Pictures from December

I didn't download pictures from my good camera very often this month -- I was trying to keep up with December Daily posts with my phone.  I'm glad I did it, but the picture quality is so much better on my real camera.

Here are a few collages from this month of fun!

 

Almost all of the Christmas decorations in the house.  I never took a picture of the nativity scene on the piano or the beautiful wreath that hangs at the entrance of the hallway (with a sign in the middle that says "Merry Days, Silent Nights."  I also hung mistletoe this year for the first time.  In fact, it's still up.  Theres always a straggler or two, isn't there?!  I ended up cutting up a couple of vinyl reindeer that went on the wall over the Singapore nativity (left side of collage, second picture down).  It added some nice contrast.  I love love love our home at Christmas time.  I have a very simple style all the rest of the year - at Christmas everything is bigger, warmer, and cozier.  I love it.  And I love taking everything down just a day or so after Christmas.  Oh...and I didn't take any pictures of the front of the house!  Darn!!  It was so pretty this year.  Candy cane colored lights across the front, a wreath with a fun Merry Christmas sign in the middle, alpine trees and present boxes on the porch.  It was my favorite outside scene we've had since living here.  

 

Stanton had a fun afternoon watching home movies with the kids.  He's pretty much finished transferring everything and getting it organized and backed up.  The kids LOVED watching themselves.

 Pictures from the Greg & Wendy Rose party.  It's so fun to be together with my immediates!

 

This is the girls at their piano recital with their amazing teacher, Shirlene Shaw.  She is beautiful, amazingly talented (I mean, seriously amazingly talented on the piano), and a gifted teacher.  We are beyond lucky that we have her in our neighborhood.

 Pictures from the Gary & Dorothy family party.  The kids loved their presents from their cousins.  And isn't Jordyn adorable with those missing teeth?!  And hi, Cindy the supermodel!  If I didn't love you so much, I might be tempted to hate you.  :)

 My cutest ever Kindergarten boy, Brigham.   I always think those tree hats look mighty Papal.  :)

 From the Dave & Judy Allen Christmas party.  I couldn't help but notice the resemblance to the thumb-sucking Prince John from the Disney Robin Hood movie.  :)

 Notes about each picture on the collage.  I hope they're readable in the book!  Probably the thing most noteworthy was the picture on the bottom left.  Sweet Brigham and Mary played Joseph and Mary.  Brigham took his role very seriously.  He held little Mary's hand over Baby Jesus' head the entire time we did the nativity.  It was so tender and sweet.

Pictures from our Christmas Eve party.  I loved the nativity!  I spent the afternoon organizing the costumes so they were so easy and cute that night.  And oh goodness, could those sweet kids be any cuter?!  I know I've posted so many pictures of Cannon lately.  He is just melting my heart lately.  That top left picture of him was as Joseph.  Ugh, he is just edible.  Love that boy!  Also, this was one of our best batches of clam chowder ever.  What a great tradition for Christmas Eve!

 I don't know why I take so few pictures every Christmas morning -- I mean, I guess it's because we're just enjoying every second of it in real life, but still, I wish I would at least remember to take a picture of each of them surrounded by their loot!  There's always next year, right?!

These are pics of the kids with some of their favorite gifts.  Can you guess which one was NOT a favorite gift, thought?  Yep, Brigham had a "Christmas Story" moment (a la them looking at their socks and chucking them behind the couch) when he opened a new church shirt.  His face was priceless.  I'm happy to report that a week later, the gifts they each received are still being loved and used.  I love when we (and Santa) get it right!

