Skiing Vacation

For Christmas, my parents took us all to Brian Head for a weekend of skiing.  It was so fun!  Best Christmas present ever!  We left the day after Christmas, and honestly, I think my testimony grew three-fold that day.  Chad and I decided we would take our car so we could head straight to Salt Lake after the weekend without having to make a stop in Gunnison.  I will take the hit, it was my idea.  Well, what we weren't counting on was the snow storm.  We were fine most of the way until we were actually heading up the mountain.  We passed the place to pull over and put on chains, thinking we would be fine as long as we didn't lose momentum.  But, we went a big farther and came to a whole line of cars putting on chains in the middle of the road, so we had to stop.  We didn't think we could get going again, so my dad and Chad tried to put the chains on, but couldn't make it work.  We decided (after a cop told us he would ticket us) that we would just try to make it.  It was a tender mercy that a snow plow passed us and we were able to get right behind him and follow him the rest of the way up the mountain.  Just as we got to the resort, they closed to road.  We got as far as the little town hall, and had to leave our car there, cause we just couldn't make it up the unplowed roads.  It was scary, but I am so grateful we made it there safe.

The rest of the weekend was as beautiful as can be.  Fresh powder.  Sun shinning.  Just beautiful.  We went sledding, played lots of games, ate lots of food, and just enjoyed relaxing together.  I was about to ski with Chad, and then remembered that, if I were to put it on a scale, Chad's athletic ability would be 10 and mine would be 2, and that I would just be cold and left behind all day.  So I stayed home and warm with the kids, and Chad enjoyed his day on the slopes!

Can you see how Addy felt about the snow? 

Jordyn LOVED the snow.  She loved the sledding.  She loved the swing.  She love just walkin' around and being outside!

Christmas Day!

Christmas 2014 was quite an ordeal!  We had been in Gunnison for over 2 weeks and it felt like Christmas lasted for a month!  I was so grateful to spend the holiday season with my parents and siblings, but by the time Chad got back into town, the girls and I were so glad to see him.  Addy literally hugged him and wouldn't let go for hours. 

Christmas morning was so fun!  The girls were so excited about the stuff Santa brought!  Jordyn had only 2 things on her list this year.... a real puppy, and a real unicorn.  Short and easy list, right!  Santa brought a little robotic walking puppy, knowing it is the closest this little girl will probably ever get to a real one.  Luckily, Jordyn forgot all about the unicorn thing, and she was happy with the other things Santa left.

Adalynn on the other hand was hard for Santa to shop for.  Our house is already full of every girly thing a little baby girl could want!  Sana took some guesses, and luckily she guessed right!

After seeing what Santa brought, my SIL Nona was invited us to breakfast, and then most all my siblings came to my parents' house for Christmas Dinner.  So much food to eat, and so little time!  The kids also did their nativity that night.  Jordyn got to be the angel.  She loves her cousins so much.  The whole long Christmas visit was the best time of the year for her!

And, I can't forget my favorite part of the Christmas season....the dresses!  I love Christmas dresses, and I love dressing my girls the same.  Jordyn loves it too, and what Jordyn likes, Adalynn usually likes too!

So much cuteness I can hardly stand it!

Grandma Delma

When making our Christmas plans this year, we tried really hard to make it a trip where we could see everyone, but not be away from home for 2 weeks.  It's just too hard.  Plans change, and usually for the better.  My sweet Grandma Dyreng passed away on fairly suddenly on December 7, 2014.  It was hard for me to be away from my family and deal with it kind of alone for a few days.  As soon as we could, we drove to Utah for the funeral.  I was so blessed to spend the weekend with all of my Dyreng family, and then stay in Gunnison for almost 3 weeks through Christmas.

I feel kind of weird blogging about something so personal, but because this is the only form of journaling I do, I am posting my Grandma's obituary so I will hopefully have it to look back on in the future.  She was so dear to me.  I loved being able to spend so much of my childhood with her- watching her quilt, playing games, family parties, baking, and just visiting.  It was so fun to share stories about her during the weekend of her funeral.  She was so fun and light-hearted.  At the same time, she had such a strong testimony and shared that just as much as she shared a laugh.  I will miss her!

Delma Dyreng
Gunnison, Utah
Delma Tuttle Dyreng passed away peacefully on December 7, 2014 in Provo Utah, at the age of 87. She was born February 19, 1927 in Manti, Utah, a daughter of Lloyd Wayne and Vera Dorothea Keller Tuttle. She married Paul Peter Dyreng, December 27, 1950 in the Manti LDS Temple. They spent 64 wonderful years together.
Delma graduated from Manti High School, and Snow College. She loved the gospel, and served a mission for the LDS Church in Southern California. Paul and Delma moved to Gunnison, Utah in 1954. She dedicated her life to raising her four sons and one daughter. Her children followed her example all of whom served full-time missions. She served faithfully in many ward and stake callings, as an ordinance worker in the Manti Temple, and supported and served along with her husband in many church assignments.
Delma will be remembered for her sense of humor, selflessness, Christ-like love, and full cookie jar. Her home was a gathering place where everyone felt welcome. She loved spending time with her family in the mountains and Lake
Powell, and was always the life of the party. She
loved quilting, gardening, and the simple joys homemaking.
Survivors include her husband Paul, of Gunnison; their five children: Allen (Diane) Dyreng, Richard (Annette) Dyreng, Kent (Tamara) Dyreng, all of Gunnison; DeAnne (Russell) Anderson, Springville; and Jed (Ann) Dyreng, San Jose, CA. She is also survived by 22 grandchildren, 39 great-grandchildren as well as her sister Norma Erickson.
Funeral services will be held Saturday, December 13, 2014 at 11:00 a.m. in the Gunnison Stake Center, 80 West Center where friends may call Friday evening from 6:00-8:00 p.m. and Saturday 9:00-10:30 a.m.  Burial  will be in the Gunnison City Cemetery. Funeral Directors: Magleby Mortuary, Richfield, Salina and Manti. Online guestbook at www.maglebymortuary.com

Halloween 2014

Geez, I am behind.  Guess I better catch up.

