Surveillance

 

Christmas Eve, before they went to bed, the kids set up surveillance in hopes of a Santa sighting.

December 23

Where to find the true meaning of Christmas.

December 22

And now for today's pic....pretzel snowmen.

They turned out kind-of cute, but not near as cute as the ones we saw in Family Fun.  Maybe because of all the "help" I had. But, you know, I would rather have messy snowmen than no "help" at Christmas!

December 21-a day late

I am behind on the DPP so here are yesterday's pictures.

I have wanted this nativity since the first time I heard of it, I think Anna was a baby.  So, when I saw it at the store I simply could not resist. I love it and the chickabidees have already spent hours playing with it. It is my first purchase this holiday season that was not preplanned and budgeted for! I think this has never happened before.

December 20

Yeah, it's December 20th!

Christmas is so close I can hardly stand it! 

William is going to be so incredibly fun this year! I find myself lying in bed imaging his face on Christmas morning. I'm sure all the chickabidees will be incredibly fun and delightful, but there is something magical about this age to me. But, I digress, here is my photo for the day.

Today we made these cute snowflake tree ornaments.

If it wasn't so late I think I would get out the tripod and try this picture again. Maybe a more creative angle or something. I dunno, I just think there is a lot more potential here....maybe tomorrow.

The Gymnast

Anna had her gymnastics show yesterday. It was a lot of fun to see the things she has been learning the last couple of months.

 

Good Job Anna!

December 19

I have thought of several titles for this picture...

Scooby Snack
   ...editor's note...my kids just informed me that I know nothing about Scooby Doo because Scooby snacks are little. I guess this would be a Shaggy sandwich....oops

Teamwork

Leaning Tower of Pretzals

or maybe....dirty fingernails.

December 18

Kissie Bites

We made our first batch of Christmas goodies today! I'm not sure what these are really called but we like the name "Kissie Bites". They are so easy and fun to do with little kids, even the 2 year old was able to help, and they are absolutely delicious!

bite size pretzal

Hershey kisses (or hugs, which are my favorite)

m&m's

Place the kisses on the pretzels. Bake @250 about 5 minutes or until the chocolate gets a little squishy and melty. Then place the m&m on top and pop them in the fridge! It doesn't get much easier than that, folks! You can also make them with Rolos and pecans, instead of kisses and m&m's, and if you are creative I'm sure there are countless scrumptious combinations!

December 17

My happy, award earning, out for Christmas break girl!

 

Alahna received awards for both math and writing yesterday! And her and Anna are both very happy to be out of school until the new year! YIPEEE!

December 16

Dirty glasses that help my favorite little 4 yr. old see the world!

I swear if I cleaned his glasses 20 times a day they would still be dirty! Robert had a check-up yesterday for his eyes and he will soon be the owner of bifocals. We are so proud of the way he handles the adversities in his life. From eye patches during the day to leg braces at night he rarely ever complains!

December 14

Peek-a-Boo

I know most of you are past the point of leaves falling, but we have quite a few trees with leaves still on them.  Every time we take Robert to preschool William picks up a leaf or two for the drive home. Today as I buckled him in his carseat he was just too cute playing a game of peek-a-boo with his leaf.  (And don't mind that goobery eye, it's just from a little cold.)

December 13

Book Worm.

Okay, so not really a great picture...(it was a busy sabbath day) but I love that my girls are book worms like David and me. They spend every free moment immersed in literature. It only becomes a problem at night when it's bedtime.

December 12

Bagging 130lbs of beans for the salvation army.

We're a little over half way to our service goal! Disneyland here we come!

Breakfast with Santa

This morning was breakfast with Santa at the church. The kids had a great time and Robert was excited to tell Santa that he wants a new helmet for Christmas. This year he knew what to expect and there were no tears. William was his usual stoic self and only acted excited about Santa several minutes after his turn to see the big guy.

 

A cute story... When it was time to put Robert's patch on this morning he got very serious and said, "Mom, I don't want Santa to see me in my patch."  I told him Santa is very proud of him for wearing his patch every day. He would want to see it because it shows what a good boy he has been. Robert then got excited to put his patch on and told me, "He knows when I'm sleeping and if I've been naughty or nice." Of course I had to break out in song at that point. "You better watch out...."

These little chickabidees make Christmas so magical. I can't imagine it will be as exciting when they are older.

December 11

Nap time.....how I love you.

December 10

Homework.  Not our favorite activity, but we soldier on.

Anna has had a rough week of homework and I have been proud of how she has handled it. Aside from a couple outbursts of frustration she has not complained.  What a trooper!

AND.... I was featured in the December Photo Project!!! Click on the link to the left and look under the December 9th posting!

 

December 9

The view from above...

December 8

The boys' favorite lunch...

December 7

Superman....oops, I mean Clark Kent.... is off to preschool!

Thanksgiving break part 4

This is the final post. Whew, I made it!

These were the only pics I got from Thanksgiving day. I was sick and my camera mostly just sat in my bag feeling lonely and neglected.

Anna and Alahna enjoying a game of air hockey with Alli keeping score.

 

Robert sleeping with his best bud Austin.

William sleeping with Alli

Thanksgiving break part 3

 

 

Oh my. Do they get any cuter than this?

Thanksgiving break part 2

The kids' dreams came true when it started snowing!!!! And I had a blast taking pictures of them sledding. It was so much fun that I didn't even mind the cold too much.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanksgiving break

Here is the first batch of pictures from our Thanksgiving trip to Utah.

Grandpa with his birthday present. The Book of Mormon in the picture is the one he took with him to Vietnam and has carried with him every day since.

 Allison and William

Just hangin' out at Grandma Jane's house.

Aunt Crystal and Robert

It was great to see both the Petersen and Force sides of the family,  and the kids really enjoyed seeing their cousins again.

December Photo Project

So I happened upon this blog that is doing this December Photo Project and I thought I would join in. I'm a little late, but what the hey! Here is my first pic.

Gratitude List Day.... oops!

Okay, so.... my gratitude list fell a little short of Thanksgiving, I know. But believe me, it is not because I am lacking in things to be grateful for. I could go on all through Christmas with new things always popping into my head! The real reason is, we went to visit family for Thanksgiving and I just never made it to the computer to blog. But here are some things that I was thankful for while we were in UT...

Indoor plumbing. Robert starting throwing up on the way there and before we came home EVERYONE had their turn getting to know Grandma's toilet bowl a little better. It was not pretty!

Friends. We got to spend time with our good friends, the Durfeys. Oh, how we miss them!

BYU football. No explanation needed! GO COUGS!

FAMILY, FAMILY, and FAMILY! Grandma's, Grandpa's, Aunts, Uncles and Cousins, I love them all and don't know what I would ever do without them!

A loving and supportive hubby, who returned to CA one year older. 

I have some pics and as soon as my Christmas decorations are up and my house is put back together I will try to post some.