Our Merry Christams

We had a wonderful Christmas full of lots of food, family and presents. The kids have been so good this year and so of course Santa was good to them. Cody loves to play in play kitchens, but we have never got him one. So now I figure we could get one for Elena and they would both love it. A few months ago, I showed Cody a little kitchen in a magazine that also had a barbecue in it. (he loves flipping "Crabby Patties") I said to him… do you think Elena would like it if Santa brought her a kitchen for Christmas??? His reply was…I want a kitchen for Christmas too. I delightfully replied, I bet Santa could bring you both a kitchen. And can you believe….he did. He also brought Elena a cute pink chair, since she is really into climbing, this is the perfect gift for her. She loves to get her blanket and sit and relax, or stand and bounce. I am having trouble up loading pictures right now, but I got these from Matt's parents computer. I will try and load more later. As you can see the kids are barely awake in this first one, but it didn't take long once they saw their presents to fully wake up.

Christmas Eve

Christmas with family…..It has been 4 years since we have been with family for Christmas. While we have been away, we have always decided that it is easier to come home to Utah for Thanksgiving rather then Christmas. Christmas is so busy for everyone. It is hard to find a time to leave and decide what to miss out on and what to stay for and likewise for the Family we are visiting. So that is why we have opted to just stay in AZ for the whole Christmas Holiday. It has been a wonderful experience for us and we have loved the memories we have made. But it is sure nice to have extra mouths there to help eat all of the good food. We would always make the same yummy Christmas Eve spread, but it was only Matt and I to eat it. We also would do all of the tradition that were going on back home in Utah, but it was just us there to enjoy it. We really have no regrets about having Christmas on our own, but I must say it was very fun to have the family all close by.










We did the traditional manger scene, Cody was Joseph and Amarie was Mary, what a cute couple. Elena, well she was just Elena and wondering all around and being happy as can be. We also did Christmas Bingo and Cody was so thrilled about the box of crayons he got. (I promise, we do have crayons and lots of them, in the picture below he looks as if he has never be so privilege as to have his own box.)
We also played the grab box, this is when you reach into a wrapped present box and pull out a gift and then you have to swap it with someone who has the gift with your name on it. Cody took Christmas Eve so seriously and was excited to leave treats for Santa and the Reindeer. And was really quick to get in bed and close his eyes, so Santa wouldn’t pass us by. It is a good thing, because I happen to walk past the living room, not to long after Cody had fallen asleep and Santa had already come there were presents and the treats we had left had been eaten. It was a great Christmas Eve.

Sunday Best

Just wanted to post pictures of the kids wearing their Christmas Apparel. These pictures were taken the Sunday before Christmas. I was hoping for a more professional picture look, but it has been hard to get that look ever since Elena has become mobile. But the kids sure look adorable anyways.

Stay tuned for the Christmas Eve and Christmas Day posts. (I am still trying to play catch up)

The Polar Express

One of our favorite traditions for the past few years has been to go on the Polar Express. Fortunately this year we were able to keep










that tradition alive. Last year Matt and I talked about wanting to bring our parents on the Polar Express. We gave some thought on the preparation we would need, to make it possible to get us all out to Williams Arizona. Then came the move to California and we looked into the Polar Express in Sacramento, then came the move back to Utah and we were fortunate enough to still get tickets for the Heber Creeper Polar Express. We and had the luxury of it being so close, that it made it easy to have our parents join us. So a week before Christmas we all bundled up and headed up to Heber. We had so much fun sharing this with my Mom and


Matt's parents. Elena was SOOO excited and was so expressive in all that she saw. Cody was feeling kind of shy, but ended up really enjoying it as well. We have always had so much fun in years past that is was even a greater joy to share this magical train ride with our parents and let them see for themselves what believing is all about.

What have we been up to????

We have really been enjoying our time here in Utah. We still just can't believe that we are really here to stay and not just for a visit during the holidays. We made it here just in time to enjoy Thanksgiving with Matt's family and then had a party with my family. This is the first time in Five years that we have been here in Utah for Christmas, so it has been extremely fun to enjoy all the things we have been missing in the past. My sister Vera, the kids and I went to the Festival of Trees. The kids loved it especially Elena, she is CRAZY expressive, both in her voice and in her actions. She loves the trees and the lights and everything Christmas. All of our stuff is still in storage in California, however we did bring a few things with us... ie our Christmas Train. Cody was soooo excited when we finally got to set it up. He also had a lot of fun helping Grandma and Grandpa decorate for Christmas. We also got to participate in making a Graham cracker gingerbread house with all of the cousins. Cody took this really serious and made such a cute house. Elena is an animal and loves being tricky, always climbing up on things and learning new tricks, one of her favorite tricks is doing back bends when ever possible.

