A Very Merry Christmas

The Christmas festivities began on Christmas Eve at Alison's house with a yummy dinner and nativity program. If you're wondering what my dorky husband is doing in this picture, every year his wiseman outfit gets a little more elaborate.

Christmas morning we woke up and opened presents with just our family. Jordan was very excited about his tool bench and tools. I'm glad too, because he likes carrying around Andrew's tools and banging on things...like the Christmas tree ornaments. We then went to the Stout's for a yummy breakfast and more presents. Andrew headed off to work and I went to my parent's to spend some time with them.

As you can see, Jordan was very tired by the end of the day....and so was I.

Winter Wonderland

It has been a quiet week here at our house, even though the same can't be said of the weather around here. I am a big wimp when it comes to snow and being cold. Sometimes I wonder how I survived walking around for hours in freezing temps. month after month while serving my mission in NY. There must have been some divine intervention, because now I can barely make it to the car without complaining of how cold it is. We are very glad to have 2 Subarus to help us get around in the snow. Andrew's work is also very glad because he has turned into the shuttle service. Every morning he gets a list of people he's supposed to pick up and drop off and he even gets paid by the mile. His co-workers were saying the other day that there's no use calling in and saying you can't make it because of the weather, they'll just send Andrew to get you. It's always interesting to hear about his adventures when he gets home. Yesterday he came across a Tahoe that was spinning it's tires and couldn't make it up a hill in a neighborhood. Andrew talked to the guy and offered to help and he kind of just looked at him like he was crazy and said, "You can try if you want." Andrew hooked up the Tahoe to the tow ball on his Forester and pulled it up the hill with no problem. He's very proud of that, as you can imagine. We are staying warm and cozy and are looking forward to Christmas in just a few days. Here are some pictures from the week....

Christmas Fun

Yeah! We got our Christmas tree. Jordan had fun helping us decorate, or should I say "undecorate." He's finally got used to the idea that the ornaments stay on the tree.

Our ward had a Christmas party with the theme of "A Night In Bethlehem." Jordan went dressed as a shepherd, and a darn cute one, I might add.

Jordan loved playing this drum at the party. In fact, at one point some other kids came and started playing with it, so Jordan just picked it up and started walking around with it.

I love this picture with Santa. Jordan is always inspecting things very closely. He closes one eye and puts whatever he's looking at right by his open eye. You can't really tell from the picture, but he's checking out a candy cane. He was kind of timid to sit on Santa's lap, but went along with it. That night when Andrew was saying prayers with Jordan before bed, he put up his blanket under Andrew's nose and said, "Santa."

Mom had Jordan, Tyson and Luke (the grandkids not in school) over one afternoon to make Christmas cookies. Yes, Christmas is FUN!!!!!

Megan's Fascination

Megan's favorite things to play with are her feet and her tongue. I guess it's not a bad idea. They're always right there. She doesn't have to worry about dropping them or her brother ripping them away from her. Here is just sampling of the many pictures we've taken of her sticking her tongue out.

Our Mini Tree

Andrew and I bought this little 2 foot tree our first Christmas when we were living in Provo and were too poor to buy a Christmas tree. Plus, even if we had bought one we didn't have any decorations to put on it. Sadly, it is our Christmas tree once again. Last year I had what I thought was a cold the whole month of December. When it miraculously went away the very day we took out our Christmas tree I realized that I was allergic to Christmas trees. We are going to buy an artificial tree and picked one out at Lowe's, but are holding out for a couple of weeks when it goes on sale. This mini tree will have to do until then. I was actually somewhat relieved when I discovered my allergy. Every year Andrew likes to get a tree permit and go up to the mountains to cut down a tree in the forest. It sounds fun, but in reality it is always a very scary experience. One year my dad almost drove us all off a cliff, and the last time we went it was just our little family and Andrew managed to get us stuck in the snow...with a baby...up a mountain...on a snow covered dirt road...with no cell phone coverage...in the cold...not a pleasant experience. Luckily, he was the hero and managed to get us out. Yes, I don't mind my allergies one bit.

Here are the stocking I've made. When I made mine and Andrew's when we were first married it was the first real sewing project I'd ever done. I always loved having handmade stockings growing up. Someday maybe we'll actually have a mantle to hang them on. Until then the wall will have to do.

First Feeding

Megan had her first rice cereal today....well, kind of. Most of it ended up on the bib. It involved a lot of interesting faces, gagging and drooling. At one point, she was looking at me with this confused face that said, "What are you doing to me?" Jordan was very entertained by the whole experience and thought it would be funny to chew up his own food and spit it out. It all made out for a very messy lunch.