MeRrY ChRiStMaS!!

Christmas morning is always a crazy blur of paper and giggles!  :)  These kiddos, all dressed in new pjs, were 3 very happy campers!  I think it's always more exciting for me to watch them open everything than it is for them, but I don't care!  :)  Although, we did torture them for a bit.  Patrick had to work early that morning, so they did have to wait for him to get home before they could start.  (But he did get to come home early... with the stomach flu. :/)  After what probably felt like eons, but was more like 11 am, they dug right in! :)

(Reagan had a few more to open since she was sleeping on Christmas Eve when the boys opened theirs.)

He was such a good sport, sick and all!!  :)  I love him SO much! (I got him more than just this book, but he's smiling in this picture so I thought I'd throw it should be included as proof that he was "manning up"! ;) I don't know about most people, but when I feel like I need to puke, I don't smile. Hahaha.) 

And he spoiled me too!  He got me so many things I felt bad about the 4 or 5 small things I got him!  But that seems to be the way things go with us!  I think I'm doing so well, and then he totally goes above and beyond!  :)  He never fails to impress me!  And while we are supposed to stick to a budget, I sort of love that he spoils me when he can!  I just LOVE him!  I know, I said that already.  But he even got me tickets to WICKED!  I squealed a little bit, not gonna lie!  :)
It was a wonderful Christmas! 

The EvE of ChRiStMaS!

Our Christmas Eve was a lot of fun!  We started with church (Dec. 23rd).... and an attempt at a picture.  :)

Dec. 24th, all dressed in new clothes, (Reagan needed a nap, so she slept through this part) we opened family gifts. As usual, we felt VERY loved!  :)

We were lucky enough to join some of our AZ family for dinner.  We are really so blessed to have the neighbors, friends and ward that we do!  They make us a lot less lonely for the holidays (And plenty of other times throughout the year!)!  :)  I wish I had a group picture, but there were a LOT of us, it would have been tricky.  But a big THANKS to all of the families who made it so fun and memorable!  After dinner we headed to the high school to start up some DODGE BALL!  It really is pretty fun to have an excuse to throw things at your kids!  ;)  (Don't judge, the balls were small and soft!) 

After exhausting ourselves thoroughly, we headed home to get ready for Santa.  The kids made their own magic reindeer food!

And then we sprinkled it all over the yard... The boys were very meticulous about it's placement!  It took a lot longer than I thought it would!  Hahaha.

I gave some to Reagan thinking it would be fun for her to throw... but she decided eating it seemed like a better option.  She had red glittery poop for a day or two, but it didn't make her fly!  ;) 

And they were off to bed, super tired and super excited!  :)  It is so much fun getting to celebrate with kids!  I am not good at doing all the big and crafty things with my kids for the holidays, but I love spending the time with them! Watching them have so much fun is one of the reasons I love being a mom!  They just make everything so much more meaningful and FUN!   :)  And then someone has a meltdown or gets sick!  Hahaha.  It's exhausting, but in a wonderful way!    

School PARTIES!

December 18, 2012
Harrison had a fun Preschool Pajama Party for Christmas!  This kid just warms my heart!  :)

He has the cutest teacher! They had been hard at work learning a Christmas song to sing for all the moms! :)

And of course, he got loaded up with all kinds of Christmas joy!  :) 

December 20, 2012
Jackson got to have a fun present exchange for his school party!  He was not disappointed! 

They also had more sugar than is probably safe ;) and he got some fun loot from his teacher too! 

He really loves his teacher, and she is so good with him! 

So much celebrating! It is so much fun to watch them make these memories! They both made us a gift at school.  Harrison made us a cute picture frame with a picture of him and his hand print! We loved it!  And Jackson painted an awesome ornament for us to add to our tree!  He did a great job! I love these boys!

Tis the Season...

Christmas season just settled right in.  We started with our Ward Christmas Party.... and Santa.  :)  December 8, 2012 

Jackson wanted a Lego set, Lord of the Rings Lego game and a fake deer to use for shooting practice.  (I assume that last one was in anticipation of his 8th birthday in May and his inevitable right of passage into manhood... the long awaited BB Gun. haha.)  He is a funny kid!

Harrison shocked me and everyone in ear-shot by asking for an IPod?!?  Not only was he not getting one, I didn't even know he knew what they were.  Yikes!  He also asked for a remote control jelly fish, remote control whale, and fake grass.  HAHAHA.  It's a good thing he isn't easily disappointed! 

Reagan... fell in love!  Haha.  She just wanted to sit on Santa's lap and smile and pet his beard!  :)  She didn't get upset until I took her away from him.  (Oddly enough, Santa happened to be the same person who had been Elmo on Halloween... Maybe she could sense it!)  ;) 

Miss Reagan has a lot of friends in our ward.  But one of her all time favorites is this guy (In case her face doesn't say it all)...

The Hunt family moved away shortly after this pic was taken.  It was a sad day for all of us!  But Justin will always have a spot in this little girls heart! 

And on a funnier note, our little community has quite the collection of Layton peeps!  It's kind of crazy!  Here are just a few of the LHS alumni in our ward.  :) 

We have the best ward!  I'm not just saying that either, it really is an amazing ward! I wonder if all of us super cool Lancers have anything to do with it!  Hahaha. 

New Bench - New Space

While my dad was here we did squeeze in a project... because we always do.... it's tradition!  ;)  This time what we needed in our home was a table that Reagan and her special chair could sit at with the rest of the family.  (Our dining table was bar height and didn't work for her.)  A neighbor of mine happened to be getting rid of the perfect table.  So I scooped it up... But without chairs to go with it,  needing a serious refinish job, and in my current unmotivated state... it sat and waited.  Enter Dad.  :)  I had a vision for the seating, I really wanted a wrap around bench with storage in it.  And of course, he delivered! :)
December 1, 2012
After a day of hard work, with Patrick's help, here it is unfinished:

Painted:

Glazed:

Installed:

And with said perfect (and still un-refinished) table:

About a month ago, while in UT for TOFW with my mom and sister-in-laws, I happened upon the PERFECT chairs to go with my perfect table and bench.  :) 

I LOVE IT!  And it's so nice for our family to be able to all sit together at the table!  I also love that whenever I get a crazy idea, my dad is usually as excited about figuring out how to do it as I am!  haha.