Valentine's day!

The kids had fun making their Valentine's boxes for school. Parker decided to make his a golden toilet. Kev helped him create the flusher.  When you pulled on the flusher it pulled the lid up.  One of the many bonuses of having an engineer for a Dad.  He also wrote "Don't forget to flush" on the front.  Halle decorated her box with duct tape. She cut out a heart flap for the opening.  She even glued conversation candy hearts on it.

 Kev surprised me with beautiful flowers.  They are purple roses with pink around the edges.  I love having flowers in the house to enjoy looking at each day.

Mckenna watched the kids while we went out for the night.  It was nice that we got to spend the whole day together since it fell on a Saturday this year.  We went to one of our favorite restaurants called Harvest.  We always enjoy the food and atmosphere there.

We ordered a chocolate mouse dome cake for dessert to share.  It was delicious and not too rich.

We went to see a movie after dinner.  We had a hard time finding one we were excited about.  We ended up going to see Into the woods.  Kev was a good sport because he doesn't love musicals like I do.  I have to admit this one wasn't my favorite.  We both were restless during the movie and were glad when it was over.  Oh well, we did enjoy are evening out together.  One of the highlights was taking selfies together in the car.

Grant family party

We went up to the cabin this last weekend for the annual Grant party.  It was great to see everyone that came.  We always have a fun time!  There was not a lot of snow this time.  But it better than what we have at home.  We haven't gotten snow in over a month.

There was a spot by the barn that had turned into ice.  The kids made it their own ice skating rink. They were having a great time sliding around and even falling.

Aunt Lisa pulled the kids around on sleds.

We even busted out the Gator. The snow was low enough that no one got stuck. 

This kind of snow was great for making snowballs.  I made Addy a whole sled full.  She was very protective of her snow balls and carted them around in the sled.

Uncle Dave flew in for the weekend from Texas.  It was fun having him with us.  He started a snowball fight with all the kids.

We had fun catching up with all the cousins and getting to hang out with Spence.  It was also a little bittersweet for us.  It was the first time being at the cabin since Grandpa's passing.  There were reminders of Grandpa everywhere.  His tools hanging in the barn, pictures on the wall, and seeing Chuck Foster road which was named in his honor.  We miss him so much!

Our Grandpa Foster...

 

Our sweet Grandpa Foster passed away on Sunday January 25th.  We were shocked when we heard the news.  It was really unexpected.  He hadn't been sick or had health problelms.  It was really hard because we didn't get to say goodbye.  He did pass away peacefully in his sleep.  We are grateful for that.

Grandpa was 89 years old.  We never realized how old he was because of all his energy.  He lived life to the fullest.  He was even snowmobiling with Kev just two months before he passed away.

I am so grateful for all the beautiful memories we have with Grandpa.  His barbeques on the 24th of July were legendary.  We always looked forward to them.  I took this picture in 2007.  Grandpa was cooking chicken, hamburgers, hot dogs, and shrimp scampi.  I loved how all his boys were standing there to help supervise.  Uncle Mike also passed away this last June from Cancer.

Grandpa was always there to support us and show his love.  This was the first time he met Hayden.  He would even come to the hospital to meet his newest Great Grandchild.  There are four generations of Foster men in this picture.

Grandpa was the life of the party.  He was pretending to play Parker's guitar cake in this picture.  I love the look of delight on both Parker and Tucker's face.  Grandpa was a man of many talents.  One of them was singing.  He sang with the Mormon Tabernacle choir for 20 years.  He was also part of a barbershop quartet.  I will never forget that he sang "Sunrise Sunset" from Fiddler on the Roof at our wedding.

I captured this sweet moment with Grandpa and Parker after Grandma Foster's funeral.  Parker was giving Grandpa a hug to cheer him up.

We loved having Grandpa come to our house.  This night we had him all to ourselves.  We invited him over to have dinner on Valentine's Day with us.

Grandpa was a lot of fun!  Here he is doing "cheers" with Hayden.  I am sure Hayden did it over and over again.  But Grandpa never tired of the game either.

We enjoyed spending time with Grandpa on Father's day.  

Grandpa loved horses and shared that love with all his Grandkids.  He rode around the field with  Kev just a couple of years ago.  It was his last time on a horse.  Kev had a very close relationship with his Grandpa.  Grandpa instilled in him the value of hard work, honesty, and kindness.  Grandpa told Kev that one of the greatest investments he ever made was buying the land to build to build the cabin.  We are so glad that he did.  The cabin has been a great place for all of us to getaway to the mountains and spend time together.

Grandpa was always so kind and loving to me.  He always accepted me and made me feel like I was a part of the family.  I will always remember him coming up and giving me a huge hug after our kids birthday parties.  He always said, "You sure know how to throw a party."  

Parker will always remember how Grandpa gave the talk at his baptism.  I am so glad he had the chance to know his great Grandpa.

I love this picture of Addy with her Great Grandpa.  This was at her birthday party when she turned three.

I am so glad that we got to spend Christmas day with Grandpa this year.  It was the last time most of us saw him.  I love this picture of him and Mckenna and now it means even more.  I am so glad Mckenna got to know her Great Grandpa and will always remember him.  She said that he would tell her he loved her and what a beautiful young women she was becoming.

Grandpa's funeral was Saturday January 31st.  It was a beautiful morning.  The sun was shining brightly down on us above the mountains. It was a very nice funeral.  Kevin was given the honor of speaking. He paid a loving tribute to his Grandpa.

Kev also was a pallbearer along with his brother and cousins.

Addy and Cousin Austin looked so cute standing next to eachother at the graveside.

Grandpa had a military salute at his graveside service.  He served in the Naval Air Corps in his early twenties.  

They folded up the flag from his coffin and gave it to Aunt Chris.  Then the veteran saluted her.

The siblings putting a rose on Grandpa's coffin.

The kids each enjoyed putting a flower on top too.

Kev with his brother Spencer.  It was a hard day.

We took several family pictures while we were there.  It is times like these that help your realize that family is what is most important.  They are the ones that are always there for you and help you through hard times.

We went back to the church for the luncheon.  Funeral potatoes are always a bonus.  Parker was dancing around the gym with Addy.  I thought it was cute how she was looking up at her big brother.

There were so many gorgeous flowers at the funeral.  We got to choose a bouquet to take home. It was a wonderful day celebrating the life of Grandpa.  He left such an inspiring legacy of love for all of us.  He saw the best in everyone and brought out those qualities in them.

Grandpa passed away just about a week after Grandma's birthday.  It was one of the best presents Grandma could ever get. We know it was a happy reunion in Heaven for them both. It brings me comfort to know they are both up there together, cheering us on.