can see them all on Evestigation. Katie was clearly pleased with each one, and even dressed Emily in one for church.



We had "hot pot" for dinner, or at least the adults did. Then Tony and Jaye dropped by for a visit. It was so great to see them, and to get our hands on little Suzanna Kim Eves (Suki for short). She is really, really cute, and was passed around between the adults and several of the older children.

Vince was as charming as ever. He played with his cousins while the adults visited.



Here is a family photo of Tony and Jaye. They will have to return to Iowa City before New Years, but we were glad to have a visit.



On Sunday morning, Lydia finally got some quiet time to play with some of her gifts with lots of small parts that could easily be lost. She loves to just play, and does so very well.

We had a wonderful Christmas, and trust that our readers enjoyed the same. We certainly wish all the very best of this wonderful season.

Buboppy

Christmas Eve

This our tree, overflowing with gifts. it was a wonderful Christmas for us all.



We had a wonderful Christmas Eve, the only thing that could have made it better is to have Booty, Laurs, Leeg, and Clara here. Sarah and her family arrived a little before 9:00 AM, which means they left SLC way before O-Dark Thirty!

After Friday pancakes for all, including Daniel and family, we settled in to enjoy each other and make final preparations for Christmas. Our schedule was simple. Fun, no matter what we were doing and not worrying to much about when we do it.

We had a traditional buffet on Christmas Eve, but Bubby had suggested an international theme. Of course that meant that she supplied pigs in blankets, macaroni salad with cubes of cheese in it, and hard rolls with deli meat (in this case smoked turkey in lieu of the more traditional ham). That may not sound too international to you, but those things were always part of Grandma Jane's buffet, and she was Dutch, so ...

The rest of the meal was definitely more in keeping with the theme. We had cheese fondue, homemade gyoza (pot stickers), satay with peanut sauce, hummus with toasted flat bread, and prosciutto rolled around fresh mozzarella. For dessert, we decided to celebrate all of the December birthdays with a DQ cake. Drewfy, Jake, and Babs were all on hand for the celebration.



The parents allowed all of the kids to open one present for Christmas Eve, and of course it was pajamas. Lots of pink in evidence in Sarah's family. (She supplied the photos, so there is definitely a Wells family bias).

Buboppy

Unfinished Business and Walking in the Rain

It has been raining in Cedar City for over 24 hours. Yesterday when we got up, it was raining hard enough that we opted to not take our morning walk.

This morning, we weren't going to be denied, rainy or not. It did snow a little last evening, but that changed to rain sometime during the night, and it was still sprinkling when we got ourselves ready.



This photo needs some explanation. First of all, when we go walking in normally 20-something° weather, Bubby and I never make much of a fashion statement. Our attire is totally utilitarian. On this particular morning, as you can see from this photo, that need was even more apparent. Bubby got a perm and haircut yesterday afternoon, and "as every Cosmo girl" knows, that means no water on the hair for 72 hours. As we prepared to head out in the rain, Bubby protected her hair with her shower cap (we call it the "Minnie Mouse"). She did look a sight, but stayed dry where it counted most. I still think she is the cutest thing I ever saw, with or without Minnie Mouse on.



When I dumped Bubby's photo from her camera this morning, I found some photos related to our Thanksgiving trip to Dallas. I thought our readers might enjoy them, so I am including them in this post. This is a photo of Miss Clara Anne's new quilt. Bubby always tries to get a photo of her quilt work before letting it go.



I thought this was a great photo of Laur and Bubb in the back of the van. I think this was the evening we went to Saltgrass for some good food (those dolled-up potatoes with the cheese, bacon, and ranch dressing amaze me every time).



Finally a photo of Leego, just because we are missing him. He is all trussed up in his car seat, ready to go (note that he has "Waa Waa, Ice!", just the way he likes it). Hope he is having a fun time in his room with Grandma Kar. Merry Christmas to all!

Buboppy

Andrew's Birthday

As many of our readers know, Andrew was born on Christmas Eve. That reality has led his Mom to feel that he needs some separation of his birthday from the celebration of Jesus' birthday. I think it quite fortunate for Andrew because it has allowed him to turn December into his birth-month, just as June is for me. What follows is an example.

Andrew has already had a birthday celebration with his friends, and the associated presents and cake that go with it. On Saturday, he and his family came over and helped Bubby decorate for Christmas. It was sure good to have the help.



Then on Sunday, Andrew and his family came over for dinner. We had turkey, mashed potatoes, and rolls, along with the necessary accompaniments. Following dinner, I caught this photo of Andrew and Evelyn in front of the Christmas Tree.



