Good-bye 2010

Good-bye to a long year that brought many challenges, changes, and blessings. From a rough start with a bad back, to a bumpy pregnancy, to a beautiful new addition to our family, we are glad that 2010 came and went. We feel that the year helped us grow and we came out of it with so many blessings.
We made goals, and even kept some of them! :) (Reading our Sunday lessons-Sam's, Sunday School, Elder's/RS) So of course it is time to think ahead, ahead to 2011, and what goals we would set. So to help us gear up we went on a donut and sushi run. The donuts for me and sushi for Seth. We pigged out and had a great and relaxing night in to help us gear up for the upcoming year.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

We spent Christmas with Seth's family in Idaho this year. (We spent Christmas there last year too and had a good time, so...) This year all of Seth's family was together, since Seth's brother, Jeremy, came out for the holiday.
We went up early to hang out with Jaime, Seth's sister, and her family. The boys had a blast playing with their cousins and going crazy.
Christmas Eve was very special. Sam and James were excited to have Santa come and were even able to spot him out the window!

They were so excited and it was hard for them to sleep...even with the excitement of it being Sam's first time sleeping on a top bunk! :)

We put them to bed and were just hanging out that night, when we heard Sam grunt-yelling every once in a while. I decided to check on him and when I came in the room he said, "Ahhh! I need my Dinosaur Train now!" It was so cute how excited he was and how he couldn't sleep because of his anticipation.
We woke up to a beautiful, and early, Christmas. This year the boys' Santa gifts were wrapped, so they were a little confused and looking around for their gifts...but that didn't last long. They dove right in!
Sam and James got dinosaur trains, a vacuum, guns, lightsabors and star wars tent, zhu-zhu pets, Toy Story books, movies and books. Chloe got some nesting dolls I made her, play dough, penguin bowling, an outfit, movie and book. Seth scored some Wii games, wii fun pack with rackets, guns, etc, a blanket, and a movie. And I got some drill bits, potato heads, cricut cartridges, and Seth's sister gave us a beautiful picture of the Salt Lake Temple!
It was a great Christmas. I also made cute shirts and headbands for Seth's nieces, and all the grand kids helped me make a blanket for his parents.
We had a relaxing rest of the day. We even caught a movie later that night. I had never been to a movie on Christmas before. It was fun, but felt weird, since Christmas day has always felt like a Sunday to me. We had a great time in Idaho, but are grateful to get back home to our lives and some quite time! :)
We did at least get a family shot. I always love that. I am still working on my photoshope skills, so here's what I've done so far!

Family Christmas Parties

We love Christmas time. The parties, music, goodies, people, decorations, lights...and all the other great things it brings. And this year it brought parties. Lots and lots of parties. It was fun to go to the various parties. For work, family, friends, family, neighbors, church....The only thing was that my poor kids are now so confused and wonder if Christmas is really actually coming! :)
This year, with my parents moving here to Utah, we got to have a "T" family party as well as our usual "M" family party. They both brought wonderful people, great times, good laughs, fabulous food, and excellent gag gifts! :)
We had Seth's family party first. It was fun and I was grateful when it was finally here. It is a lot of work to help get it ready, but I always really enjoy it (plus I get to wrap a TON of presents - my favorite!).
Seth and I opted out of the adult White Elephant and took all the kids into another room to help them with their exchange and let the adults have some free time. It was fun, but tiring.
Santa came to the party again and that was a big hit of course. Sam ran right up and had to get on his lap. It was so cute. James loves Santa too, but from a safe distance. He did give him a high five so that he could get his candy cane.
I love that the boys are so into Santa. I'm definitely not a Santa Hater. I love anything and everything that gets people into the Christmas Spirit. Religious or not. Sam has even called Santa a few times on the phone to make sure he brings him his "Dinosaur Train." James doesn't call, but he puts his plug in for his "Vacuum" (a push toy that jingles, like a popper).
It was a great party and we were VERY tired after it all! :)





