We had a great holiday season! Truth is, it went by so quickly, I can hardly believe that it has come and gone! But This is how it all went down for this family.
Thanksgiving: We had a delicious Turkey dinner with my parents in Newdale. The food was amazing, the company was delightful, the holiday was, as I like it best, quiet and easy going. I think my favorite part is when my cousins, who I grew up with (they lived across the street from us) came over for pies and I had a chance to see their beautiful babies and hear all the fun (and not so fun) news.
Black Friday: Or as I like to call it, the sisters all night marathon. We shopped 'til we dropped! We began bright and early at 11:00pm Thursday night and went strong to the very end at 9:00am Friday morning! Always so fun, always full of gut busting laughter, always one of my favorite things to do!
Then off we went to spend Saturday and Sunday with the Barretts to celebrate the long life of Deryk's grandpa, who passed away the Sunday before Thanksgiving. He lived an exemplary life, and I loved hearing and learning just how wonderful and dedicated he was to the gospel and his family. He will be missed, but he left a legacy that is far reaching and impressive.
Things settled down for two weeks, but then we were back on the road and back to celebrating! Deryk's brother, Bridger came home from his mission! We were so happy to get the chance to be there to welcome him home! We missed him a ton!
Sue, Deryk's mom, made the cute shirts for all the little nieces and nephews. There were a few new ones, and a few who were just little when he left who weren't so little anymore.
The returned missionary and his brother!
Grace was a little shy at first, but it didn't take long for her to idolize him. She was so excited that he was a real live missionary! (she talks about the missionaries that she saw at her babysitter's house ALL the time!).
The Barrett boys. They are a good lookin' bunch, but I think the one in the hat is super hot! (hehe)
Just cute! You can see the big sister/little brother relationship in this picture.
After we welcomed Bridger home, we all gathered in Malta for a family Christmas party. It was so fun! We have such a fun and compassionate family.
Christmas: On Christmas Eve we went shopping, watched a movie, and ate at Noodles and Co. Then, we came home to make a batch of cookies for Santa and watched a Christmas movie. The day would have been perfect if we hadn't come home to the stinky smell of the sewer back-up! Luckily, our landlord found someone to come and fix it, and within two hours we were back to celebrating Christmas.
We had a great Christmas Day. It was nice to go to church and take some time to really think about the reason we celebrate Christmas.
The kids were so fun to watch, and we had such a peaceful day at our own house. Definitely one of my favorite Christmases so far!
Deryk and I decided this year was going to be a homemade Christmas, it was fun to work together and make a Christmas for our little cuties! These chairs turned out so well! And the kids love them!
The stick horses caused some frustration, but they were worth it in the end!
Who cares about any of the other gifts and fun stuff, the juice is what really matters most! Once he found it, nothing else mattered!
The toothbrush was Grace's favorite! She gets one every year, but for some reason, it was so much more exciting this year!
And the toothpaste. Simple pleasures.
And Seth is still just drinking that juice!
And off to church we go, all done up in our new Christmas duds.
So Handsome!
okay, normally I wouldn't buy such a crazy huge headband, but just a day or two before Christmas, Grace cut her hair. No, not just cut, she butchered it! So the headband is there to hide a whole head of mess! (we did eventually get it fixed)
Not that great of a picture, but it's the best I could get with the kids!
For some reason, the pictures with Deryk always turn out! Look how adorable they all are! Just once I wish they would cooperate in a picture with me.
After church we came home and got into our new jammies to play and relax. Grace didn't last very long! She was exhausted!
He loves his blocks! Actually, both Grace and he love playing with them together. I'm glad Santa thought to bring them a set!
I love being a mommy during Christmas! Watching the joy and excitement in my children helps me feel the joy of Christmas. I am glad Deryk and I made most of the presents, it just made it more special and exciting for me, I couldn't wait to see how they liked our gifts, and it gave us time to enjoy each other's company working late into the night. We were sleep deprived and frustrated, but it was worth it.
