Christmas Weekend

Why does the Christmas season have to be so stressful? I tried to start projects well in advance, but I still had too much on my plate. We are still in charge of snow removal for our apartment complex and the week before Christmas it dumped over a foot of total snow. I shouldn't complain, because we are grateful for the extra income, but I was not prepared to spend that much time shoveling snow. I needed to finish my projects for Christmas!! So when Christmas came I was very ready for the relaxation.

Our Christmas morning started at 8:00 am. The boys haven't figured out that you can get up early on Christmas morning and get away with it. :) They were excited about each gift, even socks and underwear. :) I didn't think McKenna would even understand what was going on, but she gave out a squeal every once in a while. It was so fun watching the kids open their presents and sharing in their excitement. We opened presents as quickly as we could, since a major snow storm was supposed to hit that morning and we had planned to travel to my parents' house. The storm ended up arriving later that evening, so all that rushing for nothing. Oh well. We spent the rest of the weekend with my family in Centerville. Everyone was in town except my brother, Scott and his family. It wasn't the same without them.My parents

The days were filled with shopping, opening presents, sledding, eating, and chatting with family while the kids played downstairs. :) It all went by way too fast.

My sister, Stephanie, and her son, Landon.
My sister, Laurel, and her daughter, Madeleine.My sister, Camille, and her daughter, Sarah.
My niece, Katherine.My niece, Lizzie.

My brother, Jeff, planned a game of Jeopardy for my sisters and parents. He came up with trivia questions about memories of our childhood. It was a lot of fun and gave us a good laugh.

Leon (brother-in-law), Taylor, Jayden (nephew), Cameron (nephew), and Dallin (nephew).

The Wii became an addiction in the house. Leon, Dave, and I stayed up late into the night playing Mario Kart. I'm trying to convince Dave that we want one. (I never thought I would say that.)

We want to wish all our friends and family a very Merry Christmas!

Our Christmas Tree

I think we are one of the few that still buy a natural tree each year. It seems that the majority of the population have gone to artificial. I can understand the draw to artificial...it's low maintenance. Yes, we have to go out in the cold and purchase it, and yes, we have to cut the trunk, and yes, we do have to water it several times a day, and yes, we have to vacuum the needles...but we still love the smell and look of a real tree.

Dave and I have a little compromise going. I was raised with solid white lights and he was raised with flashing color lights. So we've decided to alternate every other year. This year was color lights, but I still got them to be solid and not blinking. :) Here are a few of my favorite ornaments: (for anyone that really cares.)

This was always a favorite from my childhood. (Shh...don't tell my siblings that I have it...oh wait, they read this blog...dang.)
Um...no explanation needed!

Dave gave me this ornament on our first Christmas together. I actually wanted to buy one for him, but never did, so I was even that more excited when I opened one from him!! It says "Our First Christmas 2000".

My sister, Laurel, brought two sets of these ornaments from Korea. They are Chinese Cloisonne ornaments. Each one is different and I love them all!

And some of you might be wondering why our tree is on top of our end table....here's the reason:

Why We Need A Second Bathroom

First-Annual Family Gingerbread House

This was our first attempt at building a gingerbread house...k, it was from a kit, but still! I can't remember the last time I made one and it is something we will definitely do again...hopefully every year. We all had such a great time and it was something that the whole family could participate in.

Drum roll please...and here's the finished product!

Merry Christmas! From, Our Santa Baby

An Update

A few weeks ago I posted (here) about my poor temple wedding cake topper. I've had several concerned people ask me how my super glue job worked out. So I thought I would post an update. Last week I attempted to fix the poor porcelain keepsake.

Here's the before:


Here's the during: Yes, the whole roof caved in. Apparently there was further structural damage than I realized. I was almost on the last piece and I pushed a little to hard and yep, back at square one and then some. I thought about quitting right then.

But the roof glued on nicely and here's the after:
It's not as good as I wanted it to be. The roof caving in caused the spire to be off. But I guess it "has character" now.

Thanksgiving...Yes, It's Late.

Sorry this post is so late...to anyone that's been waiting for it.

Dave worked a few hours in the early morning and made it home in time for the ward Turkey Bowl. He might be old, but it sounds like he held his own out there. This was the first year in about 4 years that we've been able to spend Thanksgiving at my parents' house. It was a fun day. We each shared what we were thankful for while we ate dinner. Then the kids ran downstairs to play games and the adults sat around looking at the ads for Black Friday. We had a great time talking and laughing. I didn't get to see much of the paper, since I was on McKenna duty. She had way to many things to explore at Grandma and Grandpa's house. Sheesh.

Here's the group. My sister and family, and my brother, Jeff, came as well. I told everyone that this was the "Traci shot" since she wasn't there to take it. She's our "family photographer" and always thinks to take pictures like this. We miss the photos when she's not there!!

Taylor and his cousin, Landon.
Stephanie and I made a great team making the pies. I made the crust and she did the rest. Everyone said they were delicious.

In a few years, Dallin will regret that this picture was ever taken.

Derek was so excited for Thanksgiving this year. When I asked him why, he said "because of all the good food; like turkey and pies". I was impressed he actually loved the pumpkin pie. He's a picky eater, but I've noticed that he's growing out of it lately. It's very exciting to me!! And can I just say that he's so adorable in this picture!

Here's a shout out to the peeps that couldn't make it this year. We love you and missed you!

Days before Thanksgiving there were commercials for Kohl's opening at 4 am on Black Friday. I actually said out loud, in disgust "that is wrong, just wrong. 4 am is way too early". Well, we returned home from dinner around 11:00 pm and Dave and I sat down to look at the paper, since, as previously mentioned, I couldn't at my parents' house. I fell asleep several times while looking, but I was determined to see all the ads before I went to bed, so that I would know if I needed to go shopping. Anyway, I fell asleep on the couch for about thirty minutes and woke up at 3 am. My next ad was Kohl's and there was a sewing machine for a great deal. I was already awake, so I figured that I might as well go. So I got redressed and nudged Dave and told him where I was going. So at 3:40 AM I was standing in line with about 150 other crazy people, even though I was openly against a store opening so early. It was so so cold. I couldn't stop my knees from shaking. People in line started inching closer and closer to the door and the line became more and more compact. I was a little worried about the insanity that would ensue when the doors were opened. However, I was pleasantly surprised when people merely jogged into the building. I did get my sewing machine and a large electric skillet and both were a great price. I felt so much pressure to buy more since everyone else had their arms loaded with treasures. I was surprised how feisty women get when they are after good deals. At one point I had stopped to look at some towels for only $2.49. I was feeling how thick it was and a lady actually took it out of my hand. I was a little stunned. And later at Walmart two women got in a battle over toddler jeans. One lady took all that was left and another lady said "oh, so you're going to take all of them, that's not fair". The lady with the jeans says "I have 8 grandkids" and the other women says "well, I have 7 children". A third lady yelled "Oh, I think she has you beat!" They sounded like the toddlers they were buying the jeans for.

I was out shopping until 8:00 am. I was beat, but all the deals were worth it...right? I've decided that early morning is the best time to shop if you want to go without kids. I knew they were sleeping, so there was no pressure to get home to relieve my husband. I doubt I will make it a habit though.

Okay, so sorry about the long rambling post. I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving and are enjoying the Christmas season!!