Happy Holidays!

Well, the month of December has absolutely flown by for us. It seems we were so busy that we barely had any time to breathe! Now that the month is coming to a close, I look back on things and wish we could have done things much differently. December was also a difficult month - we had several things going on within our family that actually kept our spirits down most of the time. I feel like I need to apologize to so many of our family and friends because I just didn't get things done like I would have liked to and we basically laid low when we could. Having said that, we were able to sneak in a few things to help us celebrate the holidays.

School Christmas Programs!

Samantha had a wonderful Joy School program that her and her little classmates participated in. They reenacted the Nativity, sang songs, gathered donations of necessities for a local shelter, and made gifts. All of the families came together for a potluck and an evening of entertainment. Sam did a wonderful job as Mary in her play.

Emma also had a Christmas program at the Elementary School. Unfortunately the pictures we took just didn't come out well. The second grade classes and the fifth grade classes put on a play and sang lots of songs. Emma was so cute in her new birthday dress and she knew all of her lines and the motions to the songs. We were very proud of her.

Snow!

We had a little bit of snow this month. It snowed a few days before Christmas and fortunately it stayed cold enough that it never melted and we were still able to have a White Christmas. We are hoping that we get some more soon. Sam wanted to pose in the fresh snow for a picture.

Baking Day with Gramma!

Gramma and Grampa were able to come visit from Hermiston for an afternoon. We hadn't seen them since Thanksgiving so we were really looking forward to their visit. Gramma brought all the makings for some treats so all the girls worked hard in the kitchen melting chocolate, dipping pretzels and candy canes, and doing a little baking. Everything was so yummy and we had a good time together.

Christmas Day!

Before we knew it, it was Christmas morning. It was the first time that we were really able to relax and enjoy being with each other and celebrate the birth of our Savior. My favorite part of Christmas is watching my sweet daughters come out of their room to see the bounty under the tree. It is so special to see their delight! I always try to take a video of it:

The girls bought each other a little something and they were very happy and thankful for their new play-doh and colored pencils. Aunt Joan and cousins Rebecca and Mariah sent books for the girls which they absolutely LOVE! And Santa brought them a little something that they could open up together.

It really was a nice day and we enjoyed our gifts and being in our pajamas all day!!!

Sledding!

The day after Christmas we decided to get out of the house and drive up the mountain to Tolgate for some serious sledding. It was just gorgeous there and there was so much snow. The trees were all covered and the undisturbed snow looked like little fairy wings. It was the perfect day for sledding and we topped it off with hot cocoa and popcorn afterwards to warm us up.

We are looking forward to the new year and all that it offers for us. We hope that you all have a wonderful new year as well!