On January 1st I woke up at 5:30a to make my Chicago bound flight out of San Francisco to celebrate the life of my Gram. Honoring a woman that has lived an amazing life. Loved by many, and she truly enjoyed being surrounded by those she adored. Everyone was welcome in her house, everyone. She lived an incredible 93 years and traveled, laughed, loved, served, and had a testimony of her Savior Jesus Christ. She was a stubborn little french woman at times, but her passion and love for life were evident. She had a way she liked to do things and believed in the proper way of doing them. My Grand-Mere taught me many lessons. She showed me how to make a bed "military style", how to embrace the moments you get to spend with family, not to forget to laugh through life, and that a long walk can do anyone and everyone some good. She taught me that though there is darkness (living through WWII) you can always look for and seek the light. She taught me that portions in a meal are called portions for a reason, haha, but that you should always have a treat after every meal. You ALWAYS have room for a treat, just a small one of course :)
Leaving at 5:30a proved to be one early morning, but as always I slept the entire flight. Feeling refreshed and ready to go once I landed in Chicago. That chilly wind hits ya straight through to the bones. This California girl was missing her sunshine, but embraced the weather we never get. My cute cousin Megan came to pick me up, bless her for doing so. It was the day after Christmas Eve and we all know staying up until midnight is usually a part of the celebration, haha. She was so awesome volunteering to wake up a little earlier than normal to come get me.
Once I got back to my Aunt Sue and Uncle Steve's house my cousin swung by to say hi and catch up. Kyle, Lauren, and KJ were down from Wisconsin for the holiday and made one more stop before heading back home. Kyle and I were actually born on the same day and are only like 10 hours a part. We've been close since the beginning :) I spent my first day home with the Mandrelle's and it was exactly what I needed after an early morning. It was very chill and so fun to catch up. We all headed to bed a little earlier due to the late night before and my early morning.
I got in to Chicago a few days before the rest of my family. I am so grateful that I got in when I did. Spending quality time with all of my Aunts and Uncles was incredible. I met up with Aunt Steph and Aunt Nad on Jan 2nd. We did a little shopping for Aunt Nad who needed a few things before the funeral. Plus, I forgot pajamas, so I grabbed some of those while I was out. Then we headed back to the Spung house. I helped the Aunts prepare for funeral arrangements, accepted food from caring/grieving friends, and played games until midnight with my Aunts and Uncles. Since all of the cousins weren't in yet, it was pretty quiet, chill, and a lot of games. My Spung side of the family is huge. My Dad is the second oldest of 10. With that comes a lot of love, cousins, Aunts, Uncles, and friends. The time we had to just hang out was perfect.
One night I was sitting around Grandma's dining room table with Aunt Steph, Aunt Nad, Uncle Philippe, Uncle John, Aunt Lorelei, Uncle Scott, and Aunt Sandra playing Pass the Pandas. We had been playing games for a couple hours, and I couldn't help but think, "How many people are as blessed as I am with people like this in their lives. I doubt that there are many in this world that are as close to their Aunts and Uncles as I am." We ended up playing games until after midnight, laughing, cracking jokes, eating great food and enjoying each other's company. It was beautiful, and I wouldn't have traded it for anything. Love my people.
Due to a full house at Aunt Steph's, I stayed with Uncle Steve and Aunt Sue while I was there. Jenna and I snuck away one afternoon, and grabbed some Culver's one last time. She took a new job and would no longer be working there. I had to cash in on one more trip ;) We had so many late nights, and fun conversations. I loved being to catch up with both sides of the fam.
The rest of my family got in on January 4th. We had Grand-Mere's funeral services on January 5th with a burial on January 6th. Everyone met up at Aunt Steph's and the celebration of life began with the entire family there.
The sisters are back together again! Everyone met up at Uncle Steve's house. We hung out there, and then headed over to Aunt Steph's for games, food, and fun.
Game on peops!
Cousin time!
Aunts, Uncles, and cousins.
More people to love.
As we were finalizing funeral plans that night I came across these two gems. The couple on the left are my french grandparents. My Gram's mom and step dad. I stayed with my Great Grandfather for several weeks in France when I was 14 years old. This pic was just amazing and I needed to have a copy of it.
The pic on the right is my Gram riding with me on a kiddie ride in an amusement park called Santa's village.
Me and the sisters had an Aunt problem, haha.
Erin, Aunt Nad, Britt, Aunt Lorelei, Ang, Aunt Steph, and me. We were just missing Aunt Patty.
We were the last ones out for the night around midnight before heading back to the hotel.
My Dad did an amazing job leading the funeral services. He spoke of Grandma's life and the timeline of events. He shared fun stories and little anecdotes of life as a kid growing up with a military father and how they impacted my Gram. He spoke about the several moves my Gram endured, the children she raised, and the love she shared with all.
My sisters and I also sang Abide With Me Tis Eventide before the speakers began. It was a beautiful service and we were grateful that everyone could make it home to celebrate Gram.
The following day was the burial service. Gram was being buried with Grandpa in the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery. It's a military cemetery. As I watched five of my Gram's sons and her grandson, Steven (Bud), lift and carry her into the hearst, tears fell. This was such a heartfelt tender moment. I am so grateful I could capture it.
Once everyone was loaded into cars we began the precession to the cemetery. In our van we had all of the sisters, Jim, Violet, and Emmy. It was fun to catch up with everyone along the way. We also had the opportunity to FaceTime with HayKay on her mission in Ohio. The sisters decided that it would be best for us to sing one more song for Gram at the burial. We chose "As I Have Loved You". We practiced on the drive.
