Do I Have To????

So I thought I better get one blog post in this month before it ends. I only have a few more hours. I think it's pretty good to get at least one post a month in. Amanda tells me that I am to blog weekly. UGH!! Who is ever going to read or care about what I have to say. But I will do it anyway. We've had a very busy December. For the past few years I have taken the girls to the Creche display in Midway and then shopping in Park City the first weekend of December and last year we said lets spend the night at the cabin. So we had a lot of fun at the cabin. We had "Fondue Friday" which is where you eat fondue on Friday night. It was sooo good and I do have to admit the chocolate was SLAMMIN'. I also had been thinking of a tradition that we could start and came up with studying a different country's Christmas celebration each year. We started with Denmark and made woven heart baskets to hang on the tree and did the rice pudding where you hide the almond and whoever gets it gets a prize. Well I'm used to instant rice where you put equal amounts of rice to water instead of long cooked rice so we had a very huge pan of dry rice. Oh well, by the time we evened it out, we were out of milk but it was still kind of tasty. Us girls talked and laughed until midnight and the boys??? I'm not quite sure where the boys were. I couldn't talk anyone into the Creche display so it was on to Park City. Not too many good buys so I saved a few dollars. When we got home Brian and I went with our friends Thomas' and Baggett's to the BYU Christmas concert. It was fantastic! I love the Christmas season for the spirit that comes with the music. OUr friends the Shook's had 2 extra tickets to THe Forgotten Carols so Brian and I went to that. I haven't seen it before and it was also spectacular. We even went to a live Nativity that our friend Will Thomas was a wiseman in and sang wonderfully. It was at Liberty Park and sounds like they might do it again next year. Christmas came so fast and it was also so much fun. I thought once the kids grew up, we would get more sleep on Christmas Eve and up later on Christmas. We went to bed at 2:15 and up at 5:12 (by my clock). We had a great day which included our traditional breakfast. Our kids decided that instead of exchanging gifts that we do a nice activity as a family. THis year we chose to go to Body Worlds. I had read on the internet that parking was kind of a pain and the roads were still really slushy from snow so we road trax. It was cold and believe me when a car drives by, you take cover so as to not be sprayed with a mud slurpee. We thought the display was pretty amazing and we all had a greater appreciation for our bodies. That lasted until we got out and said "where is the closest place to eat"? We ate at an italian place called Stoneground just across the street from the museum. It was very good. This blog is getting way too long and so I will cut off by saying MERRY CHRISTMAS and HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!

We've been a busy bunch the last month or so. I loved listening to General Conference at the first of October. I always enjoy listening to the talks. I also took the time to put a puzzle together while listening. We haven't taken family pictures for a couple of years so we took an afternoon and went downtown to the Gallavan Plaza and took some. I will post a few for viewing. The weather was perfect and Brian and I always love being with the (you) kids. After viewing the pix, as usual, I realize (again or still) that the camera didn't magically take 20 pounds OFF of me so I have decided to pump up the excercise and eating habits to try and be in better shape for the next year. (I say that every year) Oh well, at least I'm consistant. Sarah and I have decided to do a 1/2 marathon in St. George in January so I will have to get the training started. Sarah did her fall-a-thon the middle of October while Amanda and I rode bikes behind her. My rear end was a bit sore the next day. Next time maybe I'll use one of those blow up donuts that people with tailbone injuries use on the seat for added comfort. I can hear the comments now. haha! Mitch went with Brian to Chicago for a few days to work and see the city. They said they had a great time. Mitch felt very accomplished by eating at Giardano's Pizza, Dunkin' Donuts, White Castles, his first Chicago Dog, and Gyro. He also got to visit the city and see the tall buildings. They visited an area that Brian served in on his mission and they went for very brief stops to Wisconsin and Oh Crap! Indiana (inside joke). Also in October, Mitch was nominated to run for the Movie Miner Man at Bingham High School. He needed a costume and a talent. Costume: Peter Pan, Talent: Ribbon Dancing to Janet Jackson's Black Cat. I felt he should have won but he didn't. He was the very best talent for sure. We did record parts of it so if your interested, let me know. We are trying to raise a few extra bucks for Christmas. J/K haha. We have survived another Halloween. And what fun we had. Sarah came over and with the help of her, Alisha, and Taylor (Alisha's friend) we made caramel apples and pumpkin fudge. The girls stuffed some costumes and used manequin heads for a cool porch scene. We only had about 10 different groups of trick-or-treaters so it was pretty quiet. I'm sure I've left out a few activities but the arthritis is setting in.

ALOHA!!

Last week Brian had to go to Hawaii to do some work and I was lucky enough to get to go with him - with the stipulation that I would help him get the work done. Are you kidding??? If I can go to Hawaii I will do it! So we went and had a WONDERFUL time. We went to the big island this time and after the work was done (we installed a satellite dish), we got to PLAY - YAY! We saw the black sand beach, a volcano in action, and snorkeled with sea turtles. And what is a trip to Hawaii without the fresh pineapple sundae. We crammed as much as we could into our 5 day getaway. Thanks Bri for a great sunny getaway! I just love him!!

OK I get it! The vacation's over...

I've decided that it's time for me to quit playing so much and get to work. Just one more boat ride PPLLEEAASSEE.... Yeah!! We keep saying "Let's go one more time" and we actually do. The last 2 times we've been out to Utah Lake, and other than the fact you feel like your in nothing short of secondary water, it was really calm and we had a great time. (We've decided that maybe it is a good thing that we can't see below the water surface). We are all trying to improve our skills on the wakeskate. It is sooo much fun. Also I have been in sort of a creative mode this past week. I finally hung a vinyl project that has been moved back and forth from the dresser to the bed to under the piano to back to the bed and back to the dresser, and finished a small eye spy quiet toy that has literally been ON my dresser for 3 years. My goal this week was to SEE the dresser top and to actually put the items away that are on it whether it be to file, scrapbook, or just trash stuff. I've also done some crocheting (finished Mitch's afghan I've been working on it for 5 years), sewing, including a baby blanket for a friend, and tried my hand at salsa with tomatoes from the garden. Hey don't think that I'm trying to brag, I have been pretty SEDENTARY the past few months maybe even years. And I really don't have a reason for it.

The Last Summer Bash!!

I can't believe how quickly summer has gone by. We've been trying to pack in every last ounce of fun into the last few weekends before the snow hits. It actually caught us last weekend at the cabin BUT didn't stay for long....WHEWWWWW! At the beginning of summer we (the family) were talking and I asked them what things they wanted to do before summer was over so we could get them all in. Some things suggested were, Yuba Lake for a few nights, Camping in a campground with possibly a tent (that was Nick's), Swissdays including a few nights at the cabin, and hiking up to Mt. Timpanogos cave. We've accomplished everything except Timp which is scheduled in a few weeks. I wish we had a few more weekends. Everyone voted for 1 more boating trip which we are hoping the weather will be warm enough by Saturday to do. I am going to try to put a slide show of some of the fun times. If it doesn't work, I'll have to ask for help.

Can You Say Virgin Blogger??
What the heck am I doing... this blogging stuff looks like fun but I'm having a hard time finding what buttons to push, how to format, and I have to have a password for this too? I thought this would be a much better and more exciting way to journal than writing in the book. I have inquired help from the more experienced, (the children) whom have been more than anxious to get me started in this effort. So... If this is the right place to post and if I've done it right, I will add more for sure.