sledding ~

sledding fun is always fun,

especially so with uncles from texas .....

and especially, especially so with one
uncle that had never been sliding before .....

the sliding philosophies of 'go with the bumps'
and 'hold on tight' seem to fit with real life too ....

fun times : )

random winter pics ~

my fun and supportive team, right before christmas

break.  love working with these ladies --

so supportive and fun  :)

my sweet and silly girls with new winter hats ......

visiting santa and mrs. claus .....

my team from last year, meeting up with the one and only

ms. ia (miss working with her SO much)....

all fancied up for dinner out .....

baby snowman and silly girls ......

silly hair day at school ~

blast from the past -- girls' 3 year old preschool picture.

they were BABIES!!!

first grade program

last december the girls' first grade class had their winter

program.  i always just love seeing them with their classmates,

being part of a group, smiling and having fun.  they were

excited too and so glad it worked for grama dianne, tom

and me to all attend.

entering the gym:

on stage and smiling (ella found where we were sitting):

action shots of singing are hard to capture in photos:

simple but sweet program.
dinner at red lobster later that evening.
a great way to celebrate the fun that is first grade!!

grandma della ~

this is the farm where tom grew up .....

.... and where we spent time with tom's mom last fall,

after finding out she was sick with cancer .....

when she moved into town we also spent some special time

with her there .....

we are so glad we had that time.  she got really sick really

fast -- and even though she was in a lot of pain she smiled

and wanted to hear the girls read or tell her stories about

their school and ballet class.

on november 29th, 2012 at the age of 78, grandma della

died at her new home, with some family and hospice care
workers by her side.

her funeral was on a beautiful early december day.

We are very glad della is not in pain anymore,
and it gives us comfort to know she is in a good place.
but we are also sad and miss her a lot.

~ What the Caterpillar calls the End of Life,
The Master calls a Butterfly ~
r.bach (Illusions)