Ang and I were in the back of the bus, haha.
There is a sacredness to military cemeteries. As you walk about you truly feel as though you are on hollowed ground. The order, the wreaths, the beauty of it all is amazing. Jim did an incredible job dedicating Gram's grave and gave a beautiful prayer and blessing. I was so grateful that my Aunts asked for me to take pics of the service, burial, and after party. I loved playing even a small part of it all.
After the burial we had to hit up Portillo's just once ;) We all met up and had dinner with the original seven, Em, and Violet. It was absolutely perfect!
I did it! I got all of us that could attend in one pic, haha. Grateful for this crew! What an incredible celebration and joy it was to catch up, and spend a few days with so many people I love.
My flight took off early the next morning. Lucky for me I have an Aunt that works for the airlines :) Aunt Sue had work that next morning at 7a and my flight took off at 8:30a. It was the perfect way for me to get back home. I stayed one more night with Uncle Steve and Aunt Sue and headed back the next day. O'hare airport still had their Christmas decor up, but were actually in the process of taking it all down that morning. It was fun to watch the crew break it all down. Such a pretty display.
This flight was massive. They had three rows of seats. It was a 3-5-3 seater. I hadn't been on a plane this big since going to the Philippines several years ago. I of course slept the whole way home :)
My cute crew surprised me at the airport!
I was so happy to have that time with my extended family, but boy was it nice to be back with mine. Love these people of mine. It was such a fun surprise!
Celebrating Uncle Brian.
On the one year anniversary of Uncle Brian's passing we chose to celebrate him and his legacy the best way we knew how, with Chicago dogs. We had Chicago styled hot dogs, coleslaw, chips, and chocolate chip cookies for dessert. At dinner we shared our favorite memories of Uncle Brian and asked Pres to share stories from their childhood. Everyone wore BYU, Chicago gear, or blue in his honor. We loved remembering Bri and plan to make this a tradition every year.
We also did a puzzle, since he loved doing the family puzzles with us.
Preston ordained Jackson as a holder of the Aaronic Priesthood. There were so many emotions as we heard this beautiful blessing. Preston felt his little brother standing right beside him through it all. It was absolutely wonderful, and we were so grateful to have felt the Spirit so strong. Jack even said afterward, "I felt like Uncle Brian was here." I think he was bud, I truly think he was.
We also found out the results on Jackson's kidney biopsy this week. Everything came back clear and looked great, which left the doctors questioning things even more. Next steps will be to do genetic blood testing and an ultrasound. It will take several weeks to get the genetic testing results back, but the doctor is wondering if we just caught something in his kidney's really early on in his life. He will undergo blood testing and another sample in February. Our insurance switched at the beginning of the year and we are now meeting with Dr. Auron, who is incredible. Our previous nephrologist and him know each other well and have been discussing Jack's case on the back channels, looking for better results and answers. We have an ultrasound scheduled for February. They want to take a look at the kidneys, bladder, and areas surrounding for a different perspective to see what is going on. Stay tuned!
Since starting my website in November, I was finally starting to see some progress. I worked day after day on the verbiage and finding the best way to portray myself through the interwebs. I hired a designer to help with colors, fonts, and overall design. We are still in the thick of it, but it is getting closer. We are hoping for a March launch. There is SO much behind the scenes of this bad boy. It is a little daunting, but also exciting to see little stepping stones along the way.
Grand-Bear made it home. Aunt Steph asked if I would like to have the giant teddy bear that once belonged to my Great Grandfather in France. I of course said, "YES!" This cute bow-tied bear was a connection to some of the memories that tied me to France. Quinn affectionately named him Grand-Bear after Grand-Pere (grandfather in French). We are so grateful to have him in our home.
Everyone is officially in piano! Anna is teaching Beckham and Quinn now too :)
Playing Chicago Bears match on the left. On the right, Pres grabbed some fun desserts for date night.
Eating his delicious peanut butter pie while we watched the finale of Wallander. Great date night!
One Saturday morning we decided to take a family drive around the Bay Area. We stopped at this park for some football, swings, and stretching our legs.
Pres playing catch with our little MVP.
Showing the route Jack will run using the football as his notepad :)
Our afternoon date was spent playing tennis. We had so much fun. I can't wait to do this one again soon!
My love.
We were laughing so hard that Pres started getting tears in his eyes. There is nothing like laughing until it hurts. We love our weekly dates and look forward to them each week.
Wrapped up and cozy.
It was time for my hair to get a little love. Thanks to Michelle it turned out uber cute.
A visit from two of our favorite people!! We were so excited to hear that Scott and Sandy were coming in for Quinn's baptism. They flew in and met Pres and I at a delicious Greek restaurant for lunch. The food was amazing, but the company was even better. So grateful to these two and the time we get together.
January was a whirl wind of emotions. It started off celebrating the 93 years of a woman I've loved my entire life. I spent days with people I love and cherish as we reminisced and caught up on all things. Games were played, great food was had, and so many hugs were shared. I then came home to a year marker of another person I admire, looked up to, and loved as a brother. We celebrated Bri, his life, his service of others, and the genuine love he had for all of God's children. Our crew loved talking about these influential role models in our life. We ended the month embracing two of our favorite people, catching up, and spending quality time together. January in a nutshell was wrapped in warm embraces, the legacy of those we loved, and the gratitude of those we can still hug and share this life with. How grateful we are for the incredible people in our lives. The ones that have shaped us, taught us, loved us, and continue to be a support and guide through this life.
