Highlights of December 2012 all out of order.... but there.

We had a great December! We kicked off the season at the Festival of Trees. We met up with our friends the Campbell's and walked through thousands of trees that are decorated and donated to be auctioned off to raise money for Primary Children's Hospital. It is amazing what people put into their decorations. Maren loved all of the girly pink ones. Lyndsie's family donated a tree in memory of her grandpa who loved fishing. It was a fun event.

After the festival Maren and I were invited to the Nutcracker Tea Party with Spencer's family. Grandpa Garlick played Clara's uncle in a short segment to get the kids excited to go see the ballet.The tea party took place at this beautiful place Maren thought was a castle.

A bit out of order, at the festival of trees they also had a display of gingerbread houses that were pretty amazing.

Another highlight and must see if you live in Utah is the lights at Temple Square. Always a great place to be and incredible to see massive trees covered in lights.

Another "highlight" of December was cleaning up after this little girl. Lovely. Don't worry, I got the toys out before I hosed her down.

Another night, we went to Gateway Mall and saw their giant lit up tree change patterns and colors while synced to christmas music. It was pretty well done. Maren was really excited.

Give him a wig and I would be married to Willy Wonka. We went into a vintage toy store called Blickenstaff's.

The tree at Gateway.

Eva has a love for stuffed animals. She was in heaven riding this giant alligator.

Here is our little bum child. She just received a sum of money from a kind-hearted stranger and decided to go on a shopping spree at Blickenstaff's instead of use it on necessities like food and shelter.

Just found a new dollar store other than Dollar Tree. Eva was loving all they had to offer. I couldn't get her to let go of the plunger.

Every Christmas at the Conference Center the Mormon Tabernacle Choir sings with a famous professional. This year they featured Alfie Boe, the voice of Jean Valjean on Broadway.  He was part of the 25th Anniversary cast that comes on PBS periodically. Amazing. Tom Brockaw was also there as an incredible storyteller. A memorable night for sure!

We spent a lot of time with family down in American Fork this year. We created a lot of great memories. It had been so great for the kids to be close by and have that time with family.

We paired up and made gingerbread houses. Maren was paired up with Uncle Joe. He did everything she wanted him to. A perfect partner. This was there finished product. Maren was so proud.

As I am going through all of these pictures seeing all of the things we did I am reminded of all the awesome things you can do in Utah! We were fortunate to get tickets to see the Nutcracker put on by the Utah Regional Ballet. Their company has great dancers and it was a great production. I got to see one of my students from Mountain Ridge Junior High perform as one of the top dancers. Maren loved every minute of it. Hopefully we can start this tradition to go every year wherever we live. 

Again out of order but you can see that Maren is working well with her building partner. I love the expression on her face as she discusses design and decoration.

Christmas Sunday.

Christmas morning!

Minnie!

Christmas Eve Dinner. I made the  traditional Danish Christmas meal. Our Haymond grandparents came which made it all that much more fun for me since Grandma Haymond is half Danish too!

Maren and her 2nd cousin Ella. They hit it right off at the Haymond Christmas party. SO funny.

We had a beautiful white Christmas. After opening gifts we went sledding at a nearby park. Some of us sledded anyway, others attempted crazy stunts.

Learning to knit with Grandma.Very determined.

Thoughts of this week

This last week I have been reading the book Heaven Is Here by Stephanie Nielsen, a survivor of a plane crash with her husband that left her with 80% of her body covered with 3rd degree burns. She has such passion for marriage and motherhood and her book has inspired me to to cherish the true blessing it is to be a wife and mother to my incredible husband and two amazing girls. I have felt prompted all day to write a post about my little 10-month-old Eva. I have enjoyed every moment of being her mother. She has a fighting spirit inside of her that I admire. She has a love for her family that shines through her eyes. When she is proud of herself she is excited to share her excitement with me. Every time she comes bounding around the corner and I hear her little feet pad the floor, she always greets me with one of the best heart-warming smiles that make her little blue eyes shine bright. Makes me feel like a million bucks. I can truly feel her love and need for me and there is nothing more rewarding about motherhood than that, to feel needed by your children. It puts into perspective the responsibility and absolute importance of my role of providing them with a safe, nurturing environment of love, hope and peace that in turn provides an escape from the chaotic world around us.

