Happy New Year!

This year for New Year's Freddy* and I thought it would be fun to let the girls stay up until midnight to experience New Year's celebrating. We spent the day at OMSI and came home to play games, eat Chex mix and watch movies until midnight. The girls did awesome! Freddy teased that whoever fell asleep first would find their underwear in the freezer, but no one fell asleep! They all stayed awake, in fairly decent moods, might I add. Maybe we already had such messed up sleep schedules that it didn't phase them. Natalie was very interested and confused about the whole "New Year" thing. The concept of months and years is hard to grasp when even a week seems like a long time. (o: No matter how we tried to explain it, she still didn't get it, but soon she decided she didn't care and any excuse for a party is good enough for her. (o: When the magical hour arrived, we banged pots, shot confetti poppers and watched the illegal fireworks someone behind us shot off. (o: The girls were so proud to have stayed up all the way until the next day and expected to see the sun any minute after midnight. (o: They all slept good that night and I think we woke up around 10 a.m. the next day! A great way to start the new year!
Here's a few photos from our exciting Yahtzee game!

The game of Yahtzee takes great concentration!

Some R&R at Home

I was so thankful this year to manage getting the girls in matching Christmas dresses without spending a dime. With the weather making shopping difficult and some goals to save more $$ this Christmas - it was a blessing to discover that two beautiful hand made dresses that a good friend gave me a few years ago fit Sarah and Natalie. And another dress given to me by another friend matched the color scheme and even had a little jacket for Angela that matched the other two pretty closely. Bonus - one of my Christmas-y dresses is a dark purple velvet, so we all got to be matchy the Sunday after Christmas at church. (Since church was cancelled the Sunday before.) I know it's a little silly, but I love the girls to be matchy for Christmas. It is one of the fun perks of having three little girls. (o:
This year for Christmas break we got daddy home the whole time!! Melvin* and I were so tempted to head to our favorite beach homes again at Bella Beach (we had everything reserved and just had to click one button), but at the last minute, we decided that this year we would stick close to home and play, play, play around here, try to ignore the phone (sorry if we seemed rude) and just be together. No packing, less money and we could get some things done around the house in between all the fun. We had some very fun adventures including ice skating at a place in Sherwood. I wish it was closer because we had so much fun, I'd love to go more often. I felt like a kid again remembering all the youth activities and dates with Melvin* skating in Utah. I was surprised how fast it came back to me. After more than 10 years, I still have good balance! Not grace, but I can stay up!

The girls were very unsure of this at first. The first time around the rink took us about 52 minutes. Not really, but we hugged the wall and it took a very long time. I was very impressed how quickly Sarah and Natalie let go and scooted off on their own. Sarah was quite good by the time we left and had the basic idea, mostly insisting on not holding any hands. Natalie was hilarious. She was as brave as Sarah, but didn't move as cautiously; so she ended up doing some pretty funny twirls and spins before finally falling on her rear. She had one sad, hard fall on her bum, but the rest of the time we all laughed at the very creative ways Natalie went down and nearly brought down the rest of us. Angela took almost the whole time warming up to ice skating and was laughing by the end. She insisted that both hands were holding on to someone the whole time.

The next day, we went swimming (sorry no pics) where Natalie overcame her fear of the waterslide and went down it with, daddy or mommy, 4 times! Sarah went as much as she possibly could and Angela even went down once, but was terrified the whole time. That night we went to the Zoo Lights. We usually see these before Christmas, but the weather kept us from this tradition. It was just as fun afterwards. We loved riding the train, especially Angela, and drinking hot chocolate as we walked through the lights. The picture above is my favorite "scene" of ocean life swimming around. You'll just have to use your imagination!

By the way, most of these outing shots were taken with my new, little camera. I know - Jen got a camera for Christmas?? That's the last thing she needs, right? Actually, I got two. I know - it seems kooky. But I really needed a little camera for those times when a bulky camera is cumbersome and beautiful pictures aren't as necessary as just having something to document memories. The other camera was a total surprise and was one of those bulky, but awesome, cameras. (o: Thanks hon.

Other fun outings for the week included OMSI, a quirky pizza place downtown called Eat Pizza on Burnside that had the best pizza ever, eating out a lot, playing games, watching movies, cleaning up Christmas decorations and sleeping in really late! It was a heavenly week!

One final highlight was our 12th anniversary. For my anniversary gift, Vern* told me I could post this picture of him! (o: Aww, how romantic! (o: Isn't he cute? We had a fabulous dinner date at the Portland City Grill. It's a snazzy restaurant on the 30th floor of a building downtown with fantastic views. I tried sushi, fillet Mignon and most of all enjoyed the time that we had to visit alone! We haven't been on a date since the summer date to Phantom of the Opera! That is so sad! After dinner we went to Barnes and Noble to putz around - one of our favorite things to do when we don't have the kiddos and then got a fancy hot chocolate from Starbucks on the way home. I love our fun dates and am so lucky to be married to my best friend. We have a lot of laughs together and have been blessed with a wonderful life these last 12 years. Wow - how did we get so old????

