Ringing in 2015

Ah, 2015.

The first year we have a HOME.

We are going to love this.

We rang in the new year doing things we plan on doing throughout the rest of the year:

Family time.

And projects.

We played soooo many rounds of "Shut the Box".  Love this game; especially for my number-obsessed boy!

Mark put the stairs together.

Mac dominated "Shut the Box".

Belle made it to about 10 o'clock.

Harrison fell asleep just after she did.

Mark knocked out soon after.

And Mac fell asleep 10 minutes before midnight!  I shook him awake for the countdown (one of his favorite things in the world), but he only became conscious once he heard the fireworks outside.  

Then we sat on the front porch and watched the sky erupt in color.  He said, "Mom, I don't ever want to leave this house.  This is the best New Years ever."

I agree, bud.

Christmas 2014

Christmas this year was with the Thomas Clan.

We all know what that means. (The same thing it means every year.)

A live-action depiction of the nativity.

Harrison as the Star

Dad the narrator

Belle as Mary, Rach as Joseph

Mac on double duty as a wise man and shepherd.

Lovin' on sweet Baby Jesus

Christmas with the Thomas's also means reading "Poochie the Pup" and "The Magic Christmas Window".

And new pjs from Santa's Elves.

Christmas morning was perfect.

Bruce the Shark #2 ... Santa had to work HARD for this one ... he flew Bruce in from an aquarium in Boston!

Haaaaaappy first Christmas, little love!

*GASP* Santa ate his cookies!

Nothing like a fire to get us all in the Christmas spirit.

We were worried we might not get snow this year, but Mac took care of that.  

He filled the windows with snow flakes, and the clouds took note.

We got a snow storm.

And the boys had to prove their manliness by rolling in it.

Merry Christmas, indeed!

Christmas-y Cousin Sleepover

Mark and his brothers brought back an old tradition:

hunting.

Their dad used to take them regularly while they were growing up, but since he had passed away those six boys rarely went.

I don't know who got the ball rolling, but somebody did and the rest of the boys responded.  They all met up at the Panguitch cabin to hunt elk.  Mark was so happy to get back into it.

Indeed, he was so happy he didn't mind leaving me with three kids; one of whom was about three weeks old. Thankfully, I wasn't the only wife who had nothing to do while the boys tried to fill our freezers with wild game, and so we decided to combine forces and have a Christmas-y cousin sleepover.

Katie and Danika snuggled my very-new Harrison.  The kids ran around like wild people.  We talked ourselves hoarse.  

And we made snowmen out of baking soda and shaving cream.

And then exploded them with vinegar.

It is so good to have a family with so many people trying to do the same things I am doing.

I love the Gunns.

Christmastime at Home

You guys.   You GUYS.  Christmas in our own place?!

Magic.

For the first time ever, I got a real tree.

Our house smelled amazing.

Unfortunately, it had been so long since I had a real Christmas tree that I forgot they're supposed to be watered.

Mark had just put in brand new (fake) wood floors.  There was no way I was going to damage those.

So we had a dried up, crispy Christmas tree.
But I loved it.

Our house had no furniture, I hadn't even begun to decorate (first things on my walls were in fact Christmas decorations), and most of our stuff was still in boxes.

But it was ours.

We had fires in the fireplace.  

Mac made luminaries in school.  (I love his preschool.  It's just the greatest thing. Every day in December they talked about Christmas in another country; Mac came home with all sorts of stories about Sinter Klause and Los Tres Reyes ... it was just too fun.)

We tried to take pictures.  They wouldn't stay still.

 

Our ward had a Christmas party, and Santa Clause came with his wife.  Mac ran and hid while Belle plopped right on his lap.  Mrs. Clause hunted him down and promised extra Christmas presents if he would come take a picture.

Fiiiiine.

That's the best Santa picture I've ever gotten.

And sweet Harrison ...

Blew us all away with his quiet disposition.  He slept great. He was awake great.  Even his cry was great.  Not at all ear-splitting.

A magic Christmas indeed.