Christmas Favorites

Now that it is December, I can share some of my favorite things about Christmas.



I love Nativity scenes. I love to see the Savior of the world in His humble beginnings, Lord of all, cradled in a manger. I love to be reminded that He, the Son of God, was not too good for something. He truly can understand our circumstances.






There are so many scriptures that testify of Jesus Christ and his divinity. My favorite, though, tell of his birth and his young childhood. Perhaps, because I am raising young children now, these verses have such impact. Perhaps it is the understanding that the Messiah came to Earth and began His life just the same as you and me. It was what He did with His life that made Him who he became.

There is a unique magic found only in Christmas. It was a wonder to me as a child, as I would sit by my tree at night after everyone else had gone to bed, and feel this magic in the quiet stillness of night. Only as I have gotten older have I come to understand what that magic is. It is the Spirit of Christ; His love, His mercy, His peace.

The magic seemed to only exist at night, when the lights were on. During the day, the tree was just a pretty tree, but at night, the magic came alive. Again, only as I got older did I begin to understand. The light of Christ, the light that fuels our souls, is represented by the lights on the tree. His light can penetrate even the hardest of hearts this time of year, and more kindness abounds (except at shopping malls...)

"Cheese"y Boys

I was taking some pictures for a project I was working on, and Cameron asked, "Mommy, don't you want to take a picture of me?" What mom could resist such a request? So I took a couple of pictures, but he refused to look up. When asked why, he replied, "Because I'm reading my book!"Finally he gave in and smiled for me.
Logan had to have his part. "Eese Mommy". This was his version of asking for his picture to be take as well.
After one shot he went back to what he had been doing.
And finally looked up for one last "Eese!"

My Little Logan

These moments with Logan are so much harder to let go of. I rarely take pictures of the other kids sleeping, but this moment captured my heart. His little face all smooshed into his pillow, sleeping with his b (his name for his blanket), and my baby is not so much a baby anymore...
Baby feet are just too sweet, little reminders that these will carry him to do big things.
This is him...when he needs comfort from his b, he tucks it under his nose and holds it in his hands. This is a moment that makes me sad he is growing up.

Happy Birthday Cameron!

Cams turned three today. I can't believe he is growing so fast! These pictures were taken from his birthday party yesterday.

Disneyland

We went to Disneyland a week ago. October was a great time to go. The weather was perfect and the lines were short. The longest line we waited in was 15 minutes long. After spending the day in Disneyland we went over to California Adventure Park for trick or treating. This will be the only year we do that! We waited in lines longer to trick or treat than we did for the rides! But it was still fun. The kids got to dance with the characters and go on rides in their costumes. Our whole family dressed as characters from Toy Story 2. Andy was Zurg, I was Tour Guide Barbie, Briley was Jessie, Emma was Little Bo Peep, Cameron was Buzz Light Year and Logan was Woody.


The highlight for Briley was meeting all the different characters. She really loved getting their autographs and hugs. She is not a big fan of roller coasters. She begged us no to take her on Pirates of the Caribbean. Naturally, we ignored her and took her on it anyway. She was really unhappy about it!

Besides her incredible bravery, the highlight for Emma was meeting Pluto.
We took Emma on several roller coasters, Big thunder Railway being the first. Andy is waving in the picture. When the train came around to this point, I really thought Emma would have been in tears (Briley would have been hysterical!) but to my pleased surprise, she was laughing! After this we took her on Splash Mountain. She was a little scared of the big drop, but when asked if she would go on it again, she said no with a huge grin on her face! Later Andy took her on the Tower of Terror in California Adventure Park (the ride is like an elevator that drops straight down several stories). She had more fun on that ride than Andy did!

Cameron finds firetrucks wherever we go. This was in ToonTown while the girls were meeting Pluto. Cameron's favorite part of our trip to Disneyland was Pirates of the Caribbean. He is still singing Yo Ho Yo Ho a Pirate's life for me! He changes his voice to a really low pitch and then sings. It is hilarious! The train ride and the ghosts at the haunted mansion were right at the top of his list. The tea cups he giggled non stop and was begging to go faster while Briley was begging to slow down!


Logan had fun with Mickey Mouse. He just kept laughing!

Pumpkins are so much fun!


Cameron was so excited to meet Woody. He waited so patiently in line with his sister (notice his absence in the picture). When it was their turn, Briley jumped right in to say hi and Cameron bolted! As it turns out, a real, life-sized Woody was too terrifying to meet!

Logan really liked riding in the monkey cage on Kasey Jr's train! He really liked these kinds of rides, but when we took him on Roger Rabbit's ride in ToonTown or in the haunted Mansion, he was less than thrilled! Hopefully he will get over that int he next couple of years!

Yummy!

Doesn't this look amazing? We went out to dinner with some friends and this was their appetizer. It makes me hungry just looking at it!

Halloween

At the very first house, Logan was terrified and wanted no part of trick or treating-right up until she put the candy in his bucket!

From there he quickly figured out the drill-be cute, say trick or treat, get candy, say thank you, and run to the next house!
He was a little slower than the others, but never missed a chance!

A kind and gentle heart

We are so proud of Emma so we wanted to share the story of her candy bowl. As you know with all the fires there has been several hundred thousand evacuees. A hundred or so came to our stake center from another stake. I was making a stew a few days ago to contribute to dinner for the evacuees and Emma was helping. On the counter Emma noticed the bowl of Halloween candy for our upcoming ward Halloween carnival. She asked if we could take the candy to the people. She said, "Mommy the people are sad because they can't be in their homes right now. Candy will make them feel better." It was just a simple statement of fact and yet it was such a kind gesture. She is growing and maturing so fast!

The great pumpkin search

We searched and searched for a pumpkin patch...

...but because of the fires everyone was closed Monday night...


...and we ended up at Vons. At least we have our pumpkins!

Hawaii

The kids anxiously wait to board our last flight of the day at the Honolulu airport.


My dad's pet eating the kids' lunch...

This picture is a little blurry but both Briley and the gecko are in flight. This is her first attempt to catch a gecko. She was all over my dad's counter tops trying to catch it.


A boy and his beach...it is all over his hands, his face, and his chips!

This makes me want to go back...


Doesn't this make you want to fly?


Another boy and his beach...he put it in his bottle to take home!


A little too much fun in the sun makes for a sleepy little one!


Hanging out by the pool...


The boy is absolutely fearless...I have feared that I will not survive his childhood. My grandpa tells me the problem is that I will...


Emma finally became brave enough to jump off the rock too! (Notice the absence of Daddy-he is in Maui kiteboarding)


Cameron was so excited to hold Briley's gecko that we spent the next several days observing and trying to catch him another one.


Briley tried all week to catch a gecko and finally got one...I just don't think it survived the catch! It left for gecko heaven long before the kids were done holding it.


Daddy buried Emma in the sand and she thought it was great!


Logan just loved the ocean! He thought it was the greatest fun to be tossed around, having the surf rush up on him.


The boys at the Kona airport. You can see the top of the airplane right behind the palm tree. The highlight of the trip for Cameron was flying on the airplane.


The girls on the airplane on the way back to San Diego.