Snowed In

Well, the unusual snowstorm turned into two weeks of snow, ice, terrible roads and basically a lot of time together in the house, with no where to go. Good thing I am a bit of a home body and so are the girls, so we did just fine hanging out together most of the time. We did, however, go for drives around the neighborhood (chains on, of course) with daddy when he'd get home at night - just to get out of the house. We also went outside to play, walked to visit neighbors, hosted get togethers with friends who were willing to brave the weather and made a lot of good memories. As I write this, the rain has almost completely washed away all the snow, but we will always remember the "Deep Freeze" of 2008.

A few interesting facts (I may be repeating a bit from past posts.)

*We had our first official WHITE CHRISTMAS here in Oregon! Not only was there snow on the ground, but it snowed Christmas Day! Yeah!

*School was cancelled the entire week prior to Christmas vacation.

*I believe the highest snow depth in the two weeks was around 14" with a 1/2" layer of ice somewhere in between from the freezing rain that hit last Saturday night before Christmas.

*We found snow in our attic! We had to get the shop vac in our "Narnia" attic to vaccum snow off the Christmas presents! Apparently, very windy conditions can blow snow up and down the vents in the roof.

*We were very, very lucky/blessed to have power through the whole ordeal.

*The worst road conditions, or most annoying, were when the ice actually started melting. There was a good 6" of ice and tons of slush accumulated on the roads and the gradual melting made ruts and bumps down to the pavement. It was like 4 wheeling on horribly rocky dirt roads.

Here are a few pictures of the week before Christmas...

Twilight discovered a hidden talent! The first few times she played notes she scared herself to death. It was hilarious. Now when she feels a little musical, she'll get up every so often to play a few measures.
I hosted a appetizer Christmas party at my house on Christmas Eve Eve. I was sooo in need of some socializing after 9 days of being stuck in the house. I was so excited to have such a good turnout despite (or maybe because of) the bad weather. I think a lot of other friends were feeling the same way. I had such a fun time - I am so grateful for good friends and neighbors. We had lots of delicious food, lots of laughs and a few people that were brave enough to go to the store got socks for the Christmas sock exchange. It was such a fun night, I think it will be a new Christmas tradition. Thanks to my husband, Earl*, for being a great sport and staying upstairs with the girls. He got to come down and enjoy a few leftovers after for a reward. (o:

Here's a picture of our house in all the snow. The trunk of my rosebush "tree" by the porch is completely covered! Earl* removed huge chunks of ice from the driveway and sidewalk for my Christmas party friends. Some were three feet wide!

One afternoon, the girls and I went to visit my good friend and neighbor, Sue. Above is a picture of Natalie enjoying a snowball she made on the way over. She was enjoying eating it so much, Sue offered her a plate so she could bring it inside and eat. Below is a picture of Sue's little villiage and train she put together. It was so cute!

The girls got the idea to take our swimming boards and "sled" down the slide. It was pretty funny. As you can see below, there was plenty of snow on the slide to make it work. Sarah and Natalie stayed out in the backyard playing for 45 minutes or so - until their feet started hurting. (Their gollashes are not warm at all.) Then I discovered that Natalie hadn't even put on socks when she went out! They all got in a nice warm bath to warm their freezing toes. Angela lasted about 2 minutes in the backyard. It was too hard for her to even walk - the frozen layer of ice made it really tricky. It took me 15 minutes to get her bundled up! Oh well.

On the 22nd, we hosted a friend Christmas craft party and lunch for a few of Sarah and Natalie's friends! This has been a tradition with Sarah's friends the last two years and I thought it was only fair to let Natalie invite a couple friends this year too. Natalie got to have Lydia, Sage and Jayda and Sarah invited Monica and Taylor. (Two other good friends couldn't make it in the bad weather - even Monica, who lives across the street had to get in total snow gear just to walk over!) Their friends are all so cute - we had a fabulous time - 8 girls in all, including Angela - making cards, ornaments, jingle bell jewelry and eating PB & J's. Good times!

Here's another view of the house looking out the front door as people left the party. I couldn't stop taking pictures of it all - it was just so unbelievable!

One afternoon, Angela and Natalie and I made cinnamon rolls. Christmas Eve, Billy Bob* made over 80 cinnamon rolls that we took around to neighbors and home teaching families! Our house smelled so good! This has been a tradition for the last 3 or 4 Christmases. My job is to make the icing and get them wrapped up.

More Playing - The Day After

We continued to play and hang out the day after Christmas, but we did get dressed. Here are some cute pics of the girls in their new clothes and playing with the new toys...

I've been meaning to get a cute picture on the blog of Sarah and Twilight and this one fit the bill. (o:

I LOVE this adorable smile (o:

Glittery Floam was a big hit from grandma.

