Hooray! We got married.

On August 22nd, Chris and I decided we had nothing better to do so we decided to swing by the temple and get married.

No, but really. We did and are so appreciative of all the family and friends that flew/drove to be there to celebrate that day with us. In fact, here are some shots of those who made it to the reception in Oregon:

Newblett with Mother Newblett.

"Have you seen these men?"

"You guys are still together? Congrats!" I love Steff.

Three of our favourite people (we can see you Robby).

We are still waiting on the official pictures of the time at the temple. However, Katie took a great picture with her phone (thanks!) soon after we came out of the temple doors.

If audiences (*cough cough* Mom) are interested, I can post more wedding pictures as I get them.

Once upon a time...

there was a girl from America.
there was a boy from Canada.

and they met.

they became best friends.

and they are getting married.

sometimes, all the words in the world do not provide an accurate description.

thus, the brevity of this post.

she loves him.
he loves her.

the. end.

Missing Them In Minnesota

i sure do miss them, those two people in minnesota.

where gretchen, angus, jack, belle, dexter, and snoop sneak off to at night ...

and do we all remember we stopped singing during family home evenings when we were younger?

so i am sad i miss those two people in minnesota but i won't sing about it. instead, i'll support the canine movement to take back their rights....

Don't be "hasty"

One of my roommates left town for the Christmas holiday. She is also the owner of the town home we live in and sometimes, she reminds me of Dad the way she cares and worries over the logistics of the place.

The Tiffany Center is what I have come to call our little three bedroom home.

This roommate, upon leaving, left the following letter for Allison and I.


Hi roomies!
 
I am not sure who I mentioned things to and what I never mentioned, so I am going to list some things below to do for me while I am gone (thanks in advance!). Caution: I am probably about to sound like a mom and say many things you already know, so let the eye rolling begin ;) (how would one make a face on the computer that is rolling its eyes?)
 
Anyway...
 
1. Please take out the trash this week since I am gone. I am happy to do the first week of January in exchange :)
2. I have been setting the thermostat at 62 at night and when we are gone and 67-69 when we are home. This seems to work well....
3. This one deserves some eye rollls...Please make sure all of the Christmas (and other) lights are turned off at night (and for the most part when no one is home), and make sure the door gets locked (I am a compulsive door locker, as you may have noticed. Not compulsive or particular about other things, clearly...). I have not gotten the electric bill to see how much the lights will add, but I figure every bit we can save will help!
4. Please water the tree so I can still enjoy its beauty when I get back. I have a pitcher and cup I have been keeping kinda behind it for that purpose. I just reach under and blindly feel around and hope the water makes it in. This works most of the time. 
5. Make sure you glue the vases back together and sew the ripped curtains from all of the wild partying that will likely ensue in my absence. 
5. Please, neither of you sneak off and get married while I am gone. I would like roommates when I return :) Also, no getting engaged either, because I need to be there to celebrate!!!! I figure this is unlikely, but crazier things have happened. 
6. HAVE FUN!!!!! Not too much fun, though, since how could you while you are missing me? Hahaha ;)
 
Merry Christmas!
 
Love, 
Tiff




I am so glad our paths were thrown together. And yes. We had enough glue to fix ALL the vases that were broken due to the partying.

One serious and one not so serious

I really CAN be serious for more than five minutes at a time. I think I have just inherited too much of the "Lloyd Joking Genes" and have watched my older siblings * cough cough Aaron and Seth and Eric * hold court with their jokes.

So, here is one serious Christmas video. And one not so serious.

A Christmas Coat

Silent monks - I watch every year

The Byline

Dad supplied the photos and simply told me "Please provide some commentary." As any dutiful daughter would do, I obeyed.

Happy Birthday Andrew! Enjoy the pictures - and hopefully, the comments as well.

Even high atop Mt. Hood (right? I'm assuming it wasn't Bachelor or Everest), Andrew channeled our dear mother by breaking out the red bandana. His preparation for sudden desert winds or the fear of being recognized was assuaged with that hand scarf, I mean bandana, around his neck. Side note: How come Matthew NEVER wears long sleeves? Side side note: Was this perhaps an entry for the next GQ magazine. The perpetual pout and sideways glare (even through sunglasses) seems appropriate - except from Josh. Good ol' Josh.
 

Ah - the familiar scene of sand and mud and water and overcast skies that bespeak of the Oregon Coast. (Once again - Matthew is preparing his GQ "grin"). The foot stopping motion of Andrew illustrates how he knows how to get things done. "We need a moat, siblings! A moat - not just a little ditch! This is Operation Moat!" And his teeny blue shorts were perhaps prophetic of his detective blues that would come later one. Maybe he still has them....

