Sadly, we lost Dexter on Nov 30th. We knew he was sick and we were so happy to have had him this long. He was born July 8, 2001 and since we knew the breeders, they gave us first pick. We brought him home at 6 weeks old to our other dog, Blu. They were the best of pals. As time went on, Dexter moved with Clif and I around to different homes, saw 2 beautiful babies be born and grow up and then introduced to our latest puppy, Daisy. His life was full...he enjoyed many trips to Phx where he loved the warm weather, and he was very good about walking on a leash (no pulling). At the end, it was much harder than expected to say good-bye...but the dr said his tummy had twisted. Surgery might have been possible, but he was pretty bad by then and the cost was too much. Clif stayed home with the kids and they all knew when they said good-bye...that would be it. He is missed and the old habits are hard to break. We still come home and expect him to jump and slobber on us when we enter the door. Or to see him waiting by the window to come in. A great dog and the breed is highly recommended. We know he is in heaven reuniting with Blu and his other dog friends. The kids and I are happy to know that Jesus is throwing the ball for him again. Love ya D!!
Snow for Christmas!! We got around 7" last night and the kids were out in it by 7am this morning.
You get a rather clean driveway when you jump on it and clear it off. We should have sun later this afternoon and will dry it all up...so no ice for us!
A good snow....just perfect for a snowman or two.....later today I'm sure.
So my parents surprised us with a quick visit to show off their new wheels. Fun to drive!! Later, the kids were in photo mode, so I was able to get a few cute pics of them. Poor Daisy got in on the action too with her Santa hat...not by her choice. 
We headed to town to see the light parade. We arrived early to then learn that the parade would be delayed 1 1/2 hours later. So off to dinner we went. Wouldn't you know, as soon as we got our drinks, the parade started. Phooey! So we watched from our table in the warmth and darted out at the end to see Santa pass by. After dealing with traffic, we made way to a local hotel to check out there decorations. A few pics were in order and of course, play time on the toys.
One would think getting the right picture would be easy.....haha...not with kids and a puppy. We had a fun time taking the pics....then the pizza was done in the oven and the shoot was so over.
Snow: This was our first snow...the kids so badly wanted to play in it in their new snow suits. So at 9pm at night, I finally caved in. They didn't about the lack of snow, they still had fun! 
Our community has an annual Thanksgiving dinner for all the local churches. Each church is responsible for bringing a set dish to share and then our church buys all the turkeys. We all gather at a local church camp in their gorgeous dining hall to sing, eat and fellowship together. All the churches sign up also to help with the set up and clean up. This year, our church was selected to lead worship on the stage. Wow! What an honor. We had a blast!
The next week, a family from church had us all out to their ranch in the pines. We had another potluck (always great food!!), tractor/hay rides, bonfire equipped with marshmallows...another great evening.