December Daily - Monday, December 26th

Such a great, relaxing day!! Stanton and I slept in way too long while the kids played and had a great morning. We cleaned the house up a bit (it was starting to get out of control....again) and then went to the fun park to go roller skating. It was so dang fun! The kids were pretty darn good, especially Lily, who had had a day on her skates already to practice. Chloe made a lot of progress by the end of the outing. I'd like to take them again so they don't lose the hang of it. The boys were not as quick to pick it up, but that makes sense. They still loved every second of it. We went to chick fil a for lunch and then returned Stanton's coat. We got hoe and I took a nap (!!!!! A Christmas miracle !!!!!) for a good long while. The kids played downstairs until they couldn't stand it any longer. They got me up and we did crafts from Chloe's books, played Hedbanz, and had dinner (Stanton worked on something with our intercoms and then ate and played Hedbanz with us). We worked on crafts, read from Lily's new book about getting along with siblings, and then got everyone showered. After scriptures, which we've been neglecting this month, everyone went to bed without an argument. It was nearly 9:00, so that could have something to do with it.... Late for our kiddos, but what a great day. I love these few days post-Christmas. They have such an afterglow. - Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Simply Having A Wonderful Christmastime, December Daily, Sunday, December 25th

Christmas Day was wonderful. This was the first year the girls woke up early...and in a strange twist of fate, Cannon slept later than he has in a month. you can guess how excited the kids were about that! Brigham ended up going down without us knowing and waking Cannon up. Little stink! It was around 6:30, though, so I really can't complain!



I took this picture with my phone while everyone was waiting for Cannon to wake up. Charlie took over my spot! I haven't taken pictures off my camera yet, so this will be a pictureless post...ugh. The kids were THRILLED with their presents-- even the underwear and socks (they were in NEED of those things!). Santa brought Chloe a craft set - American Girl craft books, supplies, and a box to keep them organized. He also brought her some fun stocking stuffers- hair bands, a miniature AG doll, snowboots, etc. We got her some new dresses, a crayola craft set, a Guess Who game, books, a puzzle, etc. Lily gave her a charm bracelet, Brigham & Cannon got her a soccer ball and pylons. They have been her favorite gift, for sure! Santa brought Lily new roller skates. She hasn't taken them off since! He stuffed her stocking with similar goodies- clip on earrings, chocolate orange, etc. Chloe gave her a "big sis, lil' sis" necklace set. Brig and Cannon gave her a Barbie Rapunzel movie. We gave her new dresses, the same crayola craft kit, Hedbanz, a puzzle, and a ton of other stuff. Her favorite gift has absolutely been the roller skates! Brigham got a Leapster from Santa. He has loved it, but it's a good thing Santa has a contract with Amazon! - its already not working! Grrrrr. He also got a Star Wars Pez dispenser, a couple of new ties, goodies, etc. from Santa. From the girls, he received a dolphin pillow pet. He has wanted one for a year, so he was thrilled! We gave him a very cool Lightsaber, a game, a new church shirt, some books, and a puzzle. And lots more. My brain is tired! His favorite gift was the Leapster. Cannon also got a Leapster from Santa. He isn't as interested in it as Brigham, but I think if we sit down and help him figure it out, he'll find he enjoys it more. He also received ties and a Star Wars Pez dispenser, along with Cars 2, which made his morning. The girls gave him a piggy pillow pet. He loves his stuffed piggies, so this was a hit. We gave him a Cars Aquadoodle, a Lightsaber, the "If You Give a Mouse A..." books with CDs, a Curious George memory game, and a puzzle. He has loved the Lightsaber most of all! I got Stanton some new shorts, black cotton socks (probably his favorite gift and I mean that sincerely), the Lord of the Rings boxed edition with Blu-Rays and digital copies, and a new coat---which didn't fit, of course! The girls got him pens and a Diet Pepsi. The boys gave him aftershave. I gave myself a new calendar and the Harry Potter boxed DVD set. The kids picked out the cutest gifts which were completely age appropriate and so heart warming. Cannon gave me a bag of potpourri. Brigham gave me fake eyelashes :), Lily gave me some press on nail polish strips, and Chloe gave me filter bottle to use when exercising. And Stanton-- he gave me an iPad. Are you even kidding me? It's been really fun and more useful than I ever imagined. We all made a haul and really appreciated all of it. We lounged for a while on Christmas morning, but didn't get to for too long because we had the opportunity to present our choir's Christmas program at the Pioneer Valley Lodge-- a retirement center in our stake. I have to admit, it wasn't the most convenient way to spend our Christmas morning. Pulling the kids away from their treasures at 10:00 to be over there by 10:45 wasn't easy. Pulling ourselves away from the lazy afterglow of it all wasn't easy. But we did it and I'm grateful we did. It was a neat way to serve on this special day. We came home for about 45 minutes and then went to our regular church meeting. The program turned out really beautifully. We hadn't had any real run throughs (unless you count the VERY abbreviated one at Pioneer Valley that morning). I was nervous about the whole thing, but it really couldn't have gone better. The musical numbers were great, the congregation got to sing a few songs, the narrator was perfect, -- it all went well. The spirit was present and it was a really marvelous way to spend Christmas. We came home from church, changed our clothes, and headed over to Dave & Judy's for dinner. We had leftovers from the party on Friday, which were delish. We played and visited and the kids played with their cousins (Don & Ann were up). The kids also opened their gifts from Dave & Judy. Cannon got his remote control airplane, Brigham got the ninja costume he'd been wishing for for months, and the girls got Journey Girl dolls (Toys R Us's darling and much less expensive version of American Girls). They were all SO excited. Chloe and Lily, who really aren't that interested in toys, have really attached to these dolls. It's so sweet to see. They all loved having one last big present to open that evening-- it spread the magic out a little longer. We stayed way too late at Dave & Judy's and then went home and got the kids to bed. we watched more of Band of Brothers, but I could hardly keep my eyes open, so we hit the sack by 10:00. What a wonderful day. We are so blessed to live the life we live, to have the things we have, and the gospel knowledge we do. I often stand all amazed at the great love Jesus offers me. I'm frequently confused at the grace that so fully he proffers me. Christmas is a wonderful time to remember it and express gratitude for it. I love these magical years with such believing-hearted children. They make it so absolutely magical. - Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

