Christmas Day 2011

Our Christmas morning began when the boys woke up around 7:20. I was glad they actually slept in. Yes, 7:20 is sleeping in at our house. We headed down stairs and were happy to see that Santa came (despite some bad behaviors from a certain 4 year old on Christmas eve). We emptied our stockings and loved the little gifts Santa had left in them. After our stockings were empty we got ready and then ate our breakfast of oatmeal and caramel rolls. It was pretty yummy. After that we finished getting ready and headed out to church for Sacrament Mtg. The meeting was nice and we got to sing some of my favorite Christmas songs. After church we headed home to open presents.

Its nice to have Christmas pictures with everyone actually dressed.

Cayden got to open the first gift. He was happy to get something he'd been wanting for a LONG time.

Jacob opened the next present. He was excited to unwrap something that he had discovered in my room a few days earlier. Little Stinker!

Jared got a lot of camping gear in preparation for his winter camp out.

We had quite the Christmas mess. ;)

After we finished opening all the new toys we let the boys play for a bit. They had fun with their new toys but Jared and I just kept wondering where everything was going to fit.

After the boys played for a bit we headed over to my mom and dad's house. Since its all big kids in their house they waited for us to get there before they opened presents. Cayden and Jacob loved being able to open more gifts and loved helping to pass out gifts to everyone. Once presents were all opened we played some more and then had dinner. The dinner was delicious and it was nice to sit and spend time with everyone.

After dinner we busted out the BINGO game. It isn't Christmas without BINGO. We always have fun. This year Cayden decided he was going to help Jared call. It got confusing at times when he wasn't really sure what the ball said. But everyone was patient and soon he got bored and wanted to go watch Phineas and Ferb. So while we finished up BINGO the boys could be found watching Phineas and Ferb (which is quite popular in our home.)

All in all we had a WONDERFUL Christmas. The day was perfect. It didn't go by too fast and everyone had a positive attitude. The boys got along and shared their new toys happily. Love was all around. And most of all we were able to reflect on the true meaning of Christmas.

Hope your Christmas was as wonderful as ours. ;)

~Love TO All~

P.S. Thanks to my big brother Mikey for letting me use his computer to blog since ours is still under the weather.

Christmas Love

I just love our Christmas traditions. I love playing BINGO for fun. I love shopping for other people and wondering if they are going to love their gift as much as I hope they do. I love the feeling of giving and love that is all over the place. I love spending time with Family. I love reading of the birth of Christ on Christmas Eve and then singing carols with my family. There is just such a feeling that is so indescribable.

As we were driving to my parents house on Christmas Eve Jared reached over and held my hand. I thought my heart was going to beat out my chest when I said the simple words "I love you" to him. Its really amazing how much feelings can be amplified at this time of year.

Not only is my love for my family amplified but so is my love for my Savior. I teased my little brother for getting teary eyed while he sung Christmas songs. However, as I sat in church singing the words of Away in a Manger "Bless all the dear children in thy tender care" I couldn't help but cry. At the time I thought of Him protecting and blessing my sweet little boys but the more I thought about it I realized that that phrase encompasses ALL of Heavenly Father's children.

I am so thankful that our family is continually blessed and watched over. I know the Lord knows us and has a plan for us. I am so thankful for my knowledge and testimony of the gospel and the joy that it brings into my life. I am thankful that I chose to be sealed in the temple to someone as amazing as Jared.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and felt as much love as I did.

~Love To ALL~

P.S. as soon as we get out computer up and running I'll post Christmas pictures ;)

Halloween Happenings!

We just love Halloween. Jared and I enjoy choosing a theme each year and dressing up with the boys. This year we chose "Jake and the Never Land Pirates" If you haven't seen it you are kind of missing out. Its a show that started this year on the Disney Chanel. It takes place in Never Land. The main characters are 3 good little pirates, Jake, Izzy, and Cubby. Then there is Captain Hook and Mr. Smee. Captain Hook isn't as evil as he is in other stories. Anyway, the boys LOVE this show. Cayden was "Jake, Jacob was "Cubby". and I was "Izzy". Jared wanted to be Captain Hook but we settled on ......

SMEE!

So with that being out theme. We put our costumes together. With the help of my mom we even made pirate vests for the boys. Our first Halloween stop was "Boo at the Zoo". We headed to the Denver Zoo on Saturday (I was still sick but desperately needed to get out of the house). The zoo had 25 trick or treat stations set up and the boys had a blast. It was pretty busy but so much fun.

If you have been to the Denver Zoo you have seen this.

Jared loved the Hyenas.

After Boo at the Zoo we raced home so that Jared and I could put on our costumes. We left the zoo at 4 and had our trunk or treat at 5:30. Needless to say we were a little late to the trunk or treat. After the zoo and trunk or treat the boys had so much candy that trick or treating on Halloween was not necessary.

Jared's "Smeeness"

Sunday night we finally carved our other 2 pumpkins. (I have a white one too that never got carved. oh, well.) Here are the results! Jared and Cayden did the 2 on the sides and mine is in the middle.

Halloween finally arrived and we were excited! I ran to the store and bought fun plates and napkins, "pumpkin soda" (orange soda), pizza, bread sticks, and cupcakes. We had a fun Halloween dinner.

Then we got dressed and headed out to Trick-or-Treat! This was Jacob's first year Trick-or-Treating. Last year we left him with my parents. The boys had so much fun. Jacob liked the fact that he was getting candy just for holding out his bag. He has such a sweet tooth! Cayden was a trooper and walked most of the time. Towards the end he got tired of walking. ;) We had a fun evening together as a family. The candy has been put away and will be distributed in small increments. ;)

This was Jacob's first Trick-or-Treat house!

Family Picture!

