Christmas 2014

This Christmas seemed to creep up on us...probably because the weather was very warm for Utah and we hadn't had any snow storms.  But alas, December 24th was upon us and it was Christmas Eve.  We went next door to Dave's parents for our traditional Christmas Eve pancake breakfast and then came home to read the Luke 2 Christmas story and open jammys before heading to bed so Santa could come!

 While we were asleep a big storm blew in and we awoke to a white Christmas!  It was beautiful outside and nice and warm inside as we started our Christmas Day by opening presents at our house.

 We each took turns opening gifts and sharing the things that we got/gave with each other.  It was a nice exchange of gifts and I think most everything was a hit!

 After opening our presents and playing for a bit we headed back next door to see the different family members that showed up during the day at Dave's parents house.  It was fun to see some cousins and to get new books from Nana for Christmas!

 After visiting for a while we went back to our house and Dave was able to install the bars that he made for McKinley's Christmas!  They are really cool and she can't wait to do her stuff on them...maybe when it's a little warmer!

Later in the afternoon Grandma Libby came down and we talked Austin into going for a walk!  It was still snowing and pretty chilly facing the wind, but it felt good to get our a moving for a bit...especially before our big dinner that was coming up!

 After an afternoon of skiing, Aunt Vicky and Uncle Jim and the girls came down the mountain for dinner and more presents!  We enjoyed opening gifts again and giving our gifts to our family!

Finally it was time for dinner and we had a feast!  We made a turkey, leg of lamb, acorn squash with walnuts and cranberries, roasted carrots, turnips, parsnips, and sweet potatoes, rolls,and mashed potatoes.  It was delicious!

After dinner we finished up with a few rounds of Uno and then a traditional Christmas afternoon talent show with all the grandkids sharing their talents of gymnastics, karate, artwork, piano, and violin!   What a magical Christmas and a fun packed day!

Pearson Christmas Party

 With Christmas coming up again this year it was time for the Pearson family Christmas party.  This year's party was over shadowed by the failing health of Grandma Pearson.  She was not feeling very well and wasn't able to make it to the party, but we still carried on!  After the dinner and festivities we all went over to grandmas house and sang a few Christmas carols to her on the porch while she laid in her bed inside.  We sure hope she is comfortable and felling better soon.

 Eating, hanging out and connecting with family members is so much fun!  We really enjoy getting together!

 It is always so fun to see family and celebrate together.  I snapped this picture of 4 generations of Smith's...Darla, Nana, Maylene, and Braxton!

The kids were sure excited when the bags of presents arrived from Santa.  They gathered together to wait their turn to receive their first present of the season!

San Diego Free Time

After the tournament was over Evan and I had all of Sunday to ourselves before our Monday morning flight home.  We slept in, went to church, and headed to the beach.  We hadn't had time to go to the beach yet and that's a must do when coming to California, so we headed out to Oceanside Pier.  We walked down the street and down to the Pier and talked.  It was a nice stroll.

We got brave enough to get near the pelicans that are sitting by the fishermen waiting for scraps.  There were signs all along the pier that read, "Beware of pelicans...we bite stupid people", so we didn't get too close.  Evan made me take a picture too!

After the pier we got down to the sand and the water to get our feet wet.  I had been stung by a bee at the fields on Saturday and it felt really good to put my feet in the water.  Evan ended up getting more than his feet wet...some things never change!  It was a very pleasant day and very warm!

From Oceanside we drove down the coast...through Carlsbad, Del Mar, and other fun beach towns.  We made our way to La Jolla and the San Diego Temple there.  It was beautiful to walk around the temple grounds and talk some more.  A great trip just the two of us!

Surf Cup - San Diego California 2014

The Apex 01 Premier team headed out to San Diego for the Surf Cup Tournament this Thanksgiving weekend.   Evan and I decided we were going to fly down this time.  We flew out Thanksgiving afternoon after having been bumped off our morning flight.  It was so nice to be there so quickly and just hang out with my boy.