Although her fountains are starting to flatten a little, Sister was looking sassy in her "little black dress".



I got my camera out expressly to photograph the big moment. Andrew opened his package and found a set of Batman and Joker Trios which he dearly loves. His Dad helped him put a couple of items together.



Sister had to be contained a little, because it was hard for her to watch Andrew enjoy his gift with nothing for her. Just wait a day or two Evelyn. All will be right!



Here is one of the creations and a very happy boy showing it off. We followed this event with a little spumoni ice cream (Andrew's favorite). All in all, just another day in a boy's birth-month. Pretty sweet deal, don't ya think?

Buboppy

There's No Place Like Home

Monday turned out to be a marathon day that included experiencing Dallas rush hour traffic while driving Booty to work, final painting in the master bedroom (assisted by Leo!), banh mi for lunch, packing, one last meal together at Corner Bakery, and a trip to Love Field to catch our plane.

It was a 6:45 PM flight, and it was delayed. The short version of the story is that we arrived in St. George at 1:15 AM on Tuesday. Our plan from the beginning was to crash at the condo, which we were both grateful for at that time of the morning.

Tuesday morning -- up early since I had an 8:00 AM meeting in Cedar City. A busy day of work followed for both of us. The pay off came when we finally got home that night. It was a wonderful trip, we were treated likely royalty and we enjoyed every minute. We miss Leo and Clara terribly, already, but true to the title of this post, it was great to be home.

Busy days ahead, including an invited trip to the NFR on Friday.

Buboppy

Blessing Day

We were lucky enough to be present for Clara's blessing day. Everybody is looking fine for our trip to church. Matt did a fine job, and Miss Clara is now officially a "child of record."



Leegy was not excited to wear a tie, but he surely looked spiffy in it. It was all about the "Leo Show" at sacrament meeting and although he was generally well behaved, he did make us all smile during the opening prayer. The woman offering it gave thanks for a living prophet, and Leo zeroed in on the word "prophet" shouting "Monson!", "President Monson!" That boy knows who the prophet is, by golly.



Here is Miss Clara looking resplendent in her blessing dress. Bubby and Laur made a slip for her yesterday, and she was all "princessed" out. Laur mentioned that changing her diaper in this getup was a challenge. Lots of layers to peel, and I think she soiled her diaper a couple of times while we were at church.



We had to have this one for proof positive of our presence. Bubby announced today that we have been in attendance for the blessing of all of our grandchildren. I hadn't really thought about it, but upon reflection, it is true. We have been very lucky to be in the right place at the right time, at least eight times, in our adult lives!



One final shot of Clara and the dress. She is so sweet, and cooperated so well today. It was really fun to participate.

Bubby and I took a walk this afternoon while the kids were napping. Everyone we met commented on what a beautiful day it was. Of course it was doubly beautiful to us, because we knew it is miserable and snowing in Cedar City. Bubby commented on the fact that we have enjoyed three falls this year, Minnesota in early October, Cedar City through early November, and now the color change (that's right, it is going on right now!) in Dallas. We won't soon forget this fall.

Buboppy

Happy Thanksgiving

We were able to get Booty and Laur's bedroom painted on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. I was thinking I had slowed down a lot, because Booty and I worked at it all day (except for lunch and drying time breaks). However, the job involved three different colors of paint, ceiling, crown molding, walls, and baseboard. Lots of masking to make it all come out. There are a still a few touch up items, but we'll get those done either Friday or Saturday.

Between Wednesday night and Thursday morning, the air temp dropped about 30°. We were in the low 80's on Wednesday, and I doubt if it got much over 50 on Thanksgiving day. We spent the day enjoying the family and relaxing.



I was able to get a couple of picture with Booty and his kids. He seems pretty natural at all of this. He claims his "one true talent" just might be putting Clara to sleep.



Here is a shot of Leeg soaking up a good earlobe milking. Leeg does have delicious lobes, a family trait that no one appreciates more than his Dad.



The other day, while Bubby was trying to keep Leeg out of the paint projects, she decided to let him have his Christmas present to play with. It is a cool Fisher Price drill and tool set. The drill reverses so it can drive or extract the screws from the workbench. There is a hammer and some nails to drive and "pull" from the bench as well. The bench itself has a place for everything, and Leeg keeps everything in its place (I wonder where he learned that?)



Here is a close up of festively dressed Clara on her first Thanksgiving. She is a very sweet baby, and stays pretty calm. Bubby loves to hold her.