I have had a week of sleepless nights as Eva fights through yet another cold, and there are moments where I can't fall back to sleep after getting Eva back to bed. A couple of times in those moments I have thought about the book I was reading and felt completely ok with being woken up by my little spunky girl because I knew that I was blessed to be her mom, to have the beautiful life I had with the knowledge of a loving Heavenly Father that loved me. What more could I need?

As I watch Eva grow in every way at such a rapid pace, I want to freeze time and keep her just the ways she is, the happy, cuddly, sensitive, and determined little person she is. Then I realize, who she is now will probably be who she is for the rest of her life. I feel a peace and comfort to know that her strong little spirit will fight for the cause of good. Somehow I just know this. The Spirit probably wants me to know this so that I can somehow deal with the fact that I am bringing these sweet innocent children into a scary world. I have to remember that their souls are much older than their bodies and they have the capability to do great things. I have never understood more than I do now that Heavenly Father has saved the valient for this time. To fight for the cause of good.

May we take a step back and look at our lives and recognize the amazing blessing it is to be alive with those we love around us. May we always cherish the wonderful moments so they will carry us through the challenges and remind us of what matters most.

10 Months

The traditional picture on the chair doesn't seem to work anymore. She either slouches or....

Tries to grab the camera.

I decided to let her walk around so I could see the big 10 on her shirt.

Wedged between my knees.

This sweet little girl has a lot of determination, spunk and personality. She loves to dance, kick her ball, make mischief and run around. She is so much fun.

The night before we left California, Spencer and I went to my high school reunion. I should have taken more pictures but caught one with an old friend from Elementary School. I found that the people I cared most to talk to were those I grew up with from kindergarten. I am glad I went.

We decided to stop in the Sierra Nevadas at a special place on Rainbow Road. This is the spot where Spencer proposed to me. nearly 6 years ago. Love that memory.

The view.

Our dear Optometry friends are currently living in Reno so we stopped and ate lunch and had a great visit. Look at Jaxon and Maren, both looking at the ground, then look at Risa and Eva, smiling and looking at each other. Classic. Can't believe the optometry adventure is almost over and these dear friends will move back to Canada. Guess we will have to go visit!

Family Pics...attempted

After taking extended family pictures I thought I would try to get a few of our own. Lets just say the kids were getting tired of cooperating.

This could have been a nice picture of Maren would have been looking

Eva has a kind of scowl on her face.

The last thing they wanted was a kiss at that point!

Eva and Allie

The girls! Three generations

Love this one

Again, no kisses.

Thanksgiving in California

We had a great trip to California to have our 1st, yes 1st Thanksgiving since before Spencer and I were married. It was a great time. To say the least we got a family picture. Maren loved the time with her cousins. My family tradition growing up was to go to a great place called Apple Hill. I LOVE Apple Hill. It has all the beauty of Oregon with beautiful hills of apple orchards, nice small town local people, and delicious apple treats. It is not very often that we get the entire family out together and so it made the trip extra special.

Maren and Tatum eating the best Pink Ladies I have ever eaten.

Eva discovered the mini carousel. She fell in love. She pitched the biggest fit when we took her off.

The feasting table

The turkey leg

Maren found a great movie watching spot.

The kid table

Scandia! Can't go home without making a stop to grandpa's job (or daddy's job as I called it when I was little). Eva's first round of mini golf. She made it through all 18 holes!

This picture is hilarious and so typical of Eva. She really is such a happy girl (like the balloon tells you) but sometimes she really knows how to pitch the biggest fit. I love Maren's face looking down at her. So funny.

Eva discovered her belly thanks to Aunt Amber. Look at the way she is looking at her like "Not again."

Time with Grandma

Love from oldest cousin Dalin. So sweet.

Sharing a GIANT carrot with daddy.

Dalin is a great cousin! My girls loving him like a big brother.

We had a great time together as a family. Moments that can't be repeated but cherished always.