Merry Christmas!! 12-28-24

 Retired Life. Sunday.

The alarm did go off, but not that early. We attended a congregation that meets at 11:30. Regardless, below is a great Jesus Picture. Merry Christmas.

The Walnut Congregation (because the church is on Walnut Street) had put together an incredible Christmas Program that we got to enjoy thoroughly.

And then our day consisted of hitting the road and staying there until we were back at Deer Lodge at the same Airbnb we stayed at on the way down. A couple of potty breaks, a lunch break. Pulling in just as it got dark. Same old same old.

I remember being much younger with a van full of children and driving straight through from Spokane to Provo ... and the speed limit being only 55. Took forever and tons of caffeine and patience, but we thought nothing of it. It sure is nice to be retired and to travel at whatever pace we want. And to stop whenever we want for whatever reason we want.

Retired Life. Monday.

The goal today was to get back home before Christmas arrives.

At the Deer Lodge Airbnb, the stay is always exciting for Frivvy. He reclaimed his spot on his throne. I pulled up the shades in the morning and he had Hanna help him look for the cat he saw out there last night.

It was rainy and snowy at the Lookout Pass Rest Stop.

And we did make it home. Frivvy was exhausted and passed out on his couch after making sure all his toys were accounted for.

Hanna and I unpacked and then watched a prerecorded football game. (Ducks vs Buckeyes).

And the star was still on the tree when we got home, but was leaning towards the window a bit. Mysterious. And I don't think it was the cat because she is too fat and would knock the entire tree over if she attempted to climb to the top....

Retired Life. Tuesday. HAPPY CHRISTMAS EVE!!!!

We declared this day a "recovery day" after having been out on the road for five days. But, as things happen at times, the word "recovery" meant different things to different people and different critters. For Frivvy and me, it meant catching up on sleep, naps, reading, etc. For Hanna, it meant getting caught up on baking Christmas goodies and taking it to people... See Frivvy's fine example below.

After our recoverance, (I'm so cool, I just created a new word), Luigi, Brooklyn, and August came over to celebrate Christmas Eve. This included a visit with Hanna's Mom, who sang a song to August, consuming Fajitas, and watching the Grinch while drinking Hot Cocoa. (You can tell he is their first child by the fact that it took three of us to feed him. No. He ain't spoiled!)

Christmas Eve brought us a great sunset too.

And, FINALLY, I got the star to stay straight on the tree. Following the advice of one of my good Scouting buddies, I spent a lot of time today studying all 82 Boy Scout knots and figuring out which ones would help our situation. I used many of them in my knots and lashing project on the tree. Looks very Christmassy now, and it is STRAIGHT!

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL OUR FRIENDS!! And remember, the world can always use a few more Cindy Lous...

Retired Life. Wednesday. MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

GUYS!! GUYS!! LOOK AT THE PICTURE OF OUR TREE BELOW!!! The star is perfectly straight and the cool Scout knots and lashings are no longer needed! Now, I kinda remember hearing something weird last night, like someone was in the house or something. But I quickly fell back asleep. And Hanna and Frivvy the non-Watch Dog slept through it. But when we got up, OUR STAR WAS FIXED! This leads me to an obvious conclusion: Santa Claus really does exist and HE WAS IN OUR HOUSE last night!!! Merry Christmas ho ho ho...

We are in that stage of life where our kids are grown and even have kids of their own and have correctly decided that Christmas is more meaningful for them if they celebrate it under their own Christmas tree rather than ours. (We've seen most all of the kids the last bit or will see them soon. No worries.) So, Hanna and I get to spend the day alone and together, which we really enjoy.

After opening our cool presents, we did our tradition. Second annual Christmas JEEP ride to the Stewart Highlands! (Not much snow up there today, but there is up to 8" forecasted for tonight.)

And of course, like most all of our road trips, it became an adventure. First, we saw three moose. This is 3 times the number we saw this summer during our two weeks in Alaska. Then, less than a mile from our driveway, we came across a tree that was down across the road. Using our resources, we found a tie strap in the truck and used it to pull the tree out of the way enough to get around it. And if that wasn't enough, just as we approached our property, we came across a second tree. (Note to self, bring the chain and chain saw on every trip in the future...) We made quick work of it too. Now, some unnamed person called my truck a pavement princess this week (not naming names, but this unnamed person drives a red Tesla...) so I think the truck has proven itself today. We did make it into the Highlands. Looked around. Took some pics. Watched an overexcited Frivvy run around hunting for grandkids who also hang out here at times, and then drove back home. Even on a cloudy and dreary day, it is a beautiful place.

Back home safely in the evening, we watched the new movie "Red One". It was fun and well done, but probably won't make our "watch every year" movie list. (The list includes Christmas with the Krank's, It's a Wonderful Life, The Homecoming aka The Walton's Christmas Movie, and The Grinch.)

Hope you all had a Merry Christmas and that your star stays on straight!

Retired Life. Thursday.

With the holiday our scheduling and planning got all out of whack. The result is that we have a grocery day and a temple worship day combined into one busy day.

Plan what's left of the week. Create a yummy menu. Prepare a shopping list. Sign onto the Safeway Site and order groceries. Run to town. Worship in the temple. Pick up groceries. (with only two substitutions...not bad). Go fancy like for dinner. Drive home. Watch some TV and some football and be lazy like retired people are at times. There's our day.

There were a ton of missionaries in the temple which created a great strong spiritual experience, which I needed. Peacefulness is always appreciated.

And because I only took one picture today, I also included another one of Frivvy enjoying the trip home from the Stewart Highlands yesterday. He rarely sticks his head out the window, but when he does, it's at the Highlands.

Retired Life. Friday.

We were tired of fixing our own breakfasts, so deemed it "old people go out to breakfast day" and drove to Red Tail to let someone cook for us.

Today was spent with Justin and his boys with us. We made and consumed a Taco Bar. Made and sent home with them a bunch of Reindeer Poop Candy. And played games and watched the Cougs in their Bowl Game. Go Cougs!! They played hard.

Retired Life. Saturday.

We spent most of the day visiting with my brother who was here from Utah. This included lunch at the Harvester. And Justin and his boys dropped in for a bit too.

Note the Haybale Christmas Tree. Merry Christmas from the Palouse!

And a picture of the Christmas present I got from Justin. My kids know me well.

And finally, a picture of a very happy BYU fan that lives in our home after we watched them dominate the Alamo Bowl. Truthfully, we didn't breathe easy until about 3 minutes were left in the game because over the years we've seen this fine team do some weird things. But they got it done tonight.