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.