Time flies when you are having fun!

We have clearly neglected the blog in the last few weeks and left you hanging without much of an update on our Grandfather or anything else going on. So…I’ll start from the beginning.

As Nicole mentioned our Grandpa (Colleen’s Dad, Stan) has been at home on Hospice. This situation is a little different from what we expected because the hospice nurse only stops by several times a week because my Grandma would prefer to continue to care for him herself. Since he has been home however, being there for both of our grandparents has a been a group effort and it has been amazing to watch our family come together. In case you didn’t know, Mom is 1 of 8 children (plus an additional sister which the entire family “adopted” many years ago). Between Mom, her siblings, and the many grandchildren, the Bootz residence has been filled constantly. The Monday before Christmas we had a “Celebration of Life” for Grandpa and it was amazing to have the entire family come together to recognize the incredibly full life he has had, including the 60 plus years he shared with Grandma and all they accomplished during that time. We made a pretty cool picture video which we will try to get posted as soon as possible.

On Christmas Eve we hung out over at Grandma and Grandpa’s house and made cookies which was so much fun! Grandpa sat at the breakfast bar and watched us work away which is something he has always loved to do. He is very good at offering suggestions! 🙂

That evening, we had our annual Christmas Eve dinner at our parents house which was so much fun. Mom made lobster tails and steak and we ate until we nearly burst! Some of our family friends, the Molinas, stopped by after dinner and it was great to have a glass of wine and laugh with them for a while as well. We didn’t exchange gifts this year but rather all chipped in for a Wii which was a worthwhile investment!

On the 26th, Mom, Dad, Nicole, Billy, Chloe, Billie, Pete and I drove up to the cabin to spend the week. We lucked out with the weather because the major storm from the night before had cleared by the time we hit the Rim so the roads weren’t bad at all. I couldn’t believe how much snow there was!! This past week has been filled with quality family time and excellent rotating company. Basically, we played Wii, many board games, played in the snow, went sledding, watched lots of movies and laughed a lot! Pete and I even made it up to Sunrise to go skiing which was so much fun (he did incredible – especially considering it was his first time!). We missed Dani and wish she could have spent the week with us but we felt really blessed that the rest of us were able to spend so much time together.

As a side-note, Mom has SOOO much hair! I can’t believe how quickly it is growing in! She is feeling pretty good lately and enjoyed spending the week up at the cabin, I think she mostly enjoyed spoiling Chloe and kicking everyone’s tail in Wii tennis!

Now that the holidays are officially over, I think we are all looking forward to settling back into a routine. The situation with our Grandpa is still uncertain and he has good days and bad, although he is rapidly gaining water weight due to his failing kidneys. The one thing I have learned for sure about him is that he is unpredictable, so none of us are really sure what to expect in the coming days and weeks. As always, we will keep you posted.

I hope your holidays were beautiful and that each of you have a happy, healthy New Year!

Love,

Michelle