Christmas Day!!

I woke up around 8:00 Christmas morning to let Ziggy out and couldn't go back to sleep! I made Michael get up and made some hot chocolate for the both of us before heading in to unwrap our presents. {We kind of did our Christmas early this year, or so I thought until I opened my presents. Michael got me some skis at the end of November and gave them to me early so I could use them! I gave Michael some ski pants and pedals for his new mountain bike early as well.}

While drinking our hot chocolate, Michael and I started opening our presents. He got some sturdy boots for snowshoeing, a shirt, sweater and some patagonia shoes. I loved watching him open his presents. He had two presents under the tree for me. One was small and the other was huge. In the small present was some skiing socks! Just what I needed so I won't use Michaels ski socks anymore. I opened the big present last and Michael kept saying, "Don't get your hopes up." I started to open the present and couldn't believe what was inside, "A Camera!" I screamed. I couldn't believe it; I was so excited! I never in a million years would've expected it, he totally spoiled me. All the pictures below are taken with my new camera! I'm still trying to learn and get used to it, so have patience with the blurry ones.

We went up to my parent's house around 11:30 and had breakfast with my mom and dad and Wes & Jess and the kids. We watched Morgan, Carson and Malia open their presents. (That was the funnest part of the whole day). Their reactions were priceless. Morgan and Carson got these funny shoes that blow up and (supposedly) make you jump really high. We all tried them on and found that they did not do much, but the boys loved them! Malia got a baby doll with a high seat, crib and stroller. I can't believe what motherly instincts she has at such a young age. She was feeding, holding and pushing that doll as if it were her baby.

Oh! I almost forgot, Santa stopped by... and so did two little elves! It is tradition for Michael's dad and sister to dress up and deliver presents to families on the Harley on Christmas Day. They stopped by in the afternoon to say hello. Morgan stayed in the kitchen because he was nervous to see Santa, so Santa went into the kitchen to talk to him. Morgan wouldn't look or say anything, then all of the sudden he turned around and said "Thank you for my remote control car!" really fast and then turned back around. I then told Morgan that Santa's elves were with him and he needed to go say hi. Morgan went into the entry way and hugged Ryan (Jessica's boyfriend) and told him thanks for his presents. Morgan is 6 1/2 years and I thought he'd for sure be skeptical of Santa by now, but he really believes in him; it was cute.

Christmas Eve

On Christmas Eve, Michael and I decided to head out into the mad crowds of shoppers and get some last minute gifts; we kind of procrastinated. Luckily, it only took us each about 2 hours. We knew we would be gone all night at the Muhlesteins, so we needed to get Ziggy some exercise. He has been so stir crazy this winter and has been getting into everything! We took him to the park and threw the chuck-it for a bit, then took him inside the house and he was pooped for the night. We went up to Dave and Paula's for a fabulous Christmas Eve dinner. They served up crab and chateau brion beef with a terragon sauce. It was delicious! We then watched Nick and Sadie's girls perform the nativity scene and I played a few songs on the harp. Marci and Dan couldn't be there in person, so we had them on video chat for the program. :) We did the traditional hokey pokey dance and limbo (with the songs). It was really fun to just play and laugh together. The little girls were having so much fun. After dancing, we opened presents and shared our favorite Christmas memory.

We had a blast that night. I always love being with my husbands' family, they are so fun to be around!

Family Christmas Parties

We had both of my "extended family" parties on the weekend before Christmas. The first one was at Maddox in Brigham City. It was fun to see everyone on my moms side of the family, because we really do only see them about once a year, during Christmas time.

The Ridd party was held at the Hyatt in Sandy. We ate a pot luck dinner, played a white elephant game and wrapped presents we had all brought for a Samoan family in Kearns; where my parents are serving a mission.

Temple Square

A few Sunday nights ago, we went to temple square with the young women in my ward. This was a fun activity for the girls, because they got to bring their families along.

I hadn't been to temple square during the Christmas time for probably three years. It was beautiful. I always forget what a spectacular display it is. My favorite lights were in this first picture. They were an assortment of orange, red, green and yellow lights. They covered every single branch of the tree. In person, it almost looked like the tree was on fire!

I love him

This picture taken by Marci in New Jersey.

I absolutely love it.

Christmas Tree & Finals are SO OVER!

