Annual Christmas Celebration with Family

2014 was a smaller celebration but still very special and we are very appreciative that family were able to make the trip to MN. Grandma Harriet, Grammie, Aunt Kimmy, and Auntie made the trek to Minnesota this year. And many of our annual traditions continued, which made the Christmas special for all of us.

Grandma Harriet continued the tradition of baking cookied with the kids.



We had our annual pizza making party on December 23rd.



We enjoyed Christmas Eve service at the Upper Room. This one involved crazy glasses for the kids. This was the first year that Canyon was too old to be one of the "kids". Wow does time fly by!



We enjoyed Christmas Eve dinner celebrations with a great dinner with cousins Barbara Jondahl and the Abbeys. The night included cookie decorating with the kids, a great meal of beef tenderloin, and finished off with a fun grab bag exchange.









Christmas morning continued to be very special for all of us. Santa came again and treated the kids to very special gifts. We also enjoyed awesome Kringle from Aunt Barbara (even Stanley loved the Kringle) and Jelly Bellies from Great Granny Kohls.







We were excited that Grammie and Grandma Harriet extended their trip. This year we made the trek to St. Paul to visit the famous James J. Hill House and enjoy lunch at the famous Cossettas. Finished off our fun adventure with bowling at Bryant Lake Lanes and a walk around Lake of the Isles. Fun day in the city!











Our Christmas week ended with some sad news. Stanley, our loving and cuddly guy, passed away on the morning of December 28th. He was friendly and engaged until the end. The last week he spent his time with everyone, running around, eating lots of food, and cuddling with everyone. However, in the end his 22.5 year old body couldn't keep up with his lively and loving spirit. We will miss this guy dearly as our home is not the same without him. His spirit lives on! Love you Stanley!