Christmas Day

"Christmas waves a magic wand over the world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful" 

~Norman Peale

But my favorite quote about Christmas day is still...

"One of the most glorious messes in the world is the mess created in the living room on Christmas day. Don't clean it up too quickly."

~Andy Rooney

Our day WAS beautiful, glorious, messy, and so so magical. ♥

Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve is one of my top five favorite days of the year (it's better than Christmas) We love making the most of the whole day ♥♥

We had a little Christmas miracle and woke up to a couple inches of snow. It later turned to rain and then it rained on Christmas so the boys were sad that it wasn't a white Christmas. But those few hours on Christmas Eve day were pretty magical!

During the day we opened a family gift. Laser Tag guns! The kids were so excited and we ran downstairs and had a fun laser tag battle. 

We had a magical Christmas Eve dinner and then opened sibling gifts. I love seeing the pure joy and love on their faces as they give and receive gifts for each other. ♥♥

This year some of the boys hinted that they wanted onsie jammies. When I found the dinosaur ones at Target, I knew they would love them! Justin worried Corbin would be too old. We asked Corbin, and although he would have been okay, he said he would rather a hooded sweater. I knew this day would come, and that's okay. The excitement in their voices as they each opened their 'jammies' was priceless ♥♥

We sang some carols and read Luke 2 and sent the kids off to bed. Then I got to start my favorite tradition...the finishing touches of presents and stockings while I watch 'It's a Wonderful Life'!! I look forward to this day all year. I love making the room feel extra special because I know once I go to bed it will not be too long before some kids come sneaking up the stairs to take a peek at the presents sitting under the glowing tree.

Christmas really is magical!

Christmas Sunday

Christmas Sundays are the best! Sacrament meeting was so good (and only one hour church!) and I loved singing all the Christmas hymns. ♥♥ We came home and enjoyed listening to more songs and spending the day together. Adeline loved rearranging the tree and Rudger just wanted to cuddle with his new teddy bear that he got from his school teacher. 

Later that night we had a Shepherd's dinner. It is now our favorite new tradition! The kids thought it was the best that we were eating dinner on the floor in the family room. I bought fancy cheese and that pretty much made their year. Charcuterie boards are another new favorite! We talked about that special night and how the Shepherds must have felt. It's amazing how strong the spirit can be when you take time to be still and reflect on our Savior. It was a very special night.

our second teenager

I feel like every time Taylor reaches a new milestone, it hits harder than it did when Corbin would reach them. Something about our second child getting older really solidifies that our family is growing up....and fast.

Taylor is an incredible delight to our family. He is full of kindness and goodness. He is so helpful and his hard work with playing the piano is really starting to pay off, I love hearing him play.

It seems we often have some kind of Christmas party on Taylor's birthday. He is always so willing to celebrate his birthday somewhere else and to have such a good attitude about it. (which is why the half birthday celebration works so well!)  We enjoyed being at his Aunt Alayna and Uncle Jeff's house this year. Taylor requested ice cream sundaes and it was delicious (and super easy!) 

We love you Taylor!!! Still can't believe that our Christmas baby is a teenager! ♥♥

Temple Square

Temple Square at Christmas times remains the most magical place to go during the Christmas season. (as long as the crowds are minimal) :) We gather up a bag of treats and some hot chocolate and head to the big city. The kids love riding on the tracks, seeing the window display, the Christus, and finding the center of the city. We look forward to it every year!

 

♥♥ I love this forever family of ours ♥♥

Baking Day!!

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I love baking with these beautiful women ♥♥♥

Braces off!

After a couple of years, an expander, discomfort, lack of sticky candy, and lots of orthodontist appointments...this kid got his braces off! 

My biggest hope when we started having kids was that they would be blessed with their daddy's teeth. So far, things are looking good :) But really, I love this kids smile...whether it's with crooked teeth, braces, or beautifully straight!

Aunt Mandi had her braces on at the same time. They started a friendly competition to see who could get their braces off first. Corbin won by a month, but mostly because the Orthodontist was worried about his teeth not getting as clean with braces on :) Mandi was amazing to get him a box full of treats. I love the relationship those two have ♥♥