Cousin Sleepover

Last Friday we planned a sleepover with 4 of our grandkids.  We planned several activities for the evening.  I think they all had a great time. We certainly did.  We'll be having another one this summer!  Their parents came over for french toast in the morning and then it was over.

         Dinner consisted of fruit, chicken nuggets, toasted cheese sandwiches and chips...

                   Getting into the hot tub (trying to tire them out)!

                                         Showing them magic....

                                        Making Sugar Cookies...

                                         Playing around...

                    Watching each of their parents wedding dvds...

Frosting their sugar cookies...

    Watching a movie....hopefully falling asleep.  They were all alseep by 11:15 pm.

                                         Up at 7 am...

                           It's over....time to go home with their parents....

Scary Looking

Every morning AJ and I go walkng.  He goes 2 miles with me and then I continue on to do a total of 5 miles. It was COLD this morning.  The temp was 8 degrees with a wind chill factor of minus 6.  I'm pretty scary looking.  Yesterday I didn't go until the afternoon.  I always go over to a Senior Living Place called Jordan Villas and walk ten times around their neighborhood.  As I was walking a cop pulled in and drove around. I wondered if someone there had called about this person dressed in black in their neighborhood.  We're usually out at 6 in the morning, not to many of them are up then. 

New Year's Eve/Day

Cory and Tara called us on New Year's Eve and invited all of us over for the evening for food and games. They have the Kinect that goes with the X-Box 350 so we had competition with each other doing the dance and then track and field.  We watch the ball drop in New York at 10 our time but it was midnight somewhere so the kids could be up for the New Year to come in.  Then it was getting home and to bed.

 On New Year's Day everyone came over for homemade Chicken Noodle Soup and to play Rummicub, relax, etc.  Some when sledding before coming over but it was awfully cold even with the sun shining.

Christmas

We were alone Christmas Eve and spent the evening cleaning and getting ready for Christmas afternoon     dinner.  We had moved Megan and Tyler out on Thursday so I did a lot of cleaning and cleaning out so all my rooms downstairs are back to the way they were before they moved in.  I now have room again for company.

                                                            My Living Room Tree

                                                              My Family Room Tree

 Half of our Christmas morning breakfast tradition.  The Pull-aparts.  I didn't make the Breakfast Casserole since it was just the two of us.

 Putting all the presents out in the basement.  That's where we were eating and going to open our gifts.

                                                         Carter -

                                                            Ava in her princess dress

                                         Getting ready to open gifts.

  Our theme for our ward breakfast was The Polar Express and since I was on the activities committee and helped with the breakfast...I decided to order the Polar Express movie. One of the best purchases I made this season. One day when I was tending Judson I put it on and it was an instant HIT....He LOVES that movie and so do the other grandkids...they will watch it over and over. When they are all rambunctious (sp)

just put that movie on and it settles them right down.

                                          Totally into the movie...

It was a wonderful Christmas and I'm so glad we were able to all be together and that Megan and Tyler now live here.  I'm grateful to our Savior, Jesus Christ and that we are able to celebrate his birthday.  Another tradition that we started this year was on the first Monday of December we went shopping with our kids and grandkids and bought items for the Bishop's store.  I know the grandkids don't get it quite yet, but as we continue to do this they will experience the joy that comes when you are giving to those that truly are in need.