The R family on Christmas Eve

One of my favorite families, besides my own, is the R family (the initial is for privacy reasons.) When I became best friends with Ryan, they welcomed me into the fold with no reservations or hesitations. I went to see them on Christmas Eve after going to church to see Sidney sing in a Christmas program, then to see Dad sing in another Christmas program. I gave Ryan his gift (sadly, it was two gift certificates) and then took a few pictures of the family.

Among the many R family members that I love, Jason is perhaps one of my favorites. The reason for this is because he reminds me of my nephew Caleb. He was born a month after Caleb was. Since my beautiful Caleb has left this earth, I measure how big he would be and his development by watching Jason. Jason is expecting a baby sister in a few months. It is strange to think that Caleb was perfectly healthy when he was born but then left us. Jason, on the other hand, spent the first week of his life in the NICU and had more than one serious operation. It never ceases to amaze me how life turns out. At one time, I couldn't look at Jason without crying. Now, I just look at him and smile. In the picture to the right, Jason is throwing cushions off the couch just like an active little boy should be.

Above is a picture of Ryan, my best friend. After much harrassing, he finally smiled for the camera. He, I'm sure, is very grateful that I didn't put some of the other pictures that I took on this blog. They were not very flattering.

Slade belongs to Dave and Haley. He is so cute and is crawling in his own unique way. Like most R kids, he is a curious child who is very loved by his family. In this picture he is playing with his Grandpa, a back scratcher, and his Mom.