December Daily, Saturday, December 24th

Christmas Eve!!

We had a great, lazy day at the house. We ate breakfast, cleaned up the house, watched A Christmas Story, and made our Christmas Eve dinner. I was so glad my parents got there early. It's so nice to have their expertise on the clam chowder.
Emily and Nat and family and Dave & Judy came about 4:00 and we had our traditional dinner: clam chowder, breadsticks, and Em brought an Olive Garden salad- yum! Judy brought my favorite ice cream dessert and life was good!
We watched Em n Nate's Christmas videos from over the years, acted out the nativity (I LOVE the nativity), and visited. It was a perfect way to spend Christmas Eve.
The kids got to bed by 7:30 and we got to work putting out all of our presents for the kids. Santa came and left by 9:30--- I couldn't believe we missed him! We were even up! He is sure sneaky. Chloe came upstairs at 9:50 because she was having such a hard time sleeping. Thank goodnes Santa had left everything in his big Santa sacks-- she didn't notice he had already come. Phew!!!
Wwe watched Band of Brothers for an hour and then hit the hay. It was an awesome night!

The magic of Christmas always makes it hard for me to sleep. This night was no exception. What a fantastic day!

December Daily -Friday, December 23rd

We spent an absolutely awesome day at Dave & Judy's for their Christmas party. Ann and I went out shopping in the morning. We had gift exchanges, the nativity, amazing food, dancing, dancing, and more dancing, and perfect family togetherness. What an awesome day.

I've got to figure out a blogging app for the iPad so I can get some I ages on here....

Needless to say, though, this was one of the funnest days of the whole Christmas season. I love spending time with family.

December Daily - Thursday, December 22nd

Ah, what a day!! What a world, what a world. That's what the wicked witch said, right? Let me tell you--- this mama was the wicked witch incarnate for a huge portion of this first day or Christmas break. I had plenty of help getting there from naughty, fighting, mess making, sassing, feeling sick children, but I'm supposed to be the grown up here, right?!
I'm so thankful Stanton was done with work early today - he saved my spirit. He took two kids at a time to buy their cousin gifts and gifts for me (cute). It helped to have fewer children at a time to fight and make life frustrating.
Miss Chloe did go downstairs and clean out a garbage bag full of toys, so hooray for her! I was pretty proud of her for that.
The frustrations aside, this was a pretty nice day. The kids are all coming down with colds and that explains a ton. But they got the basement cleaned up and then watched a couple of Christmas shows on the DVR.
Stanton, in between a couple of trips to his office, got our movie completely finished!!! In fact, we just spent the last 3 hours together putting the final touches on it. He has seriously spent hours on it by himself, though. And he came up with the whole theme this year. Awesomeness. It is absolutely precious.
Once we get it compressed (happening right now), we'll post it.
Our day was a good one. I'm so glad we've got the movie done-- yet another burden lifted.
Oh, and I got the Christmas program condensed for our Pioneer Valley sacrament meeting and fixed, printed, and put in choir folders for our regular program. I knew that wasn't going to be something I wanted to do on Christmas Eve or morning. Just nice to get a few important things finished up!