We had a fun and simple Halloween this year.  It is getting to be a lot more fun now that Jordyn cares enough to do the festive stuff like paint and carve pumpkins.  We first attempted to paint these pumpkins with this cute idea I saw on pintrest.  It was a fail and the paint washed off in the rain.  So, a few days later, we carved them!

 

Jordyn was a pink princess this year.  She got the dress for her birthday from her Grandma Barton.  I made her save it in her closet for a whole month to keep it nice and clean for Halloween.  Adalynn was a bumble bee (hand-me-down costume from Jordyn at that age.)  I took both girls out to a few houses on the street.  Then I brought Addy home and we handed out candy while Chad took Jordyn out around the neighborhood.  A fun, carefree night was had by all!

 

 



Our Town

As I was posting about our hike to the top of the "rock", I realized not many of our family and friends know what I am talking about.  So I thought I would write a little about our town and our rock!

Castle Rock is about 45 minutes south of downtown Denver, and 45 minutes north of Colorado Springs.  It is surrounded by open space, so while it is close to big city, it does not feel at all like big city.  We have a quaint little downtown with an outdoor ice skating rink, antique barn, restaurants and the normal city buildings.  On the other side of town we have a more commercial area with lots and lots of shopping.  There is a fancy outlet mall, which I hardly ever go to, because I am not very fancy!  The outlets are supposed to quadruple in size in the next two years, and I am not really happy about it.  I feel like the small town feel is on the brink with all the growth.  Castle Rock has a population of about 60,000.  When we first moved here 3 years ago, there were only 50,000.  The 2010 census had a population of 31,000.  So this town is growing fast.  The city has a lot of little small town festivities.  My favorite is the Starlighting.  There is a star on the top of the rock that they light up every year at Christmas time.  The day is full of hot chocolate, carriage rides, chili at the fire station, live nativity, face painting, and all that sort of stuff.  When they light the star, they have fireworks.

Castle Rock is beautiful!  I cannot take credit for these photos.  They come from a group of photographers here in town.


Do I need to point out the rock?

I can take credit for this one.  The Starlighting!

See why we love living where we do!?  After over 3 years, I still miss my own hometown and my family.  But I think if we could just pick both our families up and move them to Castle Rock with us, we would definitely be living in the best place on earth!

Fall Break

Fall was beautiful around here.  It was warm for so long! One of the highlights of October was a visit from my parents.  Yay!  I don't think I will every stop missing being close to home and spending time with them.  So it just makes it all the more special when they come and we get them to ourselves for a few days. 

When my parents come, for some reason it is all about food!  Somehow we schedule our whole day around it.  We took them to our favorite burger extravaganza -Crave, our favorite Mexican downtown- La Loma, our favorite ma and pa joint- Ruby's Diner, and after all that, we were too stuffed to eat anything else! 

I am also amazed at the stuff we always find to do.  We have been here for over 3 years, and we still find new stuff in our "little" town to do. This visit, my mom and I went to an antique barn and were there for hours! We took my dad on a hike to the top of the "rock", which was new for us, and Jordyn was a hiking champ!  And the ultimate fall festivity, we visited the pumpkin patch.  We also like to return to some of our favorite places- the museum and mini golf. 

Puppet show at the museum.  Jordyn would play here for hours if she could.





On top of the rock.  Dad wanted to make sure we got Pike's Peak in the background.

We were not expecting to climb like this, and it was a little tricky with Jordyn.  But Chad and my dad just lifted her right up, and she thought is was so cool!

Little Addy at the pumpkin patch.

Jordyn's chosen pumpkin.

We catch really great photogenic moments!

A kind lady gave us a ticket for a pony ride.  I think this was the greatest day of Jordyn's life!

Meanwhile, Addy played in the corn box.

We didn't want to pay extra for the hay ride, but sitting on it is just as fun!

Birthday Weekend

Both Chad and Jordyn have birthdays the last week of September.  We took a little getaway to Breckenridge over Chad's birthday.  We were so luck to have my mother in law come and stay with the kids while we were gone.  The girls had a great weekend with Grandma, and we had a great weekend without the girls!

We went to Breckenridge and thought we were getting a great deal on a condo.  Turns out our great deal was because it was the slow season between summer and winter, and most of the stuff to do in town was closed.  But we still found a lot to do, and more importantly, Chad got to golf.  I golfed too....sort of!  It was absolutely beautiful there.  These pictures do no justice.  It was the heart of fall with so many gorgeous colors.  We spent one afternoon just driving around taking in the scenery.

On top of our fun Breckenridge weekend, we got to spend a few days with Grandma.  We spent a day in nature and science museum.  It has been a while since we went to the museum and we got to go to the new discovery zone for the first time.  The kids loved it! 

 

And the cherry on top of the birthday weekend cake was a trip to Chuck E Cheese!  It was Jordyn's special birthday dinner, and we were lucky enough that Grandma got to come too!  Adalynn, our eater, loved the pizza.  And Jordyn, our gamer, loved all the games.  Win/win for everyone!

 



So often when I blog, I am reminded of how blessed we are.  We are able to do so many fun things together as a family.  We have so many great people around us.  We love the community we live in and the opportunities we have to find new things to do all the time.  We are truly blessed!