Holiday fun and a flashback

We have had a fun and busy couple of weeks getting ready for Christmas.

Setting up our Nativity and decorating the tree - I take no responsibility for what my kids are wearing once we are in our house! They come up with the craziest get-ups, especially after church on Sundays! (For example, above, Savannah is sporting the black tights she wore to church with the summer outfit she decided to change into after church:) And above and below, well this is pretty much what T would where all the time if I would let him.


Some funny things . . .

Last Sunday we attempted our tradition of making my Grandma's famous fudge. I decided to use butter instead of margarine and well, it didn't set up so well. It made really great frosting, though! We put it in between graham crackers (we call these Camille cookies, after my sis), and they are super yummy. Maybe even a new tradition! The second batch turned out perfectly . . . whew!

I bought some Christmas cards for Ashkii to take to some co-workers - just bought what was on sale at Target on Monday. Well, they were glitter cards, and we have glitter EVERYWHERE! He got some serious flack at work for having glitter all over him, too! Really, my house is covered in glitter right now. I should send it all to Camille, who thinks it is funny to send my kids cards full of confetti:)

Our house is also covered in fuzz. My sweet aunt Cheryl made my kids these cute, snuggly, fleece blankets, and for some reason Savannah's continues to shed! She loves it, so she drags it everywhere, so we have fuzz everywhere (maybe Aunt Cheryl is playing a joke on us!). We are a holiday house of glitter and fuzz!

Rachel turned 5 months old this week! I can't believe this - it goes faster with each child. After the first couple of months, I finally have felt less discombobulated! It is so nice when they start to sleep through the night:) She is such a fun baby - very content and smiley. And very patient with the ever-in-her-face siblings:). She started eating rice cereal and seems pretty excited to finally be a part of the dining table action. She is discovering her feet and is mesmerized by them! It is so fun to see each stage. I find I appreciate it more this time around because I know how short each phase is and that something new is coming up around the corner.




Trevor came home last week singing "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" and it reminded me of Christmas '06 when we caught him singing it (or trying, anyway!) in the bathtub. He is a little embarrassed, but says I can post it as long as you all understand that he was ONLY 5:)

I love to see the Temple

Last weekend, we drove into DC to enjoy the Christmas lights at the LDS Temple. It was very festive and there is always such an awesome feeling there. The visitors center has a theater, and there are performances every night of December. We saw a big band orchestra - so fun! They just needed a dance floor!

The live nativity was a hit with Savannah. She was mesmerized. Then there happened to be an older couple at the visitors center that came in dressed as Santa and Mrs. Claus. Mrs. Claus let Savvy feel her soft, furry muff, and then Santa shook her hand and said, "Love you; be good!" and she just stared - speechless! The world is magical through her eyes. It's fun to be four!

We plan to go again and see the pretty lights and a different concert next week. I love the temple!

Fun out West

We just returned from a two week trip to Utah and Nevada (translation: long post). It was so great to see so many great friends and all of our family that lives out there. Thanks to everyone who went out of their way to coordinate get-togethers, and especially to our parents who we completely exhausted (hopefully they are taking a nap right now). We are a little tired, too, and a little confused on which time zone we are in, even Rachel. It always takes awhile to get back into "reality" but we sure are grateful for the fun times! Here is a synopsis:

Savannah loves her aunts' pedicures

All the Grandmas love to spoil the kids out there

Our cute and chubby! munchkin had
a "photo shoot" with aunt Lindsi


ADVENTURES WITH GRANDPA G

Trevor has always wanted to help my Dad hang Christmas lights. You can see by his face that it was everything he had hoped. And he loved that it made my Mom really nervous to have them out there on the ladders. Savannah mostly played in the tree.







My cute Dad planned an afternoon with Trev to build birdhouses with some spare wood he had. Trevor waited excitedly for him to get home from work and then LOVED every minute of this project. He wanted to bring home the safety goggles because he thought they were super cool.




GOLFING WITH DAD AND GRANDPA G


SHOOTING
There is a crazy, redneck:) side of my family that loves things like shooting clay pigeons. I have to say I had a great time staying home with the baby and relaxing:) but the rest of my family enjoyed a fun day in the UT desert with friends and family. Savannah totally loved it - who knew there could be this side to our little princess? And my littlest sister, also a princess, shot 8 clay pigeons in a row! At least they are well-rounded, right!?


Note Trevor's BYU Cougars hat - a gift from Grandpa L. This was the day of the HUGE rivalry game between the University of Utah and Brigham Young University. I have always found the whole rivalry a little over the top (sorry Utahns!) and so I cheer for the U just to razz my hubby and in-laws (love ya!). My siblings have gone/go to the U as well. Trevor LOVED the trash talking and was furious when the room he was to sleep in at my parents' house was decorated in Utah red balloons, pom poms, and posters!!! It was too funny. And in the end, the UTES prevailed - wahoo!


RACHEL'S BLESSING DAY
We decided to have Rachel blessed in Utah amongst our family and friends there. It was so wonderful to see so many people and feel that support. A very special day for a super sweet baby . . .

THANKSGIVING IN NEVADA
Ashkii's mom grew up on a farm in NV and it is tradition to go out for Thanksgiving. It has been awhile since we've been out, and we are so grateful we were able to go this year. The kids have a BLAST with all the cousins and second cousins. Savannah was ECSTATIC to find out that she has GIRL COUSINS!!! "How come I never knew this?" she asked us. Too funny. All of her first cousins are boys, so this was REALLY good news:). She and Kalea bonded instantly. The boy cousins enjoyed being all together. Trevor is still missing them.

The weekend was JAM-PACKED (as all trips involving my hubby's family are:) with activities: riding four wheelers, kayaking, bowling, playing football and ultimate frisbee, visiting the local museum, grinding corn on the farm, riding the cow train through the corn maze (sorry, I know this should have been pictured), and visiting with great-grandparents, of course! I relaxed at the hotel and read a lot while Rachel was napping, which was a nice change of pace. And some of us girls went to see Twilight, too. We had a GREAT time . . .

Notre Dame game

When it was still November (whoa - that flew by), Ashkii's parents and brother came to town and we all got to attend the Navy/Notre Dame game at the Ravens stadium in Baltimore. I was amazed by the SIZE of that place. Rachel wasn't so sure about the whole experience; she cried a lot and finally fell asleep on Grandpa's shoulder walking out of the stadium. Trevor said it would have been the best day of his life if Navy had won. They fought hard - it was a great game!