street fire

Ryan and I went to dinner tonight.  It was good, a nice meal and night out.  But, that wasn't the highlight... We were almost home, and as we pulled onto Oakleaf Lane, this is what we came upon:

ashes still smoldering and put  in the trash can...not a good idea...

Ryan called the fire department. 

It took them 7 minutes to arrive, and the fire got pretty big.  It very well could have caught the lawn, and then house on fire.  I rang the doorbell, and it took awhile, but eventually the owner came outside.  Just in time to see the firemen save HIS day. 

Lesson:  DON'T THROW YOUR ASHES AWAY!! Put them in a metal can and let them sit for a LONG time!!

merry

 Merry Christmas.

With Love.

quiet eve

Merry Christmas Eve.

a quiet evening, just the 2 of us.

Train to Sports, Dinner, Movie, Train to home

...and the city will finally sleep...

pueblo pride

The 3 cutest kids that reside in Pueblo!

My sister Raenie's kiddos, Alayna, Dallin, and Kenzie.

I love you guys!

foutz fam

Tonight we had the Foutz sibling Christmas gathering at Carmen and Kelly's.  We had dinner, a gift exchange, a performance by Nicholas the Ventriloquist, and a birthday celebration for Will and Andrew.

It was nice to be together and share some cheer.

Nicholas and "Freak Out" doing their act.  He is actually pretty good.  He says he loves Jeff Dunham, and that's who inspired him.

Will turned 4 on the 17th, and Andrew is 11 on the 21st.

These poor kids who have Dec. birthdays!

tradition

Our annual tradition. 

Usually we have the kids with us.  But, they couldn't make it this time.

Merry Christmas!

special visitor

Last night Santa came over on a special errand to scold Mr. Bailey for his Scrooginess.  Apparently the Jackson's across the street tattled.  They told Santa that I had complained to them about being the only home on the street with no Christmas lights outside. All because of my husbands lack of Christmas cheer.  Mr. Claus explained how important it was for ALL of Oakleaf Lane to outwardly express holiday festiveness by putting up lights.  Ryan promised Santa he would do better next year.

We'll see if RHB keeps his promise in 2012...

finale

Thanks Sharon, for another great year of poker playing.  But, more importantly, for another year of some really good times, laughs, and friendships!

And, the year would not be quite complete without the finale...

Sean and his friend John Denver! ;)

Lastly, Congrats to the 3 finalasts: Shane, Ryan, and B-Rock. 

I promise, in 2012, at some point, I am going to take ALL of you down!  (even RHB!)

real lasagna

  It doesn't seem like 12 months have passed since we celebrated Giovanni's birthday... but it has!  We went over to the Spitale home last night for some amazing, 'real' homemade lasagna (at the Bailey home, we fix Stouffers frozen)  and good company.  All in a petite effort to celebrate the birthday boys beginning of his final year of his 30's. 

None of us were too energetic.  It has been a long week for everyone.  We'll be saving and storing the energy and excitement for his 4-0 next time around... ;)

Brenda, Giovanni, and Erin Spitale

dc destruction

When Ryan and I first met, the topic of where the most ideal place to live in Utah came up. 

As I am a mid-westerner, I didn't really have a strong opinion.  Coming from them-there parts, anywhere is fine, everyone is our friend; we like 'em all.   BUT, when I learned that HE, on the other hand, had a very strong opinion about geography in Utah, and where he would and would not like to reside... that stuck my Arien side, my ears perked up, and then I thought that I should have an opinion. So, since the business that I started in Utah, and the clientele I had, was in Sandy, I was all of a sudden a South Valley girl.  I was only going to reside, and establish myself there.  He swore to me that if I would just give the DC (Davis County) a chance, I would fall in love, and never want to leave.  I didn't believe him, but I was in love with him, so I trusted, and I followed....

Yesterday,

 while South Valley was asleep and oblivious, this is what happened in the DC:

First off, this is where, during the months of March-October, my husband resides:

and this is what 106 mph winds did to it:

and, then this is just a photo of the Centerville McDonald's sign that happened to make the national news... It was a CRAZY storm!!

Luckily, all is well on Oakleaf Lane... no destruction, no loss of power, no mess.

And, I have to admit that I really do love residing in the DC...