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| A big family photo of almost everyone there. |
This year for Thanksgiving we went to my dad's new house in Orem. It is much bigger than his old house and we filled it up fast! I wanted to be sure we were there this year because this is Grandma Blad's last Thanksgiving with us. She was diagnosed with ALS earlier this year and only has a few months to live. She's one of my kindred spirits and I feel really close to her. I'm pretty sure we were good friends in the pre-existence.
I'm glad we got to be there this year. I got to have my special time alone with grandma. When she was going to bed I volunteered to lay next to her until she fell asleep because she was in such pain and didn't want to be alone. I stayed with her and helped adjust the pillows, heat pad, and warmed up rice bags. Mostly we just laid there and talked for a couple hours. That was exactly my wish for that thanksgiving. It was likely the last time we would get to be together. She really wants to pass away because of the pain and the burden she feels is. She has priesthood blessings daily and in one of them she was told the desires of her heart will be granted. She believes that means she can choose when she will pass away. She told me she wants that day to be a few days after Cami's wedding in December and when Kerry gets back from her trip she has planned. I guess we will see. Anyway, eventually her medications kicked in and she went to sleep.
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| Debby's Blad family- Grandpa Blaine and Grandma Virginia in the front, (L-R) Kerry, Kirk, Steven, Colleen, Cheryl, Debby (Missing: Kenneth) |
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| Cami wearing Grandma's wedding dress. She's going to wear it when she gets married in December. |
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| Cami holding grandma's hand |
The dinner portion of Thanksgiving was an incredible feast with lots of food and lots of mouths to feed.
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| Josh and Emily's daughter Lyla reminds me so much of Amara when she was little. I loved talking to her! |
There were 3 full sized tables and 2 kids tables in the dining room as well as the barstools at the bar all set for the guests, and in the living room there were 3 smaller round tables set up too!
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| Debby waving a warm welcome to her new dining room |
Dad might have a condition slowing him down (maybe parkinsons), but he doesn't let that stop him. When I arrived he was sweating and had been slaving away in the kitchen for several hours nonstop. He's amazing.
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| My dad never stops. Look at him slice the turkey. He made 3 turkeys and a ham! |
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| Appetizers were a hit |
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| My plate of goodness. I couldn't even fit everything. It was all delicious! We brought cooked beets from our garden and steamed vegetables. |
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| Lily, Eden, and Amara |
The girls enjoyed their time. When I peeked over at them they were balancing spoons on their noses with the rest of their table. It was a great time!
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| The dining room |
