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From Hand Hand Fingers Thumb

New Years Eve Angel

A perfect little snow/hail angel for New Year's Eve.

Water Park!

This year, when my parents asked what the kids wanted for Christmas, we said, instead of more stuff, how about an experience...a memory! So we got 2 days and a night at a water park. The kids were thrilled beyond words. We all had a blast!

Not sure which the kids liked better; the water park or eating pizza and soda pop in bed while watching TV. Emmett cried when I told him we had checked out of the hotel room!

In the morning, before the water park opened we hung out at the hotel pool.

I wore Ender in the Baby Bjorn the whole time. With out that we couldn't have brought all 3 kids at the same time. The Bjorn worked out great!

Thank you Nana and Grandpa! We may need to make the "experiential" Christmas present a tradition! We had so much fun!

I do have to be honest, I almost let my adult expectations and critique of each aspect of our accommodations ruin it for me. Instead, I was able to change my perspective to that of my children. When I began looking at each aspect of our trip through the wide eyes of a toddler, I saw the joy, the absence of rules, the excitement, the out of the ordinary, the meaningfulness of spending time together as a family. I am SO glad that I made the decision to change my attitude because I can honestly look back at our water park experience with positive emotions and I would LOVE to do it again!

Ender Standing

Let me tell you a little story.

Oh my word, look at Ender standing at the play thingy.

Let me grab my camera and take some pictures.

He's still standing! How adorable!

Let me try opening the blinds and get some natural light.

Oh I love it!

Now I'll take some pictures of my two sons.

How cute are they!? I love this natural light!

How about I try to get a better picture of Ender standing at the play thingy?

Oh nooooo!!! Let me try to catch him with my foot!

Emmett's Self Portrait

Christmas this year...

This year, Christmas wasn't about the gifts.

It wasn't about new toys or crisp dollar bills.

New toys were quickly forgotten. Or forgot to be given. :)

This year, our priorities were right.

When I look back at Christmas this year I think about...

...these perfectly formed little lips.

...the friendship this amazing boy built with my cousin Maria as they played for hours on end.

...the unconditional love this girl received from aunts, uncles, grandparents and great grandparents.

...the many arms that lovingly held my 3rd born and the smiles he gave in return.

...time spent with family decorating cookies, sipping hot chocolate, collecting eggs from the barn, and snowmobiling.

...the pure joy these children bring to my life.

...how amazingly blessed I am to have 3 healthy children

(and how perfectly their handmade Christmas outfits turned out).

.

...how amazingly blessed I am to have a loving husband who is also an attentive and involved father.

...and most importantly, the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ, with out whom none of this other stuff would matter.

And now, just some more pictures of my 3 month old.

A perfect Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve.

Snow.

Snow shoeing.

Cousins.

Siblings.

Grandparents.

Snowmobiling.

Time around the Christmas tree.

Christmas jammies.

Sound asleep.

Minot

We drove to Minot, ND today. At 3:26 we were on the road heading west. We made a pit stop at my grandparents' house in Bismarck. My Grandma showed us her dog's tricks. She had a captive audience.

When we got to my aunt and uncle's farm we bundled up and headed out to collect eggs!

The kids had a blast collecting eggs.

Then we got to feed the donkey and alpacas.

What a perfect way to begin our Christmas vacation!