December 2015

We started our holiday season with a piano recital at the piano teacher's house. The kids each played a Christmas song in addition to their regular music. They did great!

The kids were a big help this year decorating the Christmas tree. They are now old enough to remember our Christmas ornaments and we all enjoy looking at the ornaments they made in preschool. They even helped detangle Christmas lights this year, and decorated themselves in the process.

Santa visits our neighborhood Christmas party every year, the perfect opportunity to be sure Santa knows what gifts to bring to our house for Christmas!

Grandad, Aunt Deb and Shivani were here for the week of Christmas. We had fun going to a performance of A Christmas Carol one night, it was a great show. We had lots of snow here so also got in some sledding. Christmas morning was crazy and fun. So glad the kids are still young enough to get excited about presents, such fun to watch their faces light up!

Carson was looking for someone to help build his pirate ship and Grandad rose to the challenge. Good thing the Playmobil manuals are as good as Raytheon manuals because they had no problems getting it assembled.

One night the kids put on a show for the grown-ups. Rachel sang a song and they all did lots of dancing. Some quality cousin time.

November 2015

November brought with it some chilly weather and even our first dusting of snow. We had a visit from Lisa and Dave, John's sister and her husband. We took Dave out for a hike one day to one of our favorite nearby trails. My Belgian friend, Hade, joined us too. It was cold but a beautiful, sunny day.

For Thanksgiving we headed to Idaho to see Pete and Jen. This year John and Pete ran the Turkey Day 5K in Boise, both finished well despite the cold temperature. Pete is still running about 6:40 miles and continues to place in the top 10 for his age group every year. Go Pete!!

Here is the whole gang around the Thanksgiving dinner table. What a feast!

Loved Jen's place cards, too cute!

Aunt Jen was kind enough to have a gingerbread turkey kit on hand for the kids to build! Just as much fun as a gingerbread house, including frosting and gummies.

  

We walked around Boise one day but it sure was COLD! Unseasonable for this time of year.

Every year in mid-November I try to figure out what our Christmas card picture will be. This year we all agreed that Gracey should be included in the picture so I bought a Santa hat for her to use in our  photo. Unfortunately she wouldn't tolerate the hat for even a second and it didn't stay on well since she is still a little kitten. So Carson had a good idea to just hold the hat over her head. And somehow I was able to get a shot with everyone looking at the camera. Amazing!

October 2015

We've discovered what a wonderful pet Gracey is. She is very mellow and no matter how much the kids handle her she remains calm and has never lashed out at them. She has adjusted to the noises of the house and her even-temper always amazes us. The kids just love her.

Carson read about a contest in one of his Lego magazines and here is his contest entry. Contestants were to build a Chima Fortress. I thought he did a great job but unfortunately he did not win the prize he was hoping for (25 Chima Lego sets). The competition is fierce when its open to all ages across the country!

Here is a snapshot of one of the kids Lego creations that they play with frequently. Its a home for a Lego character they created named Turbo, a snail (inspired perhaps by the movie Turbo). Turbo's house is quite elaborate and is equipped with a kitchen, bathroom, bedrooms and even a TV area with a DVD player and a Wii/Xbox. 

Gracey loves to be close to the kids when they are playing. Here she is nestled amongst the Legos on the playroom rug.

Halloween costumes could not be scary enough this year - we searched high and low for costumes that were REALLY SCARY! Carson's mask covered his whole face with only a mirror visible! 

September 2015

We liked Jackson, Wyoming so much we headed back for Labor Day weekend. We stayed at the same hotel we found over the summer, The Virginian. A clean room at a reasonable price not too far out of town and a great restaurant on the premises.

We visited a fish hatchery and had a great tour. Amazing to see how many fish they can grow in such a small space! It was a bit colder then we expected for early September so we stopped to by hats and mittens in town before heading out to hike for the day.

We took a shuttle boat across Jenny Lake to a great hiking spot. Such amazing scenery!

In mid-September the Utah State Fair comes to town. The kids love the 'Little Hands on the Farm' exhibit, one they remember year after year. They are almost too big for the tractors, but they love to pretend they are on a farm.

A great picture spot in Temple Square, Salt Lake City. One of Carson's cub scout badges involved going to a reverent place so we chose Temple Square. Turned out to be a beautiful day for pictures and we had fun being tourists in our own state.

In September we decided that it was time for a family pet and we all agreed on a cat. We answered an ad in the local classifieds and that's how we found our beloved Gracey. She was just a tiny little thing when we first got her, very playful and cuddley. She is a welcome addition to the family.