Christmas is here!!

I was really surprised when the kids slept in until almost nine. I was the first one up at around eight and went into their rooms to wake them up. I did get some cute pictures of them asleep in their beds.

Mckenna was so happy to see the American girl doll that Santa gave her. It was great to see the huge smile on her face. She is looking so grown up now that her permanent teeth are coming in.

Parker couldn't wait to try out his new scooter! He learned how to ride Kenna's this summer and was so excited to have one of his own.

We bought Halle a little apron set with a chefs hat. She loves to be my helper in the kitchen and so I knew this would be great for her.

Hayden was happy for his first Christmas and even helped open up his presents. He tore the wrapping paper and then tried to eat it! It was fun having him with us this Christmas!

Here is Kev chilling in his new BYU folding chair that Santa gave him. He spent most of the morning assembling all the toys like a good Dad should.

In the afternoon we were off to open more presents with my family. It was nice to spend Christmas day just relaxing, eating good food, and being in good company. We hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas holiday!

Twas the night before Christmas....

AND SANTA WAS REPELLING FROM THE TRAM AT SNOWBIRD!!

We watched Santa descend from the sky and also a procession of skiers come down the hill with torches. It was an impressive sight. We were freezing since it was only 8 degrees in the mountains that night. We finally made our way through the crowds to see Santa. Parker asked me why Santa didn't look like the other Santa he had seen. It wasn't until later when I looked at the pictures I realised Santa wasn't wearing his beard. Luckily, no permanent damage was done and Parker still believes in Santa.

My father in law was invited to play the piano that night for a Christmas eve program. He did an amazing job as always. It was fun to sing Christmas songs as he played. We also enjoyed the hot cocoa and cookies.

They had a candlelight vigil. Uncle Spencer was mesmerizing Hayden with the flame. Hayden is five months old and already going to be a pyro someday.

I got this fun picture of the cousins with their candles. They were having a great time and we managed to avoid catastrophe with the flames.

We went Grandma's house to open presents. Halle was excited to open her present from Grandma Sue.

The kids were happy to help Grandpa open up his giant present. All the siblings put our money together so we could buy him a nice chair for his office.

When we got home that night the kids opened their Christmas jammies!

Hayden looked so cute in his jammies all ready for his first Christmas.

They put out their cookies for Santa and then it was off to bed.

Parker's 5th Birthday!!

Parker turned five years old on Wednesday the 23rd! He woke up bright and early because he was so excited. He was smiling and told me that he was five now! We had a party for him that night at our house. I made him a soccer ball cake this year.

My Grandma gave him a wallet with some money in it. Grandpa pulled out another dollar for him and Uncle Spence slipped him one too! He made about five dollars in a minute. He sure knows how to get what he wants. He was proud to show off his money for the camera.

Parker had all five of his cousins there at his party. We had to get a picture with all these cute cousins together. I was surprised with how well it turned out. They are almost all smiling and looking at the camera.

We gave Parker a remote control truck and everyone enjoyed playing with it. Cousin Brady was fast and always managed to grab it. Parker was nice and shared his new toys with everyone. We love our Parker boy!

Food, Family, and Fun!!

We had three family Christmas parties over the weekend!! I only have pictures of one because I forgot my camera. I loved this picture of Hayden. He has the biggest smile and is such a happy baby. We have a tradition of opening English party poppers. They are made of paper and when you pull the two ends gun powder goes off. They always have a crown, a joke, and a toy inside. It was fun introducing Jake my cousins fiance to this tradition.

Grandma Loni made costumes for the navtivity this year. I thought they turned out really great. Dad was a good sport and was the donkey.( Teenie I am posting this one for you) He really took his part seriously and we all had a good laugh.

Mckenna played the part of Mary and Hayden was the baby Jesus. I am glad I got this picture of the two of them. Mckenna is a second mother to Hayden. She is so good with him and loves to pick him up and carry him around.

Here is a picture of the whole cast. The costumes were great and it will be a fun family tradition to have every year.

Holiday happenings!!

It has been awhile since I posted anything. I can't believe that we are already half way through December. Last weekend, Santa came to our neighborhood on a firetruck. He rides up and down the streets with the horn blasting for all to hear.The kids happily played in the snow until Santa made his grand appearance. Halle and Parker showing the taffy that Santa gave them.

Mckenna had her Christmas dance performance. We always enjoy watching her dance.

Her teacher gave her a reward for being the quickest learner in her class. She started class only a couple months ago and picked up on the dance really fast. She did a great job! She always works hard and gives it her best.

Mckenna and I after her performance. We are thankful to all the family that braved the bad road conditions to be there.

Giving Thanks...

We spent Thanksgiving day at my Grandma Smoots house. It was great to have all my brothers and sisters there. The food was delicious as always. We have my Grandma to thank for everything. She is in her eighties and still cooks most of the dinner herself.

My Grandma and the girls getting ready for the game. We pinned the feathers on the turkey and told what we were grateful for. Parker had several turns because he would remember something else he wanted to say. He was thankful for Thanksgiving, his new brother Hayden, and grandparents. It was cute to see him so excited to share his thoughts with the family. The kids also performed a thanksgiving song that Parker taught everyone. He learned it at preschool. My favorite line of the song is, "we were all much thinner, before we came to dinner, me oh my!"

We made our traditional visit to Park City to choose out an ornament for the Christmas tree. It was fun to have everyone there. It is crazy to think that last year Hailey, Brady, and Hayden were not even born yet. Our family has really grown in the last year.

We started decorating for Christmas on Sunday. The kids were so excited to open the boxes and get out all the fun decorations. They were putting ornaments on the miniature tree that was mine when I was a little. They were being so sweet together and it was one of those moments I wanted to capture with the camera. I am so thankful to have a loving family and for all the great traditions that we have together.

BYU 26 vs Utah 23

GO COUGARS!!!!!!!!!!!!!