2018 In Review

2018 ... I really wasn't good about getting my blogging done. As I write up this review, organizing it into categories, I can "see" the blog posts in my head (similar to scrapbooking in my sleep in days gone by). I really have NO excuses. With the boys getting older and doing things on their own, I  have the time to sit down and dedicate to recording the family history. I'm going to attempt to hit most of these bullet points with their own post (backdating as needed, as I like the blog in chronological order). Of course, I still have some from LAST year I should catch up on too. But like Scrapbooking, better late than never, and create as inspiration strikes and then put the memories where they belong in the timeline. It's all good ...

• Animals: Our four ducks made it through the winter, and the two girls started laying eggs around Easter. Then sadness struck, as Gabby died. We adopted three new girls and had a lot of eggs all summer. Nothing new with Oreo and Joy, but Landon brought Toby over a lot, and then he and Sol got Nala too. Our final fish turned belly up. Cal and Kate's hamster visits.
• Girls: Landon and Sol got engaged earlier in the year, and married on September 1. Cal and Kate are still totally tight and planning for the future. Keaton has hit several school dances but doesn't really "date" ... neither do Cooper or Colton. Unfortunately, Gray and I haven't gotten out much either. Other Westra Weddings ... Janika, Corin, Connor and Kaden. 
• Garden: Tons of tomatoes, a zillion zucchini and a plethora of pumpkins. Sunflowers too. 
• Grayson's (and Grandma's) Garage: It was quite the project. Tons of time and money and rearranging and perfecting. Had to get a storage unit for extra stuff. Gladiator strips and siding on the walls. I gave the grandparent's a tour and sparked them redoing their garage (and grandpa's cave ... Staircase to Nowhere). 
• Grayson's Getaways:  Off to Orlando in January with work for the Builder's Convention. A quick family trip to Seattle (sans Cal and I) in April. Work trips to California and Phoenix in May. Moab (work, but fun, rafting and razor rides) and Bear Lake (Gray and the littles), in July. Crashing Kolby's birthday in Portland in September, then a quick Canada/Seattle trip in November.
• Gray Gourmet: Grayson continues to smoke all sorts of yumminess. His latest foray into gourmet is Sous Vide. We enjoy his experimentation as he tries to perfect his trade. He added a broiler and refrigerator to his garage. His guacamole is legendary, he set out creative Caprese salad and made pretzel bites for the first (but not last) time.
• JenB's Baking: brownies, cookies, breads. New Grinch cookies.
• Gadgets: Alexa. Ring. 
• Games: Switch, Jackbox, and all the others. 
• Segway:  We got a Segway.
• Summer Stuff: Many trips to Pineview.
• Room Rearrange: With Landon moving out ... all the boys have their own rooms. New beds. 
• Medical Moments: Colton's knee. Anxiety issues. Blood Brothers (donating blood and plasma). 
• Musical Moments: We went to Hale's Aida ... Gray fell in love with some of the music. The Greatest Showman was big in theaters. Landon was able to go see Hamilton with Olivia. We had an Itunes family membership for streaming songs, but switched to Spotify at the end of the year. 
• Halloween: Painting pumpkins. Cal and Kate in scrubs (April and Matthew), Landon and Sol dressing up the animals. Connor's wedding. Colton off trick or treating. Keaton's Star Trek group. 
• Basketball: Colton's Copper Hills Grizzlies wrapped up their relationship as the team members went separate ways after Spring. He's continued playing with his Wolves (a grade up) and started with the West Jordan Bantam league. Keaton enjoys being part of the crowd cheering on the high school team, always dressing up for the themes. As far as play, Keaton is doing Junior Jazz again, but Cooper is sitting it out this year. Cal continues to play in a men's league. 
• Fitness, Fitbits and 5ks: Family 5k, Dirty Dash, home gym, Fitbit family again. Jen Zumba.
• School: Landon and Callahan have been attending SLCC, working toward their associate degrees. Cal switched his focus to electrical apprenticeship. Sol graduated. Keaton started his senior year at Copper Hills. Colton wrapped up his elementary experience, and he and Cooper are both at Elkridge (7th and 9th respectively).  School boundaries were realigned (or not really, in our area) causing a lot of speculation and stress. Cooper's school anxiety amped up. Summer homework (How We Roll). 
• Work: Grayson had a good year at Symphony Homes. Landon had been working at Discover but is making a change for next year. Callahan had enjoyed UPS, but then started working full time as an apprentice electrician. KFC keeps Keaton busier than we like. 
• Derby Daze: With the LDS church announcement about pulling out of Boy Scouts, we aren't sure what the future holds for Pinewood Derbies here in Utah ... but Gray had 45 this year! With Keaton working at KFC so much, Cooper has become Dad's right-hand man, although all the boys helped out at least once during the year.

I made the monthly "1 Second Every Day" videos throughout the year, and I combined them together for an all-inclusive annual review.