Blessings

We had a houseful this year, but wouldn't have wanted it any other way.  Our count was 41.

Leisa roasted one 20lb turkey and Mark smoked one the same size.  Grandma Joan brought a ham.  There was enough leftover turkey for those tasty sandwiches the next day that we almost enjoy better than the meal!  

 Jug and Shelley were so sweet to come up the night before and help us get everything set up.  

They orchestrated everything in the studio kitchen.

 Boys waiting patiently for their table to be called

 

 Kid's table aka: F U N Table

 some of our adorable girl cousins

 birds eye view from the bunk bed

 These two enjoyed putting their feet up while they watched the goings on in the room. 

You have to rest up before the pie comes out!!

The offerings this year were Pumpkin, Cheese Cake, Pecan, Banana Cream, 

Coconut Cream, Lemon Cream, Apple and Oatmeal Coconut Pecan

 So happy to see Tyler (center) he just returned from his mission in San Antonio the day before!!

 A little sliver of several puts a smile on your face every time!!

A little Thanksgiving Football...

*photos coming form Mark's phone*

a collection of some of those boy cousins...more like brothers!

 Jim and Bridger had a blast in the wood shop.  They are trying their hand at carving fish.

They both petitioned for a week long camp in Uncle Mark's wood shop next summer;)

So grateful for this room

Twelve is one of those perfect ages.

That night we listened to Scott tell us about a recent trip to India.  Jim organized What If... and we laughed til our sides hurt.  Out came the leftovers and some savory snacks.  What a wonderful time.

30+ adventurous souls spent the night!  The next morning some ventured out into Black Friday.  We enjoyed fresh donuts from Lee's, homemade granola, Egg McMuffins and hot cocoa.  Those men are awesome chefs and dishwashers!!

Emily is off on an adventure with Close Up in DC this week.  She left Sat at 2am.  We have a very quiet house.  To cap off the weekend, we took a wreath over to the cemetery.  It's a peaceful place.

Happy Thanksgiving!

We have many blessings to count.

Those Moments We Share

Those priceless, sweet moments we have with our loved ones are so precious.  

We are all coming to grips with the realization that our lives have forever changed.  We are learning to live in a place we never believed we would find ourselves.  The difficult trials we all face at various times in our lives are certainly situations that can push us in directions we don't want to go, force us to stop everything and evaluate where we are, who we are and what we are suppose to be doing with our individual lives.  We are grateful the calming peace is felt more than the waves of heartache. We have all been overwhelmed with the love and tender care we have felt from so many.  Love is what it is all about.  We have felt love in ways we haven't known before.  There are countless stories we could all share about the comforting acts of kindness that have been shared and given freely to each of us over the past month. We will be forever grateful for each and every one of these gifts, no matter how small.

We are all back to the routines of life that tow us through our days.  I think we all feel behind on what needs to be done - but we are learning a lot of "stuff" doesn't really matter.  We each get to choose how we spend our time and what we focus our efforts on.  Davis was always so laid back and calm.  He didn't get too stressed about the circle of life.  I love having this blog to document the happenings of our family.

The last week in September, Mark had a conference in San Diego.  We tried to get as many of us together as we possibly could.  Because of work and other obligations...and distance of our family's locations from each other - we weren't able to have all of us together.  BUT we did savor the moments with those who could gather and as always, looked forward to the next time we could ALL be together.

Janell drove down from Portland and picked up Davis in LA.  I drove with Jake and Lindsey's family and the seven of us had a wonderful rendezvous at Disneyland!  It was a magical time for all of us that will be forever treasured.

 (I'll finish the post on our Cali trip that I started weeks ago...one of these days :)

Mark and Emily flew to San Diego Monday evening.  We had taken Davis to the train station Tuesday night only to find out there were no more trains until almost midnight.  He made a spur of the moment decision to come with us to San Diego and catch a train the next day home.  Once he made sure that his shift and work was covered, we were off.  Lucky us to have one more night with him!  Lucky that Emily and Mark could get one more hug from him!! 

Janell made arrangements to meet Davis for breakfast on her drive home.  I will always treasure this photo of them.  It's the last one we'll have of him.  If you know our family, you know we are foodies.  We, and especially me take our share of food photos!  In this photo, Davis had just said, "Smile and hold your plate up for Mom!"

She was lucky enough to get a little tour of the tea house Davis had been working at since early January.  We knew from his employer that he was an impressive worker and very dependable.  Starting out busing tables - it wasn't long before he would become a tea expert and be able to gracefully give Tea Tastings, an hour and a half long lecture you could say - teaching the group all they could ever want to know about the 300 + teas they carried.  We had a taste of his knowledge when he was home this past August.  Who would have known there is so much to learn about "tea".

