"I got underwear from the monkeys!"

Christmas was wonderful! It was so fun and it was a good Christmas. We are so blessed. We are so fortunate to have what we have and the children we have. I cannot think of a better Christmas present than to have these things with me every day. I am so grateful for the opportunity to celebrate the Saviour's birth also.

Opening presents was hilarious. Growing up, I never received anything from my parents. Lest you think they were cheap, we always got creative gifts.....like my sister, Eliza. She got a present from "Rocky," her kindergarten heartthrob for years! My other sister, Anna, scored something every year from the New Kids on the Block and my brother, Ray, always had something special from the cheerleaders. It was fun. It made the present fun, even if it was just a pair of socks.

So, I have adopted the tradition with our family. We got great things this year. The "Bum-wrap guy" gave Garrett some seriously cool bum wraps, Xander got new socks from his new church shoes. Eleanor got a "new to her" purse from Fancy Nancy that never leaves her side now. Everyone from the fourth grade girls to Batman to Mozart to Frosty the Snowman gave us gifts.

So, as Eleanor was talking to her Grandma Day on the phone, she exclaimed, "I got underwear from the monkeys!" You could tell there was some serious confusion on the other end. I started laughing, laughing until tears rolled down my face and my stomach hurt. Listening to her trying to explain over and over again that the cheerleader monkeys gave her underwear just about did me in!
Savannah LOVED unwrapping presents! She would toss the paper in the air and squeal at the box! It made me remember the year my youngest sister, Emma, got a box of Cheerios, and hugged them to her chest and squealed, "CHEERIOS!" Loved every minute of Savannah's unwrapping!

And to make the morning magic, we got snow for about an hour! It was gone in another hour, but it made the morning so magical!
This is my favorite picture of Christmas....the new winter hat and bum wraps so we can get on the potty train....
The children were allowed to ask for two things from Santa. Their Santa presents were sitting near their stockings and they all got just what they asked for....after everything was opened, I told the kids to look on the tree and see if there was anything else....nothing.....really?...nothing....REALLY?!?!?!?...oh, just this plain envelope, Mom...here you go. I told them to open it up and see what was inside.....A treasure hunt!
It took them all over the house, to the mailbox....
Looking through books......
Finding them in cupboards.....
And trying to decipher the next clue.....

Finally, the last clue told them to sing to their dad some Christmas carols....they didn't start out so well.....
They got the hang of it and sang louder.....
And louder....down on their knees.....
Singing with gusto and pleading for that last present promised in the clues.....
Then a hug and a kiss.....
And they got their iPods they asked for on their list.....
I remember those were some of my favorite Christmas presents. I got a 1984 National Championship BYU sweatshirt that I desperately wanted! One year we got radios, another year it was an envelope of money. Great memories and now my kids will always remember the year they got their iPods.
We celebrated with Christmas turkey and I had the boys set the table - we are practicing good manners and etiquette. They almost got it perfect. We taught them how to toast. That was interesting! Eleanor LOVED the idea and we were toasted all afternoon! You would not believe what she came up with, but since we told them it was rude to not acknowledge a toast, we toasted! ( We also told her that one toast was sufficient, but she didn't listen to that part!)
Jason's Aunt and Uncle sent the kids special presents this year. We went to visit them over the summer and we had a great time. They are so generous to us! The kids loved their new BYU gear!
We even had to dress our dollies up in matching clothes to get our picture taken.....
And the tutu's great Grandma Brown sent were also a huge hit! We love pink and fluffy at our house!
We hope everyone had an enjoyable Christmas, surrounded by loved ones and may you have a fabulous New Year filled with possibilities and blessings to you and your family!

Terror in a Mother's Heart

Tonight I was planning on posting the Christmas pictures, but we had a little incident......we lost Xander. I know, I know, I know! He's twelve, wears a size 9.5 shoe, has a deep voice and towers over me now, but we managed to lose him....or actually, he got lost.

Everyone has been dying for it to snow and this afternoon, we got enough coming down that the kids wanted to go out an play in it for awhile. After a while, Garrett and Eleanor come in with Xander and he tells me he wants to stay out and play. I told him that was fine. Well, at dinnertime, he wasn't inside. Jason was leaving to go home teaching, so I told him to go get him. He wasn't outside. He wasn't inside. His boots weren't in the garage which meant he was outside somewhere. I told Jason to go ahead and sit down to eat. The other day, Xander took a walk around the pond in the snow and I figured that's where he'd gone. The problem is, is that while we were eating, it started to get dark and he wasn't coming home. So Jason went out in his car to find him. After he'd been gone for about 15 minutes without any luck, I decided to go look where you couldn't see him from the road.

I am usually a pretty calm person about stuff like this and Xander is a very responsible child. But, I started getting the panicky terror feeling when we still couldn't find him after another half an hour. Silent prayers became pleadings and the tears started to fall. I was terrified, not to mention freezing (it's about 20 degrees tonight) and worried about Xander who'd been out for about three and a half hours by now.

