Christmas was definitely a memorable one this year. David and I got to fly out to Utah on the 2oth and spend almost two weeks out there together with my family (he worked from Utah on some of the days), but it was an activity-filled break! Before we left for Utah, we celebrated our own Christmas. The gift Thomas was able to grasp the most was surprisingly the hockey stick and ball we got for him. He caught on immediately and started going after the ball with the stick...we're sure he's going places! Also, what seemed like the first time, I surprised David with a gift. Something I thought I'd never be the one to buy, but that just goes to show how much I love him, right? Anyhow, I got him a T.V. and he was VERY surprised and excited!
While in Utah we got to perform for a rest home and don't worry, we sang "We are the Merry Christmas Toys" just like we did when we were kids. David didn't end up singing "The Christmas Song" at this rest home, but he sang it (solo) at a different rest home we performed at in NH - I literally cried I was laughing so hard. Seriously one of the greatest performances I have ever witnessed! Oh, and he even winked at all the residents during the climax of his song...just classic!
Christmas party with the Jensen side. Dodee and Papa sure did a lot of work to make it a great party and it was so fun seeing everyone.
Our traditional dress-up for Christmas Eve. We were priviledged to have Courtney and Christian (my sister and brother-in-law) join us. This is all of us waiting for dad to get a new battery right after we had already been posing for the photo.
My favorite picture - Laura had some kind of reaction in her eyes and looked really pretty! (Maybe a bit stoned, but she just embraced it)
Ice-skating at my Uncle Wayne's house for the Hammond party. My uncle's pond is beautiful and absolutely perfect for skating.
Thomas got to decorate his first gingerbread man and loved it!
Gingerbread house decorating contest...Lizzie and I were on the same team and practically took state.
New Years was an absolute blast! Everyone had arranged their own activities to have the family participate in for the entire night. We mentioned to Mariam and Liz that they could invite some friends if they wanted to and the next thing we knew our little family party turned into a massive party...which everyone enjoyed! Highlights were: Dad's bingo, David's minute-game competitions, around-the-world ping pong, dance add on, and some intense spoons.
A last minute decision was to drive down to AZ with Laura and stay there for part of a week. I was able to hang out with my friend Kristal for a couple of days, hung out with the family and even got to be a part of Lilly's big birthday party. This brain-looking pinata was the first one I have ever made. (I'm pretty sure all the kids were scared of it when we hung it up for them to hit and it didn't help that 10 minutes before the party started, Jensen; my nephew, started hitting it and destroyed it so it looked pretty pathetic) It still was a fun party though. Jensen and Thomas drove this little car around the park for a while...Thomas was in heaven! It was quite a blessing to have such a wonderful trip!