We had a lovely Thanksgiving dinner, thanks to Booty and Laur, complete with Aunt Cynthia's delicious rolls. In this photo, not only is Leeg about to taste Grandma Isobel's famous squash pie, he is seriously getting into licking the beaters used to whip the cream.

On this, and every other day, we are so very thankful for each other, our family, the gospel, and our testimonies. These are very happy days in the lives of Bubby and Poppy, and we recognize that we are greatly blessed.

Love to all,

Buboppy

Bubby at Booty's

We have been pretty busy here the last couple of days. Part of the reason we came was to see if we could help out. On Monday morning, I started painting what will soon be Leo's bedroom (he has to give up his current location so Clara can move out of her parent's room, when it is appropriate).

It was a complete job, ceiling, closet and all. I got the ceiling and woodwork done yesterday, and finished the walls, in a nice silvery gray, today. I think it turned out pretty nice. We put it back together this afternoon.

While I was painting the ceiling, Bubby and Leo were weeding the front yard flower bed. She was trying to keep him occupied so he didn't get into the paint.

Every time he passed by the closed bedroom door this morning, the exchange went something like this: Knock, knock, knock. "Bubby" (he is struggling with different names for the two of us). "I am Poppy!" "Poppy!" "Yes." "I want to hold you!" Of course what he really wants to do is come in, see what is going on, and touch everything, including any wet paint. We had quite a few of these conversations this morning, but I wasn't sucker enough to let him in, not even for a minute.

We had cheap, but marginal, Chinese food for lunch, so it was a very successful day. Tomorrow, Booty and I tackle the master bedroom.

Buboppy

Bubby Meets Clara

Our trip to Dallas was quite uneventful. We left Cedar City about 10:30 AM, and ended up having time to stop for Bubby's In-n-Out in St. George, and Trader Joe's in Las Vegas.

We were a little late arriving, so Booty had to drive around the airport roundabout four times before we connected. As soon as we got to their house, Bubby was able to get her hands on Miss. Clara.



She is such a sweet little sister, and seems to getting along just fine. With Laur as her mom, we know she is in very capable hands.



It was fun to see them looking adorably at each other-Clara not focusing at all, Bubby focusing on Clara.

We got up early on Saturday morning, right after Leo came into our bedroom to find his Bubby. We made the trip to Sprouts, Booty's green grocer, Albertsons to kill a little time, and then our first trip to Aldi, a really unique store with a limited inventory and selection, but really great prices on some of the groceries. Booty bought milk for $0.99 a gallon and large eggs $0.50 a dozen!

We had breakfast, and then hung out a little. Booty and I drove over to Harbor Freight and purchased his Christmas present, a new, lighted, steel workbench which took us the rest of the day to assemble. It will really help him get his garage organized.

I have to report that we had an exotic food experience at lunch. Near Booty's house is a large Asian population, and there was a shopping complex called Little Saigon that we drove to. We ordered four different banh mi sandwiches. Some were savory and succulent some were incredibly spicy, but all were delicious. It was a fun adventure.

We are looking forward to some quality time with Booty, Laur, Leego, and Clara this week. We might even paint a bedroom. Beats the heck out of work!

Buboppy

Great Fall Weather

It was a busy week. Bubby and I manage to stay pretty busy with work and home chores. We have had such lovely fall weather that we have fallen behind on our fall yard work. During the week, Bubby brought Drewfy and Sister home on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons (after nap time, of course), and they played outside while she worked in the garden and flower beds. She gave Drewfy a pair of "nippers" and turned him loose on the sumac bushes in the back yard. I am glad I didn't witness the ever enthusiastic Andrew with a pair of garden shears big enough to cut off a digit. Of course, Evelyn would not be outdone, so Bubby gave her a much smaller, but equally sharp, pair of garden snips. When Rosalyn came to pick the kids up, she informed Bubb that Evelyn was "playing" with the nips, and Bubb didn't bother to tell her that she had given them to Sister to use. They'll grow up fast around the Bubb, that's for sure.

We rose early on Saturday and tackled the final dismantling of the garden. We had to pull the beans off of the horse fence, take out the fence and its supporting posts, and load all of the refuse into the back of the truck. We were on our way to pick up Drewfy by 9:00 AM. He and Bubby have been planning a trip to the dump for weeks now. I don't quite understand the fascination, but it probably gave them something to talk about. We picked up a few things at Dan's house, and loaded up the boy.

