Last Supper

So, tomorrow I (Andrea) am going under the knife to have 3 wisdom teeth yanked from my head, and I was hoping to have a great meal tonight as my last real food for a while. Fortunately, we all decided that we should have a combined Derek/Whitney b-day party as well. So we settled on a Sushi Night. :) Couldn't have asked for much better.

ps- sushi is not "raw fish", although sometimes it may contain raw fish.

Scott and Andrea rolling. (Whitney and Derek helping out)

Derek working on the Tempura veggies.

Scott slicing up the fish. He usually is able to buy the fish from restaurants, however, this time he was only able to order a bunch of Sashimi from Happy Sumo. We just used that and sliced it thinner for the sushi. We had tuna, salmon, yellow tail, scallops, etc. We also used a bunch of veggies and imitation crab. So good!


We made TONS! Didn't count, but most likely it was over 10 rolls. But even after all the fancy fish we had, my favorite is still the simple and boring California Roll -cooked crab, avacado, cucumber. I also made a sushi that most people are unfamiliar with, one that I LOVE -Inarizushi- which is just sushi rice stuffed inside these soy pouches that have been soaked in soy sauce, sugar and vinegar. Yum!

The Tempura (Sofie loved the sweet potato and zuchini)

Halloween Amendment

Here are some better pics of Halloween night and our little Pegasus.
Princess Sierra and her trusty sidekick Unicorn.

Trick-or-treating with Mom

Trick-or-Treating with Dad

My Baby Beethoven

Sofie is taking after mom's side of the fam. :)

Halloween Times

I'm a little slow with the pics here, I know, I've been chastised. The problem was I didn't really have any pictures for a while, and I had the flu, and we moved back into my parents. It's been a busy few weeks! We also went to a work party, and later another family party that I don't have pics from yet. But here are some of the other festivities!!

This was the Halloween treat I found on the front porch. I almost died. Thank you Derek for being brave and taking him on to the next life.

The Porcaro Halloween party. Sofie is a little "Unicorn Fairy" (as she was called by a friend). I promise that although she's not smiling in any of these pictures, she did love it! I was getting over the flu, so I had a mask on with a "swine" snout drawn on it. Derek was Derek.


Halloween night, baby Unicorn Fairy (also known as "Charlie") went trick-or-treating just around the block and she loved it! She kept trying to grab the treats out of her bucket.


Trick-or-Treating with cousins!

Sofie discovering the loot. She still hasn't made the connection that the stuff inside the wrapper is the same as the treat mom let her have. Thank goodness.

G-pas Funeral

Grandpa's funeral was really wonderful. Gorgeous day in Pleasant Grove. All of the cousins but one came (which NEVER happens). Grandpa's coffin was carried by a horse drawn carriage to the Pleasant Grove cemetery, which was so cool, but I have no pictures yet. But the great thing was to have so much family here. I rarely get to see my brother Tom. Unfortunately Roo wasn't here to join the reunion. Cousin Rhett, Brother Tom, Brother Scott, Cousin Kayle

So much fun to see the boys together again (even if they do get a little obnoxious...)

My brother Tom. We never get to see him so it was wonderful that he could come for the funeral! G-pa's namesake, the Fifth Tom Adamson (who knows he's supposed to be working on the 6th!)

Scott and Whitney in G-ma's garage on his bike. (Scott hating the fact that this was a perfect picture opportunity. He hates nothing more than to pose for a picture. Especially one like this :) But I couldn't pass it up!!)

Me and Shayla at the graveside.

Best picture ever (reminds me of the Conference edition of the Ensign!)

Punkins!!!

Sofie exploring the Pumpkin snot.

Daddy carving!

Sofie getting a little more brave with the squish!

Mommy carving! (ps, don't worry, I survived the flu...)