Angela and her new "laptop"

Sarah had fun with her Lego Chum Bucket. Natalie got Mrs. Puff's Driving School. They kept them up on the counter and played out some hilarious Sponge Bob episodes. Sarah especially got into making up shows. I LOVED eavesdropping and listening to her voices and story lines. She has such a good understanding of the characters that they could actually be SpongeBob episodes! They were quite clever and funny. Above is Sarah's "Intermission" sign when she had to go to the bathroom or something.

Some other fun memories from Christmas and the day-after not pictured ...

Our yummy ham dinner on Christmas day.

Playing Boom Blox, our new Wii game - it is awesome! We played for hours and hours.

Watching Horton Hears a Who, TinkerBell, Narnia and Sound of Music again (we love that show!)

The delicious red, white and green dip from Costco!

Reading manuals for new electronic "toys"

Being together, laughing together and playing together. The girls have gotten along so well during our time off from school. They are quite the little buddies - it's so fun to watch them.

I think I forgot to mention that it actually snowed on Christmas day here - so it was an official white Christmas. Not that it was anything new after two weeks of the stuff! (o:

Ornaments

I got this idea from my friend and fellow-blogger, Heidi. (o: I have a lot of sentimental ornaments and wanted to post a few favorites and why... Believe it or not, this is a condensed number - I had pictures of even more! Sorry if this trip down memory lane is a little of a yawner for everyone, but me! (o:

Each year, the girls pick their own ornament to add to our collection. I encourage them to choose something that represents a memory from the previous year. The above ornament was from the year Sarah turned 4. That was the first year she was able to write her own letter to Santa. I liked the vintage look too - so I encouraged her to pick this one. (o:

One of our first Christmases Mo* and I were married, we bought a set of these little wooden ornaments. I picked them because they reminded me of the ornaments my grandma had on her tree. They're kind of old fashioned looking and I like that.

Sarah and I made this together at the Jackson craft make 'n take last 2007 Christmas.

A fun new addition to our ornament collection this year. Thanks Michelle! (o: Love it.

This one was made by my grandma when she and my grandpa were serving a mission in Nauvoo Illinois. I believe that was the year she knit us all hats too. I think, because they were serving in a church history area, grandma learned this cool ornament making skill using fabric and straight pins as maybe a "pioneer-ish" craft. I love it and the story behind it. Thanks grandma!

I have a group of friends that I made when we first moved to the northwest. We bonded quickly as we helped each other adjust to our new surroundings. This Santa came from an ornament exchange with these good friends a few years ago. I LOVE that the Santa is also a lighthouse - it goes well with a northwest theme.

This was the very first ornament I bought for myself back in college at the U of U bookstore. I hung it proudly this year - my University of Utah ornament. (o:

This large and rather flamboyant ornament always makes me smile. Natalie picked it two years ago - love the feathers. (o: It is still one of her favorites.

I rarely buy ornaments for myself, but this one was too cute to pass out. I love the whimsical look.

An ornament given to Jeb* and I our "first" Christmas (we were married two days after Christmas) This one is very sentimental.

Another fun ornament from an ornament exchange. The friends I mentioned above held these yearly for 3-4 years. Lots of people fought over this one and I won! (o: It's made of metal - sooo cute.

Ahh, another very sentimental one. I got this one back in college from my good friend Kori (we had been good friends in jr. high - attended different high schools and reunited at the U of U in the same sorority! By chance or destiny?) We have both always been HUGE Muppets fans. We even did a memorable number at our Miss Alpha Omega pageant/talent show. Using Miss Piggy and Kermit the Frog puppets, we did a "lip Sync" to "You Don't Bring Me Flowers" (Neil Diamond/Barbara Streisand). We were both crowned Miss AO that night - one of the proudest moments of my life. (o: We had the audience in tears. I think Kori's mom hand painted this adorable Kermit. This is one of my very top favorites.

Fun little homemade ornaments with a picture of little Sarah and baby Natalie. An ornament hand painted by a former co-worker from Franklin Elementary - where I worked during my college years at BYU. Good times. I LOVED that job and my friends there.

I bought this the year we went to Tolovana at Cannon Beach for my mom's side family reunion in 2004. Awesome memories. One year, the little playgroup some friends and I did when Sarah was little - we decided to have a little Christmas party and to make homemade ornaments for each other. (Heidi is was so fun to see the one we made for Zach so many years ago) This one was made by Rebecca. I love the darling little pictures. Sarah is top left. There are four more pics, I think, on the other side. Those were fun times. Thanks Rebecca! (o:

This was the set of ornaments that Angela picked at Fred Meyer. SpongeBob is very fitting for her this year! We love SpongeBob! (o: The snowball fight is also very fitting with all the snow we got this winter.

This giraffe and another clothe lion are some top favorites that I found at the Discovery Channel Store when Sarah and Natalie were itty bitty. It was a year we went to the zoo a lot, so I thought it was fitting.

I bought this TinkerBell ornament at Disneyland two years ago. Again, wonderful memories...

And last but not least a moose ornament for the year that we went to Yellowstone with Sam*'s parents during sabbatical. it has a broken leg so I got it for less than a dollar.