Ski Santa Fe

January 3, 2013

Arthur is such a good man.  He took Dallin, Daphne, Sean and Hayden skiing up in Santa Fe last week all by himself.  It was VERY cold, so we bundled those kids up with lots of layers, and sent them off.  They had a great day, and I loved that Arthur took the time for these guys.  Hayden came home super excited about his skiing abilities and proudly boasted that he didn't even need to go to ski school anymore.  I think he didn't check with Dad about that . . .

Children's Music Theater blog announcement

Hey there Albuquerque friends:

With 2013 upon us, and people planning out their year, I have been getting a few inquiries about CMT this year.  So, if your children have ever participated in Children's Music Theater, or if you are interested in information about it this year, I just wanted to draw your attention to a new blog created specifically to keep you updated on all the latest and greatest CMT information.

Visit the new CMT Blog here, and for future reference, I have a link to the blog on my sidebar under "Other Cool Sites to check out."  I plan to update it with new information whenever I have some to share, so if your kid is a CMT veteran, you'll probably want to check back frequently.

In the meantime, hope you are all planning some awesome adventures for your 2013!  Our first adventure of the year will be arriving in 4-5 weeks!  (AAAAHHHH!  still so much to do before he comes!)

December Quotes

Daphne: Mom, I want a TV in my room.

Hayden:  Me too!

Mom:  Not likely, guys.

Daphne:  That's not fair.

Hayden:  Well you have a TV in your room.

Mom:  Because we are grown-ups.

Hayden:  That's not fair either.

Hayden:  How old do you have to be to ask a girl out?

(oh boy.)

Daphne did a country report this month on Greece.  In her research, she came across a picture of a little naked baby being baptized in the Greek Orthodox Church.  Her reaction: Well that's awkward.

Sydney:  I need a paper!  (she asks for a paper whenever she needs a napkin or a tissue.)

Sydney:  Hayden, put it away!  Put it away or I spank your bottom.  1 . . .  2 . . .  3!  Go sit on Dryer!

Driving to school one day, Sean declared,  

"When I'm the president, I'm gonna make a law that says: No Buckling!"  

Sean:  (a few days later)  I actually don't want to be president.  I want to be a teacher instead, with a classroom full of kids, and I would just let them PLAY!

Hayden:  Mom, these markers say they are washable, but they ARE NOT!

Me:  Were you trying to erase them?  Because washable doesn't mean "erase-able."

Hayden:  . . . oh.

Me:  Daph, could you scoop up some ice cream for the little boys?

Daph:  Child-scoops, or Emma-scoops?

(Emma--Do you love that you are a household name in our family for "a LOT of ice cream"?)

Sydney:  Mommy, you went peepee in the toilet?  Good job Mom!  (clapping her hands)

Hayden and Sydney were sitting watching the DVD menu repeat over and over waiting for me to press play.  I had gotten busy with something else and had forgotten they were waiting for me until I heard Hayden sigh, "Thith ith tho boring."

Daphne:  I'm glad I'm me and have my good looks, 

because there are lots of boys who like me at school.

Happy New Year!

December 31, 2012

We celebrated New Year's Eve with the Andersons.  We had hor d'oeuvres and a yummy sparkling peach punch.  We played Apples to Apples (you have to use different strategies when you play with people who don't read yet--Hayden's choices were rather diverting.  ;)  And then at approximately 9:17 p.m.  (aka, when it was just time to for the kids to go to bed) we counted in the New Year!

Sydney loves little Kylie.  Whenever we talk about the baby coming to our family, she says, "No, baby Kylie at Lily's house!"

Happy New Year to one and all!

Here's hoping 2013 is a good one!

And this is a little baby snowman made from all the snow the kids could gather from the first snowfall of 2013.  Since they built him in the shade, he hasn't completely melted yet!  

Daphne named him Bennett.

Christmas 2012

For Christmas this year, we had my parents, and five of my siblings come out--Reed, Emma, Jacob, Nathan, and also my sister Natalie and her little girl Kyrie (since Brian was on-call on Christmas Day.  We missed you Brian!  And of course we also missed Mel and Jade and Jen & Brandon's family who were spending Christmas elsewhere!)  It sure was fun having all that company.  We ate great food, played games, watched movies, there was a ski trip for some, and a girls outing for the mom's who stayed home with little ones.  And of course, there was the Nativity Reenactment and carols on Christmas Eve, and hiding from Santa and gift-giving on Christmas morning, with a warm fire and more food and singing that evening.  We loved spending that time with family and enjoying so many wonderful Christmas traditions together.  

