Wow.  I don't have very many pictures to document Christmas Day....or Christmas vacation for that matter.  Hopefully that means that I was too busy having fun and enjoying the moment to be bothered with my camera.  And really, I think that was just the case.

I did, however, manage to take the annual "what-did-you-get-for-Christmas" picture of the kids next to their stash. 

 Meagan, 10 years

Not sure what her 'favorite' was, but she really did love everything.

 Lindsay, 8 years

The Justin Beiber doll was her favorite...and the Justin Beiber CD.  Heaven.  She was so excited when she opened the gift.  At first, she could tell it was a doll, but didn't realize 'who' it was, but when she did.....squeals of delight and a super huge smile!  The perfect reaction!

 Ellie, 2 1/2 years

 Tanner, 2 days shy of being 5 years old

I thought for sure the Nintendo DS would be his favorite, but he really liked everything.

I have to say Christmas was so much fun and super relaxing.  We (Brad and I) decided to stay at home Christmas Day this year.  We could visit family another day, but we were staying put.  We welcomed anyone who wanted to come our way with open arms.  We stayed in our jammies all day, watched 3 movies (Toy Story 3, Shrek 4, and Despicable Me), ate too much candy and chocolate, napped, played Wii, and spent quality time together.  Awesome.  Brad's parents made their annual trek of visiting their kids' and stayed for a couple hours.  It was nice to visit and spend time with them.  I think we even got Grandpa to play Wii.  My parents were planning on coming up, but my mom got sick.  Like she stayed in bed all day sick.  Not characteristic of my mom, so I knew she was sick.  :(  So we opted for visiting on the phone several times. The day (and morning) was just as magical as I hoped it would be!

Christmas Eve 2010

What a fun day!  It started out with a surprise too!  As we were getting ready for the day I heard a knock at the door and the kids answered it.  The next thing I hear is "HO HO HO, MERRY CHRISTMAS!"  I hurried downstairs to see Santa standing in our front room!  How fun!  Lindsay was just getting out of the shower, but still made it down in time to get a picture with him.  Santa stayed for a few minutes, told my kids that they'd been good this year, and then he gave them a candy cane from his bag.  What a great surprise!  Thanks Santa for taking the time to visit us on Christmas Eve! 

Ellie still tells everyone when asked what Santa gave her for Christmas this year....."a candycane."  Because he did!

 After our visit with Santa, we headed to my parents house for the annual Christmas Eve dinner.  Oh so yummy.  Ham, rolls, baked beans, a bazillion yummy salads, shrimp, oh delicious!  It's always fun to get together with family.  And this year, there were lots of them.  My parents, Callie and Brian and Olivia, Aimee and Brennen and Kaylee, my Grandma and Grandpa, Sherri and Bruce, Justin, Grandma Merrell, Jennifer and Johnny and kids, and Angie and Nate and kids...and us.  Phew! But we still wished a happy Hawaiian family and a few California residents could have been there too.  Next year Cami, Brian, Tyler, Suzanne....and kiddos!

 It's a tradition to get new jammies on Christmas Eve...and then of course you have to get a picture.  Baby Liv was eating at the moment, and missed this photo op, and then we forgot to get another one later.  This picture cracks me up....get a load of Ellie's face! lol.

 Lindsay, Ellie, Meagan, and Tanner.....love these kids!

 After dinner, we put together an impromptu Nativity.  Jennifer supplied the amazing costumes.  Thanks!  Johnny was the Narrator and I played the piano for a couple songs.  I'm not exactly sure who ended up with what parts, but everyone got to dress up.

 Cute Liv...the free range cow! :)  A "must" in every respectable Nativity.

 

The night eventually had to end.....and off we went, back to Morgan, to get ready for Santa!...

Temple Square Lights

I think I've put this off long enough.  I just need to get it done.  So here it goes.

During the month of December, we went to Temple Square to see the lights for FHE.  We met the Fuller Family and my parents in Ogden and rode Front Runner down to SLC.  The kids were really excited that they got to ride a train.  Tanner was so cute when we pulled up to the station and saw the train.  He got a huge smile on his face and Ellie started clapping her hands and squealing.

 Lindsay, Tanner, Ellie, Grandpa

 Brennen, Aimee, Kaylee, Meagan, Grandma

We packed snacks and drinks for the ride down.  I'm hoping this is a tradition that we do every year.  We did it last year too, but this year the weather was soooooo much warmer!

 Brad and Ellie

 This picture is one of my favorite memories of the night.  My Dad playing Go Fish with Lindsay and Tanner......without cards. Tanner absolutely loved it! 

 Grandma and Ellie

 Brad and Tanner

 A highlight for Ellie: riding the escalator

 Getting a little restless waiting for TRAX to take us back to the FrontRunner station.

LOL!  I just had to put this pic in.  My fam is awesome!

Deep Thoughts by Ellie aka Jack Handey

Oh my 2 year old and her imagination.  ha ha.

