Christmas Memories

Christmas Eve



Christmas Morning





Bowling the day after, and we had to actually keep score ourselves (that is how small the town is)

Traditions Passed Down

Go ahead and sit down, this is a long one...

Christmas was always magical at my house growing up. My mom is quite the decorator and the house was always decked out. Our house always transformed, it was so much fun. We used to decorate the tree together (just the one downstairs though, mom did the one upstairs). Once in awhile we would tackle a sub for santa project as a family. We usually always did something for someone in need. As a little girl I remember going to the ward party. The primary always did a program when I was little and I remember dressing up as an angel. Santa always came at the end of the party and always had a goody bag for us. It was a brown paper bag that was stapled shut. Inside was either popcorn or peanuts with assorted gum drops and chocolate covered treats. I loved that little bag. If we were lucky, there would be some left over and we would get another goody bag at tithing settlement.

On Christmas eve, Santa always walked in the door. We had a neighbor who came every year. He just walked in houses throughout the neighborhood with bells and a bag of treats. I remember someone asking my mom, "Why does Santa talk like Bob Jepson?" He is a great guy and my kids have even sat on his knee on Christmas eve. We always read the scriptures and my mom usually made us dress up and do the nativity scene. We would always sing a song or two. Then we would try to go to bed. It was so hard! We could hardly stand it.

My grandma would usually celebrate with us as well. And she spoiled us. We used to love it when she came to town. Her van would be clear full of presents. It was the best! I remember helping carry in the packages and we would always be searching for one with our name on it. And there were always lots.

My parents never let us wake up earlier than 6. So we always set our alarms for 6 am. Christmas at our house was in the basement. So we had to walk upstairs in the dark and wait for everyone to wake up. It was always so dark that I could never see a thing (and believe me, I tried!). When every one was there, my parents would get the cameras ready and then we would charge down the stairs to see what Santa set out for us. We were always so spoiled and so happy (except for the year that I got luggage:) that is a whole other post). With 7 kids, there was always lots of excitement and toys and garbage. My dad would fire up the wood burning stove so we could start burning some of the paper. It made for a cozy fun filled room all day.

As soon as we could we would start calling our friends to see what they got. My mom always made a yummy breakfast casserole. Eventually friends would come over and we would go over to their houses. And we just played and played. We never had to clean up the family room that day, it was always a mess for a day and I loved it!

So now that I have my own family I have thought a lot about traditions and how I want Christmas to be in my family. I am not exactly sure. I thought a lot about my Christmases and now that I am a parent I realize one thing my parents have instilled in me, the joy of giving. The home that I grew up in was very conservative. We had what we needed, but not much more. Except when it came to Christmas (I realize compared to some people my Christmases may have been conservative, but to us, they were over the top). And it brought my parents (especially my dad) a lot of joy to make us so happy. The older I get, the more I understand this. Christmas is just as much about giving as it is receiving. I love to find things for my family and friends. It does bring you joy. It is unfortunate that gift giving does take money. Oh if I were rich and could give everyone a big present, it would be so much fun!

My parents have really sacrificed a lot to make Christmas amazing for us. And since my sister wrote it so well on her blog I will just copy her words,

This Christmas they surprised everyone in the family by sacrificing something great so that we could each individually have something that's really important in our family. They're always sacrificing things in their lives so that we can have things in our lives.

And that is the tradition that stands out to me the most, the joy of giving. Thanks Mom and Dad. You are such awesome examples. Thanks for all the fun Christmases you have given us! I hope I can make Christmas as magical for my little family.

Merry Christmas!

We just finished up the shopping, we've bought lots of food, we've wrapped the presents, just sent out the Christmas cards (so you might get yours after Christmas), and now we are ready to relax and enjoy the holidays!

Early Mornings

This morning when I came home from the gym, I noticed a light on in my son's room. My husband had threatened them the night before about sleeping in (that means past 7:00 for my boys, they have always been early risers). So when I entered the house and saw that it was dark, I thought they must have heard me and turned out the lights. I walked down the hall to his room and opened the door. This is what I found.