Last Saturday, we bought a Christmas tree. We fell in love with the more "sparse" looking ones. I told Michael that they feel bad, because they aren't the traditional Christmas tree so they probably don't get chosen as much. He agreed, so we picked out the most beautiful, perfect one we could see. I couldn't hold my excitement in and started snapping shots before we even got home! I love that Michael likes decorating the tree just as much as I do. :) We spent all morning hanging ornaments on the tree, while Christmas music played. We also attempted another Christmas photo with bwoost. You can see how well that went.

Michael finished his last final on Tuesday, and I finished my last "written" final yesterday. Oh, what a wonderful feeling it is to be done! I just have to do a presentation in one class next week and I'm officially done with the Fall 2010 semester. It will be strange to have so much time on my hands, but I will surely soak up every minute of it. We are happy to have so much time to spend together now and are enjoying the Christmas season.

Thanksgiving

Although our thanksgiving was quite hectic, it was fun to spend time with our families. My parents had their dinner at 1:00 and Michael's parents had dinner at 2:00! I think we've decided to trade off with the families every other year; I don't think I'll be able to eat that much every year! This photo was taken by Jessica at the Muhlesteins. Thanks Jessi, I stole it from your blog... hope you don't mind. :) After our second dinner, we decided to go home and be with our boy; plus, he hadn't been let out for five plus hours. Michael and I played speed for a little bit and then watched a movie on "Netflix," one of Michael's early Christmas presents.

We have really enjoyed relaxing and spending time with each other on this LONG holiday weekend. It's been absolutely wonderful.

Thankful

I have been thinking about thanksgiving and what I really am thankful for. There are so many things to be thankful for, but I would be here for days trying to list them all. Right now, I am most thankful for children. I don't know what life would be like without them. They have such a bright little spirit about them and you cannot help but smile when being around them.

The other day, we stopped by Wes and Jess's house. I've had a few little things sitting around my house that I got at YW camp this summer, one being a little cross stitch kit. I gave it to my nephew Morgan, because he loves to create things and has such an imagination. The kit came with a Winnie the Pooh pattern, but he wanted to make a "robot." (He is really into robots and tells me that he wants to grow up and run a factory that makes robots.)

So, I started teaching him how to stitch, and before I knew it he had the entire square head done. I had to leave right after, but Jess emailed me this picture the next day. I thought for sure that he would move on to something else and forget about even finishing it, but not Morgan. He is so dedicated and when he has something he wants to do, he gets it done. I'm so proud of him, it looks awesome! This is the work of a 6 year-old!

My friend Courtney makes these cute headbands. I got one for Malia and it looked so adorable on her, but what wouldn't? I ask Wes and Jess if I can take her home with me every time I am with her. Jess always says, "Just have your own, they're easy to make." Michael and I just laugh, we're not quite ready for that yet. Although, if I knew my baby would be as cute as her... it might speed things up a bit!

And last, but not least I can't forget Carson! I never got a picture of him, but he was really funny that day. We were out in their backyard and Carson was pushing around a little wheelbarrow and falling over. He reminded me of the little boy on "Christmas Story" who wears the big snow suit. Carson had on big snow boots and a puffy coat, it was hilarious to watch him get around. Carson is definitely the comedian in the family.

A Little Treat

I love baking, especially during this time of year. As the oven warms my home and sweet aromas fill the air, I can't help but get into the spirit of the coming holidays. I found this delicious recipe in the December issue of "realsimple" magazine and thought I'd share. :)

What I like about this recipe? It's simple! Fast, easy, hardly any clean up and it's unique! What more could you ask for? Below you will find the instructions for these delectable little morsels.

Lace Cookies

Ingredients: 4 T. unsalted butter (I used salted and they turned out just fine)

1/4 c. granulated sugar

1/4 cup packed light brown sugar

2 T. heavy cream

1/3 c. very finely chopped pecans

1/4 c all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled

1/4 t. kosher salt

Directions: Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Combine the butter, sugars and cream into a saucepan. Bring to boil and stir until sugar dissolves, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and stir in the pecans, flour, and salt.

Drop level teaspoons of the warm batter, spacing them 4 inches apart, onto parchment-lined baking sheets. If the batter cools between batches and can't be scooped, rewarm it slightly. (Instead of rewarming, I just rolled about a teaspoon of batter in my hands and pressed onto the baking sheets, forming a circle.) Bake, rotating the sheets halfway through, until golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Cool on the sheets until firm, about 5 minutes. Transfer to wire rack (a glass plate works just fine) to cool completely.

