“I cry the day that I take the tree down”

Today was cleaning day.  We have a tree in our basement that is full of very special ornaments/memories.  As I took the ornaments off I had Ila photograph them.

This ornament is from Reno Nevada.  It is a trip Adam and I went on with Pulte Homes.  Avram was with us on this trip.

This one is from New Orleans.  This was another trip we took with Pulte Homes.  Avram was with us on this trip and I was pregnant at the time with the baby I miss carried just a few weeks after we got home.

We were married in March 2002 which is the same time the Winter Olympics were in Utah.  Adam and I stayed in Park city for 2 days for our honeymoon and we got this ornament.  I remember how difficult it was to spend so much money on an ornament.  I think it was only $5-$7 but that was a lot for us.

This ornament is funny because it was given to us from Adams step brother Clint.  Clint is not a member of the church but he knew for some reason we would like this ornament.

This is from our trip to Mexico when Mike and Diana got married.  Ila was just a tiny baby when we took this trip with her.

This is from our trip to Disneyland.  We couldn't afford to buy an ornament there so I bought a key chain instead.  Later that year I saw a beautiful ornament from the Disney store on an excellent deal so I bought it to replace the key chain.  After receiving the ornament I realized that the little key chain meant so much more than the beautiful ornament.

We had to get an ornament when we went to Vernal Utah to visit Justin and Sarah for Williams baptism.

This is from our trip in 2018 to Hawaii.  We got to see Grandpa and Grandma A on their mission.

2018 Thanksgiving in Texas with Mike and Diana

Aruba was a trip Adam and I went on because we  were sent on it by one of his construction suppliers.  I really like Aruba.

This is the cruise we went on in 2016.  There is a little cruise ship, and ornament from St. Lucia, St. Marteen, Barbados, St Kitts, and St Croix.  St Thomas was also part of that vacation.









I couldn't find an ornament in Puerto Rico so I bought this Rooster to put on the tree to remind us of that trip.

The Hula girl was a trip that I went on with a friend.  I have a friend that travels a lot for work.  She used some frequent flier miles to take me to Hawaii with her when she had a business trip.


One of my favorite places to visit was Costa Rica.  This was another trip Adam and I got to go on because a construction supplier sent us.

Utah ornament, because we have been all around Utah.


Washington DC was a really neat trip.  Not only did we get to visit Grandpa and Grandma A on their mission but we got to see so many cool museums.  One ornament I bought while we were in DC and the other one my parents sent us for a gift.

I have several ornament from Yellowstone.  We go to Island Park every summer and spend a week riding dirt bikes and ATVs.



The ornament below is from our 2018 trip to Island park.  We always drive into West Yellowstone but we only visit the actual park every few years.  This year we went into the park.  The first hot pot we stopped at we arrived just after a man had been gored by a buffalo.  We were there in time for all the gory stuff.  Adam flagged down a ranger and we stayed until help arrived.  Ila hadn't remember visiting Yellowstone previously and after seeing what happened she said, "Mom I don't like it here.  Lets go back to the cabin."

The next two ornaments are very special.  I bought them this year as a gift for my boys.  Both of my boys became Eagle Scouts this year so these ornaments are a reminder of their Eagle award and the date they received it.