Christmas 2008

Our little 3some on Christmas Eve. Doesn't our little one have Matt's eyes and my nose? Don't worry about what looks like a death grip that we both have on her, we were just making sure she wasn't going to wriggle away before the flash went off. No need to notify PETA.  :) Hope everyone had wonderful Christmas and enjoyed time with family! 

Holiday Survey

1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate?Oh boy, now that is a toughie! How 'bout hot chocolate with egg nog creamer in it? Mmmmm the best of both worlds!

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? Santa leaves presents out unwrapped Christmas morning. All wrapped ones under the tree are from family. 

3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? White is more classy looking. Colored ones are good for the tree.  

4. Do you hang mistletoe? Never have before, but this year might be a first! 

5. When do you put your decorations up? Whenever I feel like it. This year I put them up super early.....right after Halloween!!!

6. What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)? Those orange veggies with marshmellows on them (can't remember if they are yams or sweet potatoes) And of course olives that I can stick on all 10 of my fingers. 

7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child: Too many good ones to choose from! I would have to say all the years spent at my Grandparents house in Idaho Falls and going sledding and playing in the snow with cousins.  

8. How and When did you learn the truth about Santa? I was 8 years old and went and told my mom all proud  "I finally figured it out!! The Tooth Fairy, the Easter Bunny, Santa Clause and God all live together somewhere!" Yeah, my mom thought it would be good to break the news to me at that point!

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? We open all the gifts under the tree on Christmas Eve and then the next morning the ones from Santa would be next to our stocking. 

10. How do you decorate your Christmas Tree? So far with Matt each year we have picked out one or two Christmas ornaments that we like and write the date on the bottom of them. I think we have only about 10 so far, but they all hold meaning. So each year we put them on the tree we can remember the year we got them. 

11. Snow! Love it or Dread it? Absolutely love it. Wish it was here for me to play in. 

12. Can you ice skate? Yes. Anyone that grew up in Utah or Idaho and can't iceskate should be ashamed of themselves. 

13. Do you remember your favorite gift? My brother Ben got me a super cool troll with hot pink hair when I was 8. It was the envy of all the other 3rd graders. Oh yeah and my easy bake oven was pretty sweet. 

14. What's the most important thing about the Holidays for you? Getting together with family to celebrate the true meaning of Christmas, the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ. 

15. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert? Peanut Butter pie!

16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? Having a Christmas program on Christmas Eve where we each do something that we picked out whether it's a song, a poem, a story that we read. 

17. What tops your tree? Nothing this year. 

18. Which do you prefer giving or Receiving? Giving!! Only it's getting harder and harder to pick out gifts I've noticed for the men in my life. They all like electronics and gadgets that are too expensive!

19. What is your favorite Christmas Song? Oh soooooo many good ones. I like 'breathe of heaven' a lot this year. It's on my page at the bottom if you've never heard it before. But I also can't go the holiday season without listening to 'O Holy night'. That one gives me chills every time!

20. What is your favorite Christmas story? The birth of Christ tops them all of course! But I also like the Little Match Girl by Hans Christian Anderson. 

Our Holiday weekend

Last weekend we had lots going on. Friday night was Matt's work holiday party until midnight. Only we were the party poopers who left before 10 (hey every party needs one) because I had my math final Saturday morning bright and early.  Then we had my work party Saturday night and of course the meteor shower to watch afterwards. 

This is my not so good attempt at setting up the timer on the camera to take our photo. 

 Much better when you have an actual person taking your picture. Look how centered that is. 

My coworkers and I at our fancy schmancy party. (Notice the chandeliers?) It was really fun and I swear I saw Dr. 90210 there. If you can't locate me in the picture, well I'm the amazon women sticking up a head above everyone else.  I didn't think my shoes were THAT tall! 

Oh and for the record,  I only counted 10 shooting stars before we called it a night. Someone, who I won't mention any names,  zonked out before I made it to even 8 and it's just not the same watching them by yourself! :)

Star light, Star Bright...There's a Meteor shower tonight!

The peak of the Geminids meteor shower is tonight December 13, 2008. It starts as soon as it's dark enough to see the constellation of Gemini around mid evening, but the by far best time to watch is at 2AM til dawn when you should see one every 30 seconds!!! Bundle up it's gonna be cold!!! Nothing is more perfect then laying out under the night sky with some hot cocoa and counting shooting stars. 

I can't wait! It's gonna be spectacular!

Check out this website for more info on it. 
http://www.godlikeproductions.com/forum1/message684292/pg1

I'm hoping to count at least 500!

Happy Birthday Gwanpa!!!

My Grandpa has a first name, it’s L-A-R-R-Y
He’s not just my grandpa, but a very special guy
Now I have to take a minute to brag about this man
He is super talented and can paint even better than,
That one eared dude Van Gogh and even Claude Monet
You should see his work, you’d be asking how much to pay!
He even taught me how, when I was eight or nine,
To paint with acrylics a forest full of pine.

My grandpa likes to have a lot of fun
And do all kinds of things outdoors in the sun
Like the camping trips each year at Rock Creek
Where we’d play in the dirt for at least a week.
We’d roast marshmallows and play in the fire with sticks
And at night look up at the stars in a transfix.
Sleeping in my grandpa’s trailer was my favorite part
Until that is the top bunk and I had to stay apart.
One time I had tossed and turned all night

And ended up giving my grandparents a fright. 

I eventually had fallen right out of bed
And needless to say I bonked my head :0



When I was a kid Christmas was the best
Spent at Grandma and Grandpa’s in the Midwest.
We’d celebrate all night on Christmas Eve
And were happier (mostly) to give gifts then to receive.
Grandpa usually was the one behind the lens,
Videotaping all of us unwrapping in a frenz.
Thanks to my grandpa we have lots of family flicks
Not to mention boxes of funny, priceless pix.

Now Grandpa I hope your birthday is the best
And that it by far tops all the rest.
If I could, I’d fly you to Germany or France
Or perhaps a cruise to Fiji where there’s exotic plants
Even a big expensive party I would throw for you,
And keep it a surprise so you wouldn’t have a clue.
Sadly though all those things I can’t afford to do.
I’m just a poor kid that has school to get through.
I’ll still wish though that I could buy you an international flight
Because anyway they always say it’s the thought that counts….right?

Thanksgiving Vegas Style

For Thanksgiving weekend we decided last minute to meet Ben and Chantal in Sin City where her Dad and stepmom live. They were so nice to have us over last minute and we had a ton of fun hanging with everyone. Before dinner while Chantal and I were smashing the potatoes like no there was no tomorrow the boys were in the other room looking like this.....


They must not have gotten the memo that the naps are reserved for AFTER eating the feast. 

One of my favorite family members that I met. We bonded immediately and I must have either reminded him of his madre or smelled like Taco Bell because he was down for the count. Just call me the Dog Whisperer. 

After dinner we decided to see if lady luck was on our side. Just for the record...she wasn't. 

But just the same our trip was still magical seeing as we got to stay in a castle. I couldn't have asked for more.