Of course Andrew enjoyed the new experience, and immediately noticed the smell associated with a landfill. Fortunately, we weren't there long enough for him to spot the rotting remains of some slaughtered animal, we don't want him to grow up quite that fast! The big selling point of a trip to the dump is a treat on the way home. Bubby had been promising a Frosty from Wendy's, but it was only 9:45 AM when we got back to town. I thought we were going to have to punt, but fortunately, Wendy's opens their doors at 10:00 each morning.

We killed the wait time by having a breakfast burrito at Roberto's Taco Shop. Andrew had pancakes for breakfast, so he was only mildly interested in the burritos. Instead he sipped on an agua de pina and made loud, and somewhat insulting, comments about the other early morning customers. There are some downsides to having a four year old with a 10-year old vocabulary and a 2-year old's sense of propriety.

When we dropped Andrew off with a Frosty for himself and Evelyn, his parents were up to their sticky elbows in squeezing pomegranates for jelly. We escaped as quickly as possible, but while I gave the lawns the once over, Bubby went back to help. The syrup (it didn't jell properly as pomegranate jelly tends to do) has a beautiful color and is reported to be a proper balance of sweet and tart.

Bubby and I had a couple of social obligations which we participated in. We watched the entire first half of the SUU vs. DSCU football game (something I am required to do as the Dean), enjoyed a bag of kettle corn, went to the movies (Red), and then to a men's basketball game (because I like those). All in all a very full Saturday.

Buboppy

What is that smell?

Okay, I realize that the blog is stale enough that it is starting to stink. What can I say, it seems we have had a busy time at home, ever since we returned from Minnesota.

The weekend we arrived home was UEA weekend for most of the state of Utah. For some odd reason, our local school district opted to take the opening weekend of the deer hunt off, instead, but I digress. Sarah and her family came for a visit over the UEA weekend to give themselves a break and Aaron some much needed undisturbed study time.

We had a really fun time together, but I couldn't tell you what we did from day to day. The weather was beautiful most of the time, so we did a lot of outside things.



Maggie got her pumpkin hat from the Bubb. She wasn't too enthused about it, but I guess she doesn't like shoes or socks, either. We were lucky to get this photo.



Saturday was homecoming for SUU. before accepting the dean's job, I never paid much attention to this event, but it is very much required of me now. My loyal supporters donned their SUU wear and lined up on University Blvd. to cheer us on as we passed. Here is Miss Kate looking like she is enjoying the fun. The outfits were purchased for a June family photo, and purchased large enough so that the girls could get some wear of them.



Jake got to visit Arthur Hale was he was down. Art is, hands down, the best, and fastest, barber that ever tackled a young man's hair. by the time they figure out he is cutting their hair, he is done.




Although a little out of focus, this is an angelic version of Drewfy. By the way, he has now taken to calling himself that, which is kind of cute coming out of his mouth. I wasn't there to see it, but I guess he had a serious meltdown over a balloon, and nearly had to spend the parade in his family's car.



Lydia also got her hair trimmed, but by Stacia Glausser. She was having lots of fun along the parade route.



There wasn't much of a photo of Evelyn, so I took what I could get. Bubb was the photog, as I was in the parade. The kids certainly made a serious candy haul.



I know you can't tell, but that is me in the convertible. Rhonda borrowed it from her husband, and we spent the parade perfecting our waves. My college was the "winner" because of the fire balls, tee-shirt canon, and other activities. Not sure what that means, except there was a $500 cash prize. That almost covered the candy we threw out!

Buboppy

Sunday in St. Cloud

After a full Saturday of fishing, meeting Larry and Johanna's friends, Jim and Chris, and dinner, we woke on Sunday anticipating a relaxed day together. Bubb and I got ourselves over to the St. Cloud, MN, ward for sacrament meeting. It was an interesting experience. Their ward, which is the largest in a relatively new stake, has about a 60 mile diameter. What that means in practical terms is that all announcements are held until after sacrament meeting, when the largest number of members is present. The other interesting thing was the noise level in the chapel before the meeting. It was a gab fest with a lot of people really happy to see each other. At first it was a little off-putting, but then we realized that these folks are scattered so far and wide that they are genuinely excited to see each other on Sunday morning. It's a weekly reunion with others who share your faith and values.

Upon return to the Davis home, we were treated to biscuits, sausage gravy, and scrambled eggs. Miss Nichol joined us for this occasion, which was a treat for us.



