Our Trip to Oregon

In late January Jonah and I traveled to Oregon to spend time with John and Ellie. John has been diagnosed with Lymphoma, a type of cancer it was in the form of a painful tumor on his spine.  We wanted to be there to love them up and that is just what we did. It is amazing to me that I will remember so many incredible moments from a time that was really scary. SPOILER ALERT:  when we arrived we did not know how bad or "good" the cancer was. It turns out that it was "good" and John is undergoing radiation treatment as well as receiving antibiotics for an infection that was present in the tumor as well as the cancer. Thankful does not even start to cover the joy that is in our hearts when we think of this as the best possible outcome.
So, my memories. We arrive in Papa's room at the hospital and it's nap time. Jonah climbs up onto the bed with Papa and they both fall asleep. It's extra special because Jonah does not take naps outside his crib very often these days.
Our dear friend Mari and her family who put us up at their house, lent us a car seat, and gave us a "home" to come to while we were staying in Portland. Jonah loved playing with Mari's two kids!
After Papa was released from the hospital and we returned to Corvallis we were able to see our dear friends Chris and Gina and their girls Olive and Penny. It was so fun to see the kids reunited.
On the second weekend we were there we got to go to the coast for some R and R before Papa began his treatments. We had a spectacularly sunny time and got to see aunt Kari and play in the sun.
I truly feel it was a gift to be there with our family during a really difficult time.

A very special nap time!

Jonah saying vroom vroom

Jonah and Penny playing on the rocking horse

Jonah and Mor Mor playing with the hose at the coast

Building (and knocking down) his first sandcastle

Wedding in Minnesota and Jonah's Photo Shoot

Cousin Ted with Jonah and Calvin

Jonah and Mor Mor on the dance floor

We visited Minnesota for a quick weekend to celebrate Kyle's cousin Claire and her husband Mikes wedding. For such a quick trip it was full of family and friends. We stayed with Jeff and Danielle where we got to experience the X-box 360 complete with a game that let us have a dance off until all hours of the night. My stomach hurt from laughing so hard at our dance moves.
Prior to the wedding we spent the afternoon with Kyle' s extended family. What fun it was to be with the whole Anderson crew. It was a real party with the kind of joyful chaos that only a family of around 30 can create. The wedding reception was delightful and held in an old theatre complete with a great stage for dancing and tasty treats to munch on. Jonah really danced for the first time he even sat down on the floor to stomp his feet to the music. It was such a joy to see him taking in the love from his family in Minnesota.
Somehow with all the fun I did not take too many pictures. But here are the ones I walked away with.
Best of all Steph Bloom one of Kyle's cousins is a professional photographer and she took these very sweet and candid shots of Jonah while we were there.

New Years in Yosemite

Bringing in the New Year in the Yosemite Valley was about as good as it gets. Ice skating on Tenaya Lake in the middle of a giant granite bowl was in the top 20 experiences of my life. As we skated along the edge of the lake we could see through the ice like it was a window. It gave you the feeling of flying. I could not get enough of it. It was such a special moment to share with Kyle. While we were skating Jonah was getting his first taste of rock climbing with my parents who joined us in our burst of spontaneity. That first night was New Years Eve and we slept in a heated wall tent. Kyle and I went to the Ahwahnee Lodge to sit on the benches that are inside the fireplace and I got to eat a great chili-dog as my last meal of 2011. Sad to say we did not make it to midnight!On the second day we rode our bikes all around the valley while Jonah slept in the trailer Kyle pulled behind the bike.  We also climbed 3/4 of the way up the hike to Yosemite Falls. We had a great lunch some serious sunshine and views straight out of Ansel Adams view finder. If you have not been to Yosemite, I suggest putting it high on your list. On the way home we stopped to hike down to the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoia. These trees blow your mind! Between their age and size and I have to say "spirit" they leave you- well speechless.

Jonah and Granny with the popsicles we made from the grape juice from grapes grown in their yard.

Jonah sharing the popsicle with Granny.

Christmas Cheer 2012

Kyle and Jonah at the Festival of Lights

This year we got to host Christmas at our house. To start things off we cut down a giant tree from the forest that took up half of our living room.  It was so big at it almost did not fit on top of our truck. It was a scene right out of Christmas Vacation. I had a lot of doubt that we could get it to fit and even threatened to post it for free on Craig's List, but it turned out to be the most beautiful tree we could have imagined. 

See below for my Christmas 2012 Top Ten although the pictures speak for themselves!

Amy with Autumn and Jonah during the Christmas tree hunt

Both sides of the family! What a treat.

The tree on the truck

Our beauty

John, kari, and Ellie on our sunset Gondola Cruise

Hiking with Papa

Jonah and Kelsi at the beach

Hiking at Echo Lake

Christmas morning grin

All because two people fell in love!

• Christmas time is about gifts and I don't mean the material kind. Here is the list of my most favorite gifts from this year. 
• Ellie, John, Kari, and Kelsi Erkkila all arrived safely and we got started right off with all the Christmas feasting. You can't believe the cookies that Ellie can make. 

• My brother Ty and his faithful companion Boone were able to drop by en route to visiting family in the San Francisco area. We once again ate some yummy food and took a couple nice hikes. 
• Christmas Eve was spent at the Unity Church here in Tahoe. We sang carols and got to choose a Christ like "power" to carry with us into the new year. 
• Seeing Jonah with his family. Sharing his books, stacking blocks, and driving his toys around. Every toy for him is a car or truck it seems.  He pushes them along and says vrooom. 
• Skiing (there is a bit of man made snow) and after enjoying a Bloody Mary in the bar. 
• Riding the Gondola to the top of Heavenly Ski Resort to watch the sunset together. 
• Being together with family to enjoy some down time and recharge. 
• Hiking at Echo Lake sharing the expansive beauty of the Sierra Nevada Mountains.