The Adventures of Gene and JoAnn: DeAnne's 70th Surprise Birthday Celebration & Thanksgiving at The Wilson's Home (Nov. 18

This time, our adventure takes us first to Taylor, Az where Gene's sister, DeAnne is being surprised by her children for her 70th birthday. It was great to see DeAnne and her children, & their children. For an added bonus, 2 of Gene's other sisters, Norma & Vickie, drove down from Utah for the surprise. The four of us stayed at the only motel in Taylor. It actually was pretty nice, basic and very clean and the price was right! We stayed 2 nights, attending church on Sunday at DeAnne's ward. Monday afternoon, we had a leisurely drive north skirting the east side of Flagstaff and the Grand Canyon, stopping for the night at Jacob Lake Inn. Jacob Lake Inn was really darling complete with a inviting fire in the fireplace as we checked in that evening. Great dinner in the Inn's restaurant (It's a good thing too, because there was no other place to eat for 30 miles!) and in talking to our waitress, found out that the Inn was owned by an LDS family....90% of the employees are Mormon :-) They hire lots of college students, especially in the summer months.

The next day, we had a very easy drive to Hurricane to Loni's for a 6 night stay! At Loni's we slept, ate, visited, watched Christmas Hallmark movies, slept, ate, visited, shopped, read books, ate, slept. . . . . .etc....etc.. . .a very relaxing and fun time. I really slipped up on this visit and didn't snap any photos of Emily or Kayley. They are both so grown up! Emily just celebrated her sweet 16 birthday, is driving and has a cell phone. Emily gave the greatest talk at church on Sunday. She is quite the public speaker! Kayley is 13 and is about an inch shorter than I am! That height thing works for Kayley since she is a volleyball player....and an awesome one for sure!