I thought it was so sweet! Ethan was reading to Tyler. And they were being quiet:)

The Gingerbread House

Tyler really got into the decorating this year and kept adding things even after the other boys lost interest and left. He just couldn't remember what it was called. He referred to it as the Ninjabread House and the Cookie Jar House.

Coach

Also known as Dad. He is loving being the boys' Junior Jazz basketball coach. I think Kirk's dream job (besides not having a job) would be coaching basketball.

And I have a holiday question. You know those Salvation Army bell ringers? The ones who stand out in the freezing cold, ringing a bell, and hoping you leave some money. Where does that money go? Do those people get paid for standing out there freezing? And do they really make that much money? Just wondering. If you know any answers, please comment.

10 Years Baby!

We still like each other after all these years!

All Stitched Up!

The stitches are even BYU blue!

Christmas Letter 2008

Every year we send out a Christmas card. I usually try to write a little about each one of us. I try not to brag (I hate those kinds of letters) and I try to keep it short and sweet. My reasoning for doing this has been more of a family history reason. Several years ago my mom gave all of her kids binders with old Christmas letters from each year. They are so much fun to read! And it is a kind of family history. Each year she writes a letter she saves one in a plastic page protector for us to add to our binders. I thought it was a great idea.

This year however has been a hard one for me. I like to make cards (or at least I thought I did) so that also takes a little more time. Yesterday was set aside for Christmas cards. I started out the day with a trip to Costco to pick up a few things for my mom. I had to travel a little further than normal for this Costco, so I thought, "gees, I am already this far away from home, might as well visit my grandma." I was supposed to be working on cards, but instead I ended up visiting with grandma and taking her some lunch. I made it home before the kids got home from school and finished up the dishes and did a little laundry.

The kids came home and took off to go sledding. I worked on Christmas cards. I finally got it all figured out and just finished printing my cards, when Ethan came in the door all bloody. He needed stitches for sure. So we rushed off to the doctors and ended up with 9 stitches. What a day!

So here is our Christmas letter.

We had a great 2008!

Kirk continues to golf. It is his favorite hobby. Since he actually caught some fish this year, I guess we can now say that he also enjoys fishing. He is serving in the Young Men’s and we all hope he will learn to enjoy scouting as well! Someday he hopes to buy some guns and take the boys hunting, we’ll see…

In her spare time between blogging, Lara has been running half marathons and working out with friends at unnaturally early times in the morning. Good sales, good books, and occasionally good reality TV shows, continue to sustain her until the next family vacation she is dreaming about comes around.

Jacob is the family champ at Mario Kart. When he isn’t playing video games, you can usually find him with a sword or stick. He is enjoying the 2nd grade and is showing promise with his penmanship. He is our happy-go-lucky boy!

David continues to soak up information. Earlier this year he picked out a dictionary for a special treat. He is totally related to his dad! He loves to play soccer, basketball, and board games. He is a good brother.

Ethan can usually be found with a ball. His Uncle Michael took him to a BYU football game this year and he is now our biggest fan. He loves to throw the football and shoot baskets. He also loves to read.

Tyler is our busy body (I was going to put play boy, but that didn’t sound so good). He loves to play with his brothers, his toys, and his friends. We love to have him around to give us all hugs and kisses!

We have been blessed this year and we hope you have as well.
Merry Christmas!!!
Kirk, Lara, David, Jacob, Ethan, and Tyler

Let Miles Begin

I (I mean we, my team) got in!* I am not looking forward to training on a treadmill. Oh how I miss the summer already. Although today as I left the gym and nearly froze to death on the way to the car, I was VERY grateful for a hot and sweaty gym where I could run without the cold. Wish me luck! The race isn't until March, but I am going to need all the help I can get for these next few winter weeks and months.

*apparently there are so many people who want to run in Moab, that they have a lottery, and we got in...

