A Little Delayed....But Christmas 2008

Our First Christmas away from home was pretty good. We had about 6 inches of snow and it was colder than I have ever felt. We never saw the temp get below zero but we did see it hit 1 degree. And I thought Portland got cold in the winter. lol

We were lucky enough to have my dad here for the holiday. Although with all the snow it took some work for him to get here, he arrived on the 23rd and stayed till the 27th. Which is plenty of time for a visit to Mtn. Home. Austin had so much fun playing with his grandpa. We hosted christmas dinner at our house. It was Nick, Austin, Dad and I. And then we also had my best friend Melissa and her 2 kids, Shawn and Jaylee, and our friends Alisa and Christina over for dinner.

We have quickly learned that you have to make your own family when you are in the Military, and I am happy to report that we have made wonderful friends here that I am sure we will keep in touch with them forever.

Now here are the christmas pictures.

Happy New Years!!! 2009

WOW. 2009 already. With everything that happened in 2008 I can't wait to see what 2009 has in store.

We hosted New Years Eve at our house. We had our normal crowd, although a few left before the new year was here, it was a fun night. We all sat around and played card games like Apples to Apples and Mad Gab. A few of us had a couple drinks and that REALLY made Mad Gab an interesting game but I think Nick actually got better at it after he was drunk. haha. We all counted down the new year, as you can see in the pic. All the kids made it to midnight, except for our little one. Austin conked out about 11.

We also celebrated our friend Steven's 24th birthday. He was quite surprised.

Looking forward to seeing what this year has to bring. We will keep you all updated.

A Look back at 2008

Where do I start? So much has happend this past year, I get lost in all the memories just thinking about what to write. I guess the beginning is a good place.

Nick had joined the US Air Force in Nov. 2007 so Austin and I kicked off 2008 in Texas where we were visiting Nick in Basic and Tech school. After living out of a motel room for almost 2 months we all returned to Oregon where we spent the next Two weeks with family, getting ready to say goodbye.

After many tears and hugs, we hit the road to travel to our new "home". Nicks first base assignment was in Mtn. Home, ID. Its about 50 miles from Boise and only an 8 hour drive back to Portland. Although it is a very small town, we are close to home so we are happy.

After getting settled in Mtn. Home, I was introduced to SCENTSY!!!! I fell in love with the product and decided to start selling. My business is growing and I am having fun doing it.

I am proud to announce that I officially became an aunt on May 17th, 2008. Although much earlier than planned, I was able to make it to Portland in time to see my Beautiful Nephew Travis Michael Jacobs Jr. enter the world weighing only 3lbs 4.5oz. He is a fighter. Even though he came 10 weeks early and spent many weeks in the NICU he never needed assistance with his breathing. He is going to grow up to be a healthy boy and will make us all proud one day.

Austin took his first step on July 16th. A little over 11 months old but he really didnt start walking until after we celebrated his 1st birthday on August 9th, 2008 at the Red Sunset Park in Gresham Oregon. We were lucky enough to have all our loved ones there. Austins first birthday was celebrated with a BIG party, His first trip to the beach in Seaside, OR, his first trip to the Boise zoo and his first Fireworks show. =)

Nick finally got to go Hunting for the first time. Although he didnt get anything he had a great time camping and hanging out with his father in law. Thanks Dad!

I have met many wonderful friends while living in Mtn Home. One of them I was able to throw a special surprise party for her birthday while her husband was deployed and I must say that I will NEVER forget the look on her face when she walked in. =)
Our first Thanksgiving away from home was spent with a housefull. We had quite a group of our friends at our house. A total of about 13 of us including 5 kids. My first thanksgiving dinner turned out pretty good.

Our FIRST white christmas finally happened. We were lucky enough to have my dad come down to visit for the holidays. The snow made it a tad tricky for him to get down here, but he made it safely and we are so thankful he was able to come. It meant the world to us.

And that wraps up 2008...