Uncle Rich and Aunt Andrea with Tyler.
Tyler with Uncle Jason, Aunt Hollie, and Cousin Chloe.
Tyler with Grandpa and Grandma.
My best attempt at a family pic...not bad;)
Sunday morning after Christmas we went to Westwood to visit Great Grandma K. She was awake in her chair and we got to have a nice visit with her.
Monday after Christmas Grandpa, Rich, and Tyler headed to Niobrara Nebraska for a day of pheasant hunting. It started off slow but by the end of the day they had got their limit. Afterwards, they went to Newcastle and caught up with some old friends. Tyler learned that Grandpa was a legend back in the day.

Last night Tyler was asked to skip freshman ball practice today and suit up for the JV game vs. Sioux City East. He got quite a bit of playing time as point guard. He did a great job handling the ball, getting the ball up the court, and passing it to his teammates.
Tyler was 1 for 2 at the line. He scored 1 point in his junior varsity debut. Over Christmas break he will continue to practice with the Freshman team and then stay for the JV practice. He will then continue to play 3 to 4 games a week. He's so excited to play JV and I'm so excited to watch him play:)

Our weekend went a little something like this. We had a great weekend in Ankeny getting to spend time with Chloe. After we get home and I'm hunting up a white elephant gift for him to bring to youth group night at church I receive this text from Tyler:

A father passing by his son's bedroom, was astonished to see the bed was nicely made, and everything was picked up. Then, he saw an envelope, propped up prominently on the pillow. It was addressed, "Dad." With the worst premonition, he opened the letter with trembling hands.
"Dear Dad, It is with great regret and sorrow that I'm writing you. I had to elope with my new girlfriend because I wanted to avoid a scene with Mom and you. I've been finding real passion with Stacy, and she is so nice, but I knew you would not approve of her, because of all her piercings, tattoos, her tight motorcycle clothes, and because she is much older than I am. But its not only the passion, Dad, she's pregnant. Stacy said that we will be very happy. She owns a trailer in the woods, and has a stack of firewood for the whole winter. We share a dream of having many more children. Stacy has opened my eyes to the fact that marijuana doesn't really hurt anyone. We'll be growing if for ourselves, and trading it with the other people in the community, for all the cocaine and ecstasy we want. In the meantime, we'll pray that science will find a cure for AIDS so Stacy can get better. She sure deserves it!! Don't worry, Dad I'm 15, and I know how to take care of myself. Someday, I'm sure we'll be back to visit, so you can get to know your grandchildren.
Love, your son.

P.S. Dad, none of the above is true. I'm over at Tommy's house.I just wanted to remind you that there are worse things in life than a bad report card that's in my center desk drawer. I love you! Call when it's safe for me to come home.

Tyler has found his Christmas gifts and they are out of the box and on him! That is how we celebrated Christmas, on December 19th, at our house. Hope you all make wonderful memories for the holidays like we have.

The Storm Lake High School Concert Choir is made up of 154 students. Every 4 years this group goes to Orlando and competes nationally. They are ranked number one in the nation. When Tyler is a Senior he will go. Until then he will be doing fundraisers to pay for his trip. Thank you to everyone that has bought from him or will buy from him in the future. My pocketbook appreciates it;)
The last song of the evening, the director, Mr. Tollefson, invited the crowd to come join the choir and sing "Hallelujah." My favorite song was "Fum Fum Fum." It was about the birth of baby Jesus. It's so refreshing to hear songs of our Lord sung in school.
3 generations. We are so thankful to have Grandma close to us. She also brought us homemade goodies. Today we got a loaf of banana bread which is already half gone. Thank you also mom for helping me transport the ladies. I really appreciate your help.
Donna is our next door neighbor. She is so good to Tyler and I. Tyler loves her homemade goodies. We are so lucky to have her. This afternoon I borrowed her iron to press Tyler's shirt.
Joyce is our neighbor 2 doors down that Tyler has been working for for the last 2 years. She absolutely adores him. This morning at breakfast he said that we should invite her because she would love to see me sing. He was right. She loved seeing him perform:)
Father and Son. Steve got to the concert an hour early so we could enjoy the concert from the front row! Thank you

The best basketball game I've seen these boys play!!! They are really starting to come together as a team. I'm so proud of them for sticking together and working hard. Tyler had another great game. He had 9 points and great vision down the floor to get the assists and help the team to a victory. To end the first half he took a shot and got fouled. He made 2 of 3 to tie the game up. Coming out of the locker room the team was all smiles. Tyler would eventually foul out of the game with less than a minute of play left. That would be only his second break from play.
Tyler sporting his new warm up.

Tyler was 1 for 2 from the line. He had 14 points tonight. He was 3 for 4 from downtown. He got into a bit of foul trouble again having to sit out most of the third quarter.

They won!!! The game wasn't a pretty one but they won it anyway. Tyler had 2 points, 1 rebound and 4 steals. He also had 4 early fouls so he got to ride the pine quite a bit during the game. After wards, the coach told us he has quick hands and sometimes the refs don't like that.
Grandma and Grandpa made it up to watch the game. They also treated us for supper. Thanks for both:)
Charlie, Mitchell, Grant, Caleb, Ross, Yach, Chase and Tyler after winning their game.

