The Weather Outside is Frightful...

It has been snowing like crazy here the last couple of days! And it's the wet, heavy stuff too! Perfect for building snowmen and making snow angels. Which is exactly what we went outside yesterday to do. I had some shoveling to do and the boys had some playing to do.

Christmas (Part 2)

The boys were up bright and early (or maybe I should say dark and early) on Christmas morning... Ty couldn't wait to get into the living room with everyone. But it was so worth the wait! He was hilarious! Santa had laid everything out for the boys on opposite ends of the couch- their big presents were unwrapped and ready to play with... So when the boys ran in... Their eyes just lit up!

Santa had brought Ty a Leapster hand-held video game player with a few games (Star Wars Reading included!), and Ryan was super excited to see a new tractor waiting just for him. Ty had a hard time re-surfacing for a while. He LOVED his new game- Santa did really well this year!

We spent the rest of the day with Shaun's family- Jacki made a yummy lunch for us with all the trimmings... I think we all rolled out of the dining room when we were finished! It was such a wonderful week and I am so grateful that we have such a wonderful family to share the holidays with. Thanks everyone!

Christmas Eve

As promised- I DID find my camera cord and can finally upload some pictures of Christmas! We were lucky enough this year to be able to spend Christmas with Shaun's parents up in Declo.

Every Christmas Eve, Shaun's family has a Christmas Eve party- which we got to go to this year. It's so much fun to see everyone and see how much kids have changed. Shaun's Aunt Julie made a fantastic spread- and we all ate too much! After the party we went back to Grandma and Papa's house, where the boys got to spend a few minutes tracking Santa on Norad's Santa Tracker. When Ty saw how close he was- he quickly decided it was time for him to go to bed- just to be sure that Santa didn't pass us by.

So, we set out our cookies for Santa- luckily we found his FAVORITE kind at the grocery store. Santa always visited our house when we set out Oreos- so Ty made sure that we had a couple set aside for Santa this year.

The boys didn't last much longer after that- it had been a long day and they were both so excited for the next day...

Let it Snow...

Okay, I know I am the last person in the world you would expect to hear those words from- but I have to admit- the snow is okay... especially when both of your kids just LOVE to go outside and play in it. Ryan will go and get his coat and then pound on the door yelling "Go" or "Out". And Ty will just bring me his snow stuff and say it's time to go outside. And I remember reading once (in a Parent's magazine I think) that your kids should spend at least fifteen minutes outside everyday- rain or shine. Something about fresh air I suppose. And while I don't think it's smart to take little ones outside when it's ten below zero outside- playing in the snow is something I do understand and is also a fond memory of mine when I was little. My little brother and I would go outside for hours- you would have been so impressed with our snow forts! They were awesome! Ty likes to throw snowballs and build snowmen- and if you haven't done it in a while- I totally recommend it! I was huffing and puffing within minutes! Here's Ty's latest creation... which after we finished it- he promptly knocked it over. I don't understand boys.

And while I know I look stunningly gorgeous here in this picture- I like having evidence that I DO spend time with my boys.

And here's Ryan looking deceivingly sweet...

And Ty... who seems to have the same problem in front of a camera as his dad does... Do any of you remember how awful it was trying to find a decent picture for our wedding announcements!? Maybe if we're prop their eyes open with toothpicks next time...

Monday

Did you know that before ten o'clock this morning Ryan had dumped out ALL the toys across the living room, flooded the bathroom and managed to drag several egg shells and empty yogurt containers across my kitchen floor.

I'm so grateful it's naptime.

First Day of Primary

Sunday was a big day in our house. Ryan is finally old enough to go to Nursery! YAY!!! And while he slept through the first half of it- he did pretty well during the rest of the day. It was kind of a crazy thought- for just a little bit- we won't have a baby in our arms during Sunday School!

Christmas

I have misplaced my cord to my camera, so I am unable to upload most of our Christmas pictures. Irritating in the least. As it stands, I do have a few pictures from our new camera that I was able to upload, and those I can share at the moment.

We had a wonderful Christmas this year which we were able to spend in Declo with Shaun's parents. It was so nice to go and spend a few days relaxing and just enjoying the company of each other. Cheezy I know- but it was nice!! It was also nice being in Jacki and Orllo's home because they allowed Shaun and I to keep up a couple of family traditions that we have come to love over the last few years in regards to Christmas and Christmas Eve. Ty had a lot of fun setting out cookies for Santa and tracking him on the internet (Thank-you to Norad). And Christmas morning was fantastic. The boys were so excited about EVERYTHING!

Santa left Ty a new Leapster video game player and a few new games, and Ryan was excited to find a new tractor under the tree with his name on it. And I have to say- Santa did VERY good this year! The boys loved their new toys and are still totally infatuated with them.

Ty also received a bedding set from my parents. Bedding for a four year old you ask? Yes. But only because they are covered in the U of U's logo. He is actually excited about going to bed in his new sheets and making the bed is kind of fun... How long this lasts is up in the air.

Anyway- we had a wonderful holiday and hopefully I'll be able to find my camera cord soon and upload the pictures of our Christmas.

Deja Chayse

This holiday season, we were also blessed to be able to welcome a new member to the Kidd family. Shaun's younger brother, Chase and his wife Dani had their baby girl during the beginning of December. Since they live in Colorado, we were only able to see pictures of Deja. But- this obviously had to change!! We went out with Shaun's parents after Christmas to go and visit all of them in their home (which again- THANK-YOU guys for letting us stay with you!!), where we actually got to meet baby. It was nuts- Deja only weighed six pounds- I have NEVER had a six pound baby (except maybe in utero), so to actually hold a new baby that was that small was absolutely nuts! She was adorable and I'm so glad we got a chance to go and visit!

Popcorn Popping on the Apricot Tree

One of my most favorite things about the holidays is (of course) the food. There is something about certain smells and tastes that just are "home" to me. Every Christmas morning, we would have a sausage casserole and German pancakes- so every time I smell these things- I think of being home and I think of my family. One of my favorite holiday "tastes" is my Grandma Newren's popcorn balls. I'm not sure that they are technically caramel... maybe candied is a better word for the coating on the popcorn. Anyway- it's yummy. Since we didn't make it home for Christmas this year, when we did make it down to my mom's- she surprised me with a big bag of popcorn and all the makings for Grandma's popcorn.

I've made it before with my Grandma, and it's not that it's hard- but it definitely takes two people to make it. So- my mom and I got to work. The finished product was just the taste that I had been missing so far this season! Thanks mom! And thanks to Ty for helping us smash the pecans!