Saying Goodbye, Again

One of the first things that ran through my mind when I first saw Grammy and Grampy at the airport in Pittsburgh last week was How am I ever going to say good-bye again?  We love them so much and miss them in our daily lives.  We are so grateful for the opportunity to spend a lovely Christmas week with them.  It was so wonderful to watch them interact with the kids like they had never been apart.  We are so blessed as a family to have such amazing parents and grandparents. Here are a few pictures from the last days.  We love you Grammy and Grampy and can't wait to see you again!  

Rosie got a weaving loom for Christmas and, with Grammy's help, made two pot-holders! Grammy also spent hours (and hours and hours) uploading Taylor Swift to Rosie's MP3 player. The MP3 player from Santa was, unfortunately, not at all user friendly, but Grammy was not to be stopped until all the music Rosie wanted was on there.  Rosie listened to, and sang, Taylor Swift all the way back to SLC.

This is President Bud and President Summerhays, ready for action! Coleman was excited at the airport to ride the indoor shuttle train again.  But, he couldn't figure out why Grammy and Grampy had to stay behind.  He kept insisting to me, "Grammy's gotta get on the plane with us!"  We had a long scheduled layover in NY, so we ate and looked in the gift shops.  We also rode many moving sidewalks, just for Coleman.  We had a quiet plane ride home, Coleman slept for the last 2 hours.  We are already looking forward to our next trip to " Piggsburgh"!  

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The Steelers

One afternoon, Jono and Bud slipped away to Heinz Field to watch the Steelers play in their last home game of the season.  It was a relatively mild day for December in Pittsburgh with beautiful blue skies.  Bud forgot his coat and so he wore Jono's coat the whole time.  The boys had a great time watching their first NFL game.  The fans are quite passionate and it's a very electric atmosphere.  This was a very fun afternoon for Bud and Jono.  Grampy TiVo'ed the game and the three of them discussed the game as they watched it again.

Bud is now a Steeler's fan!

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Amish Country

On Saturday we decided to drive to Grove City to shop at the Outlets. We ate lunch, then split up to shop. In one hour Jono and I filled 2 big shopping bags, the only problem is how to get it all home? Afterwards, we drove through Volant which is Amish Country. We bought some Amish dolls in this quaint shop and drove around the beautiful countryside. Being in the east reminds us that we live in a desert in Utah. We were hoping to see an Amish buggy and we did! We also saw many Amish farms, with their interesting way of farming and stacking corn. We all really enjoyed our little road-trip.

On the way home, we stopped in Cranberry to eat at Ichiban's. Coleman was nervous about the fire when we told him they cook right at our table, but when the chef started up the cooking surface, Coleman loved it! The food was so delicious. Grampy, Jono and I had filet mignon, which was fabulous. Coleman had one taste and only wanted to eat Jono's meat, and not his own chicken. It was so fun to watch the kids eat with chopsticks. I think almost everyone who visits President and Sister Summerhays in Pittsburgh eats dinner at Ichiban's.

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Santa's Here Again

A while after we got home from the Science Center, we had a visitor. It was Santa Claus! He was a bit shorter that we remember, but just as fat and jolly. Rosie and Coleman were thrilled to see him, but for some reason, Bud was nowhere to be found. Grammy and Grampy's house really is a magical place to be!

Have you ever seen Santa's face up close? He has freckles!

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The Carnegie Science Center

We visited another fabulous site in Pittsburgh; the Carnegie Science Center. It was fascinating and fun. One of our favorite exhibits was a robot that shoots basketballs. The robot puts on a show, flexing all different directions before shooting a jumper and a granny shot. Then you get a turn to control the robot and try to make a basket. Jono helped Rosie and Bud make a shoot.

We also loved the aquarium and the kids touched a sand crab and a turtle. We raced cars on a solar light track and the kids read the weather report for a news report. There were so many great exhibits everywhere you turned. We watched a cooking demonstration that made yogurt with bacteria, and Rosie got chosen to help with a cooking game quiz.

We ended up at another favorite display, an enormous train set. It represented Pittsburgh from 1850-1930 and had a section for every season. It was so incredible, everyone loved it! The detail was so fine and exact; for example, the player sliding into second base at the baseball diamond was suspended off the ground. We loved the Science Center! Afterwards, we visited the cafeteria and Bud ate 2 corndogs while President Summerhays "planted little seeds" with our nice server. Another great day with Grammy and Grampy.

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Elves in Pittsburgh

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

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It's Christmas Day in the City

Santa found the Oettli kids in Pittsburgh, PA, and it was a fun Christmas morning!  We awoke in the morning to find deer in Grammy and Grampy's backyard, maybe they were eating the leftover reindeer food we sprinkled the night before.  Coleman was convinced they were "Santa's reindeer".  Bud confessed to us that he had awoken earlier, thinking it was morning. He snuck downstairs to check out the tree and looked at the clock on the microwave, it was only 4:30!  

It was so wonderful to open our presents with Grammy and Grampy. They absolutely loved their photo books from everyone!  Grampy surprised Grammy with ruby earrings and necklace for their 40th Wedding Anniversary. They were beautiful.  The kids received many great presents and were very happy.  It was a very Merry Christmas morning.

Bud had a sports Christmas; he got Utah p.j.s, a Charger's sweatshirt, a Red Sox calendar, a Jazz toothbrush, Madden football for the DS and a Steeler's hat.  Rosie got a gemz jewelry box, a pot-holder loom, an MP3 player, Taylor Swift CD and Steeler sweatshirt.  Her favorite present was a cozy pink bathrobe!  Coleman got a firetruck, playdo, Utah sweats and a Steeler's hat.  

We decided to drive into the city on Christmas afternoon.  It was a beautiful and cold day.  The city was not very crowded and we drove all around.  We loved the architecture of the city.  We also drove to the Pittsburgh chapel, it's a really pretty building.  It was a nice adventure to drive around Pittsburgh.  Coleman loved the bridges and was very excited to drive over so many. Bud, on the other hand, was a little nervous every time.

Here are pictures of the kids holding their breath as we drove through the tunnel.  Coleman is holding his breath with his mouth open.  Back at home, we ate again, we have spent a lot of time eating.  We played with Christmas toys and Grammy and the kids watched Home Alone 2. Grammy and Grampy's neighboorhood was decorated with luminaries and looked so charming.  What a wonderful day!

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Christmas Eve in Pittsburgh

We feel so blessed to spend our Christmas Eve with Grammy and Grampy!  We had our traditional cheese fondue, it was delicious, thanks to Grampy who carefully stirred it for at least an hour.  Three sister missionaries joined us for dinner.  We had had a nice roast for dinner and we ate Coleman-free, he was upstairs watching Tom and Jerry. Rosie and Bud were not shy at all and when Bud began to tell family stories we were more than a little nervous about what he was going to say!  Finally we excused the kids to the other room.

After dinner, we had our Family Home Evening.  The sister missionaries shared a story and sang.  Bud and Rosie were Mary and Joseph and Coleman was a shepard from another room, where he was sent after not cooperating.  We finished our program with chimes, and when Coleman started hitting Bud with his chime, he was again excused.  The sisters loved the chimes and it is always fun when Grampy is leading the music.  We had pumpkin and apple pie for dessert.

We found time to decorate cookies for Santa Claus and sprinkle reindeer food in Grammy's huge backyard.  Check out the frosting on Coleman's cookie!  We also had stockings for the kids to decorate and hang on the mantle.

How fitting for Coleman to finish off the night stuck in the banister. After his behavior this evening, we were tempted to leave him there.  He had to squeeze his body through the posts and step out backwards, because his large head was not coming out!

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