MoTab Christmas

We were blessed to be able to attend this Christmas performance last night. It was awesome! It is one of our favorite things to do during the Christmas season. My husband even thinks so (so you know it must be good). This year was no exception. My favorite parts (just in case you get to go or see it on tv sometime) were the organ solo and a song called "Friendly Beasts." Go ahead a giggle to yourself. I did. Especially when the choir sang animal noises in the background. But it was a beautiful song. And I always LOVE anything Mack Wilberg arranges. It was a great evening. The only thing that could have made it better is parking. No one likes to park in Bountiful when attending things down town. Why can't they hurry and get that done? Oh and they also had all these bell choirs from different high schools. We were watching closely and I don't think all of the bells made sound. Maybe they weren't even high school kids. Maybe they just hired some stand ins....

Traditions

My children are getting old enough to remember things (ie traditions). So this year with Christmas, I would really like to start some that will help make Christmas more about fun memories with family than gifts. Teaching them the meaning of Christmas is also a very important part. What do you do with your families? I just want to have something that they look forward to and remember long after the gifts.

We love hot chocolate at our house. I made this recent purchase while in Vegas. I bought each child their own special mug and spoon. I thought we could have a hot chocolate discussion at least one night the week of Christmas. I am anxious to hear all of your ideas and memories:)

Family Fun Night

We went to see the lights at Temple Square with my brother and his family. Just like David said, "It sure is fun to have family to go with!"

Child's Play

My boys placed all kinds of armed lego men throughout my decorations on the piano. The little men were hiding everywhere!

Favorite Christmas Books

These are my all time favorite Christmas books. They are ALL worth reading! What are some of your favorites?

My Crazy Family

Some of you might think we are normal. Not after you watch this. I have a fun and crazy brother (who is awesome) with his own sense of humor and language. He is a great uncle and my kids LOVE him. During our Thanksgiving week, he made this, behind our backs. My kids had such a fun time. My brother is such a fun uncle, I really love him. So here is a thanks to Uncle Mike for teaching my children incorrect grammar, making a great memory with them, and using one of my favorite songs in the movie (the one by Seether, I don't know the title). I hope you plan on making more memories and movies with my children. By the way, Mike probably won't read this, he doesn't even have facebook:) gasp! And since I don't have a copy of this yet, here is a link to watch it. Click here It does have the pirate songs at monsters at the beginning, just wait...Enjoy!

10 Years Later, Kind Of...

Kirk and I were married 10 years ago this month. A couple of weeks ago he informed me that we had an office party on our anniversary this year. We are usually too busy and too poor this time of year to really celebrate, but an office party? This year it will be our 10 year anniversary and I thought we could at least go out to dinner. In the same conversation he also told me he had to go to Vegas for a trade show. So I told him I was coming too. Lucky for us my mom agreed to watch the kids. She still hadn't really unpacked from her various trips, so it was quite the sacrifice on her part (Kirk still hasn't unpacked from Thanksgiving). We were very grateful. If only I could buy her a new bedroom set for her new bedroom...So I rearranged some things in my schedule, booked my airfare, and went on a little shopping spree. I don't love Vegas, it is dark, stinky, and gross. But really, you can't beat the shopping. I won't go into all the great deals I got because it might ruin Christmas for some of you, but it was a sweet time for me. And I got to go out to dinner with Kirk a couple of times! One night we ate at the Rain Forrest Cafe, only because the last time I ate there was 10 years ago on our honeymoon. The food was not that good, but it was a fun time. I love Kirk. We have been blessed with a good marriage. It has actually been 14 years since our first date. And it has been the best. I have so much fun with him, we are really lucky. I look forward to him coming home from work everyday and I look forward to many more happy times!

Tithing Settlement and Christmas Dishes

Now you know it is December! Even though they both happened yesterday, we are officially into the Christmas season!

Thanksgiving in a Small Town

What is Thanksgiving without football? And in our case, Mario Kart. We got rained on for two days and therefore spent some serious time racing with Mario Kart, it was awesome!


BBQ's at the hut. Those were some of my boys favorite parts of the trip!


They couldn't get enough four wheeling!


The dryer broke on our last day there. So we had to hang the clothes out to dry. I love this picture. If I had a backyard with that view and got to hang out my laundry, I might actually like laundry!


Jacob has always had his own sense of style. We couldn't convince him to wear pants with his boots, oh well. I think it is great!