Yep, we sprayed his hair black. It takes 2 1/2 washings to get it all out!

So that's it. We had fun this year. I'm glad its over though because Jared has FINALLY shaved. He wanted to have real chops for his costume.

Hope everyone had a fun and safe Halloween too!

~Love To All~

~88 Years Old~

My Sweet Granddaddy turned 88 this week. He is such an amazing man and I couldn't be more thankful for him. I LOVED growing up living so close to him. He never missed a soccer game, choir concert, or play. He is always there when you need him and always has a joke in his head that comes out at just the right moment. He is AWESOME!

We went to Chili's for his birthday and then we went back to my parent's house for presents. Cayden was so cute and sat on Granddaddy's lap the whole time he opened presents. He sure loves his Granddaddy Elmer. We all do!

Happy Birthday Granddaddy!!!

Primary Program

Cayden was in his first Primary Program on the 16th. He did such a great job. I was so proud of him. He knew all of the songs and said his line BEAUTIFULLY. (I think his favorite is Praise to the Man. He sings it all the time and is very proud that he can do it by himself.) I will admit I did cry a little because I was so proud of him. It was such a special moment to watch him and feel the spirit and know that his testimony is growing. He had so much fun and was happy that so much of our family came to see him. My good friend Ginger even came and loved the program. Way to go Cayden!

I told him he had to take a nice picture and then we would take a silly one. ;)

~Love To All~

Our Little Rockstar!

This past week my sister, Kim, was in town with her two boys. It was so much fun having them here. Cayden and Jacob loved playing with their cousins. One night when we were all at my mom and dad's house having fun and making a mess Jacob decided to show us his new hobby.
He was so stinkin' cute! He would jump up and down saying "na na na na na". Then he would clap his hands over his head to get everyone clapping. A few times he would hold the guitar up and in a scary voice say, "Yeah!" It was fun to watch. What a silly kid!

I tired to post a video but it wasn't working. So a picture will have to do. ;)

~Love To All~

So Here's What You Missed

It has been hard to blog with Jared being so busy with animation. He wasn't home so I hijacked the computer. Here is what you have missed............

Smore's Night

Zoomily (Family Night at the zoo) They had fun stuff set up for the kids to do and free food and dessert. We had such a fun night!

Cayden and Jacob's first Rapids' game. It was such a fun night. Cayden didn't like the cannon that was shot every time the Rapids scored.

Cayden's first day of Preschool. HE IS LOVING IT!!!

Twister FHE. The boys eventually tuned it into a dance floor. My boys can break dance!

Taste of Colorado. Great food and fun stuff for the kids.

Spencer's Donut birthday party before he moved to Montana.

Labor Day in Breckenridge CO. Cayden loved everything. They have an Alpine slide, alpine coaster, mini golf, rock climbing, trampolines (cayden did back flips), pony rides, panning for gold, and a maze. It was an AWESOME day!

the gondola ride back to the parking lot. Cayden loved the "boxes" it was his favorite.

Mini Golf for my birthday!

Our Woody and Buzz

Cayden can write his name!

So that's it. I think you are all caught up. The only other news in our lives is that we are house hunting. We are so EXCITED!!!! Hope everyone has a FABULOUS Conference Weekend!

~Love To All~

Birthday Gift Weekend

So I wanted to do something special for Jared's 30th birthday this year. I know how much he LOVES hiking and camping and really wanted to do a camping weekend in the mountains. But if you know me you know that I don't do "real" camping. So Jared had to settle for "Katie Camping". I found a cabin in Estes Park for a reasonable price and booked it. We had our own bathroom, kitchen, fireplace, A/C, and cable tv. I couldn't wait to give Jared his gift because I knew he would be excited. I had to wait over a month to tell him about it. And then we had to wait until the end of July to go. (The end of July worked out better with our timing)

SO Friday Jared picked me up from work and we were on our way. We stopped at the grocery store to get food for the weekend and then went to Benihana for dinner. So we actually didn't get up there until 11:00pm. Poor Jared was so tired too from all of his animation.

LOTS OF PICTURES AHEAD!

Saturday we woke up and went hiking in Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP). Round trip our hike was just over 6 miles. We started our hike at the Sprague Lake Trail Head.

I Loved this Stream that we stumbled upon.

I also really like the giant random rocks.

We came across this BEAUTIFUL waterfall about 3/4 of the way up the mountain. There weren't any other hikers on our trail so we felt special that we got to see it.

Then we finally reached our destination: Alberta Falls. It was gorgeous!
On the way back down we stopped at this Lake we found on the hike up. Jared loved all the lily pads (I think it made him think about Cayden's love of frogs) I loved the Mountain view!

Once we got back down we rested at Sprague Lake before heading back to our cabin.

After some dinner we ventured out for some mini golf. It was a really fun course. There was even some wile life! We saw a yellow bellied marmot hiding under a fake rock.
Jared was mad because I had just gotten a hole in one. ;)

On Sunday we woke up, had breakfast, checked out of our cabin, and headed back in to RMNP.
This time we took the northern road and went to the Alluvial Fan. Its a pretty sweet place!

Can you see Jared on the big round rock at the top?
After our hike around the Alluvial fan we headed back into town to window shop for a bit and have lunch before we headed home. We both fell in love with Estes Park.
The address of this lounge is 110 1/2. It reminded me of Platform 9 3/4. ;)

It was a FABULOUS weekend. We had such a great time and enjoyed being together. I don't think Jared minded that it wasn't "real" camping. I think I'm converting him. ;) In fact we had such a wonderful time that I think it is going to become a yearly tradition. We can't wait to go back.

(HUGE HUGE HUGE Thanks to my Mom, Dad and siblings for keeping the boys for us. It was a nice child free weekend. We couldn't survive without all of you!)

~Love To All~