Birthday Lunch for Keith and I

Keith had an annual appointment with Dr. Rastogi in West Valley on Thursday, January 29, 2026, so we celebrated both our birthdays at the Cheesecake Factory in Murray.  I had my regular Chicken Costelleta, and Keith tried the Bang-Bang Chicken and Shrimp.  It did not disappoint.  We treated ourselves to Avocado Eggrolls and we both got cheesecake.  I forgot to take a picture of our meals, but I did get one of my cheesecake.  Yum!

Birthday Lunch with Chersti

On Wednesday, January 28, 2026, I met Chersti at Kneaders for lunch.  She brought a beautiful succulent for Keith and I, with a nice card.  She also gave me hand warmers for my birthday and treated me to lunch.  We had a great time catching up for the next 2.5 hours.  I am so grateful for such a wonderful friend.

It's Looking Like Valentine's Day!

On Wednesday, January 22, 2026, I took down the snowmen decorations and put up our Valentine's Day decor.  It is nice to see some bright colors to brighten up our day.

Gifts From Friends

Keith and I received several gifts from friends.  Chris and Travis Crowther stopped by with a sign and Willow Tree Figurine.  Joni Weaver stopped by for a visit and brought a card.  Wilma stopped by and brought a plaque and card.  Keith and I are truly blessed with wonderful friends.

Keith's Mom Passed Away...

On January 15, 2026, Eva Hilton Williamson Preece, age 92, passed away in the early morning hours at 3:57 a.m.  Brandon called us at 4:04 a.m. and we got dressed and went right over tot he care center.  We had a half hour or so with her before Myers came to pick her up and take her to the mortuary.

Brandon had her snuggled up real tight.  Brandon stayed the night there at the Care Center with grandma.  He didn't want her to be alone. He stepped out of the room for a minute and she passed quietly.

Keith and I spent all day Thursday taking care of funeral arrangements.  Luckily I had gotten up at 3:30 a.m. on Tuesday morning and had written her obituary.  I also prepared a list of pall bearers and honorary pallbearers and had started an outline of the memorial service program.  We met with Shaun Myers around 11:30 a.m.  Brandon joined us and we got the service arranged, flowers picked, coffin picked, and programs, etc.

We also met with Lindquist's to make sure everything was set for the opening and closing of the grave.  We felt good about all that had been planned in such a short amount of time.

On Friday, Brandon, Denise, Shelby, and Leslie joined Brandon at the mortuary to do Eva's hair, make-up and nails.  She looked absolutely beautiful for the family viewing.  We met at the mortuary around 12:30 p.m. on Saturday afternoon.  We visited with family and then prepared to greet visitors.

The flowers were beautiful and the service was beautiful.  After the services, we headed to the cemetery for the dedicating of the grave.

After we loaded up the flowers to take to get them dried, we headed to the University Grill for Greek Food.  It was delicious.  We came home and Keith crashed.  I wrote out the thank you notes for the flowers, the bishop, the pianist, etc.  Shelby invited everyone to her home for hamburgers.  Jamie came home and changed and went.  She had fun visiting and catching up with her cousins.

On Sunday morning, Jamie drove home to Reno.  Around noon, I drove over to the care center and tried to organize Eva's stuff into piles for each grandchild.  I spent about 3 hrs. there.  I am so glad that I did. I stopped by the cemetery and decorated Skyler's and Mom's graves for Valentine's Day.

On Monday, Brandon, Chase, Denise, and I met at Suspended in Time in Syracuse to order our floral arrangements.  I got there early and took the flowers into Tiffany.  We all picked out remembrances, and then we headed to Our House to clean out Eva's room.  We worked for a few hours and then we came home.  We are absolutely drained, but grateful for family showing up to help. This chapter is closed.