Christmas with the Maternal G-Parents

It is 1:43 am and I guess officially Christmas Eve.  Why am I up at this odd hour drinking diet coke, eating cookies and watching Everybody Loves Raymond (and obviously on the computer)?  Many, many reasons, the cough and congestion that I've been fighting all week is maybe the thing that woke me up initially.  It's like the second I wrapped that last present, I think my body finally caved in and is getting sick.  The other reasons....well, lots of other reasons that my brain won't allow me to stop thinking about which are too complicated and involved to spill out on my blog, but none-the-less keeping me up.  Hopefully this Nyquil will kick in and I can go back to bed (and hopefully Jim will let me sleep in and get up with the kids in a few hours).

So, I'll try and be productive and write about celebrating Christmas with my mom and dad last weekend.  We drove down to Salt Lake on the worst roads I think we've ever had.  Jim was smart and put studded snow tires on my car so we felt pretty safe.  I'm so glad he takes care of things like that, I'm clueless when it comes to cars, tires, etc.  I also think I have a phobia of driving on bad roads which stems from a car accident I had before I met Jim where I slid into a boulder and lost half of my front tooth.  Jim is great about driving and keeping us all safe.  We probably saw at least 10 cars off the road on the way down and I'm so glad we weren't one of them!

Too bad this picture is so blurry....but I liked it so I used it anyway.

The kids were all so excited to open Christmas presents early!
Hailey and Paige really loved the bead necklace kits, the magnet paper dolls and the fun books from Grandmommy!

And they were almost as excited to give presents (I'm learning this comes with age).

Crew was so excited to get a croquet set from Grandmommy!

Love the excitement on his face.

He and Grandpa immediately set it up and started playing.

Grandmommy also gave him this really cute Frosty the Snowman book which recorded her own voice reading it to him.  He loved this present and listened to it over and over again.  This is going to come in handy on those nights when I'm just way too burned out to read books (I should invest in some more of these).  He also loved the Batman sticker book.

Grandmommy was happy with her boots and jeans and wore them out to lunch the next day.  I was so glad everything fit!

Grandpa was flabbergasted with the chocolate macadamia nuts from Costco and probably ate 10 one after the other, he was generous enough to share a few ; )

Jim opened some delicious peppermint bark and a gift certificate to the book store.  My mom knit me a cowl neck scarf which I am excited to wear as soon as she finishes it!  She also gave me a really cozy sweater from Sundance.

It's so fun for the kids to stretch Christmas out as long as possible so I'm glad we had the opportunity to do the mini celebration with my parents.  But I think I'm ready for it to be over...I think most mom's are pretty burned out at this time of year and it's definitely true for me.

The Nutcracker

The girls and I went to the Nutcracker while we were down in Salt Lake last weekend.  It was so magical for me as a child and I hope the girls remember the tradition as fondly as I do.

In fact, I hope they really loved it this year.  I showed up to get the tickets at will call and found out that I had bought tickets online for the performance the day before.  Ballet West would not exchange the tickets for that day, even though it was far from sold out both days.  I just about started to cry, which got me no where.  So, I bit the bullet and bought 3 more tickets!

Gosh, darn, golly dang-it (not the real words going through my head at the time), that was frustrating!

I was trying to have a better attitude at this point.

This was actually before we left.

They love to pose, obviously : )

Note my Gene Simmons-esque tongue....try not to be jealous.

Getting Ready for Christmas

Jim announced early on this month that he would not be putting up any Christmas lights outside or putting up any Christmas decorations whatsoever, and followed it with a few "bah-humbugs" and other grumblings.  I actually didn't even really care, sometimes it just seems so overwhelming.

But, somehow, some Christmas bug must've bitten both of us because I don't think we've ever decorated more than this year.  Here are a few of our attempts to get into the Christmas spirit....

We put lights up in each of the kids' rooms...

Our live tree (in the middle) and the decorating trees in our entrance.

Paige and Hailey both wanted to pose from different angles...

Our beloved Nativity Scene.  Thank goodness it's sturdy and kid friendly because it gets played with constantly.  Crew was so excited when I got it out this year he ran around yelling, "I LOVE Jesus! I LOVE Jesus and Heavenly Father!"  

I often find the figurines lined up in all sorts of creative ways.

Marianna has given the kids snow globes each year.  They love collecting them and having them in their rooms.

Of course, Murphy, the Elf On The Shelf is becoming a favorite tradition.  We found him one morning flying one of Crew's airplanes in his room!

And our advent house where the elves leave little treats for the kids each night if they've been good.

And here is Jim's artistic outdoor light display that he said he wasn't going to do.

And lastly, the porch...nothing too spectacular but better than nothing!

Winter Fun

Nothing terribly exciting to report about, just a few winter time activities here and there...

Like building snowpeople....

And skiing at Brighton over Thanksgiving break.  It was a perfect day, we had a lot of fun.  I skied with Crew in between my legs for 3 hours, he did great!

  For me, it was quite a leg workout but well worth it.

And reading Christmas stories before bed each night (well, most nights).  

Thanksgiving 2010

We spent Thanksgiving in Salt Lake this year.  

I knew it was going to be a long day for the kids so I brought a bunch of crafts and projects to keep them busy.

They started out with pilgrim and indian popsicle stick people who were later used in a cute puppet show.  I'm not sure anyone other than grandparents will want to watch but Jim put it on you tube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9notrV2D930

Snake painting was next.  Not very 'thanksgiving-ish' but a big hit none the less.

Wrestling is a great pass-time, right Indie?

We took a walk around the neighborhood for some fresh air.

I now realize I looked like an alien. I think Molly was embarrassed but she let me carry her anyway when her little poodle feet got cold.

Our beautiful table.

Our even more beautiful family.

The clean up crew.  So much work goes into about 30 minutes of actual eating.

I am so thankful for my 3 little kiddos.  

It's so easy to remember that when I'm looking back on these cute snapshots and they're all tucked snuggly in their beds, quietly sleeping. 

But quite honestly, a lot of the day was spent breaking up fights between these three.  No matter how many crafts, puzzles, games and movies there are, it's never perfect but I love them more than anything anyway.

I'm thankful for Paige and her kind heart, her confidence and her quick wit.  My favorite Paige quote of the day was, "I feel like I'm in a staff meeting" after Jim calmly talked to her after one of her meltdowns.

I'm thankful for Hailey and her peacemaking skills , her concern for others and her strong little hands that can work out the knots in our backs.

I'm thankful for Crew and his adorable laugh, his dancing moves and his silly sense of humor.

An actual hug, which was amazing, considering they spent 75.8% of the day at each other's throats.

I am also thankful for my mom who worked hard cooking and cleaning and who graciously tolerated us in her home for 6 days. 

I'm thankful for my dad who is always good for a laugh and a hug and an entertaining story.

And, for my husband who is truly my soul-mate and best friend.  

I love you all.