Thursday, January 26, 2012

10 Years!

That's right.  Trav and I just celebrated our 10 year anniversary.  Holy cow.  That makes me feel so old!  I guess I better get used to it since I'm so close to turning 30 I barely dare to tell people I'm still in my 20's.  3 more months......I still have 3 more months......

Anyway, even though we would have loved to go on some exotic trip for this awesome anniversary we decided to get crazy exotic.  The day-of was actually nothing too special.  Normal day.... Trav had scouts that night so we didn't even go out or anything but Trav did get serenaded by the most amazing lip sync ever from his totally awesome family. (Just imagine Em as the singer, Rach playing the keyboard, Josh on the ukelele, Kate as the back up dancer.....to a Chicago song.  I know!) We should have taken pictures but of course I didn't think about it.  Then over the weekend we dropped the kids off at their cousins house and headed off to exotic lava hot springs.  We stayed in this cute little hotel that was like a 1 minute walk to the springs.

 This was actually both mine and Trav's first time ever being there (even though my mom swears I've been there before....doesn't count if I was still a baby and can't remember it).  It was really fun!  The whole time though I kept thinking that the kids would really love it too.  We'll have to take them back there sometime.
 Mental note:  Don't wear glasses by the springs.....
 Awww....we still look the same as we did 10 years ago. 
 Now this is amazing...I am ALWAYS cold.  I can be wearing socks, slippers and be wrapped in a blanket all at the same time and when I climb into bed at night my feet are still ice cubes.  Now here is the amazing part.....Me, in a swimsuit, in January, outside and being SO hot!  It was raining a freezing cold rain while we were there and it felt so good and refreshing.  These springs worked a miracle that day.
 We only stayed there one night but it was just enough (there's not much else to do there but sit in the springs and really there's only so much of that you can take.)  And as we were driving out of town look what road we found?  Yep, Main Street turns into Maughan Road.  So cool.
 I also got some amazing flowers for the anniversary.
 And on to one of the troublemakers.....Josh made a chef hat in preschool and is always so excited to help out in the kitchen now (and of course wearing the hat).
 This poor boy was bored to tears the other day because I wouldn't let him play video games all day (imagine that) so we had an amazing battle with his army guys.  We had it all set up looking so awesome I had to capture the moment.  About 2 minutes later Kate-Zilla came through and destroyed it all.  Oh well....setting it up's the fun part right?
It's been an amazing 10 years.  Can't wait to see what the next 10 bring.

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Christmas!!

I know you're all thinking that I'm a complete slacker and how lame it is to be writing about Chrismas.  Christmas is over...I do realize this but I also have a semi-good excuse.  I had all this stuff to write about and was going to do it right after Christmas but then....(let the anticipation build).....our computer died.  It was sad to see it go. I don't know if it could have been salvaged or not, but I asked my friend who really knows computers and I told him we had our computer for at least 8 years he just laughed and said we needed to get a new one.  I knew something was fishy when I couldn't always open attatchments.  Technology is a blessing and a curse.  But thankfully Trav got a very very very very very (5 very's X 2) nice bonus this year we were able to get a new computer without feeling like we needed to take out a second mortgage on our home.  Hooray for Nexus.  I don't think my $35 Christmas bonus from the Roof would have done much.  But now, to make a long story even longer.....here's all that I've been wanting to post about and no it won't be short.

First of all we did go see the lights at Temple Square.  We started a tradition last year to take the train in to see the lights and honestly the kids like the train ride more than the actual lights.  So here we are waiting in the freezing cold.

 And we missed the train by literally 10 seconds.  That's not an exaggeration.  As we ran up the train pulled away.  So we had to wait a half hour for the next one.  I'm trying to see if anyone else will pick us up....no such luck.
 The lights were awesome as usual.

 We didn't get to stay long because I did not want to miss the train going home.  But we still had a blast and of course daddy had some treats to make the ride home even more fun.
 Here's my gorgeous little Christmas girls.
 And the most handsome boys ever.
 Unfortunatly I had to work on Christmas Eve, but I did make it home just in time to help put out the cookies, milk and carrots.  I'm so glad I didn't have to miss that.
 Santa came in a rage and furry at our house.  Look how nice it looks when we first got up.  It will progressively look worse I'm forewarning you. 
 We opened up our stockings and about 2 presents each before we had to get all dolled up and go to church.  9:00 church was not easy to pry the kids away to go to but somehow we survived.
 Our little Christmasy family.
 Then after church we got to open everything else!  Here I am with some picture books from the kids.  LOVE them.
 Trav got some awesome toys from the kids too.  A remote control car and the game "Shaken Bacon"  Rachel and Trav's favorite food is bacon so when she saw that game she HAD to give it to him.  It was so perfect and an unusually tricky game.
 Oh man, did Santa's sleigh blow up in the living room?
 For Kate, Trav and I (okay, mostly Trav) built her a little kitchen.  It turned out so cute and the best part it.....almost free.  We made the whole thing out of scrapwood we just had in the garage. The only thing we had to buy was a can of red spray paint for the "hot" knob.  I did get some awesome dishes from the D.I. too.
 As for me....I was spoiled rotten.  I got a Nook.  Coolest thing ever and no I didn't ask for one of even think I wanted one, but now that I have it....I LOVE it.
 I did ask for some boots.  Trav did so good.
 The day after Christmas we went up to the Schick cabin.  Despite have 4 sick people (like barfing sick) out of the 23 that were there, super thin walls and only one bathroom....it actually was a pretty fun trip.  We just tried to stay outside and sled the whole time which is pretty much what we did.  But don't worry, as soon as we got home we all got sick too.
 This one was tougher than all the big kids.  She refused to be lazy and walked up the hill probably 6 times.....this is no small hill. 
 Once in a while we'd be creative and I'd give her a lift.  She didn't like this method too much.  She eveantually caved in and took the 4 wheeler back up the hill like the rest of the lazies.
 Aww cute.  All on the tobbaggen (I have no clue how to spell that)
 Then we come to New Year's.....  I had to work on New Year's Eve too (way crappy I know).  I wasn't home by the stroke of 12 but was on the phone with my honey and did get to bring home some awesome New Year's duds that the kids loved.
 Here's our snowman from the only snow we've seen this season at our house.
 Then Little Miss the other night lost a tooth while brushing her teeth.  I didn't even realize it was that loose.  She stopped and said, "I thought it was a onion in my teeth then when I looked at it harder I saw it was my tooth!"  The painless kind are always the best.  We also used curlers for her hair for the first time and she wanted a picture with that.  Two birds with one stone.
 Then last night (I promise I'm almost done) we got to go eat at the Roof.  They give us a free dinner every year to go use during the month of January.   Lucky for us our anniversary is in January so that's usually where we go.  Although our anniversary isn't until tomorrow we had to get our "Anniversary shot" while there. Love you tons, Hon.  Happy 10 years!!!  I'm sure I'll post more about that soon.
 But we didn't eat alone.  We went with Lindsi and Andy, and MaryAnne who also works with us happen to be using her coupon at the same time so they came and sat with us too.  It was so much fun and so fun to be there with friends.  That's the perfect way to celebrate!