Enjoy! I thought these would be great to make for hors d oeuvrers at a christmas party :)

Crave to Race

Michael started a "race blog" about a month ago. He is finally getting into the blogging world! I know, I gave him a pat on the back. {Here} is where he blogs about all the races he competes in... so I don't have to. Just kidding, I love to blog and brag about my boy. He made a blog mainly because he needed something to show his "potential" sponsors. He has done a good job with it, I am quite impressed. So, check it out when you get a chance. Just click on "mikeys.races" under my family list.

My Grandma Weston

My sweet grandma passed away in August of this year. She was such a beautiful person and everyone that knew her said she had a light about her. I so admire her for her musical abilities she possessed as well as her great accomplishments. She was a concert pianist and taught piano all her life. Her personality was humble, giving and full of life. She always made me feel like I was so special to her, whenever I was around her.

Below is her obituary and pictures taken the day of her funeral. It was such a warm and sunny day. The funeral service was beautiful and endearing. It completely captured the goodness of my grandma’s life and her great love for music. She is greatly missed, but I am happy to know I will see her again someday.

Joyce F. Weston

Joyce F. Weston (1927 - 2010)

Saturday evening, Aug. 7, 2010, Joyce Fornoff Weston finished her wonderful journey in beautiful Cache Valley, where she lived her entire life.
She was born on July 8, 1927, in Ogden, Utah, to Harold Leonard Fornoff and Ruth Pingree Fornoff. Living her youth in Logan, she fell in love with Todd G. Weston. They married Oct. 16, 1946. Their marriage was solemnized in the Logan Utah LDS Temple. Their love and devotion brought to Earth five wonderful children.
Grandma Joyce's life could be described as a life with a fierce loyalty and deep and everlasting love for her husband. She supported him in his business ventures and his political endeavors locally and statewide. She took care of him as he took care of her. Joyce and Todd loved their children and were pleased with their accomplishments and deeply and emotionally involved in the trials that came from time to time. Joyce is known throughout Cache Valley for her love of music and her incredible talent playing the piano - she mastered it. She taught hundreds of students, including students from Utah State University while she was associated there with the Music Department. Many times she expressed her desire to play for anyone at any time. Joyce served faithfully in all she was called to do, serving in particular for many years in the Relief Society including a time as president. She accompanied the ward choir for what seemed like decades. Joyce Weston is one of those people who make you feel like your life is better just by knowing her. Her smile and laughter were contagious. When one thinks back on her life she can truthfully be described with these words: loving, without guile, innocent, desirous to do good, unwilling to do wrong, giving but also appreciative to receive, thrifty and as she would say sometimes Scotch. She could not stand to throw away anything, especially wrapping paper on her presents. Grandma was always happy to see us. Gathering her family at Christmas seemed to be her favorite time during the year, and she could make it seem to last until Valentine's Day. When you went to Grandma's house, you could never eat enough. She always wanted to give more. This was symbolic of her life as she served and lifted many people for many years. Her tired and worn body finally gave up, but her tremendous Spirit and incredible love will never fatigue in the hearts and minds of her family and all those who knew her.
Grandma Joyce was preceded in death by her husband Todd G. Weston, her parents and her little baby sister Carol, who was born on Christmas Eve and died at the age of 4. She leaves her children and their spouses, Bart and Judy Weston, Randy and Debi Weston, Joyce and Greg Oman, Julie and Jim Ridd, and Sam and Judy Weston. Joyce and Todd enjoyed 18 grandchildren from these unions. These grandchildren have given Joyce 24 great-grandchildren, with at least 4 more coming in the near future. Joyce is survived by her brother Louis Fornoff and his wife Shirley.
The family is grateful for all those who have cared for Grandma Joyce these past three years, especially the staff at Legacy House in Logan. We will remember Joyce with a viewing Tuesday, Aug. 10, 2010, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Allen-Hall Mortuary, 34 E. Center St. in Logan, Utah. Funeral services are planned for noon on Wednesday, Aug. 11, 2010, at the River Heights Stake Center, 800 S. 600 East, River Heights, Utah, with a viewing prior to the funeral from 10 to 11:30 a.m. Interment will be in the Providence Cemetery.