And eventually, we couldn't keep it out of her mouth...so she went to bed :)

Admiring Mommy's Pumpkin! (the socks and diaper were the only things to survive the pumpkin goo)

Andrea's Pumpkin

Derek's Pumpkin

Thomas Stanford Adamson

My Grandpa Adamson died on Wednesday. He was 81. Over the past decade he slowly changed as Dementia set in and completely wiped his ability to communicate. He was always a rough ol' cowboy with a vocabulary that intimidated me as a child and made us giggle as teenagers. But in his later (and much quieter) years he always had a big grin on his face and was ready to pat your shoulder. Last month grandpa began to show more and more aggression as he couldn't express himself and was, more often than not, terribly confused. So the decision was made to put him in a home where they could care for him and where he would be safe. Unfortunately, he was only there for 2 weeks when he slipped and fell in the bathroom.

On Saturday, the 10th, Grandpa broke 5 ribs, which then caused thoracic hematoma (bleeding and fluid in his chest cavity). He was taken to the ER on Monday, where he was given enough morphine to stay comfortable as his lung capacity decreased. Tuesday night some family gathered but we all felt he would last through the night at least, so we left.

Wednesday, the 14th, the doctor told us that his oxygen was decreasing. And it was obvious from the rattling in his lungs, and the fever on his skin that he wouldn't live without the oxygen mask. Grandpa had signed a DNR and so to honor his wishes, we knew we needed to stop the oxygen and let him live as long as he felt the need. So, family trickled in from near and far as we kept Grandpa comfortable. He was non-responsive, but hanging on, waiting for the last of his loved ones to come.

At around 8:30pm, when everyone had finally arrived that could, we removed the oxygen, gave grandpa a priesthood blessing and a wonderful send off. He only lasted a few minutes after that. In the room, he had a sister, brother-in-law, 3 of 4 children and their spouses, 6 grandchildren, and even little Sofie, a great-grandchild. 4 generations to say goodbye and definitely had loved ones to welcome him to the other side. It was peaceful and an incredible experience to be there when the veil was at its thinnest! Grandpa's last breath was one that was surrounded by the strongest of bonds.

Sofie enjoying the legacy that Ol' Shag left. Some people may not know that we are house sitting for G-ma and now the late G-pa, here in Pleasant Grove. G-ma broke her arm and had to have surgery just a few days after G-pa went to the Rest Home, so there was no one here to look after the house. Derek, Sofie and I moved in on Saturday, just a few days before G-pa passed.

G-pa'd probably tan her hide and say a few choice words if he was here! ;) He always took great care of his things.

Wish we had some Wranglers!

The Anniversary Post!

I'm too lazy to get one of our nicer wedding pictures, but this one works. On October 7th we celebrated our 3 year anniversary! Still in love! I'm not terribly good at wonderful tribute posts, but I do love Derek and it's been a beautiful 3 years!! We've been able to learn even more about each other and begin to expand our family in these last 3 years. It's been a great start to an eternal journey!

On the 7th, we just got dinner at Costa Vida (one of our favs) and took it to my grandma's empty house (explained better in another post) and ate it in front of the fire.

On the 9th, my "sister-in-law" Whitney got us 50% off at the Homestead, so we spend an evening out there in Midway for way cheap! The first time we left Sofie overnight, and she did just great, even for having pink eye! The canyon and midway were totally gorgeous with all the leaves turning! I'm so glad we got married when we did because it's the most gorgeous time of year to go anywhere!! For dinner we ate at a Mexican place called Tarahumara, which was pretty tasty!

Here's to the years to come!

What Mama's Up To

Well, first I got to spend some time making sure all the chilluns didn't land in the fire. It's rough with all those little toddlers! It was a busy time between my mom's birthday and General Conference.

And then of course, after all those chilluns came for a stay, I got to spend the day holding a screaming baby girl with an earache, sore throat, cough, and pink eye! Poor child. She already had the cold, and the cousins brought the pink eye. :( But now she's on plenty of Tylenol and amoxicillin (and steroid cream for eczema adds the cherry on top). Rather than sleeping in her crib, she prefers her mommy's arms.

I'm a busy mama. A happy mama.

Daddy's Girl!

Sofie is getting an early start on learning her short game. Dad couldn't be more proud!!