Christmas Magic!

Christmas morning... excitement was in the air! I actually didn't sleep great.... I woke up around 5 from a dream and couldn't get back to sleep. The kids were up around 7. They were freaking out about this wrap job... Emri had told us that last year she went downstairs and peeked at everything before anyone else was awake. Santa got smart this year....

First things first (well, they dug through their stockings first)... we needed to find out if baby is a boy or girl!! 

 She's smiling... but it wasn't what she was hoping for! BABY BOY is on his way in May!!! 

 I didn't get too many pics this year of unwrapping. I think I just sat and watched them and soaked all the excitement in. 

 The kids loved their Saranoni blankets! 

 I was pretty excited because this gift was in the works for the past couple months. I had to sneakily get these cornhole boards (that Brett built while we lived in Ohio) out of the shed and take them to a lady who paints them (because we obviously hadn't made time to finish them). It was a really fun gift and he was totally surprised!! 

The kids LOVED their Buckeye uniforms!! 

 We are now officially Lego owners, thanks to Santa! He loved helping put them together! 

 Emri asked for crafts... so we spent part of the morning hand-stitching this cute stuffed kitty. 

 All tuckered out from an exciting morning... headed to Salt Lake for more family fun in the afternoon.

 Great.... WEAPONS! That's all we need! Thanks grandma and papa! haha! 

 We spent the night at Grandma's house, then went sledding the next day! This tiny little hill at the church is perfect for these little legs! 

 We stopped to visit Great Gpa and Gma on our way back home... Emri performed a cute little Christmas song for them... I love these pics of Gpa watching her, then the big hug after. Sometimes the smallest things make for the happiest memories! 

What an enjoyable couple of days!! Now... time to go home and rest! 

Christmas Eve Traditions...

Our Christmas card that we sent to family and friends this year. 

 So, we stuck with the bowling tradition on Christmas Eve this year, but we went to Morgan because Layton was so crowded last year! We invited our friends, the Copiers and also some family (the Ellis').

 My nieces are so gorgeous! 

 Andertons & Copiers!

 After bowling, we got Cafe Rio takeout and came back to our house to eat dinner, make sugar cookies for Santa, and read some stories!

 During cookie decorating, there was a knock at the door... nobody was there, but a pile of presents for the kids was left!!

IT WAS CHRISTMAS JAMMIES!!!!!! The kids were off the walls excited! What a fun night! Now... time for bed so the big guy can come! 

 Look at these cute little Christmas Elf faces! 

 Merry Christmas to all... and to all a good night! 

What Do YOU Do In The Wintertime....???

 Let me tell you what our Winter (well December) looked like...

Cousin Christmas Party with the Polar Express Theme! And although Gma and Gpa were not physically with us (at THEIR house!) they were with us in spirit...and technology! :) This was about 2 or 3AM their time in Portugal! They were able to watch us have the Nativity, and open our gifts from them. 

Yummy hot cocoa bar....

 Mingling around the island....

 This cracked me up.... gotta get documentation! 

 LOVING their new jammies from Gma and Gpa! 

 Last winter was pretty mild..... this Winter... not so much! This was 7 am one morning...

 ... and this was minutes later.  THREE neighbors showed up with snowblowers! Man, we felt blessed! Such a great neighborhood! 

 A beautiful tree in our neighborhood! 

 Jet and Tommy, snow playdate! 

 Luke and Emri trudging through the snow after school. It was nearly waist-deep in some areas!! 

 We decorated gingerbread men/girls this year instead of houses. Loved it!

 Me: "Ike, who do you want to put you to bed tonight? Mommy or Daddy?"

Ike: "Emmy"

So sweet this bond they have! 

The more it snowed... the more fun we had outside! Our lower cement pad out back made for a great little hill for the kids to sled down! They spent over an hour out there each time they played.

 Even though Winter isn't my favorite time of year, it's hard to not appreciate the blanket of white, especially when the skies are blue! 

 Jet was adorable in his pre-k Christmas program. 

 We had our annual breakfast with Santa at Chickfila! 

 Ike was willing to sit on his lap, but certainly didn't want to look Santa in the eye!

 Our dear friends, the Benders, are moving to Italy in January, so some friends got together for dinner to drown our sorrows in pizza! 

 The girls were really strugglin' to get a picture! Worse than toddlers, I tell ya!

 More snow = more fun outside! 

Cutest snow bundle around!

These silly boys wanted to play out on the swings! 

 It was so dang cold, but we played for a long time... and were rewarded with an amazing sunset! 

We had a dr appt to find out the gender of the baby just a few days before Christmas.... and decided to all wait and find out together! My dr put the ultrasound pics in an envelope... I took it to Baby Gap and picked out 2 outfits (one boy/one girl). I even made sure they were the same price so I literally had NO idea what I paid for! I turned around while the cashier opened the envelope and packaged the correct color of clothing. She taped the box shut... and I quickly drove home! 

 As soon as I got home I wrapped the box and put it on the fireplace mantle! I can't believe I didn't peek!! 

 Brett participated in an Ugly Sweater Day at his Syracuse office. So ugly! 

On Christmas Eve-Eve... several family members from Morgan came to Ogden to see the new Star Wars movie. Well... you guessed it... more snow! Than canyon ended up closing minutes before they were headed up due to terrible roads and accidents. My phone rang around 10:30, I think I had JUST fallen asleep! It was Jim saying they were on their way and needed a place to sleep! We successfully housed and extra 10 people that night! I'd say we are more prepared for a zombie apocalypse than I was aware of!! What a memorable night!

The next morning Brett made a pancake breakfast for everyone! 

So, I'd say December was a success so far!!