Down by the river. The bridge in the background is one of my favorites!


Tyler and his best friend Reggie, who enjoyed digging holes in the grass.


Kirk and I down by the river.


The end. Hope you all had a good Thanksgiving!

Weekend Movie Reviews

This weekend, I saw 3 movies. That never happens in my life, but it did this weekend. One was for my husband, one was for my son, and one was for me! On Friday we saw the James Bond movie, Quantum Solace. My husband really enjoyed it. There was just too much blowing up, killing, and chasing for my taste. The plot gets so complicated some times (trying to figure out who is really good and who is really bad) I just loose interest. Daniel Craig is a great Bond. I loved Casino Royal, but I don't plan to see this one ever again. Oh well, it was a great date night with friends and we had yummy sushi before hand.

Saturday we saw Bolt. We went for Tyler's birthday and all the kids were excited and it was fun to take them to a movie. So I was excited as well. I had low expectations because I worried about having to listen to Miley Cyrus's voice the entire time. But I was pleasantly surprised. I thought is was great! It is a cute movie about a girl and her dog. There are also a cat and a hamster that make for some great laughs! We will definately own this one. I daresay I liked it better than Wall-e or any other disney movie I have seen in awhile.

The third movie I saw this weekend was Twilight. I have read the book and I really liked it. Yes, it is a cheesy, teenage love story. But it is entertaining. And it is a light read. Books are always better than the movies, but I did have high hopes for this one. All in all it was pretty good. I thought the casting was amazing! It definately followed the book. I thought the Cullens were awesome! It was just like the book, they really did stand out. They were so cool! I loved the baseball game, their house, and their cars. My biggest gripe was just that Bella and Edward's relationship seemed a little premature for the drama at the end. But if you read the book, then you already know how close they had become.

The movie I want to see next is Australia. Doesn't it look wonderful? And I loved the Harry Potter preview at Twilight. Can't wait for that one! My memory is so terrible that even though I have read the book, I am sure the movie will still be a surprise!

Happy Birthday Tyler!

Tyler turned 4 yesterday. We had a whole weekend of birthday celebration. On Saturday we took him and some friends to see Bolt. It was a really cute movie and all the 4 year olds made it through. Afterwards we had cake and icecream. Later we watched BYU get slaughtered (sad). I got to make a quick visit to my grandma (still in the hospital). Kirk had a little missionary get together here at our house. And we opened more presents on Sunday (Tyler's actual birthday).

He is such a sweet affectionate boy. I love him to pieces. Whenever someone would tell him happy birthday, he responded with a happy birthday to you. He is such a fun little guy. He loves to cuddle with me and I think that is great. He got lots of toys for his birthday and he loves toys. Some of his favorite things right now are Batman and any toy that transforms. Happy Birthday Tyler!

It Doesn't Matter

Saturday is the big game. I mentioned earlier that I am a true BYU fan. My husband went to the U and uses that as one of his reasons of why he can cheer for the U. If you want to get more technical, he wants the U to win because they have more to gain. They will be undefeated and possibly go to a BCS Bowl and blah, blah, blah. But it doesn't really matter. I am a BYU fan and I REALLY want BYU to win.

The Flu

I got it. It was bad. I am glad it is over. David got it too. So much for flu shots (even though I didn't get one, David did). This picture was taken awhile back when Jacob was sick. This picture is also a another good reason why we love our dog. He knows how to comfort the kids and cheer them up. We love our dog, especially now that the first year is over.

A Heart Surgery, A New Baby, A Wedding

We had a busy weekend, but it was good. My grandma had heart surgery on Friday so I went to see her yesterday. She is still in intensive care. I have never visted someone in intensive care before. The nurses and staff seem much more attentive and aware of their patients, so I am confident she is getting good care, but I am also sad. I can't imagine recovering from a surgery like that at my age, let alone her age. She is a strong person and she will be ok, but it will not be easy. I am a wuss when is comes to stuff like blood and needles, even the sight of an IV bothers me. They had to take a vein from her arm, so she has got an incision the length of her forearm. That surprised me. They told her she would probably have more pain from that than her chest. She felt like that was true. Ouch!

