Christmas Wrap-Up

A little late posting this... but I will be glad I did later....

We had a wonderful Christmas. The kids kept saying it was going to be the best Christmas yet, and it really was. On Christmas morning, everyone slept in, and we went downstairs around 8am to see what Santa brought.

Santa brought digital cameras to the younger crowd and EFY tickets to the older crowd. Plus a stocking each filled with movies, candy, and lots of other good stuff.

The kids all drew names to see who they would be buying a present for. Everyone had to spend their own money on the gift they picked, with a $10 limit.

Eugene picked Isabella, and got her a stuffed horse, as that was the only thing she said Santa was going to bring her! Santa didn't bring her a horse, so it was awesome that Eugene did.

Elvis picked Hayden. As Hayden is a true Star Wars and Lego fan, Elvis settle on a Star Wars Lego t-shirt. It was a great pick.

Hayden picked Callie was got her a pack of knee-high socks. This girl loves socks, especially knee-high ones.

Isabella picked Eugene, she picked him out an American Eagle beanie, nicely done Bells!

And lastly, Callie picked Elvis, and got him a Quicksilver hat. This boy had been asking for a hat for some time, and finally got one.

After we opened up the rest of the gifts, we headed over to my parent's house for more gifts and relaxing with family. It was great to be together, but we missed Heather & Doug and family lots.

We had a relaxing day, and a great meal. Eugene and Austin decided to go for a polar bear swim, while the rest of us stayed cozy warm and dry inside. They lasted in the pool for about 15 minutes. Pretty impressive.

Gingerbread Houses

Last Friday, to kick off the Christmas break, we had a little Christmas party. The kids got to invite a few friends each to come over and make gingerbread houses. There were 12 little people over here - sometimes I think I'm crazy! But, it was a blast seeing all of their creations. I even got to make one, which is one of my favorite things to do!

I also set up a Christmas card making station, so when they were done with their houses they had something else to work on. I didn't think the boys were going to like making cards, but it was actually a big hit with them.

I meant to get a picture with everyone's houses, but didn't get around to it. We are excited for Christmas to be here!

December Happenings

The kids enjoyed breakfast with Santa last weekend. We were all pretty sure that it was the real Santa because it really looked like him, and his beard was real.

Santa kept the kids on his lap for awhile and talked to each one of them separately. It warmed my heart! Seeing their little faces loving the special attention.

Jeff and I went to a football banquet this week for Eugene. He got a trophy for the best offensive player. He was so excited. Eugene was bumped up to Varsity during the playoffs. He is going to miss his JV coaches a lot.

Callie was in a Winter Performace for school this week. It is such a joy to see your children up on stage singing and smiling. So much fun.

Ice Skating

For family night, we went ice-skating at an outdoor rink with a group of families from the ward. What a blast we had!! It was such a magical night with the Christmas lights, Christmas music, and lots of friends around. It was Callie and Hayden's first time ice-skating and they took to the ice without any problems (must be because they are part Alaskan -haha). Elvis and Eugene were great too. We decided as a family that this will be one of our yearly traditions.

Baptism

These two cute little girls got baptized together on the same day. We snapped a few pictures of the girls the weekend before their baptism, so that we had some pictures to display on the table. We had a few weeks of freezing weather here, and the poor girls were outside in their dresses in 40 degree weather. They were good sports, but were frozen by the time we were done.

As it was Thanksgiving weekend, Callie's favorite babysitter was home from college, and was able to come to her baptism. Their family gave Callie a beautiful baptism towel, which she loves using.

Grandma Christensen made Callie a beautiful quilt, out of purple fabrics, Callie's favorite color. Thank you Grandma for such a gorgeous quilt.

We went to the Elephant Bar Restaurant after the baptism for lunch. Callie had this part of her baptism planned months ago. It was a fun lunch, and Callie appreciated everyone celebrating with her.

Thanksgiving

We had a great Thanksgiving this year complete with:

1) the yearly 10k Run for the Hungry. I pulled a muscle in my right shin a few days before the race, Jeff was sweet enough to stay with me as we ran. It was a chilly run, with the temperature being around 29 degrees.

2) Jeff's car needed a jump almost every time he used it. After about a week of trying to save it by charging it over night, he finally broke down to buy a new one. Thank goodness!!

3) the fish hatchery to see the salmon and feed the trout

4) Uncle Derek gave the kids "Thanksgiving Presents", which were the little pooping-candy animals. Huge hit with Callie, Hayden, and Isabella.

5) dinner at Uncle Derek & Aunt Jackie's, with a smoked turkey and a smoked ham, and lots of other yummy sides.

Thanksgiving Pies

My favorite Thanksgiving tradition is going to the Salvation Army to make pies for the homeless. The kids always have so much fun being able to help make the pies. This year, Jeff's parents were able to join us, which was a lot of fun.

We make 4 different kind of pies: pumpkin, apple crumble, regular apple, and lemon meringue. We usually end up rotating stations as we get tired of one, or find a need at another. This year the kids helped with the pastry, apple peeling, and lemon juicing and zesting.

Grandma spent the entire time peeling and coring apples. Her hands looked sore and red by the end of the night.

Grandpa was in charge of baking the pies. He was an expert by the end knowing how many minutes to cook, and when they were done.

This is a great tradition shared with great friends.