Christmas Eve 2013

For Christmas Eve this year, we had our good friends the Abbotts over. We had a lovely dinner of French Dip Sandwiches and then reenacted the Nativity. 

Troy was our wise man. 

 Rex was very adamant that he would be Mary. So, we let him. Tyler was Joseph. They make a cute couple. 

 Of course Annemarie was Baby Jesus. 

 Brittany and I played the Angels. 

 Ethan and Abraham were our lovely Shepherds. 

 Our little Nativity. 

 After we finished we opened our Christmas pajamas. My kids all got Spiderman jammies and the Abbott's were Batman! 

 I love this picture of these 2 Super heroes! 

 I searched long and hard for some Spider girl pajamas for Annemarie. When I couldn't find any, I tried to just find 3 mo size Spiderman pajamas. I couldn't find any of those either. I was at a loss...then I remembered these that Ken had found on clearance after Halloween. Hot pink spiders.....PERFECT!!

It was a wonderful night. With family far away, it is nice to have friends who will share our traditions with us instead!

Just another day...

Here are a few random pictures from our Christmas break. 

Annemarie ready for church the Sunday before Christmas. She came home in footie jams after blowing out during Relief Society.

 Rex modeling Ken's birthday present from my mom.

 And Abraham joining in with a hat she made him a few years ago.

 And Tyler, being Tyler. A puppy in his hands and a smile on his face, pretty much sums the kid up!

Just a Walk in December

We've had some crazy nice days of weather this winter. We took advantage one day and went for a walk as a family.

 Annemarie got mad at Dad for taking so many pictures. 

 See Rexy's pointer finger? He's trying to give a thumb's up. Totally cute.

I'll take all the 70 degree winter weather days I can get!!

Toys

I often find Annemarie covered in toys. Literally, covered. Those brothers just may love her to death one of these days. 

Happy 40th Birthday to Ken!!!

Ken celebrated his 40th birthday on Friday the 13th and who doesn't want to have their 40th  birthday on Friday the 13th?? We surprised him and had all 3 of his siblings fly out for the weekend! I was thrilled that I kept the surprise in tact and he had no idea until they showed up. It was such a fun weekend and we loved every minute!

 The kids loved their aunts and uncles. We were so glad they could spend some quality time with them.

 The kids couldn't leave Uncle Kale alone. They loved wrestling and playing with him. That night after he had left Rex told me he didn't feel good. When I asked what was wrong he said he was sad. When I asked why he replied, "Because he left me." So cute. 

 We took a day trip up to the chapel at Duke University. It was pouring rain, but we still had fun. 

 There may have been a few shenanigans. 

Happy Birthday Ken! You are the best husband and father we could ask for. 

Despair

A picture is worth a thousand words...

Putting up the Tree

One of our favorite traditions is putting up the Christmas tree the day after Thanksgiving. Top it off with eggnog and cookies and it is the perfect night!