Sledding fun!

After the busyness of Christmas we took the morning to clean up the house a bit and then decided to take advantage of the snow and go sledding!  It was a perfect day, with plenty of snow and sunshine, and a big hill!  We did lots of runs and had a great time.
 

Christmas 2016

Christmas time is always a magical time of year and this year was no different.  Christmas eve we spent the evening with Nana and Granddad having our breakfast for dinner Christmas eve meal.  We also helped Susan with a project of redecorating Jessica's room for a Christmas surprise.  Of course we opened our Christmas jammies, played a game and settled in for It's a Wonderful Life!

Christmas morning couldn't come soon enough...as we were waiting to Skype with Elder Smith!  It was definitely the highlight of Christmas to be able to see and talk with him all the way from Brazil.  It was so great to hear his voice and hear what he has been doing and experiencing in Brazil.  He is doing so well.  He had trouble with some English words and would use some Portuguese while speaking English.  We were all able to visit with him for almost 2 hours, which seems like a long time, until you realize that's all you have for 5 months!  We had no trouble finding things to talk about and kept the conversation going strong the whole time.  We took a family photo, heard his testimony in Portuguese, and shared a family prayer right before we hung up.  It was all perfect!

After that emotional time we took some time out and used our new snowblower to dig out from the 8 inches of snow we got overnight.  It was fun to try out the new toy and eventually that will make it quicker to plow our driveways!

Finally we were able to open presents with the kids here at home.  It was fun to carry on our traditions that you don't get to get your present from under the tree, but you can give a present to someone from under the tree.  We all took turns opening a few presents and enjoying our gifts.

After presents we were able to attend church and enjoy a wonderful musical program, which included McKinley playing a musical number on the piano.  She did so great!

After church we fed the three Elders serving in our branch and went next door to visit with the Smith family who was gathered there.  It was fun to see aunts, uncles, and cousins and wish them all Merry Christmas.  It was a long, emotional, wonderful day that was just about perfect!

Smith family Progressive dinner 2016

  This year for the Progressive dinner we added elements of the Pearson family party since it was not going to be held this year.  It was determined that the Pearson reunion will take place during the summer where we can all meet outside in a park setting.  So we keep our Progressive dinner tradition alive and added the nativity story and Santa's present to it.  It was a great evening!

It was a great evening and I love the new elements added in to our growing family!

Evan's eagle project - Christmas for refugees!

For Evan's eagle project he decided he wanted to do a Giver's Christmas for our community.  He wanted to have a get together where everyone could come and visit and donate items for the Utah Refugee Center.  He contacted the center and found out what the most needed items where and created an angel tree with ornaments that listed the different needs.  He asked those who wanted to take an ornament from the tree and donate that item to his project.  He also had sign up sheets in the three congregations in our church building, an email through the school, and a neighborhood email and flyer that all went out to advertise for his project.  

 The collection night was Monday, December 12th and he had a nice area set up in the circle behind our house.  He had 2 fires, 3 propane heaters, hot chocolate and treats for everyone to come and enjoy.  The response was fantastic and he had a very successful event and collection drive.

The final count was 100+ hoodies, 90+ toys, 50+ books and a large amount in gift cards/cash.  We are so grateful for such a generous community and for all the support.  He is so excited to take the gifts to the center and to know that many, many refugee children will have a good Christmas this year.  It was a good project, he learned and planned a lot, and showed great leadership and organization skills throughout.  Way to go Evan!!

Thanksgiving 2016

Thanksgiving this year was at the Fitlows and it was great!  We had a great gathering of friends and family...wonderful food...with Gluten free, Paleo, and Vegan diet's all accomodated!  It was a wonderful afternoon of eating, visiting, and cheering on the Lion's...who actually won!  I love my family and it's fun to spend the day being grateful for them and all my other blessings.