Christmas 2010

This Christmas was a bitter sweet one for my family. My Grandpa Hansen passed away on December 23rd, so as we were celebrating the birth of our Savior, we were mourning the loss of my Grandpa. I will do a separate post about that, so for now here is a Christmas post.

I gave Lee a Rifle Kit, and he gave me a backdrop stand, studio lights, a tripod and some other things to begin building my studio so I have the means to do indoor photo shoots.

 Kolby and Alison, my sister who lives in Ohio, came in for Christmas. We thought they were flying in the day after Christmas but they surprised my parents by showing up on Christmas Day.

 Ellie cried every time someone other that her Mom picked her up. Hopefully she'll grow out that soon.

 Lindsay also came home from California

 Adam with is crazy looks.

We played minute to win it games. Some of those are really hard! Here is Adam trying to knock cups over by flipping a rubber band at them.

 Here is AJ and Mike trying to get cookies from their forehead to their mouth by only moving their head around.

Here is Emma separating M&M's by color 

I was able to stack 2 golf balls. It was supposed to be 3, but I swear that is impossible!

 My Mom and my sisters along with my niece Emma met up with Alison's Mother and Sister-in-laws and went to the Nutcracker Ballet. It was a fun girls night out.

Christmas Flashback

It was Christmas Eve 1987. I was 10 years old. We had gotten a fresh coat of snow, so my Dad and I decided to take advantage of it. We had a sled like the one below with the metal runners. My Dad was pulling me around on it in the driveway and all of a sudden,  we hit a dry patch and I was tossed from the sled and right onto my face. Can you say ouch? Later that day I noticed my front tooth was loose. That day began many years of painful dental work. The dentist had to pull the tooth and replace it. I had to have that done a few times. The tooth actually broke up above the gum line so they eventually needed to put a metal post up in my gums along with braces to pull the remainder of the tooth down so there was something to attach the crown to. My gums were permanently bruised and so in high School I ended up needing surgery on my gums to try to get rid the purple color in my gums. To this day, as you can imagine, I hate going to the dentist.

The Provo Tabernacle

I love architecture. I love old houses and buildings and the character and personality they have. These days, all the buildings and houses seem to have the same square stucco look. The loss of the Provo Tabernacle is so sad to me. I went down there today to get some pictures, before they tear it down. The first picture is one I got off the internet. It is obviously a before shot.

Thanksgiving 2010

Lee and I headed to Ohio to spend Thanksgiving with my Sister Ali and her family. We had such a fun time and we are so glad we got the spend some time with them.

Lee and Kolby (sorry honey, I couldn't resist :)

Emma was having a blast helping in the kitchen

Lee with Jaxson & Emma

Being goofy trying to give bunny ears!

Lee watching his Lions play...sorry they lost honey :(

Ali & Ellie

The day after Thanksgiving we drove up to Detroit to spend some time with Lee's family. The first night we went in to the city and went to Greektown for dinner with Lee's sister Nan and her husband Mark.

Mmmmm! Flaming Cheese.

The Detroit Skyline

The next day, we met up with one of Lee's good friends Steve and his family for lunch.

 After lunch we picked Lee's Mom up and headed out to the cemetery. This was only our 2nd trip back since Lee's Dad passed away, so this was the first time seeing his grave with his headstone. It was hard for Lee to be there. He misses his Dad so much! We bought a grave blanket for the grave. They are so beautiful! I have never seen or heard of them until I met Lee.

I absolutely love this picture. The Story that it tells, and the emotion it shows...The tough guy in a leather coat mourning the loss of a loved one. It captures the true emotion of Lee grieving the loss of his Dad. I sat back quietly as he respectfully placed the grave blanket down. I watched him for a moment hold back tears, then he knelt down, put his head on the headstone and cried. At that point, I went over and cried with him. He misses his Dad so much, and I'm so thankful for the knowledge that we have of eternal families. What a great blessing!

Here we are with Lee's Mom

The next day we got to spend with Lee's brother Fred and his wife Becky. We went to "The Big House" which is the University of Michigan's Stadium. We also went to a play, but no photography was allowed there. We had such a great day with them!

Lee and Fred

Me and Becky. Do we look cold or what?

There are not any pictures with Lee and I together since I was taking most of the pictures. I'm glad we got this one.

Here is the whole family. Fred, Becky and the boys. Jacob, Aaron & Elliot

Me with Fred and Becky

The morning before we flew out, we woke up bright and early and drove back to Ohio, to spend the morning with my Sister Alison. We walked Jaxson and Emma to school then headed out to Kirtland. They had this huge nativity display and it was beautiful!

Afterwards, we met up with Kolby for lunch then headed to the airport. I'm so glad we had the opportunity to go visit everyone, and we are so thankful for the time we had with them. We had such a great time!

The Joseph Family

This family is so cute! I grew up with Rachel, who is the Mom of all these adorable kids! If you want to see more of this shoot, check out my photography blog here.

The Saunders Family

My friends Stefan & Mandy asked me to do some family pictures for them. I think they turned out pretty cute. If you want to see more check out my photography blog here!