It was a pizza for dinner kind of night.




Cannon found the wings a little hot.




But yummy. :)




Hours of work every year, but totally worth it.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

December Daily - Wednesday, December 21st

Happy longest day of the year!!! It's all sunshine from here (well, starting next April if you live in Cache Valley....)!

So, I didn't take any pictures today....but here's what I did:

•Got the girls off to their last day of school before break-- with friend gifts and teacher gifts packed up.
• Made a double batch of bran muffins - burned 24 of them while talking to my sister/getting ready.
•Made raspberry honey butter to go with muffins.
• Packaged muffins for home and visiting teaching family gifts.
• Got Brigham to off to school (with a gift for his teacher).
• Convinced Cannon to take an actual nap in his actual crib.
• Watched Emma while folding laundry. (The awesome Emma- with Ramola Garai as Emma and Jonny Lee Miller as Mr. Knightley).
• Put away Stanton's and my laundry.
• Swept the kitchen floor and mopped it. (this was monumental - like the first time in over a week). And vacuumed.
• Greeted kids home from school.
• Sent kids out to deliver neighbor gifts. Got most of them done. Okay, not most, but many.
• Called Chloe at friend's house to say goodbye since I wouldn't be home before she got home.
• Had a wonderful time at the First District Dental Christmas Dinner.
• Caught up with Mandy W. We live down the street from one another and I haven't really talked to her in a month...
• Came home to the craziest disaster of a house we've probably ever found. The kids were horrible for their babysitter and she was so embarrassed!!! I felt bad for her, but was also ticked that she let it get out of control, too. But I have to be understanding-- I think the kids were crazy and Chloe is always worse when she isn't here when we leave. Who am I kidding-- she's nearly always a stinker for babysitters...especially at bed time. And with Christmas do soon upon us, I think the kids were just plain insane. I was honestly shocked beyond words at the mess. Egads.
•Cleaned up the house. (Why does it always happen that things go ape crazy on the DAY that I finally buckle down and clean??!!). Mr. Murphy, I'm looking at you...
•It didn't take very long to clean up, so I need to stop complaining.
•ta Da! Here we are!

Tomorrow is the first official day of winter break and we're going to be doing some chores to make up for tonight's behavior. We'll also be finishing the neighbor gift delivering. Maybe a craft? Oh, and the kids have to buy their cousin gifts. The end.

G'night!

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December Daily - Tuesday, December 20th

Okay, so I'm a day late posting this. I forgot...oops...

I got to attend Brigham's Christmas program in the morning. The program is Identical every year, and this is our third consecutive year. And guess what? Still adorable. I was pleasantly surprised at how well Brig knew all the songs and actions. And looking around, he was the ONLY kid wearing glasses. Crazy, right?!






Brig got to come home with us, so the boys played for a bit and then I threw them in the car for a few errands. I was on a mission to find Stanton's 'real' present. I'd gotten him a few things here and there (you know that kind of stuff, right...movie, things that i want in the house but can only justify them if I'm buying it 'as a gift," etc), but nothing that would qualify as his present. So, we had to hit three different stores, but I'm happy with what I got him!! I hope he is. It's hard to buy anything big ticket for Stanton. He's picky and usually just buys what he wants for himself. Hopefully I pulled this one off...we'll see...

