Our Shih Tzu Christy, all dressed up for Christmas 2018. Nine years ago Christy was a very special surprise Christmas gift from Bob to the family.
A handmade wooden ornament by Lisa's Dad and a handmade beaded star by women in an African Village supported by the organization Amazima.
Our tree all decorated for Christmas 2018.
"I wonder what I'm going to get for Christmas?"
Mary and Joseph ready to make the journey to Bethlehem. We always wait until Christmas morning to add baby Jesus to the stable and manger.
Our "tall" Christmas elf. Caleb is now right at 6 feet tall.
Lisa adding Christmas lights to the trellis and grapevines in our backyard.
Christmas lights glowing in the grapevines.
Caleb has become great help putting up Christmas lights...
...and so has Hannah.
Christy enjoying an early December snowfall.
Welcome to our Christmas home.
On December 9th Bob joined other state agency leaders to for a conference in New Orleans. He caught this image of the Lake Tahoe Basin when flying out of Reno with only the peaks sticking out of the winter storm below.
An early morning sunrise photo of downtown New Orleans and the Crescent City Connection bridge as it spans the Mississippi River.
Over Thanksgiving week our family drove 2,400 miles to visit grandparents and extended family in Montana.
On the way there we detoured through Eureka, Nevada to watch Hannah and the rest of the Sierra Lutheran High School Academic Olympic Team compete at the state meet. This is the 3rd year we have had the privilege to watch these great and very smart kids do an amazing job.
Hannah has grown very close to her teammates over the past three years.
As this is her senior year, the end of the state meet was an emotional one.
After leaving Eureka we made our way to Twin Fall,s Idaho where we spent the night before driving on to Great Falls, Montana where Lisa's parents live. In the morning we took a short detour to see Shoshone Falls, an amazing set of falls on the Snake River just outside of Twin Falls. Shoshone Falls is one of the largest falls in the United States. It is 900 feet wide with a vertical drop of over 200 feet.
Bob's great family at the overlook above Shoshone Falls.
We had a great time visiting and catching up with Lisa's parents in Great Falls. Here Hannah is sharing some of the pictures of her trip to Ireland with them.
Our family with Lisa's parents in front of Hannah's new Toyota RAV4.
This trip was a great chance for her to get familiar with her new SUV. It will no doubt be a great car for her for many years to come.
After leaving Great Falls, we made our way to Churchill Montana to stay and visit with Grandpa and Grandma Potts.
Here we are hanging out and playing games on Thanksgiving Day in their new home.
Bob's family on Thanksgiving Day.
On November 12th we joined Hannah for Preview Day at William Jessup University in Rocklin, California just outside of Sacramento. Hannah is interested in becoming a teacher and Jessup is a top-notch private school that has a really great education program. We had a great visit at the University. They set a pretty high bar as we begin our university search for where Hannah may go after graduating from high school this year.
While so close to Sacramento we also had the chance to visit Bob's nephew Alex and his wife Carrie and meet their new son, Alistair. He is a wonderful little guy and we enjoyed him so much.
A big lure for Hannah to attend Jessup is being so close to little Alistair. The two of them really hit it off.
This fall Caleb had the privilege of playing one of the lead roles in the Oscar Wilde play "The Importance of Being Earnest."
Caleb did an awesome job.
Hannah also played a small role as one of the "footmen" and was a great help behind the stage as the "Backstage Mom."
Caleb as Algernon Moncrieff and his classmate, Charlotte Choat, as Cecily Cardew.
The cast of Sierra Lutheran High Schools fall production of "The Importance of Being Earnest.".
Wednesday, November 14th was "Ugly Sweater Day" at the kids' high school. Hannah found a "Christmas Cactus" sweater and Bob helped Caleb out by pulling out an old sweater Grandpa Potts had given him that dates back to the 1950s. How Fun!!!
The Potts Family 2018 Halloween Pumpkins.
And the extra bonus is, we grew the pumpkins in our garden this fall.