how to successfully combine Thanksgiving and Christmas

boys playing football

 you need a caring Grandpa

 and a loving Grandma

 a beautiful woman to love, hold, and rock the baby to sleep

a table sleigh

 a church gym basketball hoop

jolly old st. nick

  toys and treats in stockings

 a santa baby

delicious, traditional food with you feeling satisfied even before the main course (3 appetizers!)

and one awesome family (oh wow, I love these people)

and that is how you have a perfect Thanksgiving/Christmas party

studio 5

I can't believe this was over a month ago.

Time goes fast.

I got an email from my amazing sister in law. She was invited to be part of a live studio audience on Studio 5 and could invite a few people to come. I was thrilled she thought of me. (as well as some other amazing women) 

Funny thing, the segment was on how to not raise diva daughters?  

I know, not for me, but hey it was live t.v.

And really this topic, even though I have only boys, still means a lot to me.  I wish so much for my boys to not marry worldly, ungrateful, high maintenance divas. After all, they will also be my daughter in laws :)

Thanks so much Cami for inviting us. It was wonderful to have some great laughs with these girls!

 We totally got spoiled.

Lunch at Gourmandise. Yum. 

 And the pastries. My eyes were in heaven.

It was a good day.

I can't believe that Christmas is two weeks away. Not fair. *Deep sigh* 

We have been enjoying it though. Posts to come!

rudger is 15 weeks

It's hard to believe and crazy to see how much he has changed. He has become quite the smiley baby with the beginnings of little giggles. Rudger has decided recently to let his mom get a little more sleep during the night. I think he's figured that if I get more than 4 straight hours of sleep I am much happier. Thanks buddy. He really loves his brothers, but sometimes I am certain I can see a little bit of nervousness in his eyes when they come to hold him. He's a good sport.  

My dad has nicknamed him Rugby and it has kind of stuck. The other day while at the store Levi kept saying over and over, oh Rugby your so cute. And for some reason the last couple of days I have been calling him Ruggerbee. Don't know where that came from. I guess because Levi calls his Rugger...then I added my dad's nickname for him.

But we are still very much in love with him.

weekend - long thanksgiving weekend

Oh my, this is the kind of weekend that I never wanted to end. Five days of staying up a little later, sleeping in a lot later, no major obligations, just soaking up family time. 

Thanksgiving was a beautiful day.

 This year we got to be the host.

 And so many delicious pies. Our boys all prefer pumpkin. 

Taylor told me last night that he thinks Santa gets plenty of cookies, we should make him pie instead.  

Daddy was all over that.

Just about every night we cuddled by the Christmas tree with all our pillows and blankets and read books.  We love to read books to the boys. Recently, we finished 'The tale of Dexpereaux' now we are interested in seeing the movie. Just barely finished 'The Fairy Tale Detectives, the Sisters Grimm', we plan to read the rest in the series. Now we are starting what President Monson reads every Christmas season. First is 'A Christmas Carol'. The old English is a little harder for the boys to follow, but luckily they know the story so I think they still are able to follow along.

There is something about the winter season that makes me want to cuddle up and read a book to our kids.

 We loved our mid-day rests, naps and cuddles.

  We wrote our letters to Santa.

This past month, we wanted the boys to focus more on big and little things we are grateful for. We wanted to fill our container up by the last Sunday of November. We think they did awesome!

That Sunday night, we sat around table and read what we all wrote through out the month. 

Some of us here, more than once, were grateful for pottys. (Oh the humor of six and eight year old boys.)   

 (Taylor's brain)

 (I didn't have to read)

Yah, he was quite excited that was a busy day

 (Levi gave me treats)

 (he plays friend with me)

  (cheese....aren't we all)

 (not grateful for spiders....again...aren't we all)

 (I'm sure this has something to do with legos, or little guys, when his brother's go to school so he can play with their toys, cookies, or his mee-mee)

(someone sneaked this note in)

And I am so grateful for long weekends with my family. 

second chances

I'm so grateful for second chances. That's what this whole life is full of. We are given second chances over and over again.

Recently, because of modern technology and good doctors, my dad's heart has been given a second chance!   It has made me realize how fragile our bodies are and we never know how long we really have on this earth.  I want my boys and all my nieces and nephews to spend many years with my dad...and I'm hoping they will inherit some of that sense of humor. So grateful for my dad.

I'm also so grateful to have a second chance at parenting. I feel like I'm given second chances all the time. These boys of ours are always so forgiving and patient with me while I try to figure this whole mom thing out. 

You would think that after almost nine years I would have my priorities straighten out, good rules in our home that made us have perfect obedient children at all times, I would never raise my voice, I would know the answer to every question my children have, I would know the right thing to say at the right time it needed to be said, I would understand your emotions and know what each of you needed all the time.  But for some reason, it's just not so.

 Later last week, I did not have my best parenting moments. I was so tired and frustrated at the end of the day. I was tired of having to ask boys over and over and over again to do something, I was tired of the messes, I was tired of too many boys loving Rudger too much, I was tired of the noise, I was tired of homework, I was tired of nagging.  

Meditating helped a little.

 I went to bed that night praying for forgiveness and rededicated myself to being a better mom. I looked at each of the boys and realized that I truly have the best, but the hardest job in the world. I wouldn't ever. EVER. trade it for anything. Even on those bad days. 

To my surprise each boy woke up the next morning so happy and so willing to give me a second chance. 

 And last night for family home evening, we talked about how grateful we are for our home, we have come up with some great ways for each of us to help out in our home, so that it will be a place that we will all want to be. 

And thanks to my amazing partner in this parenting journey. I couldn't imagine taking this journey with anyone else. He is always able to handle things when I just can't. The boys need him as much as I do. And he's always giving me second chances :)

I'm so grateful for second chances!