You Know it's a Christmas Vacation when....

you have enough time on your hands to make homemade goodies AND boxes for your friends



reunions with cousins are sweet yet sometimes short lasting (little quarrels not pictured for discretion) :).


sled rides are plentiful, even on days when there is no snow,



you get the same gifts from people to prevent those little quarrels never pictured :),



the grandkids swarm to Grandma and Grandpa,



you have as much fun playing in boxes as you do with your new toys,



the gifts given and recieved are magical,


trucks are used for more than just driving from "A" to "B".

Gingerbread Houses

This is a very fond tradition in our household. Five years ago we were making gingerbread houses in Logandale with my side of the family when Tim proposed to me! Ever since then, we have made it a tradition to make gingerbread houses. I guess it was our first tradition we ever started together. This year was no exception. It gets all the more fun with more additions to the family (this year being Kaven). And as you can see he was not left out. This is his first candy cane. We gave it to him, and awhile later we looked over and this is what we saw. We couldn't help but laugh for the next few minutes. Kids make things so fun! Emery made a snowman out of marshmallows (but I didn't get a picture fast enough because she ate it too quickly after. Then Tim and I made our own houses. I thought I would try a pretzel cabin this year with a train! Always fun to try something new. Merry Christmas!

Ice Skating

We had a VERY special treat last weekend. We were able to go ice skating for our ward party and to top it off my Mom and little sister came for a visit! Makes for the perfect weekend! I didn't think Emery was going to be able to skate because she is so small but when we went up to the desk they handed us these adorable skates just Emery's size! Did she ever LOVE them. When Tim took her out onto the ice the first time she bent over and hardly touched the ice as Tim held most of her weight. She didn't know otherwise though and said delighted, "Dad, I'M SKATING!!" Since my mom and sister were here, they went with us and boy was that ever nice. Tim and I were able to skate alone while they watched our wee ones! THANKS SO MUCH MOM!!! That is probably the closest we have come to a date in a long time. We sure had a blast! Emery and Kaven were able to sit on Santa's lap again and once again it was a delight for both of them. I don't know where they got their bravery because I was always very scared to sit on his lap when I was a kid! I just love this Holiday season! Merry Christmas! I

New Tradition??

Right after the light parade we went to the park to see the lights. They were all so pretty and Emery was in awe of them! We walked through the whole park then stopped at the nativity as we were leaving. It was another great chance to talk to Emery about baby Jesus and the true meaning of Christmas. Sometimes I think that gets put on the back burner a little too much this time of year. So I loved that it was the last thing we saw at the end of a day full of Santa and Christmas trees. I think I might want to add that as a new tradition when we are in Delta.
Merry Christmas!!!!