MeRrY cHrIsTmAs and HaPpY nEw YeAr!!!

The snow was falling in Salt Lake before we left on our trip to San Diego for the Christmas Holiday. Jeff and the boys took advantage and made a big snowman.



The boys helping daddy build him.


Reed kept patting him and "helping".

Then it was off to San Diego for us. My cousin Julia flew out to SLC to drive down with me and the boys. Once we were there it was nothing but 70 degree weather for us!!! What a treat. The boys had a great time playing with their cousins at the park. WE were just beyond excited that we could be outside this time of year!

On the 19th we celebrated my 30th birthday with a party put on by my wonderful family. (Thanks Dad and Emmy) Julia held Reed while I had Grant and the boys helped me blow out my candles.

My sisters and me at the party. Looking good ladies.

My wonderful Aunt Denise also helped me celebrate. Anyone else see the resemblence? After the party the boys and I headed down to her house to spend a couple of days hanging out with her and Julia and Uncle Bruce. Love you guys, the boys had a great time.

While the boys were with Denise and Julia, Kristen, Doug and I went to the SAN DIEGO SUPER CHARGERS game with my dad. We took the trolley down to the stadium with LOTS of other fans. It was so crowded but tons of fun. Kris with the hord of other Charger fans. GO BOLTS!

Doug and I trying to squeeze so that others could get on.

Half time at the game with Dad. We got him a cool new jersey for Christmas so he doesn't have to borrow Kris's from Albertson's anymore. :)

To make the whole trip even better the Chargers WON!

After Denise's house we went to Kristen's house for the night and had fun with Alexa and Justin. Here is Alexa cuddled up with Reed watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.

Kris had to run off to her office Christmas Party (of 4) so I made Christmas Cupcakes with Alexa and Justin during nap time. They were delish.

Finally Jeff came in on the 23rd and we were off to Christmas Eve festivities on the 24th. We went to a party at my Aunt Anita's house (had a great time) and the boys got all "fancy" Reed in his fancy clothes with mommy.

All the kids dressed up at the party. (baby Paul)

My fancy guy in his fancy clothes. Lookin sharp Reed.

Grant by the tree at Dad's house.

My party guys. How dapper.

The next morning was really really exciting. Santa came and brought a lot of presents for all of us. Kris, Alexa, Justin, Doug and Aqua (the dog) came up early (with starbucks) to open presents. Alexa and Justin told Santa that they would be at Grandpa's to open presents and sure enough Santa left their gifts here too!! It was sooooooo fun to open gifts with EVERYONE!

The boys checking out what Santa left them in their stocking.

Grant got some new DVDs. COOL

And Santa brought some Mickey TOYS!! Just what they asked for!!

Then it was time for a big family breakfast. Jeff and Emmy were in charge. They did a great job.

The boys ejoyed their Christmas breakfast. Libby dog was there to pick up anything that fell on the floor. What a helper!

Then it was off to Denise's house for dinner. We had a blast with all of uncle Bruce's family and playing outside. You totally take it for granted when you grow up in San Diego that you can play outside in 70 degree weather on Christmas. We LOVED it.

So my dad has this John Deer tractor for all the grandkids. What a hit with the boys this is!! Reed loves to "drive" and Grant runs the gas. What a team.

Reed had the wheel turned at a certain angle so they just went in a big circle. It was still entertaining.

We also got to go for some nice long walks around the farm just ejoying being outside and in the nice weather. You can tell these two aren't living in Utah. They had on parkas for 55 degree weather. That's almost shorts weather. They sure do look cute though.

Jeff got a turn on the tractor too.

Grandpa also blew up the bounce house. The boys (all 3 of them) had a great time jumping.

It's really cool and has a slide too!!

It was a great way to burn off some energy. They slept soooooo well.

While we were at Auntie Kristen's house the boys decided to play in Aqua's kennel. Alexa and Justin thought it was really funny that both of the boys could fit in.

