Nothing like gathering the family around the computer to watch YouTube videos! Ahh the Christmas memories we're making. (:

Auntie Sharon found this cool Candy Cane Hockey Game! The sticks are actually candy canes and the box turns into a rink and they had a little puck to play with. Sol beat me soundly in our first round. (:

Our cat Dusty was in a playful mood Christmas morning and had a great time with the new mouse toy he got in his stocking. Yes, we got our cat a stocking. We've turned into THOSE kind of people. (:

Journey and Sol love their Grampa Rish and have spent considerable amounts of time with him this year on account of my illness and fatigue. We are so glad to have godly influences for our kids and we are thankful for all the help each of the grandparents have given throughout the years ... but This year especially!!

Christmas Eve Pic at Dad Rish's

Our stockings all hung by the 'chimney' with care ...

Our neighbor AJ, who is also in Sol's class (and standing to Sol's right) just couldn't stop dancing! He made things very merry!

The Kids Christmas Program

Journey is on the top back riser. We could only see from her eyes up most of the time. She is wearing a light purple head band. Sol, on the other hand was right in the front. They both did really well at remembering their lines. (: Lots of fun as kids programs always are!

Family Christmas Pic

Some More Family Pics

Thanksgiving in Lloyd

While in Lloyd for Thanksgiving Darren took us out to a favorite spot along the river. We had fun looking for deer, sunning ourselves on the 'beach' and playing bocci ball at the park.

In October we drove up to Lloydminster to visit family. While we were there we stopped in at the cemetary to look up my great grand-dad's grave. Apparently he came over to Canada to farm when Canada was giving land to new immigrants. He didn't have any farm equipment and couldn't afford to buy any right away so he went to work for someone else. His wife was back in England expecting a child and waiting till he had earned enough to bring her over to Canada to join him. Before he had a chance to do that he was killed by a gunshot wound. Details of his death were not clear and remain somewhat of a mystery to this day. When I was young our family had a headstone made to mark his grave and had taken a trip out west to accomplish this. None of us had been back since so dad had asked me to seek it out and take a picture. Strange to think that great Grandad had been Canadian long before Dad decided to come west.

Baby Bluey

Last year we bought a 'new' truck and named it Kabluey. This year we bought a quad and named it Baby Bluey. Garron could NOT have harvested his deer without Baby Bluey this year! As it was he dragged the buck out with the quad and then used the winch to haul it up into the trailer ... didn't even break a sweat! (:

Garron's hunting this year turned in a big whitetail buck and a good size whitetail doe. Only one tag left unfilled. Saw lots of mulies and moose ... but whitetails were scarce.

Journey got to show us her classroom and workbooks too. I was pretty impressed with how tidy she keeps her desk. Her room at home is definitely NOT a work of organization!! (:

This was Sols Show What You Know day at school. It was fun to have him go through his work book with us and show us his locker. He absolutely LOVES school!!

In November we went as a family to the Signature Sound concert in Calgary. The kids sat in the very front row with us right behind them! It was awesome to see them so into the music, dancing and clapping and singing along.

On Sols birthday we went as a family to see the 3D version of Cars II. That was Sols first theatre experience and we all had a great time!

One day this summer Garron and I rode our trusty steeds into town to visit friends and family.

Halloween 2011

Sol was very hesitant to reach in to pull out the pumpkin guts. Journey was fearless and did a great job drawing out her pumpkin face for daddy to carve.