Grampa Ikie 1923-2008

Grampa LOVED his garden!! He wanted good soil so he could plant beautiful flowers and peaches, apricots, apples, tomatoes-everything delicious, everything to share with his family and friends. When we moved to Utah 9 years ago, Grampa Ikie and Gramma Ruthie came over one afternoon with cornstalks and pumpkins from their garden to go on our front porch. We felt so festive, and not only did we get to enjoy the bounty for the fall, we got the pleasant surprise of pumpkins actually growing in our front yard the next summer-bonus! (although we have since attempted to keep the pumpkins growing exclusively in the back...)
Here's Grampa and young Curtis on Curtis' very 1st Duck Hunt, a tradition that has spanned at least the last 50 years (Curtis laments the fact that he has not been alive long enough to have attended each and every one of them-it has truly been an annual highlight and the early morning breakfast buffet at JB's is the cherry on top, except that the breakfast buffet is pre-hunt, so I guess it could be the cherry at the bottom?? It's a cherry, anyway)... Grampa Ikie and Grampa Randy having one of the best days ever...

Football, Snowy Weather, & Grampa

Our weekend started with some of this...

with fall/winter weather that was like this...

Cute Paul concocted this super dahlia cover/protector from impending frost so the flowers could make it for one more night to be displayed at sweet Grampa Ikie's viewing...

Goofy-face Cael was so excited to wake up Sunday morning- "It is snowing, Mom!!" He was ready for some serious snowman action, but by the time we got home from church, the snow had melted away, but we are all sure it will come again another day-like next week...

Monday was a sad/sweet day. Our cute Grampa Ikie was laid to rest next to his beloved Ruthie. Grampa (Bapah Ah-kee, as Mr. Cael would say) would be so proud of his 8 handsome grandsons, who were completely honored to be pallbearers for this darling man, an absolute classic. Knowing that families can be together forever means everything...

**as a bummer sidenote, about 20 minutes before the funeral, it was discovered that Grampa's house had been broken into and robbed, with a variety of things "removed," the largest being his gold Oldsmobile. There are some things in life that are lame, but seriously, does it get much lamer than this??