an update...

Well folks. (whoever might read this)...the year is just about over! I have not done a good job at blogging this year. I have taken pictures....but not as many as I usually do. I have journaled...but not as often as I would have liked to. Life is good, bad, fun, sad and just all over the place lately.

So, I will try to do a recap of the past little while...

August 21st, Weston broke his leg for the second time this year. He spent a couple weeks in a wheel chair and then got around on crutches for another 6 weeks...then spent another month after getting is cast(s) off wearing an orthopedic boot to protect his leg. I told him that he is NOT allowed to break his leg(s) again! If he's going to break something, it needs to be an arm or something that doesn't inhibit his ability to be mobile!

I last posted on August 13th....exactly 17 days before my dad passed away. If I had only known. Ugh. My dad passing away...him not being here for the past almost 4 months has been a big part of my life. I don't cry everyday or regret anything about the time I spent with him while he was alive and I am so grateful for the many hours I got to spent with him and my family the 4 days he was in the hospital. I haven't blogged about those days. I don't know if I can yet. I get choked up just typing that. I don't replay every minute of those 4 days over and over in my mind all day long anymore. I did that for a good two weeks after he passed away. I have a good dad...and I miss him. His funeral was nice and people have reached out to my mom in so many kind and generous ways. Having people say and show they care really does make going through something like this easier. My mom is a trooper. She only took a week off of work. During that week, she went to grandparents day at my kids school...by herself. I am so glad to have her.

Brandon started a new job on Sept. 1st. He is CFO for Novo Power Bio Mass. He has been busy cleaning up their accounting department. They've asked him to oversee two of their other companies as well. He's got a LOT going on at work. He loves his job though. This job pretty much fell into our laps. Novo Power had approached him in the fall of 2013 (we were in Utah for my grandpa Barrett funeral actually) and offered him a controller position. They were wanting us to relocate asap to the White Mountain area. We fasted, prayed, went to the Temple and ultimately felt like accepting the job wasn't the right thing to do at that time. Well, Novo Power approached Brandon again the end of this past June. This time after going through the same decision making process, we felt good about him taking the job. We've committed to relocate to the White Mountain area (which basically for us means Snowflake) by March of 2016. House prices are going down here though so putting our house on the market and moving looks like it might need to happen sooner rather than later. I am having a hard time with the idea of selling our home. I am not in love with this house or emotionally attached to it...I just worry about having to have it ready for people to walk through at a moments notice. (ugh!)

We also had Halloween. Not my favorite holiday. I have a hard time with the pounds of candy consumed by my children. Over all...we could skip Halloween and I'd be just fine....but I loved it as a kid and I want my kids to at least have fun that day too.

November came and along with that, Kaitlyn turned 12! We had a party for her at the ice skating rink. I am so glad I did that and didn't try to plan something on my own! The girls all had a blast. We did that the Saturday before her birthday. On the 3rd (hers and my dad's b-day) we met my family at the cemetery and the grand kids released balloons with messages to grandpa tied to them. We were able to take Kaitlyn to the Temple to do baptism for the dead that week. Kaitlyn, Brandon and I, my mom, grandpa, Aunt Marlene and Kayla (Jamie's daughter) all went and did baptisms and confirmations. There were 4 generations of Newbold's in the Temple together that evening. We forgot to take a picture together afterwards. We need to do it again so we can get a picture! In November we also had Thanksgiving which we celebrated with my side of the family at my moms house. Then that Sunday, we celebrated my parents 40th wedding anniversary. We had everyone over to our house and had dinner and dessert. We had the grand kids and my mom play a version of the "Newlywed" game. The kids gave their best answer to questions about my parents (how they met, how old they were, things like that)...the kids all read their answers and then my mom told us her answers. I learned a lot, like that my parents actually first met when my mom was 16! It was fun to hear the kids answers too. Then we gave my mom a necklace. It is a pendant with my dad's thumb print engraved in it. I love to see my mom wearing it. Oh. Kaitlyn also got braces in November! (they're not as fun as she thought they'd be)

December has been busy with different Christmas things. I feel like there are too many different Christmas celebrations going on. In everyone's effort to celebrate, it is making me run around like a chicken with my head cut-off! How many Christmas parties do we need to have, really? So, I am trying to breathe deep and work towards my desire to have the things I do to celebrate be about bringing myself or others closer to Christ.

So, there's a little idea of what's been going on in our famly. Now you can see why I haven't taken time to sit down and blog...and if you could see what Connor and Cameron have done to the house while I have sat here at the computer....you'd understand even more!

Merry Christmas! :)