It was beautiful outside and the earth was so white. Everything was so quiet, except for my calling his name every few minutes. I wasn't sure what to think. I kept telling myself not to worry, that he was a big boy, that he would be fine, but as the minutes ticked by and I was feeling the chill to my bones, I was starting to get a terror chill in my heart.

Right about the time I was ready to go home and call the police, Jason called and told me Xander showed up. He'd gone for a walk and gotten lost and couldn't redirect himself in the snow without seeing landmarks and then it got dark, but had finally managed to find his way back.

I said a silent prayer and started through the woods to home. I started thinking about this incident. I only have six years left with him at home. Pretty much everything I can teach him is done. He's at the age, where peers and outside influences are getting more powerful than my words. I can still influence him in some things, but he is very independent and can make most decisions on his own now.

The fact that he towers over me and his voice changed literally overnight just makes me more aware that I am starting the process of letting go - - - - and it really makes my heart ache.

I couldn't ask for a better son. He's responsible, smart, handsome, compassionate and helps out with his siblings all the time. He is so talented on the flute and loves to learn and read. He's well-liked in school and is fun to be around. I like him. Like my dad always says, "you always love your children, but it's really nice when you LIKE them too!"

Anyway, he turned twelve last month and I never posted his birthday party pictures. I let him invite several of his closest friends over for some homemade pizza, games, etc. We had so much fun!
On a side note, we have the best babysitter...her name is Emily. She came to his party! She came to Eleanor's and Savannah's too. She is just plain C.O.O.L! She's a hockey player - one of the best women players in the US, editor of the school newspaper, 4.7 GPA and just got nominees to West Point, the Naval Academy and Penn State. Yeah, and she's BEAUTIFUL and funny and doesn't take Eleanor's crap - which is the real reason I love her!

So, not the best picture of her, but she is just too cool not to mention! So, I had a great spread for the kids to munch on before the pizza. They didn't touch it! Maybe a nibble. But, when the pizza came out, it was all over! The pizza couldn't cool fast enough. Oh, well! Next time I will know better!
That's ok! I ate the munchies food. I even splurged on strawberries, so we couldn't let that go to waist! I mean, waste!We had the kids decorate their own cupcakes - huge hit! They loved that! The more sugar you can pile on, the better, eh?

We also had the kids design their own shirts. I used freezer paper for them to make their stencil. They also loved that too, but there were too many shirts. Next time, that will be for a smaller or outside group. I was cleaning up fabric paint for weeks!
The shirts, however, were so stinking cute! Some of them really did a great job!

Some of them required a lot of help also, but in the end, they were all happy and they all looked so cute and Xander wears his shirt all the time, so I guess it was worth it!!!
It was a great party and everyone had fun. We've even had requests for another party like that where they can just hang out...if I just had a bigger house with a basement....oh, well! Xander had a blast and that's the most important thing!
And so, my little wake up call this evening was really good. After we were all calm, we watched the new Joseph Smith movie on the DVD Gramma Annie sent us for Christmas. As we watched Joseph ride his horse away to Carthage and see all the people he loved for the last time, we were all in tears. I watched my twelve year old son wipe tears from his eye and I realized that I must have done something right for him to be able to feel the spirit at that moment.

I hope Xander knows how much I love him. I hope he knows how blessed I feel to be his mom and I hope he knows how amazingly blessed I feel tonight to have another night with him! I love you, Xander! Thank you for being an amazing son!

Family Reunion Memories....

I've been missing my family lately. There's been some stuff going on and some unexpected stress and I just wish I could go hang out with them and talk some of this out and let the kids play and just be together!

I have a great family....

We can all dance....

We have been blessed with great insight.....

We know how to fight a good fight....

And still remain friends.....

We can laugh at ourselves.....

And show emotion when needed....

Even though we can be a little fruity......

We've been taught good table manners.....

And we are o.k. with who we are.....

Yes, my family is the best and I love them so much! I am grateful for family reunions to help us remember how much we need each other, even when there is a lot going on and we struggle.

I hate that we live so far away from each other......

I hope they know how much I really love them and miss them....

And how sad I am that these cousins don't get to grow up together....

Even though they are still best of friends when they are together....

And make great memories every time they see each other....

I am especially grateful that my little two year old, when looking at the Christmas cards can pick out her little cousin and says, "Beebee Hayeee!" and points to her picture about a million times a day, because she knows her and remembers her!

And I am really grateful that since the family reunion, I've been able to give my Dad more hugs, talk, laugh and skype several times! Thanks, dad! I love hearing from you!

So, even though we only get together every three years...and the cousins grow up too fast....

It's my wonderful siblings that I am so blessed to have.

We are so different, and yet, I love each of them so much!

Yes, even these two!

Thanks family, for all the great memories of the family reunion. It made us stronger and taught us a lot. I hope you all have a great holiday season and that you know how much I love you! Lick kisses from your big sis!