Sledding at Grandma's and Grandpa's

We  had a chance to spend a few days in Fairview visiting Grandma and Grandpa.  We had a wonderful time talking, watching movies, spotting wildlife, breaking icicles and mostly sledding.

There is a great sledding hill right next to their house and when Grandpa gets out the snowmobile, it makes it even more fun.  We hooked the sleds up to the snowmobile and Grandpa would pull us up the hill.  Pretty cushy sledding!

 Everyone had a blast!

 Um...everyone except Guard.  We forced him onto the snowmobile, Greg took him down the hill on a sled and he hated every moment of it!  You don't force Guard to do anything...it has to be his idea.  He had a lot more fun playing on the hill he built in the snow bank.

 The sledding was a blast!  Everyone enjoyed themselves immensely.  All except Kate, who went down twice, declared it was too cold to be outside and spent the rest of the morning inside cuddled under a blanket.  She is not meant for cold weather!

 

What a fun few days at Grandma's and Grandpa's cabiny house.  It is always so much fun to visit!

Laser Tag

 

 

 When we made our list of the fun things we wanted to do over Christmas Break, the kids were sure to include laser tag.  They love it!  We let them invite a friend each, Reid and Taylor, and every one was so excited.

The pictures are awful; lighting stinks for cameras in the laser tag maze, but you get the idea. 
Guard was so cute in his gear.  He stuck close to Dad and they were a good team.

It was boys vs. girls (and dad).  The red team won (Kate, Taylor, Dad and Guard)!  Although, nobody cared too much about winners - they just had a great time!

Christmas Yoga

 

 For a family gift this year, we received a kid's yoga DVD.  We need some help self-relaxing, calming our minds and falling asleep.  All have been problems this year in our family.  Hopefully this will give us another help.
Kate was a absolute natural at yoga.  Her gymnastic training, flexibility and coordination were obvious.  She really enjoyed it.

I was proud of the boys for trying it.  They all gave it a good effort.  They did enjoy the partner poses.

 Guard was pretty darn adorable doing his yoga.  He tried every pose and actually did a really good job.  Toward the end, he lost interest and this is how he ended up.  Like I said, pretty darn adorable.

I'm curious to see how this goes with the kids in the coming weeks.  I'm hoping it is something we can keep up.

The Aquarium

For the kid's Christmas present this year, Grandma and Grandpa Randall contributed to a pass to the Aquarium.  The kids were very excited and couldn't wait to use their pass.

One of the favorites places there is the Rain Forest.  The rope bridge is an absolute favorite of Enoch and Kate.  Guard will cross occasionally.

 With our membership, we get access to Tiki's Island Playground.  The kids had a great time running around, climbing, playing games and having fun together.

 The shark tunnel is always a favorite.  Guard claims it is too scary, but once we get there he is fascinated.  Even I think it is very cool.  We lasted the longest in this exhibit.

 After the Aquarium, we grabbed a quick dinner at Panda Express.  I think orange chicken is one of the kid's favorite foods ever.

 We decided to sneak in a quick trip to Temple Square after dinner.  It was crowded and cold, so we didn't spend much time, but I'm glad we kept this Christmas tradition alive.

It was a full afternoon, but we needed to get in all our fun before Christmas break is over.  We have had such a wonderful time this break.  This much family time can be challenging, but we love being together!

Christmas Swimming

We made a deal with the kids.  If they would help us clean up for Christmas break - like, real cleaning, not just picking up their rooms, we would take them swimming.  I was an easy decision to make - my kids love swimming!
After a morning of cleaning, we drove to the Legacy Center and ran inside (it was so cold!).  When we got to the pool, we were so surprised!  There were only four other families there!  I have never seen the pool so empty. It was awesome!
We all swam, floated down the lazy river, played on the playground and Mom snuck off to the hot tub to soak her shoulder.

We had such a wonderful time.  I think we have found a new tradition!

We bundled up and froze the entire way home, but it was worth it!

Scattered Thoughts

1.  Poor Kate.   We took her to the dentist to have an old filling replaced and she ended up getting two teeth pulled.  I felt so bad, but Dr. Lambert did a great job and was really fast.  Kate is my total trooper when it comes to pain.  She didn't even flinch and only cried for about 30 seconds after.  We brought her home, gave her some Advil and let her watch TV in mom's and dad's room.  The next morning Kate was so happy to find a mood dolphin ring with a necklace chain in her tooth fairy bag.  She loves it.  I hope it made up for getting those teeth pulled...a little.

2.  Every year we get our Christmas Legos out to build our village.  Guard loves the reindeer and the bakery bomb.  Yep, in case you are wondering, that is his own invention.  He puts together a cookie sheet of cookies and bombs.  Not sure is that is his way of telling Santa to leave something good or else!  (I found about 29 of these pictures on my phone.  Stop stealing my phone, Guard!)

3.  Enoch brought me a snack in bed - just because he is super sweet and such a good boy!  I got toast with Nutella and juice.  Yummy!  Thank you, Enoch!

Thankful Chain

Our favorite Thanksgiving tradition, besides our feast, of course, is our family's thankful chain.  The kids love thinking of things they are grateful for and writing them down.  We try to do it every night, but some nights it just doesn't happen.  But when it does happen, I can feel the difference in our prayers.

We are thankful for:

Greg:
grapefruit
Tresa
scriptures
Coal
thankful chain

Tresa:
scriptures
warm showers
soup
Enoch
ponderizing
Spirit
friends who listen to the Spirit
Kate
warmers
Greg
Guard
sunshine
dishwasher
blue eyes
Primary
Kate's smile
chocolate covered cinnamon bears
my testimony
FHE
miracles
Gavin

Enoch:
our home
books
homemade hot chocolate
water
Dad
cheese
trees
hot showers
life
love

Kate:
Enoch
family
paper
Guard
Mom
home
food
backpack
books
colors
Gavin
Thanksgiving
flowers
Dad

Guard:
orange
Jesus
rocks
staples
mountains
family
snowflakes
ice cream
bananas (said like a minion)
preschool
Shark Boy and Lava Girl
trucks
playing wolves with Kate
couch cushion forts
blankie
spider's web

Guard liked to add to our thankful chain multiple times a day, so Mom and Guard have more than others.  I loved that he loves being thankful!
It is so interesting to see what the kids were thankful for, to hear what means a lot to them.  It is an insight into their personalities and helps me understand them better.  I'm so thankful for gratitude!

Thanksgiving

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving this year.  The food was incredible, the company was even better.
We spend the holiday with the Fowler family - Grandma and Grandpa, Bret's and Wendy's family, Mike's and Julie's family, Doug's and Annette's family and ours.
We ate dinner,

played hide and seek,

talked and laughed,

competed in games,

and were happy.

After dinner and games, we went home and put up the Christmas lights.  Enoch and Kate love getting up on the roof with Dad.

It was a good day.  So thankful for all we have.  Happy Thanksgiving!!

 

Enoch cornered Uncle Doug at Thanksgiving and asked for the wishbone.  After letting it dry out for a few weeks, Enoch and Kate pulled the wishbone after making their wishes.  Kate won!  May her wish come true!