My family party followed shortly after. It was fun. We went to California 2 years ago and that was Seth's first experience with it. It was fun to have it up here with all of my Utah family.
I got really into the cookie decorating this year. It was so fun. Especially since I had free hands...thanks to Natalie, my sister-in-law who is expecting, who just loved all over Chloe that night. I had fun with Matt, my brother, as he ended up producing some great cookies too, one of which was my favorite, his gingerbread Charger player.
We then had a fun wrestling match, great pizza, an excellent Christmas Story, read from the scriptures by my dad, and acted out by all my nieces and nephews. (We didn't get very far with our boys and the costumes) I am so glad that my parents put so much effort into the reading and re-enactment of Christ's birth. It is these hard times, when the kids cry, goof off, fight, etc., that are the teaching moments and the moments that hopefully the kids, and us will remember.
We then ended the party with a fun White Elephant. We scored some great moon dough and play set for James, a Superman shirt and beanie for me, and 2 awesome gifts for Sam and Seth that we quickly re-gifted to our next door neighbor, Dave, for Christmas. He's gonna love them! :) The best prank gifts were both opened by Tressa, an Edward pillowcase (from Twilight) and necklace, that was of course stolen from her by my brother Mark, and a pare of 6XL whitie-tightie! It was hilarious!






It was a blast to spend so much time with family. As I am writing this we are now actually at Seth's sister house in Idaho for Christmas, yet more family!:) We hope that it will be a great Christmas that our kids and Seth and I will remember. It's not going to be a huge one in terms of gifts, but it will be the best because we tried to focus of what would be our favorite thing, and that's all we really need.
Some of my favorite Christmas traditions growing up was the waking up early, all of us climbing into my parents bed, my dad checking to see if Santa came, the hall picture where we're lined up in order of age, the running in and opening up of our Santa gift, our taking turns for the rest of the presents...and looking back, probably my most favorite thing is that it was never overboard. We had our Santa, parent, 2 grandparent, and sibling gift. I LOVED that! and I love looking back and always remembering what was giving, not what was not gotten. I hope I always keep that in perspective as a parent. I always want to try to do what is best for my kids.

Four

Sam is four! It was so fun to have his birthday this year because he "gets" it. He was so excited about everything. From the presents, to the cake, to the party, to the birthday shirt, to the banner...he was going to make sure it all happened and that it was all fabulous. It was such a crazy day/week/month, that his birthday snuck up on me. I was feeling really overwhelmed and bad that his birthday was going to suffer because of all the other things I had been up to. So I decided to take the advice that my husband is always giving me and ask for help...not an easy thing for me. I called my mom, and of course she came up and helped save the day. She first made the most awesome train cake for Sam and then before leaving took a big project I was working on home to her house to work on for me! Then my great neighbor, and sweet friend, Aymee, called and of course rescued me too. She is my crafting mentor and she came and spent hours with me during the day to finish another huge project (and then she even came back after the party until the wee hours of the night, just to make sure I was taken care of!). With such great people around me Sam's birthday and everything else I was being over come by somehow seemed to easy and manageable. I was able to make a cute train banner for Sam and the best birthday shirt to-date...two things I love to do for each birthday. Presents got wrapped, and the house got cleaned. I actually had a bout 20 minutes before everyone was coming over for his party! We had the grandparents over and Tressa. It was fun to have just a few people over and watch Sam entertain. We opened presents first. Sam got the coveted "Woody Train" (Toy Story 3 Lego Train) he has been drooling over for months at the store. We didn't see him much later that night, except for when it was cake time. We had a great nacho party, a build your own kind of deal, and boy was it easy and yummy. It was cute to me that Sam wanted a nacho party since that consists of about 80% of what he eats right now! :) Over all it was a great day and I am proud to be a parent of a 4 year old!

Giggles

What else can I say, except for, what a little cutie! :)

Tressa and Christmas Traditions

Tressa came up to help us out this weekend so that we could go to Seth's work party. I didn't want to leave Chloe with just anyone, so she volunteered for the job. I found an awesome gingerbread train while I was out shopping and I thought that would be a perfect thing for the boys to do with Tressa, and I was right. They loved it and she made an awesome train for them. It was fun for them to do. I always try to do something sgngerbready each year and I am glad the boys got to do it with Tressa, whom they LOVE!
They had a great time and Seth and I were able to go and have a worry free night out.

Arizona

Live Nativity

We went with my brother and his family to a live nativity done by a stake in Draper. It was AMAZING! (and very cold) It is a walk through nativity with fire pits along the way to help with the cold. As you walk through you pass the shepherds in the snowy field with their sheep, the wise men, the camel, and other animals, and then you enter the city of Bethlehem.
It was an amazing atmoshpere. You feel like you are there. With merchants, bakers, families, chickens, etc. it was beautiful. Then you enter the area where Jesus was born. It was beautiful and peaceful.
I was so glad we went and that we could take our boys. It will definitely be a Christmas tradition now and one I hope my boys will remember forever, I know I will.