{December Traditions}

When I returned to South Dakota from our Utah visit for the holidays, the Mount Rushmore State had experienced it's first snowstorm.  It was a pretty light one (relatively) and the weather still wasn't too bad.  Holiday traditions were about to commence and we would ride the mild winter train as long as we could!

Mid December we had a Christmas music recital at the music store.  I love the recitals at the store because they are all set up and the pianos are wonderful!  Everyone did really well and the Christmas music was fun to listen to.

Some of the kids did a service project at one of the Assisted Living Centers.  We did a little Christmas show and the Pinedos came and sang Silent Night.  It was fun (our kids were little crazies) but it was really cool to share the Christmas music with the people there!

Another fun night was a double date night we had with the Pinedos.  We went to the Lorie Line concert (she's a pretty popular pianist out here).  She was very talented and her concert was a lot of fun - my favorite piano piece was one of her songs called "Daughter of a King."  She had composed it for her tour this year because one of her friends had used the phrase around her when she was going through a challenging time.  She had never heard it before and it impacted her greatly - it was the inspiration to the song.  It made me realize how much I take for granted the knowledge I have been taught in the Church about divine worth.  "Daughter of a King" is a phrase I've heard so often it just seems part of religious vernacular to me.  I am grateful to have been taught these truths and hope I can pass along this important principle to my boys!

One morning we celebrated with a little sugar cookie decorating party for the kiddos!  We live by some really cool people and it's fun to get together and let the kids play!

We spent the last mildly cold night (instead of freezing cold) going to Falls Park and seeing the lights.  Holly made hot chocolate and the kids loved running around and seeing the lights.  (Besides Wesley, obviously)

I love this time of year and it has been fun creating some new traditions here in Sioux Falls!

Merry Christmas!

{Holiday visit to Utah}

The boys and I took a little trip to Utah the first week in December!  It was  a great time to catch up with the family and see all the cousins.  One of the things that genuinely hurts my heart is to see my boys growing up without their cousins.  The little band of nieces and nephews who live in Utah all have each other and get to see each other frequently.  Any chance I can get I will take the boys out to visit family and surround themselves with their family.  I hope they realize that family is the greatest support network - and near or far - they can be your best friends in life!

One of the highlights of the trip was Molly's baptism!  She was such a little angel and was excited to get baptized.  She wore the same dress I wore when I got baptized (Grandma Avery made it).  It was great to see her baptism and see her bear her testimony in church the next day! 

Other highlights of the trip included:

Seeing Lola and Wesley interacting (only a few months apart - they are both so cute and it's fun to see them play together)

Gracie loves Calvin!  She is always looking out for him and wants to play with him.  They are such sweet cousins!

One morning I woke up to see Wesley asleep like this in his pack n play - it's just too cute not to share!

Molly and Wesley getting some Sunday afternoon cuddles together

Calvin loves mixers and was on cloud nine when he got to watch Grandpa mix together a cake.

Grandma treated us to a train ride in the mall followed by delicious Pretzelmaker! This outing was easily one of the boys favorites.

Made it out to Morgan to see Morgan (haha).  Her little girls, Malan and Lauren, are the CUTEST.  I am not even kidding - those two are so sweet and Malan was so excited to share all her toys (seriously, what kid is like that??)  We are glad we got to see them and their awesome new house. 

Another fun outing was seeing the lights in Ogden.  Quincy had a choir concert at the Ogden Amphitheater, so we went a little early and walked around to see the lights.  After the concert we got cookies and milk at Kneaders - another Utah favorite.  It was cold but SO so beautiful (seeing the Ogden lights is very nostalgic for me!)

We also got to spend some time at the Layton Hills Mall playing with cousins!  We genuinely tried to get a picture with Santa but that just could not happen - the kids would not allow it! Sigh.  Maybe next year.  But we did get some cute ones of them playing together!

We also got to spend some time with Grand and Marie. They had brand new puppies that Calvin and Wesley enjoyed playing with.  They love Carter and Isaac and it's so fun to see them playing together. 

It was a great trip.  Until next time, Utah!

{Thanksgiving 2017}

"Have we not reason to be filled with gratitude, regardless of the circumstances in which we find ourselves? ...

"How blessed we are if we recognize God's handiwork in the marvelous tapestry of life.  Gratitude to our Father in Heaven broadens our perception and clears our vision.  It inspires humility and fosters empathy toward our fellowmen and all of God's creation.  Gratitude is a catalyst to all Christlike attributes.  A thankful heart is the parent of all virtues." (President Uchtdorf)

I love Thanksgiving for a lot of reasons but the most important is the fact that we collectively take a little time to stop the frantic pace of life and just be thankful.  It's a great way to begin looking toward the holiday season - considering all our blessings as we celebrate the greatest blessing to all mankind, Jesus Christ.  

Spending the extra time with the family, eating some of our favorite foods and just having nothing to do is a really nice feeling!

Since we are away from family this year we celebrated with Pinedo's (let's be honest, they are family!)

Holly and I collaborated and came up with a plan that did require a lot of preparation and effort BUT I didn't feel overwhelmed.  It's a pretty impressive feat to pull off a successful Thanksgiving dinner!

>>>The setup<<<

>>>The Chefs<<<

>>>The kiddos<<<

>>>The picture that captures how we best felt at the end of the day<<<

>>>The way the men contributed the most<<<

>>>The person I am most grateful for everyday<<<

Happy Thanksgiving :)