Wedding Bells

I apologize for not posting lately. Things have been slightly crazy---but good. =) Our youngest son got married a week ago. What a wonderful experience. And now we have yet another daughter to add to our ranks. This means the female to male ratio is increasing in our clan. =D

I figure pictures do indeed speak a thousand words, so I'll post a few that were taken last weekend during the wedding adventure. Devin and Emily were married in the beautiful San Diego Temple. Several of us flew there for the occasion, and a good time was had by all. Welcome to the family, Emily----and good job Devin!!! =)

Here is a shot I took of the San Diego Temple.

Presenting Mr. & Mrs. Devin Crane!

Parents of the groom: Mr. & Mrs. Kennon Crane.

The five of us flew to San Diego for this event: Kennon, Moi, Kris, Verdene, & Bob.

Parents of the bride: Mary Ellen & John Holman posing with Emily & Devin.

Parents of the groom (Kennon & Moi posing with Emily and Devin.)


The wedding party!

Devin hanging out with his best man at the reception.

The fun wedding cake! (It was delicious!!!)

The reception was beautifully decorated. The wedding colors were the colors of the interior of an abalone shell: coral, sky blue, & turquoise.

Emily dancing with her father during the reception.

All in all, it was a wonderful day, and now we're gearing up for the party here in Bennington on September 10th!!! Never a dull moment!

Merry Christmas

Wow, where did this month go? ;) I can't believe how fast it passed by. True, we've had a few adventures in our family this month, but still, here we are---it's the week of Christmas.

Today, I plan to make several batches of homemade candy. It's a tradition in our small town to share plates of goodies with our neighbors and friends. It's a fun way to let people know you're thinking about them. And my husband and sons have always enjoyed sampling the delicious treats that arrive at our house each year. (I, of course, try to behave since I have to face the wrath of my diabetic doctor in the near future.)

Since today will be yet another crazy day . . . I decided for today's blog, I will share some fun holiday photos. Some were taken this past week, others are classic shots from the past. Enjoy and all of you have a MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Here's a shot my sons will cherish. A blast from the past--2001. ;) [They're all hams who take after their father . . .]


Here Devin and I are posing (not hamming it up) at a Crane family Christmas party in 2005.

Here was a fun food event at the same party. Wonderful creamy chocolate. Need I say more?!

And a shot of Kennon & I at yet another Christmas event--the traditional Christmas Eve feast.

Our sons love this event as well. Here are Devin and Kris getting into the holiday spirit.

My mother has always loved Christmas. Here she is posing as one of Santa's little helpers.

This is a picture of our sons enjoying the musical Christmas presents they received that year.

And what would Christmas be without snow? We usually have plenty of that. ;)

This was Kristen's first Christmas with our clan. It was a fun year.

The traditional Christmas penguins.

This shot captured the excitement Kennon's mother felt when she learned that her kids and her spouse gave her a trip to Hawaii this year for Christmas.

Grandpa Kennon reading a fun story with our cute granddaughter, Aari. It will be so fun with her at Christmas this year. =)

Remember that Santa is watching closely during this final countdown . . .

May you receive your heart's desire this year . . .

And may we all remember what this season really means.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

End of Summer

So it appears that fall is just around the corner. The mornings are cooler, the nights are nippish, and yes, it has frozen my poor garden at least 3-4 times this past month. (Sigh . . .) The huckleberries have all been gathered, I'm still hoping to get a few more chokecherries, and I'm up to my eyeballs in canning mode at the moment.

It's also the annual bow hunt. As such, my b-i-l and his wife and family all camped up a nearby canyon a couple of weeks ago. My husband and I camped with them for kicks and giggles, and I decided to post a few pictures to share the beauty of where we were.

This was our campsite. It was back in the woodsies and a great place to relax.

This was interesting. We found it below our campsite. Some people are very creative. ;)

Here, good brother Jeffy is posing with his former neighbor, Ranae, and her two puppies.

The food was wonderful. This is the grillbox chicken that Kennon & I fixed one night.

That night we also served Dutch Oven potatoes.

We loved sitting around the campfire, consuming delicious vittles and spending time visiting.

Here Nephew Zac demonstrates his "drinking" problem. (Inside joke. It involved spilling a great deal of water down himself.)

Kennon and I spent one afternoon picking huckleberries. We figured that season was over, but Jeff and his f-i-l stumbled onto this patch and came back to report.

These berries were about as thick, big, and ripe as I've ever seen. We picked a half gallon that afternoon. Way cool!

Another afternoon, Kennon and I went for a 4-wheeler ride up the famed "Boulevard." We climbed to the top of a mountain and could see the valley below. This is Geneva, Idaho below.

And this is a privately owned reservoir on the Wyoming side of the hills.

We played games to keep the little ones entertained. Here we're playing a rousing game of Dominoes.

Kennon also gave Tia a couple of rides on the 4-wheeler which she seemed to enjoy.

Here's my version of a "drive-by shooting." ;) I snapped this deer's picture as we passed by on the 4-wheeler one afternoon.

All in all a good time was had by all. The mighty hunters came back empty-handed, but we had a lot of fun, and to me, that's what matters most.