December Days

December flew by this year! We did so much, it was hard to get it all in...but we managed...

These are the pics we used for our Christmas cards...this wasn't the actual card I sent, because I got free ones from seehere.com- that was awesome! I really only sent a few out, to relatives, but this one was what I had intended on using.
This was the annual ward Christmas breakfast- with a magician that was interesting, to say it nicely- and Alex was chosen to be an "assistant" on stage, so I tried to capture that too.
We had a blast again this year making gingerbread houses with the Boothe's- ours gets better each year, I must admit. Alex missed out- he stayed the night with Grandpa- but the girls were having fun decorating!
So there you have it- 2009 all wrapped up- I am looking forward to a wonderful 2010- filled with more fun family adventures- I am so blessed- this year taught me more than I could imagine- I hope next year doesn't have as much of that! Ha Ha!

Christmas 2009

Another Wonderful Christmas!!

I could go on and on about how fantastic our Christmas was again this year, but I think the smiles on these faces say it better than my words....enjoy!

Light up the Night

So we used our fantastic zoo pass for the first time last night! Whoo Hoo! It was wonderful- a perfect night- fiercely cold, but so nice to be out enjoying the lights and sounds of the season. We took our great friends, Steve and Carmen and headed out to brave the cold. I made sure that we all had double layers on - and that was a great move, since it was REALLY cold out there!
Here are some fun shots of that night:





















Thanks, GeeGee and Popi- we love the gift and look forward to going again and again!

Christmas came early...

GeeGee came to visit us earlier this month!! We were so happy to see her!! It has been since May that we got to be with her- the kids loved every minute of it....especially when she took the girls shopping for their own gifts and then let them open them! Thanks GeeGee, we love it all!! Especially YOU!
The girls each got a piggy bank that they decorated and put on their bookcase. Celeste named hers Polly.
Leah literally loves everything- honestly, she is by far the easiest kid to buy for- which is not good for me, because I buy her a lot! She loves girly things, so this nail polish was perfect!
Alex is into building things, so this Lego set was perfect- he had wanted it for a long time- and he and Dana put it together that night- love that!
Typical 4 year old girl- she LOVES Ariel! LOVES HER! Can't get enough of her- so this doll was all she really wanted and of course, she gets what she wants, right?!
Last night we got another gift from Dana's parents- a zoo membership!! So great! We haven't had one in years, and the kids LOVE the zoo, so it was by far a perfect, very unexpected, so treasured gift- we are ecstatic and are planning to go tomorrow!!
Today counts down 5 days until Christmas, and I thought it would be a mild week- I was wrong- I have a ton to do!! But no worries, it will all get done, and if it doesn't, well, oh well! I have a new outlook for 2010 and it is much less stressful...let's hope it sticks around!

A Shopping We Will Go...

Another fantastic, wonderful, hilarious, special, cheek-hurting, laugh all the time shopping trip down...I just keep smiling thinking about all the fun this trip was this year- honestly, it just gets better and better each and every year.
We added a few to our group this year and they did not disappoint- in fact, they added to the wonderfulness of it all!! I am pretty sure this group was started in the mid 90's, and I have been going since 1999. I missed a year when the girls were each born, but other than that, I have not missed. Lish has never missed, she was the original planner, then it passed to me, and now I have passed it to Tina...she helped score us sweet rooms at the Hampton after the scuzzy motel from last year hadn't improved!! We had a record number of girls this year- 13!! Tina and Carrie are missing from this pic, but are in others, so I will post them soon....
I think I spent more than I imagined...BUT I didn't buy a single thing that I actually needed!! Ha Ha! I never do, actually, this trip is reserved for things that are fun to buy and things that are relatively inexpensive that I would enjoy!! That is not true for everyone on the trip, but for me, I don't buy a lot for other people, mainly myself!! Love that!
I could go on and on about all our fun events and stories, but that would ruin it for the girls...it is all good fun and more to look forward to next year!! Counting down already....