Christmas 2009

Christmas for us this year was a little bit different since we are living in Vernal. We had decided to stay here in Vernal for Christmas instead of traveling to Salt Lake. We missed our families but enjoyed time together with just our little family! We spent the day of Christmas Eve cooking, baking, decorating Santa's cookies, coloring ornaments and coloring Christmas pictures. Christmas Eve we had a nice yummy dinner and all three of the kids were actually playing and eating instead of screaming and fighting! We then watched the polar express, ate some cookies, read a couple Christmas stories, put some nativity ornaments on the tree while we read the nativity story, played with the little people nativity, sang a couple Christmas songs, and got cookies and milk all ready for Santa.

Our children don't know the meaning of sleeping in so they boys woke up around 6:00 in the morning, we made them wait a minute so I could wake their sister up and then it was time to see if Santa had come. Jake asked the boys when they woke up what they were thinking. Jack thought for a minute an says "I think Santa came." Christmas was really fun this year because the boys really understand the whole Santa thing and even Ava had fun ripping into the presents and playing with the wrapping paper and bows!

The boys were so excited to see the lit up Christmas tree with all kinds of presents underneath. Jack was the first to notice that Santa drank all his milk and ate almost all his cookies. Santa took a bite of the last cookie but could not eat anymore. He was too full! The boys thought it was really funny that Santa got too full!

We then spent the next 4-5 hours opening up presents and playing with the new toys. Sam got a walking imaginext dragon and dinosaur, a maze book, a nerf ball gun, a pirate ship, a spiderman, books and stuffed animals to go with them, (Santa found them for $5 dollars each at Kohl's) clothes, slippers, bubble bath, a little baby elephant, baby giraffe, and baby buffalo (also on his Christmas List) Jack got two big toy horses, a lasso, book and stuffed animals, a nerf ball gun, a spiderman, a corral for his horses, slippers, 3 new horse, bubble bath, and clothes. Both boys got some hot wheel cars, an electric hot wheel race set and a polar bear cage (tent) that they share. Ava got a new baby doll (baby Stella) a ladybug wheely bug, Olivia the pig book and doll, little pea, little hoot and little oink, a Disney princess phone that talks, which she loves to talk to her friends snow white, Cinderella, and aurora, bubble bath, yogurt melts and a new pink cuddly giraffe that she loves to sleep with. SHe also got her very own chair but Santa hasn't delivered that one yet, hopefully soon! I got photoshop CS4 for my imac and Jake got a new suit. He has been exercising and losing weight to train for the dino triathlon here in Vernal and has lost 26lbs. I am so proud of him! So he needed a new suit and he needs a whole new wardrobe due to losing so much weight and so many inches. We tried to put the boys down for a nap but they were all hyper and overstimulated from Christmas morning. The boys got some new sleds from Santa so later that afternoon we bundled everyone up to go sledding. It was way too much fun, even in the 8 degree Vernal temperature! (Pictures of sledding to come later.) After sledding we came back and enjoyed some nice hot chocolate and cookies and played some more with new toys. We then ended the evening watching a 5 minute dvd from the church on the nativity, and explained that Jesus being born is why we celebrate Christmas. Sam told me, Mom, I love Jesus and I am grateful for his birthday" Times like that makes me think maybe I am doing something right! I am so happy to know that my children know their Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ!