2008 has been a big, wonderful year for us.  We celebrated our 2nd wedding anniversary in Lava Hot Springs, ID, which was not only relaxing, but nostalgic.  It's been one of the happiest years of our lives and we love being married to each other.

Us on Lone Peak, August 2008 ---> 

<--- Rachel somewhere in UT. We were on the way up to Lava and pulled over for a pit stop.

Stu and I have done a lot of home improvements to our house this year.  With a lot of help from the my Mom, siblings and brother-in-law we took down wallpaper in the laundry room, painted our dining room, kitchen and bathroom and sanded and stained our deck.  Our yard has also come a long way and gets prettier every year.  I love digging in the dirt & watching things grow, with Simon by my side.  I think a lot about my Dad while spending time in the garden; fallen leaves & hawks remind me most of him.

Our yard, or what I like to call Grater Gardens, taken right before the frost came this year --->

One of the biggest things that happened this year, as most of you may already know, was my Myomectomy surgery in October. After 2 years of trying to get pregnant, we decided to get some tests done and see what the problem was. The tests quickly revealed the culprit….I had many, very large fibroids growing on, in and around my uterus which were giving us a less than 5% chance of getting pregnant. Having the surgery increases our chances by 70-90% and we really want a baby, so we didn’t have to think longer than a day or so before we decided to go ahead with it. Stu stayed at the hospital, and by my side through the whole recovery to wait on me hand and foot. He is such a good man and takes better care of me than I take of myself sometimes. Thank you Stu, I love you! I’m pretty much 100%; my incision feels like a little bruise, but other than that I feel back to normal. We’ll be able to start trying to get pregnant again in April, so keep your fingers crossed that we have a spring chicken on the way next year.

<--- Stu, me, Abe, Vanessa, Marie and Joe in our camp at Lone Peak right before we headed down the mountain.

We took a few fun road trips in 2008… San Diego for 2 whole weeks to stay with Stu’s Mom, which was the best. Camping in Goblin Valley and 10-Mile Wash. Soaking in the pools at Lava Hot Springs. Laughlin, NV for a superbowl party. And a few fishing trips. We also did tons of hiking in the beautiful Wasatch Mountains this summer, the hardest of which was Lone Peak (elevation, 11,253 ft.). It took us 3 days and 2 nights and kicked our butts, but it was totally fun and rewarding. A dozen times on the way up, and a hundred times on the way down, we vowed to never do that hike again because it was so incredibly hard, but after the sore muscles and the fresh memories of pain subsided, we both said that we’d do it again for sure.

Stu holding one of his catches. This was on his Epic Fishing Trip with Darress --->

We have been listening to a few good audio books this year. Currently we’re enjoying an epic 12-book series by Terry Goodkind called The Sword of Truth. It’s a really fun activity to do together after work, while we clean the house, chill on the couch, or whatever.

We have so much to be grateful for as we think about this past year, most of all for our family and friends. We love you all and hope that this holiday season and the coming year brings you love, happiness, wisdom and prosperity.

Seasons Greetings!
Love, The Grater Family – Stu, Rachel and Simon

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