 A little ditty that Janell put together.  

I think there were days at work when he felt like he had to move this fast :)

Our family looks forward to the day when we can go have lunch at Chaido Tea Room in Pasadena.

And even more forward to the day when we will all be together again.

WE LOVE YOU DAVIS

In the meanwhile we will continue to heal and learn from each other.  We will take comfort in the amazing atonement of our Savior.  We will keep Davis' song and memory alive as

we enjoy nature and remember to love all mankind,  just like he did.

I don't know a lot.  But what I do know is - that as unique and quirky as each member 

of our family is,  we all share the one thing most important of all ... 

L O V E

for each other

And that's what this life is all about.

Our Sweet Davis

Our dear, sweet son and brother left us on October 20th. Our hearts are grieving at this tremendous loss for our family. We have included his obituary. We have been overwhelmed with love, support and quiet acts of kindness by so many dear friends and neighbors. For this we will be forever grateful.

Davis Manning Firth, born April 19, 1990 in Redmond, WA, is the son of Mark and Leisa; brother of Brady (Danielle), Janell (Ben Craghead), Lindsey (Jake) Christensen, Camber, and Emily; grandson of Ronald and Marie Firth, Neil and Joan Flinders; uncle, nephew and cousin to many; and friend to all. Throughout his adventurous life he effortlessly mastered countless talents. As a skilled musician, he played bass and guitar with many groups and across many genres, composing songs that could both make you rock and bring you to tears. He found joy in skiing Utah powder and one-upping pros on his skateboard. Davis had a heart of kindness and a contagious smile that brought light and warmth to all who knew him. He found peace on Sunday October 20, 2013, after fighting a vigorous battle against things in life that were difficult and taxing. We are proud of his valiant determination in all of the trials he overcame and the challenges he conquered. Our hearts will continue to feel his generous friendship, courage, and love of nature and mankind as the music of his life plays on. Those same hearts will grieve that he didn’t hike the Pacific Coast Trail, that his mischievous smile won’t be seen, that too few heard his song, and that we can’t tell him again how we have admired his courage through the immense challenges he faced. He will be so deeply missed and loved.

As his family, we thank his friends for their part in his life and thus in ours. We hope they will find peace in knowing that he loves them and that their influence is felt by him and us. We thank friends and family for their love and support. In lieu of flowers, we ask that contributions be made to the Davis Firth Donation account at Zion’s Bank, which will be used for a music scholarship. We will receive friends and family Oct 25, 6-8PM and Oct 26, 9-10:30AM; with funeral service to follow Oct 26, 11AM at the chapel on 325 Lauralin Dr, Logan UT. His burial will take place at the Mendon Cemetery following the service. Memories and condolences may be shared with the family at www.serenicare.com.

Cache Valley Century, check.

 Cache Valley Century 2013.

A day Mark looks forward to every year.  He loves to ride around this glorious valley we live in.

Lindsey was looking forward to fully completing her first ever century.  Jake had injured his knee earlier in the week and decided to bite the bullet and attempt it anyway!  

Pretty cool, sophisticated, wrap, huh?

These three had complete success and such a great ride together!

Meanwhile...back at the ranch...

We headed to the kitchen before we were even dressed and mixed up a cake and some pretty crazy baby cupcakes.  Some days, three-year-olds, have very specific ideas in mind ;)  Molly is great in the kitchen and Owen loves to help.  Then we took a little picnic to the park.  Super fun day for everyone!  Summer has been wonderful.

Thirty One

 Celebrating 31 years together is a happy thought!

We have been craving time in our favorite place, Jackson Hole.  

But since we can't be there we decided to take an evening 

float in the canoe ... in our pretty little valley.

 The dragon flies were fluttering everywhere at Cutler Marsh.  

Such pretty little things.  They are said to represent:

* Mind
* Dreams
* Balance
* Thoughts
* Awareness
* Living to the fullest

Sounds just like a marriage, doesn't it?

 The Marsh is pretty much right out in the center of the Valley.  Had we been floating in the morning

hours, we could have some pretty spectacular shots of the Wellsvilles.  Maybe next time.

 We do live a very glorious place.  Even the Marsh is pretty and peaceful.

 We had hoped to view lots of various birds, but I think they all migrated last week!

These beauties were spotted as we were driving north to dinner.

 I wouldn't mind this view out my back window.

 The simple things like the smell of freshly cut hay.

 Dinner was delightful.  A perfect day.

We'll just keep looking for the silver linings.

***

Mark had been tinkering in his shop last week and this is what he whipped out!

What a sweet gift! I made Apple Crisp for him ;)

Happy Anniversary to us!  We feel very blessed.