Work is going great for Matt as he jumps right into the swing of things. We had a nice evening at the Roof Restaurant with Matt's Boss from Phoenix, it was so nice to see her again and be back in the "FAMILY"

So what if it has been 4 weeks

Ok, so I haven't posted forever and I do apologise. It is tricky when we don't have our computer hooked up to the Internet, but any whoo... We made it safe and sound here









to Utah. We did things a little differently this time. First of all we put Mogley in his cat carrier before the movers came (last time we he got locked in the POD and we fortunately found him before it was too late) and second of all we decided to use a moving company and just pay them to store our stuff, instead of doing it all ourselves and trying to get all our stuff to fit in the PODS. After the movers had left we pulled out the air mattress and the kids had a blast jumping and bouncing each other off. (yes Cody does have a passy in his mouth, they were playing babies) It was a really fun night. Matt worked his last day and then we headed out. We also decided to save a little by driving both cars, instead of shipping one. So it made for some interesting driving time. Needless to say my car was a disaster by the time we arrived to Salt Lake. I was chucking things back to the kids right and left, sometimes having to attempt my toss several times so that the food or toy would land in the childs lap as opsed to boucing off their face or hand and becoming unreachable. And doing all this while driving 70 miles and hour. We took the trip in two days, because I knew that I would be a wimp and not be able to drive the whole thing in one days. We stopped in Las Vegas and stayed in at the Luxor and it was pretty cool. We were on the 26th floor and wow what a few down into the pyramid. Cody thought it was pretty cool that he got to see the Great "Spinxes" and loved going in the elevator that moves diagonally. We were all pretty beat, so we didn’t do much. And where was Mogley during all of this???? We left him out in the car for the night…. Luckily it was not too hot or too cold, so that worked out perfectly. Since we got here we have been really busy with family, work, Christmas, and last but not least…house hunting. I think we have walked through probably 40 to 50 houses, and really I would be completely happy living in any of them. There is so much out there right now, that it is very overwhelming. But I think we have found one that we really like, so we are now under contract and if all goes well, we should be in by mid January or so. If not, then we will go for house number two, like I said there is a lot of houses available right now, so I guess we will just have to see where we end up. But this we do know is that we are so excited to be here, living in Utah!

Hang On To Your Hats!!!!

Are you ready for this???? It is big and I mean really BIG!!!!! OK here it goes, here comes our big news. We are moving to UTAH!!!! I know, I know, some people may call us crazy to change


companies, houses, states, schools, LIFE and everything else…. twice in one year, or should I say twice in six months. We call our selves crazy, but have had such a great time living in the moment. We have grown to love our little town here in California. We can’t believe the friendships we have developed so quickly and the closeness we feel in our ward of half English speaking and half Spanish speaking members. Matt has also had a really great experience working here and has been able to share some of his expertise as well as learn a lot form what this present company has to offer. However, when it was made know to us about an opening with Matt’s old company to move us back to Utah, we felt that the time was right for us. So we are coming home, both with work and with our families. We will once again be bunking with Matt’s Parents and although there have been threats of them claiming us as dependants on their taxes, Peggy is just glad that her prayers have been answered and we are finally moving back. We are so fortunate to have them and their basement. So I guess to wrap things up for this holiday season, I will say…..We’ll be home for Christmas, You can count on us, We are so excited to have snow, and we always love the mistletoe and hope that Santa has been tracking our ware bouts so that he can put our presents under our tree. Ok so that was a little cheesy, but we are so excited, and it is late! I am having trouble ending this post. Ok, I will just stop.

Happy Birthday Vera

This is my last Birthday Post for my brothers and sisters, and what a great person to end on. Vera, Hera, Lera, Jera…. (so this was not uncommon for me to say back in my younger years.) Vera seems to be everybody’s favorite person, whether you are a new born or just about to die off. I love looking back at my baby pictures, because Vera is always close by entertaining me or holding on to me to keep me safe. I do have to say, I have a lot of memories with Vera. I remember going down to her room and saying…Vera, I have the munchies, and she would get out her little treat container. When I was three Vera pushed me all the way to Murray Park on my trike and we rolled down the hills and we saw a dead birdy. (These were my exact words that were on a tape recording of my self.) But for real, she really did push me all the way there and all the way back, that is at least 3 miles round trip. When Vera would come home from BYU on a weekend, she would get to sleep in my room with me. This was always so fun for me. (some how in a family with eight kids, I never got to share my room with anyone. Some would call that being the baby and being spoiled, but I call it being deprived) I remember laying in my bed calling to Vera…VERA!!!! Come to bed. (I was about 7 years old and had a very early bed time.) Vera was always







so nice and would come in and tell me a story, or give me a massage until I feel asleep. And then when it would come time to take Vera back to BYU, I would cry and cry. I think my most ingrained in my brain memory of Vera, is when she plays her oboe. She is AMAZING!!!! And I can still hear some of her songs in my head. I loved going to her concerts, and my favorite were the outdoor musicals at the Triad Center. My dad took me and Vera to New York and Washington DC for a week. It was fun to spend time with Vera and my Dad. Vera works at the Hospital in surgery as a nurse and specializes in all of the hard cases….ie Heart stuff. Vera is very generous and is always giving and thinking up fun ways to do something nice or fun for someone. Vera also got all of the endurance in the family, well at least she got all mine. She has ran the Wasatch 100, a Triathlon and probably too many marathons to count. The max I have ever done was the Spring Run Off at BJH and that was the first and the last. I really could go on and on about Vera, but there are only so many hours in the day….So I will just end with….I hope you have a really great birthday! Sure Love You Ver.



I know, I know, I have awesome bangs!