Ash Goes Skiing!

We were able to take Ashy skiing to Wolf Mountain outside of Ogden this year. She has heard Emma talk it up for two years now, so she was very eager to give it a try. It was a bit tricky for her at first, but she did great and stuck with it. Sometimes Ash gets really frustrated, so we were a bit nervous about how it would go, but she was determined and will be tearing up the slopes next year.

Ash with her class (she's in the white coat and helmet).

Lunch time in the lodge equals goofiness!

Ash with her much loved 'pirate' face.

Happy Birthday Emma! (Feb 2012)

Happy 7th Birthday Emma! You sure are a fun, happy kiddo. We're very lucky to have you in our lives. You are always quick to be silly and up for anything to get a good laugh. You make friends very easily, are becoming an incredible little reader, and are a very good big sister. We love that you are missing LOTS of teeth, but it reminds Mom that you're growing up fast. Thank you for being you and for being our little snuggler.

7 years old!

Cake and ice cream.

A definite favorite.

There are so many fun games to play with balloons!

Popping these balloons proved to be a bit of a trick.

Dad really looked forward to giving you this pogo stick, and it was a hit!

I had to include Grandpa's famous self portrait, and check out that beard.

A Hay Ride

While Dad was sick in the hospital, the rest of us took turns moving from Kerri and Rebecca's houses. We missed our Grandparents, but someone was almost always at the hospital visiting and we tried to make the most of just being together.

One of the advantages of having a little sister who grew up wanting to be a cowgirl is that she married a cowboy. One of their favorite things to do is share their love for their animals with the rest of us. One evening, we all bundled up and went for a hay ride to "help" feed the cows. Uncle Heath is a lot of fun, and his dad, brother, and neighbor all pitched in to make it a very enjoyable trip. The cousins were quite enamored with the farm life, and everyone had a good time. Thanks Reb and Heath.

Reb and her draft horse

I love every single one of these kiddos

Cousins!

Smiles were quite common (I love those missing front teeth)

I love my family and am grateful for the memories

Crappy News

My family had been planning a 3-night trip to a large cabin in Island Park for all of us siblings and the cousins to get a chance to play together. The plan was to kick it all off with family pictures first. Well, on our way to family pictures, we got a phone call no one ever wants to get - Dad, Grandpa Millar, was in the hospital. The trip was automatically cancelled. There was no way we were all going to head up there without Grandma and Grandpa.

NOTE: For the next little bit, I'm going to summarize Grandpa's experience written in hind sight, since it is now May after all.

Grandpa's Story: At Thanksgiving I noticed that Grandpa's cheek was a little swollen but didn't mention anything about it. It was something that had apparently been bothering him mentally for quite some time. He just had a bad feeling about it. After some rather emotionally roller coaster-like tests, we learned that it was sarcoma. The only fortunate aspect was that it was a very treatable form of cancer. Just before Christmas, Dad received what was to be the first of six chemo treatments. Unfortunately, as well as I understand it with my non-medical background, Dad's weak liver wasn't able to filter the treatment like normal, and his blood counts went crazy. He had virtually no white blood cells and got really, really sick. Off to the hospital he went for three days.

The next two rounds of chemo weren't much better. With the second one he ended up back in the hospital with a horrible cold on top of everything else. With the third, he just holed up in the house for days, not daring to be around anyone. It was one of the hardest things I've gone through, watching my dad go through such misery and becoming so weak.

After that third round, the doctor decided to stop with the chemo. It was just too hard on him. Instead they did 30 days of radiation. He had  a special mask made that helped keep the treatment to its localized place on his face, and he endured the treatment with some nasty mouth wounds and very sore lips. It was miserable, but maybe a step up from landing in the hospital.

The treatments worked, though, and he was able to go on his hunting trip to Africa with Bryce last month (April 2012). It was good for him to have something like that to look forward to. It helped him have something big to look forward to. He's supposed to be going back for some follow-up testing in the next week or so to see where things stand now. I pray that everything is gone for good.

Events like that are horrible for everyone involved. The only real positive thing is that it reminded us to appreciate every day we get to have with our loved ones. You never know what tomorrow is going to bring. Love every day like it's the last and you won't have any regrets. I love my dad. I've always looked up to him. As a kid, he was always the man who could do anything and fix anything. He has shared his love for family and the outdoors with me and has taught me that life is meant to be lived not endured. When you treasure what you have and try hard to forget about the things you don't, life is much more fun. I love you, Dad, and I'm so grateful to still have you in my life.

Baby Macee

Aunt Lacee had her baby the day after Christmas, and what a beautiful baby she is, too. We instantly fell in love with her. The only down side was that the hospital didn't allow kids in to see the baby. I thoroughly enjoyed holding her though. Lacee was a trooper and did all that was necessary to keep her little one from coming early. She was worth every minute of it. We love you little one.

Christmas Day 2011

Christmas was a big success this year. In the past, it's been one of the more difficult days of the year for the Charles family. We've since learned to take it very slow and in extreme moderation. Our kiddos quite simply get over stimulated very, very easily. This year Santa remembered to bring fun, but interactive, small toys. Unfortunately, most of our Christmas adventure is on video, so these are the only pictures I have, but they are still fun. Both girls loved that they had matching shirts and wanted to dress the same. The Wii "Just Dance for Kids" and "Nickelodeon Fit" went over really well.Oh, and don't pass up the rather blurry picture of Dad's impressive beard. He kept it much longer than usual this year.

Wii "Just Dance for Kids" is really quite fun for these two.

Emma LOVES projects.

This little one is pretty easy to please.

I almost took it back to the store, but Dad got a huge kick out of the Chia Shrek head.

Polar Express

Emma's 1st grade class was able to go on a great evening field trip on the Polar Express to visit Mr. and Mrs. Clause. It was really quite special, and Dad even got to be the conductor on the "train." It was really cute. Ashy even decided this night that Santa must be okay; it had a lot to do with there being a Mrs. Clause. Merry Christmas!