Ward Party

For our ward Christmas Party asked each family to create a booth to show your families Christmas traditions.  So I created one about dancing around the Christmas tree and gave people the chance to dance around a tree.

I was overcome with gratitude and emotion at our Christmas party.  So many people did so many things.  After 2 years of feeling like nobody is "all in" (life or church) and feeling like we are isolated and everyone is just "you doing you" - I hadn't realized how cynical and disillusioned I had become.  Then this party.  People had been working for weeks if not months on it.  People worked for days making and decorating and then cleaning up after.  It was nothing more that what I had seen for 35 years of my life, multiple times a year.  I guess that is the problem with the church we are all so extraordinary that it becomes common place.  Then 2 years of only a few people doing a few things, and then it hit me at this party.  Our church is kind of a miracle.  We are a miracle. 

The party committee had a few men dress up as Santa from the country in which  they served a mission, they had Jason dressed up as the Russian Santa, he walked around speaking Russian and handing out Candy Canes.

The kids loved him and followed him around all night.  It was adorable.

 

Dane turns 3!

Quick after we got home from Utah we had Dane's birthday.  Dane currently loves tractors so I made him a construction cake.  

We had a small little party, just us, the Weisters, and our new neighbors: Derick and Katie Davis (we hadn't met them yet and it seemed like an easy thing to invite them to).  Dane got a stomp rocket, tools, and more train track accessories (that Noah may or may not have gotten for HIS third birthday)

Dane at 3

• He likes order and expectations.  He likes to hear the "steps" everyday and I can get him to do almost anything if he just understands the order it will happen in.  Step one: breakfast. Step two: play. Step three: get dressed. etc
• He loves to sing, in a different way than the others.  He sings to himself all the time.  He likes good music.  
• He loves to read, cars, trains, tractors, tools, and animals.
• His favorite shows are Mickey Mouse Club House, Whinnie the Pooh, Super Why, Bob the Builder, Dinosaur Train.
• He has a specially unique relationship with each of his siblings.  He plays with each one different.  He and Madison have a particularly special relationship and she has given him some of her stuffed animals.  He currently has her Nala and Simba and he LOVES THEM. 
• He loved reading the Book of Mormon books with me everyday.  He seems to especially love them, like in a very special way.  He also loves family home evening, and family prayer, although he is a terrorist at family scripture study.
• His best friend is Krista Weister.  He asks to go to her house everyday.  When she is around he only wants to talk to her and be with her.  It is pretty funny.
• Dane has definitely followed suit for Herbert kids.  He is a calm, quiet, peaceful, happy, obedient child.  But he is a three year old, he wants to do things his way and is getting more and more stubborn every day.

 

Brock gets a job

As eluded to in the previous post Brock got his first job.  I am really proud of him for the way he has handled everything, but it kind of breaks my heart.  He is working at Windcrest, a retirement community.  He is a server at a restaurant.  He is really loving it and it is fun to see that he does like hard work and being busy and doing productive things.  Seeing a different part of his personality come out, especially one that doesn't involve us is so interesting.  

 

Seeing Santa

The day after we got home from Utah I had reservations to see Santa at the library.  Brock had work so he couldn't come, but the rest did (and were more uninterested than I had expected).  Except for the babies, they loved it.

Megan got dropped of an hour and a half early to sit in line while reading a book.  That is sort of her current job in the family, we drop her off hours before to save a seat, a spot in line, etc and we can waltz in the last minute.  We all love her for her "sacrifice" (if she wasn't doing that she would just be sitting at the house reading a book).

Thanksgiving in Utah

  I was a little hesitant to get back in the car and drive to Utah for Thanksgiving and my heart desperately wanted to, but our last few trips to Utah were horrible (for the driving part) that I didn't know if I could do it.  Well, fortunately, I learned that things can change.  We had an amazing drive out, it literally took us 7.5  hours.  The babies didn't make a sound and we stopped once for our normal quick bathroom/gas break.  The way home was pretty much just as good, with one longer stop at the mall (Where the boys may or may not have disappeared for 30 minutes, grrr)

Ok, this is one loooong post, with way to many picture and they aren't in order.  I don't have the time or brain space right now to sort, order, and filter them, so I am just putting them all. 

It was so great being with everyone for Thanksgiving.  We enjoyed playing games, outings, and great good.   Here we are playing a charade game.

These two cuties are just about 2 months apart and they loved their grandpa this trip and aunt Ashley bought them matching dresses!

Cool teen table

One of the reasons there are so many pictures is that Madison and Megan took my phone and took a bunch of pictures.

Frosting gingerbread turkeys

Let's be honest 80% of the reason the kids like going to Utah is they get *almost* unregulated screen time.

This is Milo, Ashley's dog.  Noah took Milo on a walk (I sort of made him) and Noah stepped on his foot and broke it!  He isn't supposed to walk on it for a few month.  It is devastating... for everyone.

One of the best things to come out of my trip was a get together with my childhood friends.  My heart had been needing this for years and it turned out to be great therapy.

Me, Megan, Ali Katrina, and Niki.

Here is my facebook post about it: 

Today I got to spend 4 glorious hours with women I spent the greater part of my life with. These women mean the world to me. So much of who I am and so much of my heart belongs to them. I honestly had the best childhood and teenage years becasue of them.

We also played some card games.

We went and visited my grandparents.

ok - so the truth is this vacation wasn't what it was supposed to be.  We had a list of  things we wanted to do and people we wanted to see, i don't think we really did any of them.  Mostly because of this little one (Eve), she was diagnosed with croup a few days before we left and despite having the treatment she stayed sick and coughing the whole time.  We didn't feel comfortable taking her to indoor play places or seeing people.  So our one and only outing (that I did 3 times) was wheeler farm - good thing it is one of my favorite outings.

Noah asked me to take this same photo, apparently it is his favorite. 

Jason took all the kids on a milk shake run to iceberg.

We went bowling

And got new jammies

ok - Dane LOVED "my cousins".  I couldnt bear put him to bed at his bedtime becasue he just loved playing with them.  So he stayed up way to late.

It was a pretty great Thanksgiving.  Traveling with this crew is getting harder and a bigger sacrifice for everyone across the board, but I am grateful to all who make it happen (especially Jason and my mom).