The boys played very well at this tournament and won their first game 1-0, handed out a huge defeat 6-0 in their second game, and then tied the third game 0-0 (to the 4th place team in the nation!) to advance to the quarter finals!

The team stuck with it and were defeated 0-1 in the quarter finals to finish off a very good run!  I'm really excited for this team going forward as they have figured out how to play with the best and have a great attitude that they can win!

Halloween

Halloween this year was a super warm day and it was a lot of fun.  McKinley wanted to be a "nerd" and Evan wanted to trick or treat, so he came up with a referee outfit.  Ethan had some friends over and we all had a fun time.  We went trick or treating with cousins and friends and then ate candy all night!

McKinley and her zombie friend Kaylie!

Nana's house is always our first stop of the night.  We had a nice visit and got ready to hit the neighborhood.  It was a fun night all around.

State Cup Soccer Finals U14

 This past week has been the Utah State Soccer Cup tournament that hosts all the best teams in Utah for the playoffs.  Our team had to play into the quarter finals because of the rough season that we've had the past season.  We were able to secure a spot at the quarter finals against the #2 team in our league.  We played an incredible game against them and won in Pk's (overtime + kicks).  Then we advanced to the semi finals against the #3 team and were able to beat them 2-1.  Today was the final game against the #1 team in the state and we did very well.  We held them to 0-1 until the last few minutes of the game when we pressed to get the tying goal and got countered on.  The boys ended up losing the game, but quickly focused on the incredible run they had in this tournament which showed them all what they are capable of.  The best part of it is that they all played together so well and believed in each other.  Each member of the team was important!

Before the game some of the players gathered together for a moment of prayer/silence to gather themselves before the start of the game.  It's a neat moment for all of them.

One of our former teammates, Noah, who moved to California this year, was in town for the game and it was so fun to see him.  You can see already that the boys are happy with their play and while second place is hard to swallow, it was an amazing run!

Last camping trip of the season

Over the long Fall break weekend we decided to take a mini vacation up to Crystal Hot Springs in northern Utah.  We packed up the camper and headed out late Thursday night and set up the camper in the dark.  That was not fun, but the rest of the trip was great!  Friday morning we fixed a nice breakfast and then headed out to The Golden Spike monument which was about 45 minutes away from Crystal Hot Springs.  It's not a place that I would take the day and drive to, but since we were so close it was a trip we had to make.  It was actually a fun little place and we learned a lot about the Union Pacific and Costal Railroad companies and the great effort of connecting the railroad system.  Interesting place!

The rest of that day and night we spent playing games and swimming in the hot pools!  The water felt so good and the slides were fun too!  The weather was surprisingly warm for October and I even sat and read my book for a while at the pool!

And of course we had smores and ate yummy camping meals too!  All in all it was a great trip and a good time to get away one more time before we winterized the trailer and put the cover on and stored it for the winter!

Scouting Court of Honor

Evan is the third boy in our family and all our boys have excelled in scouting.  Austin earned his eagle and Ethan is a few steps away from Eagle, now Evan is progressing right along through the ranks as well.  Evan enjoys scouting and is a good leader.  Right now he's acting as the Patrol Leader and takes it very seriously!  He's great at letting all the boys know exactly what is going on and getting ready for all the campouts.  At the Court of Honor this week he earned 6 merit badges from all his hard work and advanced in the ranks to Star scout.  He's already well on his way to Life, he just needs to be active for 6 months as a Star!  We couldn't be prouder!

At the Court of Honor they also took time to honor the previous Scout leaders including Dave.  Dave has served in Scouts for many years and still serves as the Advancement Chairperson.  But this night he was recognized for his years of service with the 11 year old Scouts.  He's been instrumental in helping many boys begin their path in Boy Scouts and progress through the program.  It was a wonderful evening!