Christmas

This was a really fun year. We thought more of things the boys wanted to do and that made all the difference. This little ceramic nativity set was given to us by Jaylene, and at first I wasn't sure if they were old enough. I was wrong, it turned out so cute and I LOVE it...I'm sad to put it away actually. You can see Paxton took on the stable with help from little bro.

Bennett decided the camel should be blue and Joseph should be green. Makes sense to me, why not paint them in your favorite colors? He and Paxton both like to paint and this coming year I hope to facilitate that more since I do have a few supplies and some know how.

They seem happy with their project, Bennett is also happy with a sucker in his mouth.

I would't call it a tradition, but we did take the boys on the commuter train up to Temple Square to see the lights. We went on a Wednesday night and there was still a good crowd around the Temple grounds but there weren't too many on the train so it was nice.

The older I get, the more I actually like snow. Maybe it's because I aspire to be a landscape painter and snowy scenes are beautiful. The kinds of winters I hate are those that are bitter cold and just dry. So I say let it snow! We need the snowpack anyway, and the boys totally love playing in it, especially Paxton.

This IS a tradition, and I fear it won't be around forever. Then again, my Grandma Jackie's endless energy makes me wonder. She hosts a Christmas Eve party and we have delicious food, a talent show, Christmas carols and the real Christmas story in Luke. Thanks Grandma!

Luckily our boys still sleep in (the late bedtime the night before helps) so we didn't get up until maybe 7:45 on Christmas morning. It's great how little ones are so happy with the first gift that they get busy playing with it instead of tearing through the rest of the packages.

Both boys love Scooby-Doo. I thought that was just a passing trend of my own childhood but apparently (other parents tell me) it has some kind of timeless appeal.

Thanks to aunt Denette and her family for this great gift idea! They gave us a beach tote filled with great stuff for the pool. We don't have a single beach towel in our house so it was perfect. This could get me out to a pool or two this year instead of sending Jared.

My niece gave these to the boys...she knows what kids like! Paxton in particular loves to dress up and Bennett usually follows.

My Mom made these fantastic quilts for the boys. They both are ready for bigger blankets on their beds so we got new pillows and sheets to go with them. The next step will be a new bed for Paxton. Maybe Christmas 2016 When our woodworker is back in town? I'm not sure it can wait that long...

Our dog is very adept at unwrapping gifts too. She leaves them alone until we make the first move then she's off to ripping each piece of wrapping paper until there's confetti on the floor. That's her brown nose down at the bottom of the photo, Bennett can barely get out of the way.

Inside that big box was this gift from Jared's Mom and Dad. These were on sale and shipped for free so we went with this heavy duty tube in the hopes they'll last a while.

 Bennett loves his shades.

We found a school nearby had the perfect hill for us. Jared and I jumped on here and there to try to beat each other's distance. I usually won since Jared defies the laws of motion and doesn't tube straight.

We feel very blessed in so many ways and find our little family grows happier each year.

Maybe some of you feel like this after the holidays.