Christmas in Cayman

My gorgeous girls are growing up!!

Summer jumping for joy in her Christmas P.J.'s. We have enjoyed this beautiful tree all season right below our balcony :) Yes the girls ran outside to take the pic on Christmas Eve. Loved having Carli here with us. Wish everyone could have come :(
Family fun Christmas Day--went to see Blind Side-- great movie :)
Dolphin Cove with our new friends the Beck Family from Highland, Utah

Palm trees swaying, steel drums playing, must be Christmas in Cayman!!! They brought in snow making machines and placed them near our balcony--looked pretty authentic until we walked outside into 86 degrees (see video.) We stayed inside, cranked up the AC and cozied in our jammies when we needed a winter fix, did our traditional jigsaw puzzle then spent most of our time at the beach!! We are all nice and brown this Christmas--and some of us could give Rudolph a run for his money because they did not obey mother and sunblock!!! We've had fun making new friends this season but we're still missing our dear family and friends back home. We wish you all a very prosperous and Happy 2010!!! We have three new grandchildren in 2010 on their way. 1st up is Robert Grayson Bourne due Jan. 11 followed by Camden Brown due Feb. 24th and our mystery baby in June will make Baby Eddie a big brother!

Holly turns 18!

Birthday Dinner @ Agave-- Holly's favorite! Olivia joined us.




Holly turned 18 on October 21st! She feels like an adult now but I feel like she is still my baby. Happy B-Day baby! We spent the weekend before her birthday in Miami shopping and she got some fun stuff including a pair of red high heels. Go Holly!

Recipe for a Perfect Summer Evening

Start with 1 beautiful Utah mountain setting-- (preferably Deer Valley)
Mix in generous amounts of pine trees, quakies, fresh air and the aroma of rich mountain soil.
Spread it out beneath a sky of brilliant blue then gently fade to a darkened canvas lit with sparkling starlight.
Set the temperature for cool enough to wear jeans, boots and a light jacket.
Toss in a blanket.
Sift in good company to share the experience with (in my case my daughter Allison--thanks for being my little concert buddy )
Top it off with the music of Jackson Browne--play for over two hours without an intermission.
Put it all together and you have one fabulous evening and an envious husband--sorry Ed, I know you would have loved it!! :(
It was a little bit of heaven for me and the perfect finale to my mountain summer visit!! I get emotional just thinking about it. It restored my soul!! Thank you Jackson--you've still got it :)


Cute Allison endured the strong smell of Marijuana that would waft by now and then. She said it reminded her of her mission in Amsterdam--too funny to connect those two opposites.

Boys Are Taking Over!!

After a teary goodbye to Grandma Grampp we drove 6 hours to California where we had a joyful reunion with Eddie, Mary and Baby E!!! What a treat. He is sooooo precious. I love our pics of him, he is so photogenic. He is seriously the best baby. He loved sitting on my lap while I read him "Goodnight Moon." He will turn one this month. While we're on the subject of grandsons, I am delighted to share that we are going to be blessed with two more in early 2010. Allie and Bobby are having little Grayson in early January and Kelli and Kyle are having little Camden the end of February. We girls may have to fight for chick flicks--up until now we have ruled. We are all so excited. What fun families are!!!

Reading "Goodnight Moon" How cute is that?
Now that's a pizza!

Aunt Kelli's practicing!! She was such a good sport to drive all that way to see little E.

Cheerio time :)

All Giggles!

Aunt Allison and her baby bump!!

This one is my favorite. Grandpa and his boy!

That was yummy Aunt Summie! Give me some more of that lollipop :)

Having fun eating out. Yes baby Eddie does have parents--sorry I didn't take more pics of them but Mary and Eddie are in this one!

Here we are with our boy. We wanted to bring him home with us he is such a cuddle bug!

Fun with Family in Arizona

Day 2 of our road trip found us in Scottsdale Arizona with Grandma Grampp. We had a lovely visit with her. We miss her. She is amazing! Still going strong and independent @ 93. I want to be just like her when I grow up!!








Mother and Son :) Such a sweet picture. Vesta looks great!!
The Grampp Girls--minus Carli and Holly who stayed home from the road trip to work & play.

Nephews Clayton, Brian & some of their kids :)

Summer was feeling under the weather, we took her to the doctor before we left to make sure she didn't have an infection before we hit the road again. She told the doctor., "My 93 year old grandmother keeps taking my temperature with an old school thermometer." The doctor said "Mercury?" Summer answered "Yes!" He laughed and asked me if Grandma was really 93. When I confirmed that all of the above was true he told Summer that meant good DNA for her!
Actually, grandma said she enjoyed taking care of us and serving us--it gave her purpose. We love and appreciate her example and influence in our lives.

Alan and Ed jammin on the guitar

Visiting with Robyn and Chelsea

Road Trip!

Take one car and add five people (two of whom are pregnant) and you could end up with a road trip called disaster. Well, we had our moments on our trip to AZ, CA and back to UT in 7 days but overall it was fabulous and gave me just what I wanted--the chance to be out on the open road and drive through a large land mass surrounded with people I love--and drive to visit precious family members.
Day 1 took us to Southern Utah where we made a brief photo stop at Bryce Canyon then spent the evening in a quaint bed and breakfast inn in Kanab Utah. We had a delightful dinner at the Rockin V Cafe. The food was amazing and the atmosphere was perfect!!!


Kelli & Allison (both pregnant!!! what good sports to join us for the trip.)

Our traditional foot circle--this time on the red rock of southern Utah

Summer contemplating the beauty of nature :)

Summer turns 12

Summer turned 12 and had a blast celebrating with her Utah friends & family. Love you Summie. You are growing into such a beautiful young woman. The party included skating, laser tag, pizza and a private party room with a dj booth complete with music videos. It was a lot of fun!

Summer, Carli & Holly doing their sister dance to "Hot & Cold" in the dj room!

Gorgeous Grampp Girls Allison & Carli (Allison arrived from Minneapolis earlier that week--yeah!!)

Summer, Aspen, Amanda & Abbie

Aspen and Summer in the DJ booth

Summer and Amanda

Abbie and Summer in skates

The whole gang!

Holly & Ed (Ed arrived in Utah in time for the party!!) Notice something different about Holly? She went back to blonde over the Summer. She is a blonde babe once again!

Anisa, Abbie, Summer & Jordan (our good friends drove all the way from St. George to party!)

Earlier in the week I went to lunch @ CPK with Allie & Kelli my beautiful (pregnant!!) daughters.

I was out for a jog during the balloon fest in Sandy and happened to have a camera in the car. This picture doesn't do the magical moment justice. The balloons were closer and more vibrant than they appear in this picture. Later, I ended up jogging by the spot where they were all landing. It was a lot of fun!