Here is a photo of Nichol beside her newish Toyota Fit, which she loves. Nichol is living near her parents, working as an admin assistant for a meat packing company, and seems to be doing fine. She is interested in triathlons and competes regularly. She is now setting her sights on Iron Man competitions, and we even talked about he St. George Iron Man, but she has decided that the elevation changes on the 102 mile bike loops (about 3,000 feet) might take some of the fun out of it.



A little later in the day, we went for a drive and a walk. We drove to a local granite company called Stonecrafters, and took a walk through their open air stock piles. It was really interesting to see the rock, all polished and cut into slabs, from all over the world.

We then drove to the little community of Rockville, MN, and took a walk in this park which is near the site of an old granite quarry. Larry tells me that there are over 200 granite quarries in Stearns County, which is where we are. We even saw a bald eagle in a tree in the park.



We then drove up to a low hilltop and visited the Assumption Chapel in Cold Spring, MN. This beautiful, and quaint, catholic chapel is built entirely out of local granite. Cut and fitted blocks for the exterior walls and polished and slabbed for the interior. You can read about it's history on the web, but it was built in memory of the 1877 Grasshopper Plague that occurred in Minnesota. At first we wondered if this insect plague was coincident with the Mormon cricket infestation that is famous in Utah history. Of course, the Utah event was in 1848, so no, they are not related. Here are Larry, J, and I standing at an outdoor alter built of Cold Springs granite.



The exterior of the little chapel looks like this. It was really pretty in the past-its-peak fall setting.



We saw this pretty little flower on the grounds, which seemed to have survived the first local frost well. Unfortunately, we don't know what it is.



Finally, Bubb took a photo of one of the windows on the interior. It was a nice little spot for a visit in the late afternoon.

Today is our last full day in MN. We have some shopping planned while Larry and Johanna are working, and then we going to attend the funeral mass of one of the "sisters" of the abbey associated with the College of St. Benedict-St. John's University. It is our first Catholic mass, so it will be interesting. Maybe some photos.

Buboppy

A Fishing First

On Friday and Saturday, Bubb went on a quilt tour with Johanna, and Larry and I went fishing at Sagg Lake, a small morainal lake right on the CSB-SJU campus. We were literally fishing within a stone's throw of Larry's office. It is really best that there isn't a lake like Sagg near where I work.

I don't have any photos from the quilt tour, so if you don't like fishing photos, you can browse elsewhere now.

Larry made arrangements for us to borrow the Biology Department's row-boat, and we launched about 10:00 on Friday morning. I brought gear from home, since Larry doesn't do a lot of fishing. The rods that I could pack were pretty light duty, the one I was using was actually an ultralight! That will figure into some of the later pictures.



After catching this one, my first fish, I wondered what we were in for. I had brought a lot of scaled down gear, but even this fish took a 4 inch lure, and had it deep in his itty-bitty throat.



Larry started out throwing a 2" crappie jig, and caught this nice sunfish as his first effort. He remarked repeatedly how much fun he was having. Have a created another avid fishing buddy?



In this photo, you can see my 5 foot long, ultralight fishing rod working overtime on the first sizeable bass I caught. We were working the shallows around some lily pads, and the big fish always dove for the submerged weeds, etc. It was interesting to get them up to the surface most of the time.



I caught about five of these in sizes ranging from about a pound to nearly two pounds.



We had some equipment problems that we needed to solve, so we left the lake, ran to the hardware store and bait shop to obtain the needed supplies and to grab some lunch.

When we got back on the water, we were prepared with worms, small gold hooks and bobbers. Larry is the unofficial champion slayer of sunfish, or sunnies, as he calls them. He must have caught 25 the first afternoon. He was giggling like a kid.

On Saturday morning, we started a little earlier, because there was weather coming in. With our equipment problem solved, rowing around the lake was a breeze. This sunfish was the grand champion, and the first fish caught on Saturday morning.



I was casting a crappie jig (yellow and white) along the area in front of the lily pads, and Larry was dipping his worm into the pads themselves. All of a sudden, I got bit by a big fish. Here he is coming to the boat. You can see the tiny crappie jig in his mouth.



He was a nice northern pike, the first one I have ever caught. Of course they are toothy, and a little intimidating, but we got him in for his photo opportunity.



By the time we wrapped it up, about Noon, I had caught five of these, in various sizes. The first one was the largest, but they were all caught on the deep water side of the lily pads, where they lay in wait, hoping to ambush bait fish.



We ended the day the way it began. Larry caught this beauty as the final fish. What a great couple of outings. I can't believe that I had the chance to do this.

Poppy