Snow much FUN with Cousins

I was very happy that the Willey cousins weren't sick of the snow yet and were willing to go sledding with our kids. They has the perfect sized hill in their back yard and the kids had a great time. We love you Willey's. Thank you for letting us stay with you...again.

After the presents

We had lots of fun after we opened our presents. The kids all got in their new comfys, and played with their new toys. We also got to go see what our cousins had gotten for Christmas. Lots of fun to be had, and we snagged it. Deeken was getting huge laughs with Grandma Farr. When he gets really tired he gets hysterical with his laughs. This is our kids talking to my parents on the phone. It was there first Christmas without them too. Love you Mom and Dad...we missed you. Both Noah and Micah wanted to help Grandma with the dishes. What is this? If you do it the hard way they want to help, if all we have to do is put them in the dishwasher, they vanish. John and Noah had a lot of fun working on the "Boy Toys." Deeken was having some good laughs with Grandma Farr. This is our kids talking to my parents. It was their first Christmas without them too. When Micah was talking to my mom she wouldn't let go of these dolls. She loved them. At one point she came up to me, hug them really tight and said, "I just love them so much mummy." It was really cute...isn't that what Christmas morning is about...watching your children's face when you have given them the perfect present. Priceless.

A Merry Christmas Morning!

Please have patience if you think the pictures are too numerous...my parents weren't with us for the first time ever, so they want to see it all. It was a wonderful Christmas morning. The first one we ever spent with John's parents. John and I spent most of the money we had for Christmas on a nice new camera. I thank my husband for giving up most of his Christmas, because I know I will be the one using it the most. It is awesome and makes me feel inspired to take better pictures. You will have to stay tuned to see if it actually happens. The kids got new scooters but haven't been able to use them yet between snow in Utah/Idaho and rain here in Oregon. Overall it was simpler but still a great Christmas.

First things First...including Christmas Eve.

When we FINALLY got to John's parent's, it was too late and cold to do anything outside. When it was morning however, there was not much we could do to stop them. John took the kids outside just to go down a tiny hill that his parents had. They were ecstatic about anything that had to do with the snow. Deeken got his first real taste for snow. He didn't like it much, but if he is anything like his siblings it will grow on him. This is a fun game we got to play on Christmas eve with the Matther's Farr cousins. You sit in a circle while a story about Mr. Left and Mr. Right is told, and every time you hear left or right you have to pass the present that direction. The kids had a great time. Of course everyone wanted the biggest present, but they all ended up with the same thing, new snow hats. Thank you Matt and Meriah. Here is a picture of Noah and Micah with theirs. This is Deeken sporting his Uncle Sam's hat. Sam was helping him talk on the microphone. He mostly just grunted. This is Noah getting his turn on the mic. He asked if he could sing a song. The song he chose to sing was one he learned in school. The title, "Hanukkah." Hilarious! His father and I were so proud! The last thing we did on Christmas Eve was open our traditional Jammies. The kids loved them. Micah especially liked her doll that matched. So with the opening of one present, we sent them to bed with visions of sugar plums dancing in their heads.

Before our Christmas adventure

Before we left for Idaho for Christmas, we did get in a few fun things that I wanted to post before I put up the Christmas pics. Okay, so this one wasn't that fun. We had to say good-bye to our good friends the Veeks. Matt got a job in Parachute, Colorado, and thus the whole family had to go with him for some reason. We miss them tons already! The whole family got to go eat lunch with Noah. It was fun, but would have been better if we had known that you have to call ahead and let them know you want to come, or there will be nothing for you to eat. We all skimped off Noah's plate. He would never eat all they gave him. I often wonder how much he really eats without me there to supervise. John didn't get to come to Micah's Christmas party, he had an interview. Noah had school, but Deeken and I were big fans of Micah's awesome singing. She did a good job though I could tell she missed having Ethan there, or maybe it was just me missing Sierra. After all this fun we got to get into the car and drive 9 hours with our kids through Dead Mans pass and the Blue Mountains to Idaho. Luckily we didn't have any problems with snow!

Merry CHRISTmas!

We wish you a Merry CHRISTmas! Thank you for being a part of our lives; whether it was in the past or in the present. We love our Family and Friends and count you among our greatest blessings. We, like you want to remember the Savior, not only now, but all year long. We hope you enjoy this talk by JRH, and that if you haven't caught the true spirit of CHRISTmas yet, that you will feel His love when you read this.

"Christmas Doesn't Come From A Store"

Jeffrey R. Holland

Again, I’ve thought of Luke’s careful phrasing about that holy night in Bethlehem:

“The days were accomplished that she should be delivered."

“And (she) brought forth her firstborn son, and [she] wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and [she] laid him in a manger” (Luke 2:6–7; emphasis added).

Those brief pronouns trumpet in our ears that, second only to the child himself, Mary is the chiefest figure, the regal queen, mother of mothers—holding center stage in this grandest of all dramatic moments. And those same pronouns also trumpet that, save for her beloved husband, she was very much alone.

I have wondered if this young woman, something of a child herself, here bearing her first baby, might have wished her mother, or an aunt, or her sister, or a friend, to be near her through the labor. Surely the birth of such a son as this should command the aid and attention of every midwife in Judea! We all might wish that someone could have held her hand, cooled her brow, and when the ordeal was over, given her rest in crisp, cool linen.

But it was not to be so. With only Joseph’s inexperienced assistance, she herself brought forth her firstborn son, wrapped him in the little clothes she had knowingly brought on her journey, and perhaps laid him on a pillow of hay.

Then on both sides of the veil a heavenly host broke into song. “Glory to God in the highest,” they sang, “and on earth peace, good will toward men” (Luke 2:14). But except for heavenly witnesses, these three were alone: Joseph, Mary, and the baby to be named Jesus.

At this focal point of all human history, a point illuminated by a new star in the heavens revealed for just such a purpose, probably no other mortal watched—none but a poor young carpenter, a beautiful virgin mother, and silent stabled animals who had not the power to utter the sacredness they had seen.

Shepherds would soon arrive and, later, wise men would follow from the East. But first and forever there was just a little family, without toys or trees or tinsel. With a baby—that’s how Christmas began.

So flippin' excited and GREAT-FULL!

Mine and John's amazing friends the Wilbergers were finally blessed with the HUGE blessing of becoming parents today. They were married 5 days before us and have been trying since then to have a beautiful baby of their own. I am so Super stoked that Brenley finally gets to be a mom and that Bryce gets to be a dad. There birth mother had their baby on December 14th and they now have him safe at home. We love them so much and send our love their way. We hope we get to see the little guy soon. Here is a link to their blog if you want to see him. B&B Baby

Not flesh of my flesh,

Nor bone of my bone,

But still miraculously my own.

Never forget for a single minute,

You didn't grow under my heart,

But in it!

-Anonymous