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!  

Oh what fun.....

It's been an eventful week to say the least.  It started off with a bang with lots of sickness of the entire family, then dry hurricane 2011, Rachel got sent home from school on Thursday after being there for only a half hour (so I had to risk my life AGAIN to go get her).  School was cancelled on Friday so we decided to go to the Festival of Trees.  So that's where we'll start.  I hadn't been there in years and it was actually a lot of fun.  The trees are absolutely amazing, the kids loved it and you know it's all for a good cause.  Win-win.  I'm glad Rach could come with us!

 

Can you tell which movie this tree was based off of?  I had to take a picture.  All the trees were so clever. 

 They had a great kid section where the kids could do crafts, or step into the bubble machine like Rach wanted to do.  It's hard to tell but she's standing inside a giant bubble and trying to blow bubbles out of it.  She loved that.

 We were very fortunate during the storm.  I know everyone in Davis county has some sort of story.  We just had one tree snap off.  Luckily for us it landed nicely in our neighbors yard, and didn't crush anything.  Considering it was the tree right next to the tree house Trav's been working so hard on this could have been a disaster.  But the tree house went unscathed.  There must have been a good architect for that thing.  I couldn't get a very good picture of the tree but it was a big one....probably 25 feet tall.  Our bishop said that there were only 2 houses in the ward that didn't have anything happen to it.  Everyone else....trees, shingles, siding, fences...you name it....It was destroyed.

 We were fortunate there wasn't a fence there for the tree to crush, but there was a fence post that wasn't so lucky.  Trav tried and tried and couldn't get it off....so now we have a new decoration.

 So cute but so much trouble this one is........

Merry Christmas!

 (It's hard to tell but the kids are all jumping in this picture....that's the only way to get sincere smiles, not posey ones...)  They are cute though in their Sunday clothes.

Quietly playing....

At least that's what I thought when Kate and Josh were in the other room hardly making a peep with an 

 occasional giggle.  I should know better by now when they both proudly came in to show me this...

 And then there's those days when you get a box in the mail with packing peanuts!  That leads to an entire day of entertainment.

 At least they are cute all dressed up for church (and a little snack).  Where is Rachel when I pull the camera out?

 And one last one for a little Thanksgiving spirit to brighten your day.  Happy Thanksgiving!

The rest of Halloween

Well you can't have Halloween time without a giant pile of leaves....just ask Charlie Brown (but never jump in with a wet lollipop)

 Wait a minute.....

 And then of course you need to carve some scary pumpkins.....

 

And when Halloween night comes around you better find some totally awesome costumes (as Josh would say).

 Here's a shot of our Rapunzel

 

We had a cowgirl that couldn't get enough candy, and totally got into trick-or-treating.

 And a  super-tough cool knight that can practically slay any dragon anywhere.

 Halloween was awesome (thanks to amazing weather) but that's not all the fun we had.  We also went to Discovery Gateway with my mom and sister a few days later.  Kate liked driving the car.

 Josh's favorite part by far was the farm.  This is one of those rare moments he let Kate on the horse too.  Luckily it wasn't very crowded because he spent the majority of his time on that horse.

 I think the onion top is trying to find the other onions.

Now we've got to start thinking of Thanksgiving and Christmas.  That is insane.