Bring on 2013!!

 For New Years Eve our family goes to Dave's sister's house and this year was no exception.  The whole family was there (minus a few teens who had other plans) and it was so much fun.  We had a soup dinner with breadsticks and salad, along with goodies too!  It was really hard for me not to partake of all the breads and noodles and treats, but I brought a yummy salad and we had lunchmeat as well.  Plenty of veggies and fruits and we were good.

Allison and Lindsey are both expecting this year, only a few weeks apart.  Alli a boy and Lindsey a girl.  More cousin fun in the making.

At the New Years party the cousins exchange gifts from the Christmas name draw.  This is always a highlight of the evening for the kids.  We have each child get the gift that they are going to "give" to their cousin and then exchange.  Then it's a free for all at the word "go" as the 33 cousins unwrap their gifts.

Everyone (except Maxwell...maybe Lindsey and George :)) made it to midnight where we watched to ball drop and popped balloons and blew noisemakers to ring in the new year.  I also got my first kiss of the new year with all the "fireworks" going on!

Then some families stay over for a night (and morning) full of no sleep and more eating.  The kids even went sledding for a few hours that day before we headed home and were all in bed by 8:30 that night ready for work and school.

We are looking forward to a great 2013.  2012 was an improvement on 2011, and we hope the trend continues.  We are healthy, almost always happy, and blessed with all that we need and a lot of what we want, so it's looking like it will be a good year.  Happy New Year!

Christmas 2012

 Christmas was great this year!  It was perfectly calm and entertaining all in one.  We really enjoy that we don't have to travel 25+ hours to visit our families and can enjoy the days leading up to and after in our home and surrounding!

We spent Christmas Eve at Nana and Grandads for the traditional pancake dinner.  It was nice to be able to walk next door and enjoy the evening with them, Kimberlee, and Chris.

The next morning the kids were up super early, but we didn't do presents until about 8:30, which was nice.  We took turns opening and giving gifts and it was perfect.  I think everyone was pleased in both what they gave and what they got.

We were glad to be able to have Chris here with us as well.  He doesn't have any family here in Texas, except the Smith family!!  We enjoy his personality and Jag loves Chris the most!

Dave and Evan got a remote control helicopter, thanks to Uncle Shane for picking it up.  We had one from last year, but it broke and was not repairable, so this was a fun replacement.

Austin was happy on Christmas day and was quite enjoyable.  His favorite gift has got to be the Rubiks cube.  He has spent hours perfecting his technique and can currently solve it in under 2 minutes consistently.  He's going for 90 seconds!

After presents at home and a quick stop over at Nana and Grandads (forgot the camera :( ) we headed up to Park City to see Grandma Libby, Grandpa Irv, and Aunt Vicky and Jim and their kids.  We had an adventure trying to get our Texas 2 wheel drive Suburban up her extremely steep driveway packed with snow.  It took an extra hour to get chains on and unstuck twice, but we made it!!

Aunt Vicky and Grandma Libby surprised McKinley with an American Girl doll.  She named her Tori and they have been together 24/7 since Christmas.  Everyone was spoiled with another round of gift giving and sharing.

After all the gifts were done we were ready to eat.  We had our traditional leg of lamb, roasted root vegetables, and peas.  Dessert was a feast of cheesecake, key lime pie, and apple pie with ice-cream.

The day ended with everyone very satisfied and tired and ready for bed.  It was an awesome Christmas!

Progressive Dinner - Smith family

 Each Christmas we have a progressive dinner with the Smith family.  We go from house to house eating and visiting!  This year we started out with appetizers at Grandads and Nanas, then salad at our house, main course at Mike and Mischele's and down to Chad and Cynthia's for dessert. 

There's a lot of shoes when you get the whole family together!

Darla and Brady were tinkering on the piano and I had them stop for a picture.

It's so much fun to visit with all the Smith family.  We truly enjoy each others company and getting together to eat yummy stuff!  It was another successful progressive Christmas dinner.

Austin's Eagle Project

Austin decided he wanted to gather donations for Big Brother Big Sister's of Utah.  He had a used toy and clothing drive that would then be donated to their thrift store to raise money to promote the program.  He had to get approvals from the scouting district and the corporate center for Big Brother Big Sister.  He then had to design and distribute a flyer, organize a pick up night, and finally make transportation arrangements for the donation.  It was a great display of leadership and project management for him to do this all on his own (plus great friends, family and neighbors who contributed!)

 On the night of the pick up there were "teams" of boys assigned to different areas on the map and they went out to gather all the donations from the neighborhood.

 These were the friends who were around when I got the camera out.  There were also ward members and family members who helped out in so many ways.  Thanks to everyone!

 The Suburban was packed to the gills and there are still some donations here at the house to be delivered in a second run.  What a great drive...they were so happy to get so much right around the holidays.  Good job Austin!

Pearson Christmas Party 2012

The annual Pearson Christmas party was held on Saturday, December 16th.  We had a good gathering of Pearson decedents there this year.  It's always a good time to catch up with those you don't see very often and to visit with all of our family members.  This year there was also a talent portion of the evening where Ethan played his violin and McKinley and Evan played piano pieces.  There were games and a coloring contest as well as lot of yummy food.  I didn't take too many pictures this year, but I did take a few.

 

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Santa delivered a present for each child at the end of the party.  Austin got some clothes, Ethan got a charger for his Kindle, Evan got a craft, and McKinley got a 2013 Calendar.  It was a fun evening and a great part of Christmas!

Twins Turn 7!!

                     Thanksgiving was also the 7th birthday for my nieces!  Happy Birthday girlies!

Thanksgiving 2012

 This year's Thanksgiving was peaceful and nice.  We got up early and headed up to Park City for some breakfast at Vicky's.  We were going to go up Wednesday evening, but instead Ashlee received her mission call and we were able to be there as she was called to serve in the Canada Montreal Mission!  We are so proud of her and her decision to serve a mission.  She will leave February 6th!

Breakfast was crock pot french toast which turned out pretty good.  The kids played and the adults cooked and watched football most of the day.  We had a very traditional Thanksgiving dinner of turkey, cranberry sauce, potatoes, smashed neeps, roasted brussel sprouts, rolls and gravy!  It was fantastic! 

 After dinner we played some games, took a nap, and watched some more football.  Then it was time for pie...pumpkin and apple a la mode!  Yum!

All in all it was a great Thanksgiving day.  We were able to spend it with some of my favorite people...my family!

I am grateful to reflect upon all the goodness in my life.  I have four great kids that really try to do good things and be their best.  I have a sister who lives close in Park City and her family that makes me smile with their sillyness.  I have parents who love and support me in many different ways.  We have a warm home for the cold Utah winters and soft beds to sleep in.  We have a dog and a cat that love us unconditionally and greet me when I walk in the door.  I am able to work and also be home when the kids are home.  I am healthy and so are my kids.  My husband works hard and is a honorable man full of kindness and service to others.  I have in laws next door and many extended family members who live close.  I could go on and on, but....

Happy Thanksgiving...and on to Christmas!