Saturday, October 26, 2013

Christmas 2012

I always enjoy being with my family.  Christmas was a great time.  Christmas Eve we always get together for dinner and then have a fish pond.  Mike and Nicole have graciously hosted the past few years.  The Parks have become regulars.  Here are a few highlights of the time I spent at home.

 Silly Wilson being Santa

 Santa came to visit us on Christmas eve and brought some stuffed animals for all the kiddos.

We got another visit from Santa (Uncle Lloyd) one night before Christmas.  

 I think he's one of my favorite Santas.

 Bekah helping to cook breakfast on Sariah's birthday, which is Christmas Eve.  We usually get together in the morning for her birthday so it's separate from our traditions that night.

 Sariah making breakfast on her 11th birthday.

Sariah wearing Kletey's hat on Christmas morning.



 Ethan enjoying his new truck.

 Kirk being happy watching the chaos.



Whit on her pogo stick.




Whit spent the night between Christmas and New Year's.  She decided to play dress up from Grandma's closet.  Such a cute girl.


Christmas on Temple Square

Last December, my mom got some tickets for the Mormon Tabernacle Choir concert.  It's an amazing thing with how many people enter for the opportunity.  She flew down during final's week to spend a day with me before the concert.  We got a hotel that night in Salt Lake so we could leave directly from there for home since I was done with school.  I was pretty sick (walking pneumonia) and so I didn't have as much fun as I possibly could have.  I tried not to be a party pooper so my mom would have the wonderful time she deserved.  It was a rainy night, but not too cold, so we walked around Temple Square for a bit between dinner and the concert.  We went to the visitor centers to warm up on the way.  The concert, of course, was amazing.  Alfie Boe is a tenor and has an amazing voice.  My favorite piece was I Wonder as I Wander.  So tender.  Tom Brokaw was the narrator for the evening.  He told a story of a man who during WWII would fly over crowds and drop candy from the planes.  It was a very touching story.  It was an amazing evening.  Glad my mommy asked me to be her date for the night.






Sunday, October 6, 2013

Family Pictures 2012

Since we were all together for Thanksgiving, we decided to have family pictures.  When I saw 'we', I mean everyone except for my brothers.  They are NOT fans of pictures of any kinds, unless they are the ones behind the camera.  But Mom did her "I don't ask for much, so do this for me" plight.  It's true, so they couldn't really say no.  :)  It was a pretty cool day, so we were trying to do them quickly.  I think we got them all done under 10 minutes, which was about 9 too long.











November 2012

 I love being with my family.  Last Thanksgiving we were all able to be together.  It was awesome.  The day after Thanksgiving is a big shopping day for many of the moms in the family.  They often go up in the middle of the night.  So, all of the kiddos, except Weston who spent the night with his daddy, spent the night Thanksgiving night.  They all slept in the living room.  I pulled out a small mattress so I could lie down with Wilson and Heidi, the younger ones, and keep them from waking everyone up all night long.  I ended up on the couch.  A mattress on the floor is far from uncomfortable.  In fact, the floor might even be more comfortable.  The kids LOVED being together.  Like I've said before, they play very well together.  They helped Grandma decorate for Christmas.  She keeps all of her decorations upstairs, and she hates going up and down.  So, she would stay upstairs and would send things down with the kiddos.  They loved it.

Whit and Hannah loving on each other.




The kiddos in their PJ's before going to bed.






Wils in Uncle Bryan's motorcycle goggles.








Sariah playing the piano with Heidi-boo







Cute Heidi
 


 Hannah with the goggles
















Hay-hay

Hannah and Chelsey