Christmas Day

Kyle on the guitar that Anne and Toria got - they all loved it and fought to take turns.

Little Claire looking so cute on Christmas morning.

Anne, Toria and Claire - their other favorite gift was this fur real cat. It moves and meows - kinda crazy.

Sherstine sporting Kara's new hat.

Livia and her new jammies and other clothes.

Wayne sporting his new Christmas clothes - all he needs is a pocket protector and big, black, horned rim glasses and he'd be the perfect geek!.

Kent's new toy that he bought for himself. He bought it for the Blue-Ray player.

Kara out shoveling the walks while waiting for Wayne's family on christmas morning.

Kara got an IPOD. (And she didn't even ask for one - what a surprise!)

Randy and his gifts of cold cash and a wallett.

All Gavin cared about on Christmas morning was eating the apple out of his stocking. Forget the toys and clothes - give me food!

Mortensen Christmas party

Gavin and Kyle liked wrestling.

Lisa and Rae, Dave, Joan and her son, Alan

Major update from the Holidays

Do Grandpa and Gavin look alike?

Wayne's family playing around on Grandma's exercise ball.

Grandpa and some of the grandkiddies.

Hip Update

Wendy has been doing well. I brought her home just after lunch time today and she is able to get around pretty well. She still has to stay off of her leg most of the time but has to do exercises and get up and move around some to keep the hip joint working and rebuild the muscles.

Hip Replacement

Many of you have heard the Wendy is having hip surgery this Tuesday. I take her in at 6:30 am for surgery that takes place at 9:30am. She is getting what is called Hip Resurfacing. Check out this website if you would like to see what she is having done.

www.birminghamhipresurfacing.com

When she is all recuperated she will be able to finally walk without pain and a limp that she has had for the past 20 years. Technology has come along way in helping out joints. Just 5 years ago this surgery was not available

Kent

Halloween?

Kent went on a 4 wheeler ride into the Owyee Mountains on South Mountain with our Ward Bishop, Dean Duckett and saw some beautiful country that he use to run cattle on back in the 80's.









Wendy made Sugar Cookies for the Grandkids and Kara had a party here with her friends that evening all made up with costumes.

Kara was made up as Peter Pan and her Friends Liz, Heather, and Cherilyn as something or other, I will let you guess what they are.









It seems that Halloween gets more interesting when teenagers are around. I think they are a little touched. I wonder what her Uncle Fred would call it.

Notice to Employees

Notice to All Employees
When President Obama is officially elected into office, our company will instill a few new policies which are in keeping with his new, inspiring issues of change and fairness:
1. All salespeople will be pooling their sales and bonuses into a common pool that will be divided equally between all of you. This will serve to give those of you who are underachieving a 'fair shake.'
2. All low level workers will be pooling their wages, including overtime, into a common pool, dividing it equally amongst yourselves.This will help those who are 'too busy for overtime' to reap the rewards from those who have more spare time and can work extra hours.
3. All top management will now be referred to as 'the government.'We will not participate in this 'pooling' experience because the law doesn't apply to us.
4. The 'government' will give eloquent speeches to all employees every week, encouraging it's workers to continue to work hard 'for the good of all.'
5. The employees will be thrilled with these new policies because it's 'good to spread the wealth.' Those of you who have under achieved will finally get an opportunity; those of you who have worked hard and had success will feel more 'patriotic.'
6. The last few people who were hired should clean out their desks. Don't feel bad, though, because President Obama will give you free healthcare, free handouts, free oil for heating your home, free food stamps, and he'll let you stay in your home for as long as you want even if you can't pay your mortgage. If you appeal directly to our democratic congress, you might even get a free flat screen TV and a coupon for free haircuts (shouldn't all Americans be entitled to nice looking hair?) !!!
If for any reason you are not happy with the new policies, you may want to rethink your vote on November 4th.

54th Birthday

I recieved a T Shirt and Hat that said #1 Grandpa
Robert & Jessica and Fam & my Mom and Connie came over. Connie was in town for a week staying with her daughter in Nampa.

San Diego Trip

Monday the 22nd we made a trip to San Diego for Kent's National Association of Home Builders Meetings. We had a great view from our room looking down at the pool (darn, I forgot my binoculars) and out accross the bay to Coronodo Island. Wendy went on a tour while I was in meetings Tuesday. She had a good pic with the City Skyline behind her. You can see our Hotel just over her right shoulder.
We have made some good friends with other builders from all over the country and had a chance to go out to dinner with a few of them
We have some friends that live in San Diego, John & Paula-Jo Cahoon. We spent the day with them at an aquarium and driving along the beach. We stopped at a small resturant along the beach to have lunch.
On Thursday we went out to Coronado Beach to get a little sun and play in the ocean. It was cold but no colder than the lakes we swim in around here. Wendy & I were wading out in the water and Wendy got stung on her foot. We figure that it must have been a Stingray because we saw one in the water a little latter. It hurt for about an hour.

Nila Carlson

This past weekend was the Funeral for Wendy's Mom, Nila Carlson. She was 92 and lived a long full life raising 12 kids. Here are a few pictures of many that we took. There were a lot of cameras around so I suspect that I will see a lot of pictures on other family blogs.

The Twelve Siblings plus Lili, Nila's care giver

She had lots of Great Grand kids at the funeral

TIME OUT

Last weekend in Boise was the "Time Out for Couples" on Friday evening and on Saturday they had "Time out for Women and Girls" Robert & Jessica as well as some friends, the Olsons went with us Friday evening, then Saturday Wendy took my mom, Kara and Gay Olson and her daughter Sharalyn. It was a great spiritual uplift and a great reminder on how we should treat each other. I had Saturday all to myself, so I mowed the lawn and did some extra triming to make the yard look good and had a great nap.

Canning Season

Canning season is here and Wendy has been working hard for us. I just love her canned peaches. Kara was getting creative taking pictures of Wendy's hard work stacking the jars for the just right picture. Of course Wendy was worried that a jar might fall over and break.