Christmas Eve tradition of the Nativity:

(My goal for next year:  Have better costumes!  What a hodge podge!  It's like Harry Potter meets Star Wars meets . . . random blankets . . .)

2012 Cast

Mary--Kyrie, Joseph--Sean, Baby Jesus--baby Kylie, Angels--Lily and Sydney

Shepherd--Hayden, Wise Men--Dallin, Daphne, and Caleb, Camels--Emma, Eric & Jacob

Christmas morning:

Here are all the kids with their gifts from Santa

Princess dolls for Sydney and a Star Wars Battlefront game for Dallin.

Hayden found the flashlight he asked for in his stocking.

Karaoke Machine for Daphne

And an X-Wing fighter Lego Star Wars set for Sean.

More of opening gifts and stockings and the crackling fire . . .

Sydney was completely disinterested in opening other presents once she got her Rapunzel doll out of its package.  She was perfectly content to sit and comb that long blonde hair over and over and over.

Hayden has been talking about wanting a "fake BB gun" so Daphne got him this.

I just love his face in that picture as he's opening it--so super excited!

The rest of these pictures are not Christmas Day, but just while all the family was in town:

Sydney and Lily having a tea party

Sean and Hayden skiing up at Purgatory with Arthur.

Merry Christmas Everyone!  Hope yours was Merry and Bright!

These are a few of my favorite things . . .

This time of year is so busy, sometimes it's easy to get overwhelmed with shopping lists and to-do lists, and gift lists and everything else that I forget to step back and enjoy the season.

So I've been thinking lately about what I love about this time of year:

The SMELLS
. . . of baking (turkey and hot rolls!) the citrus and pine and cinnamon that I simmer on the stovetop, the peppermint in my hot cocoa

The SIGHTS
. . . of twinkling lights, the festive decorations--trees and poinsettias, ribbons and sparkly ornaments, cozy stockings, a crackling fire in the hearth, gift wrap and bows and candles and Nativity Sets.



The SOUNDS
 . . . of jingle bells, Christmas carols, giggling children, our annual Stake Christmas concert with choir, string orchestra, and handbell choir--it's pretty magical (once the rehearsing is done!)  And Hayden giving me his daily count-down till Christmas report.  One morning I came in to wake him and the first thing out of his mouth was, "Jutht theven dayth till Chrithmath, Mom!"

The TRADITIONS (new and old)

We decorated a gingerbread house this year for our Ward Christmas Party.  Not something we do every year, but a traditional Christmas-time activity.

The kids really got into it and added all kinds of their Star Wars legos and other random toys.

As a result, this beauty won "Most Out-of-This-World" in the Gingerbread House competition.

Also, at the ward party, the kids visited with Santa.

Hayden asked Santa for a flashlight, (that has consistently been his Christmas wish this year.)  Santa was a little surprised, but took it in stride.  Sean asked for a particular Star Wars Lego set.  And then another, and another, and another.  Santa could barely get a word in edge-wise.  I think Sean was just covering his bases--making sure Santa had lots of options to choose from.  Good thing too, because some of the lego sets he asked for were several hundred dollars.  Yowsa!

Sydney didn't get the whole Santa thing, but posed for a picture anyway.  I was really surprised she even went to him, because she takes a long time to warm up to people.

Nativity Reenactments:  This one is Hayden's preschool presentation of the Nativity.  He was a shepherd.

and Giving . . .

This year our ward did a Giving Tree with families from the most impoverished area of Albuquerque.  Many of children came from families with at least one incarcerated parent.  Our family gave to a family that was actually pretty well in tact.  Two parents and three boys, ages 10, 13 and 18.  

They asked for pants, jackets and food.

humbling.

We spent a lot of time shopping for them and wrapping their gifts.  We gave the parents a humongous bin of food and other groceries, and each child a couple of gifts (the requested pants and jackets and also shirts and socks).  And everyone got a stocking full of toiletries and candy, that my children helped to stuff.  

In preparation for sharing our offerings with this family, we read President Monson's story "The Christmas Train,"  and talked about giving and how when we are in the service of our fellow beings we are only in the service of our God.  

Then on a Sunday afternoon we were able to go deliver our gifts as a family.  Our children each carried gifts inside the dilapidated trailer where the family lived.  We briefly met the Mom and her boys who spoke very little English.  And it was a very sweet experience.  On the way home we talked about how we felt as we gave to another family who was truly in need.  The kids all agreed:

It felt good.

It felt like Christmas.