Yes, it's 2013

Holy moly! How did I forget? It just now dawned on me that I never posted anything about our New Years traditions.

And we LOVE our New Years tradition around here.

We stayed home on New Years Eve, ordered pizza, did those streamer popper things, and played games with the kids. Parents are much better at games like Sequence but kids rule at Feed the Kitty. I can't even remember if I actually stayed up until midnight or not... probably did but then again, I don't remember watching the Times Square ball drop so maybe I went to bed early?

Eh, it doesn't matter because the real fun around our house is on the morning of the New Year.

Why? 

Because the New Years Elf comes!

Never heard of the New Years Elf before? Well. Be jealous! It's a tradition Jeff's family has done for generations. Something about the 6th of January (can't remember the name of the event... something about the Wisemen coming to see the baby Jesus) and his great-great grandparents immigrating to America and not wanting to drag out the holiday festivities until the 6th of January so they move it up to New Years Eve. 

Anyway. The New Years Elf comes and fills your Christmas stocking with all kinds of goodies. It's awesome.

The parents' plunder. Score!

The kids' plunder.

This was the first year that I think both kids got the whole New Years Elf thing. Pearl is really at a magical age for holidays where everything is just pure, well, magical. And exciting! And Fern just gets excited because everyone else is excited and he knows he gets something.

This year the New Years Elf brought us shoes. Except for Jeff, which is ironic considering he is by far the most obsessed with shoes. And snacks and a new game called The Sneaky Snacky Squirrel. 

It's funny that the kids were most excited about fruit snacks and Gatorade. Until they saw the beef jerky.

Even Blu had a visit from the New Years Elf. She has since destroyed and eaten her new toy and will be put on the naughty list for 2014. 

(And someone remind me next year that I want to do a New Years tree like here. Especially if I take down Christmas before then like I did this year. Eh, on second thought, maybe I'll just leave Christmas up.)

Don Royal Jewkes

It's starting to sink in.

I've found myself really anxious today. And Jeff says I've been a touch grouchy the past few days. Yesterday after church I sat on my bed and cried for a few minutes for no reason. I feel sort of emotionless though. The last year or two I've felt like that a lot... too much hurt and stress happened to let myself get like that again. But it's unhealthy for me because instead of mourning or crying I tend to get in a rage now. I used to not be like that. 

Hungry, bored, sassy children, an endless stack of work, and an energetic puppy have kept me as busy as ever. Which in a way is good because for most of the day I don't have time to even think about tomorrow or the next day. But I know this might backfire on me too when we make the drive to Logan and it finally hits me that this is real. He is gone. Grandma is gone. It's real. I go back and forth throughout the day about whether I want to just go "home" and be with my family for a week or if I want to avoid everyone. I'll probably be a complete wreck at the funeral... just in time for me to say the closing prayer... can't anyone else in the family be religious? :)

I know... he was old. He didn't feel good. He's with Grandma again. But at some point I still have to go trough the loss and it's starting to hit me. And I want time to mourn... not have to rush around to and from the funeral and viewing and graveside service then back to normal, daily life. I want to go into hiding for awhile and am already dreading the fact that I've got to be back to work Thursday. Going into hiding, yeah, it's not going to happen. Especially with people who like to be fed dinner, and have clean clothes, and attention, and nightly doggie walks and work deadlines. Can't everyone just leave me alone to sort through old pictures? To try and remember all those memories somewhere in my foggy brain? And write them down before I forget them again? Remember that Cole's middle name is Royal... named after Grandpa... how did it not dawn on me at first? To go to Grandpa's shop to take pictures of his tools and wood shavings left just how he last touched them? That's what I want to do.

 Alone. 

