Holiday Happenings

First off, we got some snow and everyone is happy, except maybe me who has to drive in it. But it is pretty and makes things feel more Christmas-y!

Now on to lots of performances... Maddie's Ballet,

Kenzie's preschool (so cute, and short which was nice on a most crazy night),

and Kylie's orchestra. She just started playing the violin this fall and has enjoyed it.

I think this was our best effort yet on the decorating of the gingerbread house.

The lights on Temple Square with cousins Dustin and Abby. This was the warmest night ever for looking at the lights. Notice Tanner only has a sweatshirt on.

The Festival of Trees. This is taken at their gingerbread area. Behind them is the biggest gingerbread castle I have ever seen. The lady said it was all made entirely of gingerbread with no other internal supports. It was amazing! All the beautiful decorated trees, gingerbread houses, crafts and wreaths are donated and then auctioned off for Primary Children's hospital. It is a great event that we try to get to every year.

Finally the tooth fairy can come!

Maddie has been feeling a little left out that she had not lost any teeth yet, and she is a little old at 7+. But last month she finally had not one but two teeth pop out one right after the other. Yeah- the tooth fairy!!

Turkeys beware

Thanksgiving was the usual gorging and relaxing! We had a nice break from school and work. We had the turkey at our house with Paul's parents and my mom- small group this year. Dinner was yummy and we enjoyed the leftovers almost as much. Except I don't think we could ever get Kenzie to try the turkey. She is still mostly vegetarian- she has never liked much meat. The other kids don't know where that came from! The best part was that we got all our Christmas decorations up, inside and out. It's nice to have kids old enough to help with that now. On to Christmas...

Don't drop that bottle!

Kylie was in a dance festival for the Spanish Immersion program at school and her class got to test their balance with their dance. Usually the 6th grade gets to do something a little different and special since it is their last year. So they had to balance plastic bottles (with a small weight in them) on their heads for the entire dance. They also had a handkerchief that they dropped and picked up with their mouth- all with a bottle on their head. It was really something! They did so well. For months they had been walking around the school with these bottles on their heads as they worked. Kylie didn't drop hers at all and now has the posture of a beauty queen! I'm not sure what country that dance comes from, but it was a great cultural night.

The lean, mean, running machine

I'm catching up on some things I wanted to post, so this is old news. The first weekend in Oct was the St. George Marathon and Paul finished it for the third time! We were all there to cheer him on even though it was the worst weather they had had for the race in many years. It rained the whole time. Paul was a trooper and did great. His time was 3:17 and he was 6th in his age division. He's pretty speedy. He also raced in two triathlons this summer. One was in Idaho and we didn't go with him to that one. A man actually drowned in the heat before his so he didn't get to swim. It was tragic. The other tri was at the Jordanelle and he raced it with this brother so they suffered together. When asked if his marathon running days were about over, he said probably not so I guess we will be ready to cheer again.

Pumpkins we won't be carving

I wanted to show these fun pumpkins we we did for a craft activity. My friend Merilee found a picture of them on the internet and we went and got some good textured fabric and real pumpkin stems. They were super easy and I thought they turned out so cute for a fall centerpiece. Every once in awhile the crafter in me comes out!

kenzie can dance

This is a funny thing we were playing around with on the internet. And Yes my kids like High School Musical!



Try JibJab Sendables® eCards today!

The Warmest Halloween Ever!

We had a great Halloween this year. We didn't even have to cover our costumes with coats it was so warm. There was a little rain when we first started to trick or treat but then it passed. Kenzie made it around the whole neighborhood this year. She was so excited about the candy! Here's some pictures of the girls. Tanner left with friends later when we were already out with the girls so I didn't get any pics of him, but he was a hippie-Groovy!

Kylie the laundry basket

Maddie the Witch

Kenzie as Cinderella

Cutie Cousins

Last Saturday my niece Abby was baptized and I got some cute pictures of the girls I thought I would post.

Maddie and Abby

Kylie and her favorite baby, Elizabeth

Kenzie and Brooke

The champions- again!!

Last night we got to sit in the freezing cold and watch football! It was all worth it because they won!! Tanner's junior high football team went undefeated the whole season and finished it off with a championship. It was so exciting! I made Tanner bundle up enough that he said he wasn't cold but let me tell you- it was. We even had some snow the day before. It feels like winter is here, but it could change again. I took some pictures of the team after but they really didn't turn out. Curtis- I need your excellent shots- can you email me one? I need a better camera at some point- mine just doesn't do well in the dark. Tanner gets one day to bask in the glory and then basketball practice starts tonight. Moving on...