The year in review, slacker edition

The year in review, that sounds like a whole heckuva lotta reading!!

Lucky for us that due to my advancing age, I can't really remember a whole lot of details!
2010...glad it's gone, looking forward to 2011.

We had some family pictures taken, frankly...it was a disaster. We didn't get a good/decent picture of the whole family, Rachel was totally on one. But there are some good pictures of everyone individually. So I'll give a little review using the pictures.

Rachel:



Rachel is 27. 27!?!?! How can that be? I only feel 35ish.
Rachel is the most precious of our children. We are so thankful that she is here with us despite of her many disabilities. We finally found a good care home for her. She is well taken care of and seems content. When I go to get her, she hops up squealing. People ask all the time if she knows people, I can say definitely "yes", she knows us. Rachel is going to a special day class everyday where she does little art projects, goes into the community, has an exercise class etc... she loves our kitty Scout and is totally fascinated by Carter. She's just like the rest of us, we're all fascinated by him also!!

Mitch:



Ah, my handsome son. Mitch is 24 and we think finally he is on his way.
He moved out with a friend to a house in a nearby town and started school this year. He thrilled and surprised us by getting a 3.5 gpa!
Mitch loves music and spends time perfecting his drum playing. His goal is to be a sound engineer; not quite sure what that is, but he assures me that it's a real career. Hopefully this is the start of good things for him. Now if we could just find the right girl for him....

Lauren:



Lauren is loving life! All she has ever wanted is to be a mom, and she loves every second of raising Carter. The Evans family lives in Rexburg while Skyler finishes his last two semesters at BYU-I. Then it's off to warmer climates for them! Lauren is loving learning new things like cooking, home decorating and child development. She continues to be the ***spark***in our family, life is not quiet when she's home! We all love and miss her so much and look forward to her visits. We are so proud of our beautiful daughter.

Jeff:



2010 was a very eventful year for Jeff. He transformed into a different person! No braces, contacts, growing about 7 inches all in one year. He was elected Jr. class President, played Varsity Volleyball, got his Driver's permit, was active in Leadership at school, interns/job shadows at a local grade school once a week, spreads Jeffy Joy all over campus, was on the selection committee for our new Principal...Jeff was busy learning some great Leadership skills. He's got an exciting year ahead of him...running for an ASB office, playing either tennis or Volleyball, getting his license, first date (I had to say that because he will get really mad at me and that cracks me up) and the beginning of his Senior year. I also can't give a synopsis of his year without mentioning the single greatest event of his year. The Giants winning the World Series...we can also look forward to watching 162 games again this year. Lucky us. His four favorite words are: Rude, Giants and Panda Express.

Scotty:



Scotty is 14 and the changes are freaking me out!! Scotty boy has grown about 6 inches, is taller than me.. :( He is talking to me in this strange low mannish voice and the peach fuzz on his lip is mysteriously gone, and he's only in 8th grade!! Scotty loved soccer this year and had a great season. He kicked 24 goals and made the All-Star team again. He has been on the Yearbook staff at school, is taking Geometry, and gets excellent grades. Scotty is well liked by everyone; he's a little on the shy side but he is really centered and goal oriented. He is setting his sights on a career someday in Science. Just to totally tick off the rest of my kids....Scotty is very loving and affectionate (and is a champion brown-noser). Nothing wrong with a little brown nose.

Skyler:



Skyler is the fun in our family. We love this son of ours and we are all so happy that Lauren had the good sense to marry him!!! Seriously, he cracks us all up constantly; he made me laugh so hard I had to pull over to the side of the road to avoid getting in an accident. He is finishing up his studies in Business at BYU-I and then who knows? He loves to fly-fish and I cemented his love for me by giving him a Bass Pro Shop gift card and actually taking him there. Skyler is a wonderful husband and Dad. He loves his little family so much and we are so thankful for him.
I scare him all the time by telling him that I want to live next door. I'm kidding, kind of.





My favorite boys!

Carter:



Carter...Carter...Carter...
I could talk about him all day. He is the light of our lives, we are fascinated by him and every move he makes. His hair is the prettiest copper penny red, his eyes are so blue and his little smile lights up our world. We are so thankful for him. He is a spunky, full of personality little guy. We're lucky he's ours to love.


Byron & Jeni:



Could this be a more unflattering picture? Oh well.
"How's Byron?" is the most asked question in my life.
He's hanging in there.
2010 was a tough year on him, and me by default.
In November of 2009 Byron was diagnosed with prostate cancer to go along with his lymphoma and rheumatoid arthritis. 2010 was spent seeking treatment. So far, nothing has worked out. The three "common" treatments are impossible because of other health concerns/factors. #4 treatment is rare and usually a 'last ditch' option. We are waiting to hear if he can have this treatment. In the meantime he developed a condition called rheumatoid vasculitis, a very painful condition as it means he develops large, deep wounds on his legs. Byron has gone every week since June to a wound specialist and has had his legs cleaned and wrapped in soft casts. He has also had problems with swelling and lung function. We feel that we have spent the year dodging bullets, one serious condition after another. It has been difficult and sometimes it's hard to have a sense of humor, but we're plugging along. He IS still working, going to school every day. He is exhausted at the end of each day and the weekends are spent catching up on energy for the next week. I admire his fortitude. We are thankful for the prayers we know are said on our behalf,

ME! I too am plugging along. This year has had many highs and lows. Every minute spent with Carter are the highs and watching Byron struggle is the low. Also this year, my niece Lacey passed away at 34 from cancer. She and I had a special bond from the day she was born. Spending the last few days of her life with her was precious to me but also very scary. It was a special time as some family broken fences were mended and Lacey regained her lost faith. One of the tremendous highs for me was going on a 12 day trip with my two friends Vicki and Pam and Pam's daughter Shaelie. We went to the church historical sites, which for me was a dream come true! It was a time of fun, laughter, peace and strengthened faith for me. I was so blessed to be able to go. I am still at Liberty High, although I have a new "boss" and new responsibilities this year. I also still teach Seminary, a real blessing in my life. I love being busy and I am. Life is challenging and humbling...but as my mom always said..."it sure beats the alternative!"