Andrew still has that same grin! I saw it yesterday, as he sidled down to sit next to Elizabeth and I. (By the way, we sat on the edge of the row, in the back. All three of us agreed: "Randall's - we sit in the back, on the end.") What I love about this picture, especially coming from the "younger half" of the Randall clan, is how excited BOTH Andrew and Seth (who is seriously rocking that striped turtleneck - all in favor of showing this to Christina say "aye"!) Back to the grin - I see this every time Ellison talks about animals or books or when Kellan knows he is about to get some candy. It looks like some of the "weak" Randall genes have come through.

First - question. WHY ARE ALL THE SHORTS SO SHORT!? Mom didn't even let me wear shorts that short. I guess the 80's really were different. One thing that hasn't changed - the excitement of stumbling upon that stringy, slimy, seaweed rope. I'm sure Andrew used it to whip the troops into shape. I mean, that moat was really important. And to stress the importance, Andrew felt the need to do a Rolling Stones type tongue move. P.S. Who else looks back on all these trips we made to the beach in usually inclement weather and wonder for the millionth time "HOW DID MOM AND DAD DO IT?!"

I love you Andrew! From when you and Jolene took Rachel and I to Enchanted Forest for our birthday to when we helped babysit all of your kids to the marathons and movie quotes and our mutual love for Elder Holland (isn't he really really the best!?).

Adventures in Babysitting - Part 2

The week after I tended to the Newbletts, I found myself watching three very EXCITED and very ANXIOUS and very ISTHEBABYHEREYETANDWHENWILLMOMBEHOMETODAYTODAY!? Randall children.

After sending Aaron and Jenn off to the hospital, I settled in on the couch to sleep for another hour (to at least 7 a.m.) before the kids woke up.

"Psst."

*pause* I laid very, very still.

"Psst. Aunt Joanna?"

I cracked an eye open and saw little Griffin standing hopefully by the couch.

"Hey buddy." I croaked and wondered why little kids are wired to wake up so early.

"I can't sleep and sometimes when that happens I can watch TV or play games or *long pause as he tested the waters* the Wii." His voice went up at the end, tinged with the hope that on this special day, Aunt Joanna would be so nice (and worn out) that the Wii could be played unrestricted.

"How about some cartoons?" I stuck to my guns - sort of. As I drifted in and out of consciousness, eventually Maddox and Reese emerged with their eyes at half mast and their hair at odd angles.

I began reassuring Reese as to why I was there and not her mother, to which she shyly smiled and said "Baby too big *at this point, she motioned with her hand over her tummy* and it has to come out."

It. Was. Adorable.

Around lunchtime, I prepared a fancy feast (complete with crystal glasses) and asked of the children: "Do you guys know why we're celebrating!?"

Maddox (yelling from his perch on the computer): "Because it's a parents free day and Aunt Joanna is here ALL DAY to help us watch TV and the Wii!"

After I stopped laughing and regained some composure, I agreed and said "But also because baby Harrison is on his way!"

Maddox: "Oh. Yeah - that too."

The celebratory feast.

After the feast of gold fish, peanut butter and jelly and honey sandwiches, leftover Halloween candy was had by all.

"There is no peanut!" Griffin was stunned.

Reese's reaction after being informed of baby Harrison's arrival. And after quite a few handfuls of chocolate.

The only person NOT happy that day was this big guy. Oh sure, I gave him his food (twice, accidentally) and plenty of treats. I pointed out the squirrels in the backyard and the threatening pedestrians in the front. Nothing - and I mean NOTHING - could sway him from his Aaron-deprived depression. 

                                        

He couldn't even look at the camera - his pain was took great.

All in all, the thirteen hour day probably went faster for me then it did for Jenn. The kids were well-behaved and very excited for their new brother. We did end up going to the hospital the next morning, where the following things happened:

1) Maddox snuck out into the hall and started chatting it up with nurses. "What does this do? My name is Maddox! What's yours?"
2) Reese was fascinated by the tiny head of hair on Harrison and kept kissing it.
3) The doctor, for one brief second, thought that I had just delivered a baby. I wasn't quite sure how to take that.
4) The highlight of the drive there was the fact that Aaron parked on the very top of the parking garage. You should have heard the cheers from the backseat as the SUV cleared the fifth level and sunlight broke through the windows. It was almost as good as Disneyland.