It was Cannon's last day of preschool and Brigham decided to go with him (thank you to his teachers for being willing!!). That have me a couple of hours to fold laundry and start the hot chocolate cubes we were giving as friend and teachers gifts. Except I didn't have some key ingredients. Off to the store with me!
We got everyone home from school and settled in, etc. Then all four of them went to my friend Mandy's house to play. We almost doubled her kid total! Ha! We ate cold cereal for dinner and I worked some more on laundry.
Oh, and this is a trick Stanton does with Charlie. It takes so much self control for the poor dog!






Everyone got a shower and then we got started on our Christmas movie!!! It's going to be very cute!




After we finished filming, everyone got to bed without incident (miraculous considering how horrible the kids have been about staying in bed lately).

I ran to the store one last time (third trip to town in one day...ugh...). I grabbed two last gifts for the boys (ties...they need 'em) and ingredients for our Christmas Eve clam chowder. I keep thinking I'm done shopping and then remember something else.








The only thing I can think of now, though, is gift cards for our babysitters. I will try to get those tomorrow and then I shouldn't have to go to the store again till after Christmas!! (sure....right...I know....).

We hit the hay late ish and were hammered once again! Tis the season!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

December Daily - Monday, December 19th

Things I accomplished today:
• made laundry detergent
• eye doctor appointment
• wrapped presents
• visited with Jared Day

Yep, that's it, folks. And it feels like a day well spent, even if the dishes from the last minute cheesy spaghetti noodles with broccoli dinner are still in the sink. I feel one step closer to being ready for Christmas to come.





It was so incredibly wonderful to bask in Jared's missionary glow. He is the best guy! The kids were thrilled to have time to spend with him--- especially playing tic-tac-toe.




There they are in all their glory! Each kid will have his or her own wrapping paper design and it's looming so ;£€€•)

Haha --- I fell asleep typing this last night. :)

Anyway, it's a huge relief to have every single present wrapped!! Maybe we'll actually be able to enjoy the break!
I'm so looking forward to seeing what Santa brings, too. He doesn't wrap the kids' presents at our house, so it's always super fun on Christmas morning to see his present that he leaves, along with the stocking loot he brings. Looking forward to that one!

Ah, another thing checked off the list. Nice.

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December Daily - Sunday, December 18th

Aaaaahhhhhh!!!! One more week till Christmas! I'm so looking forward to the kids being home for a bit starting on Thursday. We haven't been able to get to everything I've wanted to do with them. The last few years, Santa'a cookies have been a last minute scrounge through the pantry to find something resembling a cookie. I'm determined to bake and let the kids decorate sugar cookies, darn it!

So, our Sunday morning started with major exhaustion and laziness from me-- to the pint that I didn't get up until it was absolutely necessary or the house would be completely destroyed out of hunger. I made Santa waffles-- fun!




He's not much to look at, but boy howdy were the kids th-rilled with him!!

We got everyone ready quickly and headed over to the church for tithing settlement. It's so wonderful to be able to meet with our great Bishop and declare our full tithe. And the kids love going to see him and declare their full tithe as well.
We came home and I cleaned up our room. It had to happen. It was such a relief!
After I finished that (Stanton helped, too), I finished the revisions on the sacrament meeting program for next week. That was a burden lifted!

We got to church and were SO excited to be there because JARED DAY WAS HOME!!!!! He's been on his mission in Chile for two years and we have been so busy this weekend that we haven't been able to go see him. The kids were beaming when they first saw him...who am I kidding...I was beaming!! He is positively glowing with joy. We are so blessed to know him and his amazing family.
After church, we had a run through of our Christmas program with the choir. It's going to be wonderful. I'm so excited to share it with the Pioneer Valley branch and then our own ward next week. The choir members in our ward are so faithful. I feel so lucky to associate with them.
Chloe got to play the organ for the first time. Craig Day sat with her and showed her how. She played her recital pieces and she sounded amazing. It was cute.








I'm telling you- we are so blessed to know the Days.