My sister in law gave birth Saturday morning to a little girl. They have all the girls and we have all the boys. She is a beautiful baby. I could've brought her home with me, except Kirk reminded me how it really is not that much fun to get up all night with a crying baby. But it sure is fun to hold them! On the way to the hospital I asked the boys what they would name a baby girl if we had one. They said things like, "Isabelle" and "Elizabeth". If you know my dad, then this one will be funny to you. Without missing a beat, David said, "Sally Ann". We all laughed.

So we made quite the hospital rounds yesterday. One visit was at St. Mark's Hospital. David, Jacob, and Ethan were all born there. They love to be reminded of that and how they used to be little babies. Tyler was born at Cottonwood hospital. We had this hospital conversation a lot during our travels. As we went to the next hospital, which was LDS and no one was born there, Tyler said, "I was born at the Cotton Candy hospital." Sounds good to me :)

Kirk's dad got married on Saturday. The wedding was in Richfield so we spent the day down there. He remarried his second wife and we are all happy for them. It is a good thing. The wedding wasn't until later in the afternoon, so we had the day to kill in Richfield. It is a small town and it is great. I went to buy a gift certificate for Kirk's dad at the local steakhouse. They used one of those things to imprint my credit card with carbon paper. It made me smile. I like going to Richfield and slowing down and going back in time a little.

Kirk went with my dad to his field (the alfalfa one, not to be confused the the horse one). My dad LOVES his fields. Heaven better have some for him. They first stopped at IFA where Ethan and Tyler got new boots. And they bought gopher bombs. They spent the next couple of hours probing for gophers and setting off bombs. Afterwards they went to Larsen's Ace Hardware to get a hamburger. You heard me right, a hamburger. Back when we were young and lived in Richfield, Kirk and his friends used to frequent JR Munchies. It was a gas station that had one of those hamburger machines where you put in a frozen patty and wait for it to come out the other end. For some reason, Kirk has really wanted one of these hamburgers. The gas station is gone, but the hamburgers live on inside of the hardware store. So they went there for lunch. I opted out. But we can check that one off of our list of things Kirk would like the kids to experience in our small town.

All in all it was a good weekend. I forgot my friend Nicole's birthday. I feel bad about that. Happy Birthday Nicole! We met our sophmore year of college and she has been one of my best friends ever since. That was definitely a year to remember! We had some good times. Someday when Texas gets wiped out by a hurricane, she might move to Utah. I don't want that kind of harm for anyone, but I really wish she would move here, hint, hint!

Ramblings of a Stay at Home Mom (flu shots)

I hate shots. Actually I hate needles. I make my kids get flu shots, but I don't. I tell them they have to have them because they are in school. Which is kind of true. When I taught school, I got flu shots. But I don't anymore. Kirk usually gets sick when he gets flu shots. I am not a scientist or doctor, but I am not sure if it is good to get a flu shot every year. It just doesn't seem like it is very good for your body. I have had doctors who tell me a flu shot is a MUST and others who have been more lackadaisical like me. So do you get flu shots? What do you think?

We're Done...

...having kids that is. I don't feel as if my body could do more and my husband says he can't handle more. This isn't a major announcement for those of you who know us well. We've been done for awhile now. But oh my little boys would love a little girl. I would too actually. We got a visit this weekend from our latest and newest niece (who will be loosing her title to another niece being born this weekend). Ethan and Tyler really loved holding her and Tyler loved feeding her. She is a good baby and let them man handle her. It was sweet to imagine how they might react to a new baby in the house.

The next day the twins were asking about how you get a baby. I told them you have to get pregnant. Just the kind of question you long for, right? We sort of went over some biology when the dog got "fixed" and we've had some basic birds and bees talks with them, but they loose interest faster than we can answer. So I reminded them that you have to have a mommy and daddy to make a baby. They responded with, "ya, but how do they get pregnant?" I asked them if they have ever heard the word sex (which we have talked about before) to which they replied, "no" and had already changed the subject. Phew! I am prepared to say whatever needs to be said, but they really are not that curious, just as well.