The freshman boys had their first basketball game tonight. Tyler started in the point guard position. His stats were as follows: 12 points, 3 boards, 4 steals, and 5 assists. He went 4 for 6 from the line.

Wednesday Tyler got his school permit. He can now drive to school and school sponsored events from 5a to 10p. This mom is super excited!
Thursday morning we went to Ankeny to celebrate Thanksgiving at the Smith's. Hollie and Jason did a wonderful job of hosting everyone. At 12:01am Tyler and I went to Jordan Creek to hit up the Black Friday deals. We were 2 of 37,000 people at the mall that were crazy enough to stand in line for an hour just to get a bargain.
This morning Tyler had basketball practice and got to drive himself to and from. It was so neat to see him drive off by himself. He has become quite the young man.

It's been 4 years since Tyler brought home the black pheasant from his hunting trip with Rich and Grandpa. Since he's going on another trip with them after Christmas he thought he needed to do a little clay pigeon practice. Yesterday, we went to Grandma and Grandpa's house for food, family, and a little target practice fun. It was a great day seeing everyone.
Our cousins, Lori and Josh, even tried their luck at shooting clay pigeons. It'd been almost 20 years since Lori was shooting and she went 3 for 3...not bad, huh boys?!
Trying to get everyone to look at the camera at the same time was a small feat in itself.
This is the best I could do:)

There's a lot of things I can help Tyler with. Shaving is not one of them. So, Tyler asked Steve to help him shave his 'stache for the first time. He did a good job. No nicks. This milestone made me feel old.

As soon as we arrived Christopher was waiting for Tyler to play football with him.
Christopher, Tyler, Chloe, and Scott before heading off to the game.

This morning we headed to Ames to watch the final Big 12 showdown between ISU and NE. Tyler brought his friend Scott along who was the only NE fan in the group. He was also the only one smiling at the end of a really good game. It was so fun to see everyone. Thanks to Rich for another great party and Andrea for her ticket.

Today I attended a Hospice and Palliative Care Association of Iowa conference at the Scheman building on the campus of Iowa State. The luncheon was an opportunity to recognize a volunteer that goes above and beyond in our hospice program. We chose Denise Huskamp. She is one of the 18 reasons I absolutely love my new position! While gone, Tyler had "el dia de los murtos" to prepare for in Spanish class. Steve and him did a fabulous job of getting everything taken care of and the celebration turned out exquisite. Tyler said by far their "ofrenda" was the best in presentation.....even though I wasn't around to help this morning there wasn't a doubt in my mind it would turn out anything less than fabulous.

Chloe catching up on her snuggle time with Tyler at the end of the night.
Birthday weekend was a blast!!! We headed to Ankeny to celebrate Chloe (2nd) and Grandpa's (58) birthdays. We had a fantastic weekend spending it with our family. Food, fun, and an ISU victory over Texas. What more could you ask for?

Our cousin,Zach, came over from the Heelan side. He offered his condolences and chatted with Tyler for part of the game.
Tyler rode with Scott and Charlie to Sioux City for the last football game of the season. With the help of Tyler's GPS on his phone they made it to the field on time and safe:)

Tradition has it that after every football game we eat out with the Krier's. We've had a blast all season long going out with them. Here is Tyler with their sons Aaron and Anthony.

Tyler holding his nephew, Ah'trell.

Today we went to Omaha to visit Lauren and meet my new grandson. We had a wonderful breakfast with Lauren catching up with her before she headed to work. It's sort of weird to think. Me. A Grandma. If you would've asked me 18 years ago what I'd be doing today I wouldn't have dreamed I'd be buying my son basketball shoes for high school while holding my grandson. But,then again I can. You see I learned from the best. I have a great set of parents who have supported and loved me all my life. So as I shop with Tyler and Ah'trell I really am just doing what parents and grandparents do. Just like my parents taught me.

Today 5 of us from work went to Peterson, IA for their annual "Hiney winery festival." Different wineries from across IA gathered for a day of wine tasting. Vendors were also there with hemp brownies(they are delicious, organic and very high in omega 3s.), smoked meat, and homemade breads. I brought home for Tyler an apple from the local orchard that was dipped in homemade caramel. I also bought a bottle of wine to share with the ladies of my family;)After wards, we went to the Heritage Preservation Center. O'Brien County collects all their road kill and dumps it in a field at once. All the sudden the birds start flocking in. It is unbelievable to watch. They also held a bison burger picnic. Also in town was the A.R.T.(Artisan Road Trip) where we went to people's houses and looked at their art for sale. It was a fantastic afternoon with my friends. Thanks Steve for spending the day with Tyler.

