New Years Eve

We missed having Matt and Jenny around for the holidays like we did last year, but we got to Skype with them over in England a couple of times. On New Years they called us from "the future", after the clock struck midnight in England!


It's now become a tradition, thanks to Matt and Jenny and family, to play BINGO on New years complete with New Years crackers as prizes. We all got these stylish crowns and some pretty cool tools, including my dad's stethoscope in our crackers!


We roasted s'mores over the fire but this is a picture of Logan and Connor throwing who knows what into the fire!

Sledding

Ever since we even started talking about going to Utah around Christmas time my kids started talking about going sledding! Finally just a few days before we left to come home we there was a big snow storm and it was perfect sledding weather! I forgot my camera, but luckily my dad had his so I stole these pictures off of his blog!


Connor has soooo much fun. He did not want to leave when all the rest of us were ready to go!


Grandpa Tom and Sam headed down a hill!


I even braved a few hills!

Mads first haircut

While in Utah Mads got her first haircut. She was really good and her new all one length hair looks so cute!


Before:


During:


After:

Breakfast at the Grandparents

After opening presents Christmas morning we ran over to my Grandparent's house for a delicious breakfast made by my mom. Here is Ty strategizing with Connor during an intense game of "Guess Who".


Uncle Logan teaching Sam how to play her new DS. He is a video game wizard!



My favorite picture of the morning. Aunt Kristy holding the Mads.

Christmas Morning

I don't know if it was the time change or how late we stayed up Christmas Eve, but my kids slept in on Christmas morning. We finally woke them up at 8 because we were supposed to be at my grandparents for breakfast at 9 and we needed to get those presents open. Mads opened her Princess dresses and we haven't seen her in anything else since. In fact, as I sit here typing this, almost a month after Christmas, she is laying on the couch wearing the exact same outfit!


Connor and his new Webkins he got from Madison.


Sam playing her DS. Not a surprise to her, but she was excited anyway!


Definitely the best part of present opening was the last gift that was opened. Amanda got a new cell phone which she was not expecting at all. She couldn't believe it and was so excited that she started crying. Tears of joy of course!


I'd post a picture of me with one of my favorite gifts, but I didn't get any! Christmas morning Shaun realized he'd forgotten to pack any of mine, so they were all back in Poway waiting for me when we got home!

Christmas Eve

Yeah, I know this is a really dark photo of Connor bowling, but it is the only one I got from our fun Christmas Eve we spent with the Young's. We all went bowling and then went over to Dell and Vicki's for a big family dinner. We then had the gift exchange. The kids opened their gifts from their cousins, from Grandpa Dell and Grandma Vicki and their traditional Christmas Eve gift, jammies. It was a much crazier, louder Christmas Eve than we are used to, but it was so much fun!


After spending most of the day and evening with our Young family we ran over to my parent's house to let the kids model their new Christmas jammies, since Grandma Linda and Grandpa Tom are the ones that picked them out and bought them for them.


We also got to visit with my cousin Ryan and his girlfriend and play a little Beatles Rock Band. Mads tore it up on the drums!

Homemade Marshmallows

After the kids were out of school, but before we left for Utah I had to finish getting out a few Christmas gifts. Part of the gifts were homemade marshmallows. I've never made them before but have wanted to for a long time. It really is very easy and a lot of fun. Of course I had a few helpers!



Amanda adding the finishing touches. She dipped them in chocolate, then in crushed candy canes.


The finished product. I hope our friends had as much fun eating these in their hot cocoa as we had making them!

For anybody out there that wants to try making these themselves hereis where I got the reipe. Homemade marshmallows recipe