A little background: Ellie is really into Snow White, Cinderella, and Sleeping Beauty and watches these movies often. Her conversations (this one included) usually end up with a mixture of all 3 stories.

This afternoon while eating her yogurt at the table:

Ellie: "Mom, the bad guy comes up and gets in the door, and she locks it."

Me: feigning surprise and great interest, "OH NO!" "REALLY!"

Ellie: "Yes!  And the bad guy has a sword (sounds like the word 'so' with a 'd' on the end) and he fights the dragon.  Seriously Mom!"  (yes, she actually said the word 'seriously'...and has a look of total sincerity and seriousness on her face)

Me: "Oh my goodness!"

Ellie: "Jesus doesn't like it when he (the bad guy, I'm guessing) kills in the face."

Me: "Probably not.  Does the bad guy kill in the face?" trying to get some clarity on the story now.

Ellie: "Yes he does.  He kills in the face.  Jesus says that's not nice."

Me: "You're right.  We need to be nice."

Ellie: "Yes, Jesus wants us to be nice."

So there you have it guys.  Jesus says be nice!  And no killing in the face.

figured out

Ellie's had a "quirk" of late that has left me a bit frustrated and exhausted. 

She changes her clothes on average.....5 times a day!

Not a big deal?

Not at first.

But after a few weeks of cleaning up a million pairs of pants, shirts, and panties, I was getting annoyed with the whole thing.

Today I found out why she does this.

Our conversation went like this:

Ellie:  Mom, can I change my clothes?

Me:  No.

Ellie:  Mom, can I change my clothes?

Me:  No Ellie.  You are already dressed.

Ellie: But they're dying.

Me: What?

Ellie:  My clothes are dying and I need to get them out.

What do you say to that?

Have a happy 1-11-11!

holiday tips to live by...

I got this in an email today and haven't stopped laughing since.  I thought I'd share and brighten your day too.  Enjoy!!!  Seriously, you're gonna love it.

HOLIDAY EATING TIPS

#1. Avoid carrot sticks. Anyone who puts carrots on a holiday buffet table knows nothing of the Holiday spirit. In fact, if you see carrots, leave immediately. Go next door, where they're serving chocolate.

#2. Drink as much eggnog as you can. And quickly. It's rare... You cannot find it any other time of year but now. So drink up! Who cares that it has 10,000 calories in every sip? It's not as if you're going to turn into an eggnog-alcoholic or something. It's a treat. Enjoy it. Have one for me. Have two. It's later than you think. It's Christmas!

#3. If something comes with gravy, use it. That's the whole point of gravy. Gravy does not stand alone. Pour it on. Make a volcano out of your mashed potatoes. Fill it with gravy. Eat the volcano. Repeat.

#4. As for mashed potatoes, always ask if they're made with skim milk or whole milk. If it's skim, pass. Why bother? It's like buying a sports car with an automatic transmission.

#5. Do not have a snack before going to a party in an effort to control your eating. The whole point of going to a Holiday party is to eat other people's food for free. Lots of it. Hello?

#6. Under no circumstances should you exercise between now and New Year's. You can do that in January when you have nothing else to do.  This is the time for long naps, which you'll need after circling the buffet table while carrying a 10-pound plate of food and that vat of eggnog..

#7. If you come across something really good at a buffet table, like frosted Christmas cookies in the shape and size of Santa, position yourself near them and don't budge. Have as many as you can before becoming the center of attention. They're like a beautiful pair of shoes. If you leave them behind, you're never going to see them again.

#8. Same for pies. Apple, Pumpkin, Mincemeat. Have a slice of each. Or if you don't like mincemeat, have two apples and one pumpkin. Always have three. When else do you get to have more than one dessert? Labor Day?

#9. Did someone mention fruitcake? Granted, it's loaded with the mandatory celebratory calories, but avoid it at all cost. I mean, have some standards.

#10. One final tip: If you don't feel terrible when you leave the party or get up from the table, you haven't been paying attention. Re-read tips; start over, but hurry, January is just around the corner.

Remember this motto to live by:

"Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in one hand and cake in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming "WOO HOO what a ride!"

Merry Christmas and Happy Eating!!!

(Thanks for the email Uncle Brent)

change

Big changes at our house.  We FINALLY got bunk beds for the girls.  They have been waiting for almost 2 months but it was worth the wait.  They were sooooo excited as we set them up.  

We took the crib down this afternoon and Ellie will get the double bed the girls were sleeping in.  She looks so tiny in that big bed!  When I told her we were going to get her a big girl bed, her whole face lit up.  Big eyes, big smile and she started jumping up and down.  I guess she was ready?!

Good change for Ellie, but a little harder for the girls.  Let me explain.  About 20 minutes after they'd gone to bed, Lindsay and Meagan came up to our room.  Lindsay spoke up and said, "Mom, Meagan is crying because she misses having me in the bed with her."  Ahhhh.  They really do love one another.  I gave Meagan a big hug and told her that I knew how she felt......change is hard for me too. 

And to think we were going to give Ellie and Lindsay the bunk beds and Meagan her own room?!