Don Royal Jewkes

 Logan, Utah - Don Royal Jewkes, 80, died from natural causes Wednesday, January 9, 2013 at the Logan Regional Medical Center. Don was born in Los Angeles, California on September 1, 1932, the second child of Royal S. and Kathryn Dailey Jewkes. He grew up in Colton, California and move to Castle Dale, Utah as a teenager. He attended South Emery High School where he was active in sports and he met his wife of fifty-two years, Nan Peacock Jewkes (deceased 2003). Don and Nan were married in the Manti Temple June 5, 1951 and had a family of three children. Don worked in monument shops in Utah and Colorado as a young man and had a successful career of more than 30 years as a Sales Representative with Nabisco in Price and Logan, Utah. After retirement, Don worked as a carpenter remodeling numerous homes and churches in the Cache Valley area and he was a very creative and accomplished woodworker. Don served a mission with his wife for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day-Saints in Nauvoo, Illinios. He was an active member of his Church and served as an Ordinance Worker in the Logan Temple. His greatest joys were being with his family, making things in his woodshop, and helping others. He is survived by his three children: Denise (Daniel) Kohler, Salt Lake City, Utah; Kenneth (Karen) Jewkes, North Logan, Utah; and Julie (Robert) Dyer, Sandy, Utah; seven grandchildren; ten great-grandchildren; and his siblings: Ann (Stewart) Snow, Lakeway, Texas; Sue (Hal) Sperber, St. George, Utah; and David (Kathleen) Jewkes, Ft. Collins, Colorado. Funeral services will be held at Noon Wednesday, January 16, 2013 in the Hillcrest 1st Ward Chapel at 875 North 1500 East, Logan, Utah. A viewing will be held from 6-8 PM Tuesday January 15, 2013 at the Allen Mortuary at 420 East 1800 North, North Logan, Utah and from 10:30-11:30 AM prior to the funeral services at the Hillcrest 1st Ward. Interment will be in the Logan City Cemetary. 

34 Inches

What do you do with 34 inches of snow in less than 48 hours?

Yes, I said 34 inches.

You swim in it.

You pretend you're stuck and yell, "Mom! Help me!"

If you're a dog, you jump, pounce, bury your head, run, disappear, and wag your tail a lot.

You throw snow at your mom.

You try to unbury your trampoline. Then dig a hole and crawl underneath it because in Pearl's words, "It's a whole other world down here!"

You race up and down the paths your Dad plowed for the dog to run in.

You go outside and look around in amazement.

Grandpa

My Grandpa died today.

I sat on the couch eating Oreo's tonight and thinking of him. He was a Nabisco salesman my entire childhood. Which meant cupboards of crackers and cookies anytime we wanted. Like Nutter Butters and Saltines, Ritz and Chicken in a Biscuit, Wheat Thins and Triscuits, Animal Crackers, Chips Ahoy, Nilla Wafers, Teddy Grahams, Cheese Nips, and Honey Maid Graham Crackers, and even those hard to find "Christmas time only" Oreo's. 

He was a people-person, making friends wherever he went. Kind, honest, and accepting of anyone and everyone no matter who they were or what they'd done in their life.

He made us all laugh until we were in tears.

He was a great storyteller. 

Grandpa was a true craftsman.... I think I have something he made in every room of our house.

He had a great singing voice... "oh the Lumberjack he cut the pine..."

He taught me that the proper term for a white horse is a "zit."

He was a bit of a tease.

He did something really hard even though he didn't want to "pray about it." I will never forget seeing him on his mission in Nauvoo, IL as he helped get the temple ready. I never thought it would happen.

I have lots of memories of Grandpa. I wrote some down for him last Christmas.

I'm sad he is gone. It's weird to think no one will be at the house anymore. It makes me miss my Grandma too. But their reunion must have been more joyful than earthly mortals could possibly imagine. Not to mention the ruckus that has probably been caused with my Uncle Paul and Uncle Jim. 

Death is a weird roller coaster of emotions. It's hard to process sometimes. I went from crying and crawling back in bed early this morning to deciding I still needed to pack lunches, put dinner in the crock pot and go to work. Then looking for any picture I had of my grandparents together and crying and thinking maybe I should go back to bed and skip out on work. Pausing at work a few times to hold back the tears again. And now sitting on the couch not wanting to go to sleep.

And eating Oreo's. 

Going on five years

I'm going on five years of my daily photo blogging craze. Or as it has become lately, my daily Instagram a day.... I am addicted. I need a serious intervention.

I just can't help myself. 

Five years ago a friend challenged me to take a picture a day and journal about it. As a way to improve my photography skills.

It didn't work. Well, the photography skills part.

But I was hooked.

Taking one picture a day might seem daunting at first, until you look back over a year and see all the funny, humbling, sad, happy, joyful, weird, boring, and normal things that happened. Stuff you'd forget after a few days. Stuff that shows you the daily blessings in your life, even on those bad days that never seem to end.

The stuff that tells your story.

Like the time I failed as a mom and my baby boy will now have a scar running down his entire face and a goose ache the size of Texas on his forehead. Just as an example.

So if you're in the mood to see what life is really like in our house, take a peek at my new blog 

http://jenny-2013.blogspot.com/