We came home and threw together a quick dinner of grilled cheese (a half sandwich each because we were low on bread) and tomato soup. I made it from our tomato juice and some other ingredients. One of my Dave versions yet (I'm a huge fan of tomato soup), but I'll never recreate because I seriously threw it together without a single forethought (well, except the thought, "feed me NOW!!!"). Anyway, I'm thankful for a pantry of food storage and the ability to throw things together on the fly.
We got the kids ready for and in bed by 6:20 because we were that tired and done with the day....of course they were stinkers well past 7:00, so don't feel too sorry for them. :)
We did a really poor surface job on the dishes (they'll be waiting for me in the morning...yay....) and crashed in the room.
I designed and printed the tags for our neighbor gift and got them packaged. Phew. That's another relief. They turned out cute, I think!




I'm ready to crash for the night-- 10:00 again! I seriously need my usual energy to pull some late nighters to get presents wrapped, but I am TIRED. I'm a wimp, I know.
Anyway, it was a great Sunday.

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December Daily - Saturday, December 17th

First and foremost--- I LOVE the holidays with all my heart. BUT, they make me feel like I am living in an episode of Hoarders. The front living area stays reasonably tidy, but walk into my bedroom, office, exercise/present hiding rooms???












Seriously. Ugh. It makes me want to avoid my room and yet I'm so tired that I just pass out on the bed at 11:00 and ignore it all for another day.

We had our extended Rose family party today and I took about a million and a half pictures on my phone.

Here are a few highlights:








Both boys got a power nap on the way over.








The boys were hilariously adorable in the nativity.





Lily and Shaylee had each other and gave them a cute bond.





We got the best surprise ever --- Grandma was able to be at the party with us!
These are the great-grandchildren with the jammies G&G gave them. Can you believe they do that? Their children & spouses, their grandchildren & spouses, their great grandchildren. It's amazing to me.





We went to Grandma's care center and put on a program. It was so fun.

We got home and got everyone to bed, then Stanton and I figured out our tithing. Whew. When you own your own business and it does decently well....tithing is complicated. We both feel awesome about where we are with the Lord, though -- it just took some discussion and debate to get there. And a lot of math and bookkeeping. We are so blessed.
And now I can quite literally barely keep my eyelids open. That equals good night. Good night.

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December Daily - Friday, December 16th

Another awesome December day.
I spent the entire stinking morning (okay, like an hour or hour and a half, but seriously....) trying to save some time and cash by painting my fingernails and toenails.
Well, after waiting forever for them to dry, I moved on to the rest of my day and.....Well, that was an hour down the drain:




White girl problems...I know.

I got Brig off to school and went down to Stanton's office to see Cindy and her kids --- I LOVE when my sisters come down for dentist appointments! I get my bi-annual dosage of uncontrollable giggles. Oh man, I love them.

We got home after the appointments and Stanton tried to repaint my nails. He even blow dried them --- well, I think the polish was crap because they smudged just as terribly. Ugh. Well, don't tell, but I just ignored it and pretended like they were good.
Again, white girl problems. You don't have to remind me.

Sooo, we got the house cleaned up (except Stanton's and my HORRIBLE STY of a room) and awesome Madie came to tend. The kids were all SO excited for her to come!

She came to tend because we had one of our favorite events of the Christmas season-- the Dave & Erica Low Christmas Party!!! We seriously love and look forward to this party every year. (Every year since last year). It didn't disappoint one little bit.
Dave had a couple of former seminary students come and sing (and play several instruments). They were darling and so talented.









Dave gave his annual Christmas message, which was fantastic as always.
After his message, we had the white elephant exchange. We scored a Skookie pan set!! Sweet!




This was one of the super cool gifts- his and hers Aggie beard beanies!

Oh, and guess what? I won the 'Best Dressed' award. Ha! It was SO fun to get some use out of the dress I bought for Jr. Miss earlier this year.



Not the best picture, but it sort of captures the dress. I wish Stanton had had his tie and jacket on still, but once it comes off, there is NO putting it back on.
I can't blame him--- within minutes, I was in my grandma jammies. But with awesome earrings in still. :)





I got the tags finished for our favor at the family party (YAY!). And now it's time to get to sleep. We have a fun Saturday tomorrow - Rose family party!! Woot!

Thanks, Dave and Erica, for including us in the party!! We love you!!!

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