My favorite month's events began with this fun party:
Crystal Lakes community is right next to Sunbrook, and they always invite Sunbrook to their fun parties. We're so lucky to live amongst so many super seniors!
The entertainment was a combo of musicians who are residents of Crystal Lakes, and they invited Jackie Fullmer to come up and play the bass with them. She was my Aggie volleyball teacher and formed our Aggiette drill team in our day, and there's not much she can't do! She's going on 86 and she holds free exercise and dance classes every week for Sunbrook and Crystal Lakes ladies.
All during the month of February, I get a free birthday treat (Roger tells them I'm a Valentine birthday) anywhere we eat out!
Using a gift certificate, we had snow crab at Red Lobster.
A downer of living in a senior community is we have to say goodbye to dear friends too often! Larry was a fine man, faithful, full of integrity and very kind.
After the funeral, we went to Longhorn Steakhouse for lunch - Happy Birthday to me again!
Our beautiful 7th great-grandchild, Ellie Jo Nydegger -granddaughter, Sadie's, and husband, Joe's, first baby, was born February 11.
Have you ever seen such big eyes on a newborn?
That same week, Sadie's sister, Katie, received word that she got into Columbia to work on her master's degree. She is sooo excited! She served her church mission in the boroughs of NYC and it was her dream to go back there after she graduated from BYU. Her husband, Easton, has found a good job back there, and they are moving as I write this. She will enter Columbia in August. She is excited to be in the same state as her brother, Josh, and family, (Josh is working on his MBA at Cornell) and they look forward to visiting each other.
My daughters asked me a few months ago how I wanted to celebrate my 80th birthday. Nothing makes me happier than when our family is all together, so, instead of planning some get-away trip, I said, "Do you think everyone would come to St. George?" Oh my goodness, 42 of our kids, grandkids and great-grandkids booked air b&bs, etc. and came for the long President's Day weekend. Only Rick's, Josh, and family and Joe and Sadie, who had a brand new baby; Ryan's son, Pete, who is working for a venture capital firm in Texas and wife, Izzy, and Ryan's daughter, Anna, and husband, Jack, who are in NYC with jobs as Jack prepares to enter medical school, couldn't come. Amazing! And I got to invite many of our friends who live around here! In senior communities, we have not usually met each others' families. It's been a fantasy of mine for my dear friends to meet my dear family and vice versa, so when I talk about them, they will have met them and know who they are! My dream came true!
But, I get ahead of myself! In my next post, I am going to dedicate it to the amazing 80th Birthday Bash my daughters planned for me. Here is the invitation Missy designed and sent out. We had 110 attendees!
The day before the party was Valentine's Day and my actual birthday. Everyone was to arrive that evening and meet at Steak and Chop House Restaurant for dinner and a program in their party room. I woke up to these gorgeous flowers, Bluebird chocolates (a family favorite since our grandparents in Logan introduced us to them), and a beautiful card from my sweetheart.
Roger and I are so excited for our family members to arrive!
Aunt Londyn with Sydney and Jake's sons, Henry and Charlie
Our oldest granddaughter, Sydney, husband, Jake, twin girls, Rosie and Poppy and son, Henry, came all the way from Watercolor, Florida, and we were so thrilled to see each other!
Blake was excited to see his cousins and we were tickled that Jodie brought her mom, Kathie, with them from Ogden. Kathie and I have been friends for years, even before our kids, Jodie and Rick, were married.
They went around both tables, and each person told a nice thing about Grandma Pam. Stacy recorded it and what a treasure for me! I'll enjoy listening to that recording for the rest of my life!
Missy put together a wonderful memory book with tributes and pictures, that she presented to me after everyone had shared their thoughts - another lifetime treasure!
The restaurant brought me a happy birthday dessert and I got to blow out another candle!
All of the cousins made a fuss over Syd's kids.
Henry and Sarah
When Rick and Jodie pulled up to their airbnb, Blake refused to get out because he wanted to come over Grandpa and Grandma's. He knew he was in St. George, and that's what you do when you're in St. George! So they came over for a while. Ryan, Emily and family stayed down the street in a kind friend's second home; he wasn't using it that weekend.
Blakey really likes Sarah!
Becca. Abby and Ben are checking out my wonderful memory book.
Mindy does lots of cross stitch. She's like her Grandma Lois and has to have her hands moving when she sits; she also loves to do puzzles. She stitched this for me for my birthday. I love it!
I'm catching up with Kathie after I open my gift from Mindy.
Rick took this of his kids (and Jodie) when they got back to their rental.
Jodie and Emily catching up
Jodie realized that the next morning, before my party, would be a great time to throw a shower for Nayeli, Sam's fiancee, because all of the aunts (our family does an aunts shower for the girls when they marry and when they have their first child) and many girl cousins would be together. She organized a brunch in their airbnb and sent these invitations out. Jodie brought a yummy homemade pasta salad, rolls, cookies and favors - she's so very thoughtful and dear!
Cute Nayeli was tickled! None of her family from Ecuador could be there. She only has one sibling, a sister, and she lives on the Galapagos Islands. Now she'll be in a huge, loving family who welcome her with open arms!
I will leave telling about the wonderful President's Day weekend of my birthday party now and finish out our happenings in February.
About a week later, we headed up north to take Rick up on his invitation to go to a Utah Jazz game with him and Jodie. They have special seats, which include eating dinner in the upper box. Although the Jazz are pretty much in the cellar in the standings, it's still so much fun to go to a professional basketball game. The highlight was getting to see our 7th new little great-granddaughter, Ellie! Sadie and Joe temporarily live next door to Rick and Jodie in their pool house.
Isn't she an adorable little thing?
Sadie is so excited to be a mommy!
Though the Jazz gave the Trail Blazers an exciting game, they lost, 114-112.
Blake played basketball on his special needs team while we were there and he was high point man. It amazes me how, if he stands in his chosen spot, he can make maybe 7 out of 10 shots, and he is a great dribbler!
While we were up north, we met our dear friend, Karleen, for lunch at Schmitt's Bakery. We always spend at least a couple of hours catching up when we can get together.
Though it's the shortest month of the year, it seems that we always have lots of action going on in February. This year, with all of the festivities surrounding my 80th birthday, it has been the best one yet!