We LOVE this dog. Aqua is my sisters newest family member. What a good looking guy.

He went most places we did. Aqua and Kris at the park. To put into perspective how tall he is, my sister is 6 feet tall.

What a cutie!

Sadly we did have to come back to Salt Lake city and be among the snow again. BUT the good news is that we got to have Anne and Michael a few days later. They came to Salt Lake to ring in the new year with us. Reed in his party hat. What a party animal.

Grant would not wear the hat but here he is with his horn. Bring on Midnight!

We didn't make it to midnight but we celebrated New York New Years and had a blast watching the Hangover.

What a great year 2009 has been. We are so blessed to have wonderful friends and family to share in our lives. We love you all and miss you all very much. Keep your fingers crossed for us over the next few days and weeks. Hopefully some good changes will be coming our way.

Some videos from the trip:

The boys on the tractor.

The bounce house Monkies.

Santa and a Gingerbread House

It's that time of year again!! WE got our annual picture with Santa done last weekend. We had a lot of fun this year. Grant decided he didn't want to sit on his lap and started screaming. BUT he sat there long enough to look at the ball the photographer was holding and we got a pic. Reed was more than willing, as usual, to talk to a stranger. So far we have not had an experience that would prevent us from coming back! Thanks to the big guy!





This year we decided to add the tradition of building a family gingerbread house!! We got a really cool kit at Costco and decided to give it a go. Mommy built the structure (it leans a little) and daddy did the exterior.




The boys had a really good time helping us decorate the house. Grant really wanted to eat the candy and we kept telling him no. So instead he would put it in his mouth for a quick taste and then stick it on the house.




The finished product. Can you tell they "helped"?



Jeff put the boys on the counter to watch him shave. They were more interested in my make up brushes. So he let them "put on make up" too.





Grant and his make up.





OK so on Sunday night Reed was eating some salad that had chopped almonds in it. He didn't say anything and I didn't see anything but as I was cleaning him up he kept saying "I have a peanut in my nose." I didn't understand or believe him at first. So I got out a flashlight and sure enough he had an almond "peanut" up his nose. Before I rushed to the ER I plugged one side of his nose and told him to blow. He did and it came shooting out. (the nut above)





So naturally after we did all of this we had to take turns looking in eachothers noses with the flashlight. Here's Grant looking in Reed's nose.




And here he is looking in his own nose.

Since the weather has been REDICULOUSLY cold, we decided to go to our FAV in door play place. It's a regional restaurant called Arctic Circle. They have the cleanest most wonderful indoor play place. The boys can do the WHOLE thing alone and there isn't usually anyone else there. (at 3:30 pm)

The boys even got a free cone to eat as a little play break. LOVE it! Did I mention that it's literally a stone's throw from our house? It's super super close too.

Reed and his cone. Gotta love some Arctic Circle!!

Thanksgiving 2009

We had a very nice low-key Thanksgiving this year. We stayed home in Utah because Jeff was on call. SO we were invited to Sam's house (wonderful lady that works with Jeff). She invited us to her sister-in-law's house for some turkey and fun. (Reed with his turkey)


It was really nice because Jo (Sam's sister-in-law) has a little boy that is just a little older than the boys. They had a great time at the kid table together.



We had a great time, played lots of fun games together, and enjoyed the good food. What a nice way to spend a holiday. No crazy airports for us.



After Thanksgiving DAY was over, we went back to normal weekend habits. LIKE watching the boys while I did some internet Christmas shopping. It was so quiet I came to peek and found my babysitter sleeping on the job. It was ok with me though because the boys were happy watching Cailou. (Note: even Arhie Dog was sleeping on the job)


I've had these puzzles for FOREVER and the boys have always just been destructive with them. UNTIL now. I got them out again and they are actually ready to use them for their intended purpose. JOY.

Here's a little video of them playing with their puzzles.