I drove past this truck selling squash in Richmond multiple times and I always wanted a picture. Isn't it pretty? I love October but still struggle to appreciate it because it leads to winter.
I took my kids to McHaven to listen to conference while Nelson was at work. I had a bad cold and didn't want to go but it was nice getting out. Evy picked plums and played with her second cousins.
Elena and Nolan
October 9th, Nelson took this picture on his phone of his beloved raspberries in his beloved garden
October 9, headed to Soda Springs to see Uncle Leonard and hunt for bucks.
Nelson always packs his clothes in a plastic bag even though we have multiple suitcases. He is more concerned with gear than clothes. Well he realized as we almost got there that he didn't pack pants. Ha ha. So we had to stop and get him some majorly hick jeans.
Leonard stayed behind with us kids while Nelson looked for bucks. Leonard fussed over Nolan all day. Nolan is named after Leonard's brother (Nelson's grandpa) and Nolan's middle name is Leo after Leonard. Leonard and I talked all day, separated a big bag of sugar he bought and I cooked stew in my trailer. This was a significant trip because both Nelson and Leonard got sick shortly after this trip and both of them passed away before summer.
Nelson teaching my kids to shoot.
Sawyer, Evy, Coleman, Nelson
We drove my kids around to scout so they felt like they were participating. Here's Nelson's famous hick jeans.
Nelson told me on the way up he decided against a moose tag and if he were to see a moose he would be mad. Well wouldn't you know it, while he was hunting, two bull moose came walking through the farm. Sawyer was so close to one I had to yell at him to get in the trailer. He didn't know it was dangerous. Nelson came back and I told him what he missed.
The kids and I hung out with Leonard in the morning.
Leonard and Coleman eating cereal. Leonard kept putting small amounts of cocoa pebbles in with their corn chex to make it interesting.
Leonard and Nolan
Nelson ended up getting a buck on Sunday morning. He had no problems hiking or anything and we felt he was improving from his horrific summer of chemotherapy. He was gaining weight. He still had neuropathy pain in his feet.
Nelson was by himself when he shot it and called
Darren to help him get it off the mountain.
Darren
I asked Nelson why he always wore this shirt when he hunts. He said it's his lucky shirt. I do find it confusing though to figure out which hunt is which because he's always wearing the same thing.
Nolan turns 6 months
October 17, we took our kids to the Boo at the Zoo. Nelson was so annoyed with how long the lines were this year. It was very crowded. He was kind of a party pooper. This was one of the last times he got to do an activity like this with our kids. If only he knew! He would have savored every minute of it.
Coleman and I visiting Evy's school. He took these vampire teeth everywhere we went.
Nelson and I started refinishing my parents' piano. It was the piano I used as a kid. Nelson primed it so meticulously it already looked painted. Nelson wanted to stain it but I wanted a contrast to our hard wood floors it would sit on. We compromised and did both.
All during chemo Nelson kept saying he wanted to go to Lagoon when he was well. I surprised him and took him on October 24th. He thought Lagoon was closed so he had no idea where I was taking him. Crystal's family came and my sister. Nelson did really well walking around even with his neuropathy and he rode all the crazy rides. He had a CT scan coming up in the next few days to check for cancer that was making us nervous. We felt it would be okay and we tried not to stress.
Holly and Nelson
Maggie. Nelson waved at us from afar because he thought the swings would make him sick.
Holly and Nelson
Holly and Maggie on the log ride. We didn't get really wet surprisingly. Good thing because we rode it at night.
Waiting in line for haunted houses
Holly and Maggie
October 26th I took my kids to the annual pumpkin walk in north logan. Nelson also took my boys when he met up with Evy's school group for her field trip.
Evy and our neighbor Millie
Evy's kindergarten class
Oct 26th, Nelson took this picture of Nolan while going to the pumpkin walk
Coleman's preschool class performing Halloween songs for us. Coleman is the green skeleton, not sure which one.
October 23 Nelson took Coleman to Sportsman's Warehouse
Oct. 26th My dad and Nolan at a pumpkin patch
On October 29th we found out Nelson's scans showed he had stage 4 cancer. Malignant melanoma. He appeared healthy and well. We were shocked and devastated. That was one of many dreadful days I have experienced in 2015. We tried to enjoy our Halloween but we had a dark cloud over our heads. We didn't tell everyone right away. Our lives changed once again that day and my hope was taken away that his health would be restored.
Halloween day.
Nelson acted normal although we both were pretty out of it. We went to a Halloween party that day in Tremonton with our friends Amber and Robin.
Robin, Amber, Nelson, Nolan, Holly
Nolan, Shelby and Von