Day 5: Spirit Day

Friday they had an 11:30 dismissal. The parade was in the afternoon. I didn't get a picture of the float they worked on Thursday night. By time I realized it was the freshman float it was already by. Student Council members then had to set up for the dance. The game was horrible. We got smoked 43-6. The dance was the highlight of the week. Tyler had a good time. Afterwards, they ate at the Pantry. All in all a busy fun homecoming week.

Day 4
Wear your class color to school. Freshman are always p**p brown.
Day 2 (mismatch) and Day 3 (costume) Tyler didn't participate.

"Did I do that?"

Day 1: Nerd Day

Chloe, Mady, Tyler, Maggie, and Macy...It was A LOT of pictures to get the one where they all are looking at the camera.
4 generations
This is the longest Chloe has sat. She wanted to be right next to great grandma.

Saturday morning we headed to Minnesota to celebrate great grandma's 87th birthday with her. It was fun to catch up with everyone and see how big the kids have gotten. The girls all adored Tyler. He would throw them up in the air and they would giggle. He definitely got his arm workout in for the weekend.

Friday Chloe and I picked up Tyler from school. We then headed to DQ for "happy hour." You maybe wondering why I didn't mention Hollie with us. That's cuz she wasn't! She was at the salon enjoying wine, relaxing, and getting her hair done! Chloe had a 10 second melt down but after that she was all smiles with ice cream.
After ice cream we went to the park to play. Chloe went up and down the slides, all by herself, 10 times! After playing we stopped and got pizza for supper. Friday nights are football nights in our house. So we loaded everyone up and headed to Spencer. It was a great night! All of us together and a SL victory!!!

Friday afternoon we headed to Ankeny. We jumped in the RV with Rich and Andrea and headed to Kansas City to watch ISU play K-State at Arrowhead Stadium Saturday morning. Unfortunately, ISU came out on the losing end of another close one. Fortunately, we were surrounded with so many great friends and family that we didn't mind too much. Sunday morning we drove back to Ankeny to be over to Smith's just in time for lunch. We are so blessed to have our family close and be able to spend time with them. Thank you so much Rich and Andrea for another fun trip. Eventually we'll see an ISU victory. Thank you Jason and Hollie for another wonderful meal as we headed home. We loved spending time playing and trying to keep up with Chloe.

Today is National Truck Driver Appreciation Day! We want to say thank you to Grandpa for all the miles he's been on the road for us. I appreciate you hard work so, as a child growing up I could go on a 13 day trip with you and spend my $750 detasseling check all on clothes. You were a good sport doing all that shopping with me. Tyler has enjoyed his many trips with you. He looks forward to getting caught up on his sleep in the bunk and also looks forward to your "Truck Trivia" every week. Grandma also should get a little praise for all her "extras" she does in keeping the wheels rollin'. Thank you both for all you've provided for us. One last thing: Grandpa...Enjoy your day off;)

Tyler playing wide receiver. After 6+ years of playing QB, Tyler has had enough! With no O line to block, teammates not knowing the plays, and getting sacked to the point he's sore,he retired;)(How's Favre do it @ 40 he joked?) He's never felt better!!! He started as wide receiver and loved it!!! He had a sweet catch and ran it for 13 yards! On defense he played Cornerback. That's where I love watching him. Since he's so smart he can read the plays perfectly. He had some great tackles that coach told him were "Perfect good 'ol fashion low tackles."

Last night at 7:34pm my grandson, Tyler's nephew, Artrell Simpson, came into the world weighing 6lb. 4oz, and 20 in. long. Everyone is healthy and doing great. He will bring many blessings into our already very blessed lives. We are looking forward to meeting him soon.

Tyler and Chase getting their instructions from the refs.
Friday night Tyler and Chase were ball boys for the Varsity football game. After a day of raining they had to keep the balls dry. The boys stood on the visitors side and took in a lot different perspective of the game than they usually get from the stands.

For those of you wondering why Tyler got to be on the kick off like I was, when he usually isn't, it was simple: He was one of the eleven players that showed up for practice yesterday so coach said that's how it'd play out. As a parent I unselfishly give up my wants so Tyler can fulfill his. He thinks that's great. I think that's just what you do as a loving supportive parent.
Tyler broke up numerous plays and had another interception on defense. As QB he had some great passes. One last thing he wanted me to mention: He had a belt on and his shirt still came out;)

Hunter, Mitchell, Darren, Chase, and Tyler after football practice.
First off, Happy 9th Anniversary to Rich and Andrea. We love you both very much.
Today I had a rough day:( I'm doing 3 jobs, I have a mountain of paperwork on my desk, and the supplies I ordered are not coming til Friday. I then receive a phone call that my 56 year old client with lung cancer that metastasized to his brain just passed away. He leaves behind a wife and son who will dearly miss him. I start to cry thinking my own parents are 57 and I can't imagine losing them anytime soon. As I read one of the many training manuals I should have read weeks ago I come across this quote. "Keep your priorities. No one ever said on their death bed: "Gee, if I'd only spent more time at the office." So as I shuffle in n out of Walmart, make a quick supper, and race to pick up Tyler from football practice I realize I've never been so happy to COME HOME:)