Why White Christmas' are overrated.

Growing up in Arizona I didn't see a lot of White Christmas'. Usually it'd be a little chilly but there were only a handful of actual snow-filled Christmas'. So we usually were able to enjoy our Christmas gifts in the beautiful weather. Now that we're in California our boys are able to experience the joys of a non-White Christmas. =)

These were the gifts from Nama and Pa. After naps we all headed over to the park near our house so they could ride their bikes.

Joel was a natural!

Vance wasn't so much a natural.
Luckily Pa would haul, I mean help him to the top of the hill.

That's a Niner

Thousands of working hours

Hundreds of dates
Countless Laughs
A few tears
10 Jobs
7 Homes
4 States
2 Kids
9 Years of Marriage

Because being social isn't a high priority for Tj most people don't get to know him as well as I do. They don't see the extent of his wit or intelligence. They don't get to see the way as soon as a hurdle is placed in front of him he immediately begins to find a way to get over it. And most people don't get to see him laugh so hard that he cries. But even with the glimpse that most people see they are drawn to him. And because I do see all of these characteristics-and more- I feel most fortunate that I've been married to him for nine years. Not only is he a wonderful father, an excellent provider and defender of our family and a loving husband but he's also just a good man. So here's to another nine years, and nine more after that and nine more after that!

My Hero.

Photo credits: Stephanie Wolf of Stephanie Wolf Photography.

Christmas Letter 2010.

Click on picture to see full size.

Fun with Nama!

Our trip to Idaho (almost an entire month!!) is winding down. Nama has to work tomorrow so this was our final day full day with Nama. So of course we packed in as many things from our "To Do" list today.

It started with (cheater) Ginger Bread houses. (And please excuse the skeletons aka my shirtless children. What I wouldn't do to have their metabolism.)

Getting started.

The base is completed on Vance's.

Nama helping Joel.

Decorating commences.

Vance hamming it up.

Vance's finished product.

Joel's masterpiece.

After gorging on junk it was off to take early naps. Then we had a late lunch at Olive Garden. (Yes we came all the way to Idaho to eat at Olive Garden. But it was yummy! lol) After some errands we took the boys to "Megamind" for a dinner of candy, pop and popcorn. Yes, I'm pretty sure that I'm not getting the mother-of-the-year-nutritional-rock-star award but it was a fun day. Then we raced home for peanut butter and honey before sending them off to bed. I'm sure I'll pay for this tomorrow.

Fun with Pa!

The last couple weeks Pa has been working from home. This has been such a HUGE blessing because he travels about 90% of the time for his job. So the fact that he just HAPPENED to be home the weeks we've been visiting- especially since he was scheduled to be traveling- has truly been a tender mercy. Of course the boys have been thrilled to have Pa around. Here's some of the fun!

Helping Pa with the Christmas lights for the house.

Roping Pa the Steer.

More Steer roping.

After this roping there was also quit a bit of sled surfing around the backyard. Now if you notice there was no snow. But this did not stop Pa or the boys- and later the cousins and Uncle Jay. After it got dark and we had dinner there was also a marshmallow roast because Joel gave Pa "the eyes" when it was suggested we just have rice crispy treats and ditch the fire idea. No wonder the boys absolutely adore their Pa.

Hallelujah! and Garden Lights

So my blog got lost in cyberland for a bit after my google profile was hacked into. I was literally so sick when I thought it was gone forever. This has been our family journal since I was pregnant with Joel! That's a lot of history to vanish. So now I need to download this so I don't ever have to worry about that again. But if you had tried to check this recently and received an error message that is what happened. So Hallelujah it's back!

Friday night we went with our cousins to the Garden A Glow event here. It was chilly but luckily it stopped raining and we were able to enjoy all the lights and a fun night with family. We then went back home and warmed up with delicious pizza.

Joel, Traye, McKinley, Bergan and Vance
overlooking lights and garden.

Mommy and her monkeys.
Don't you love the silly faces?!

Nama and Vance.

Joel and little Lucas.

Sledding Part II

First thing this morning Pa had the great idea to go get the cousins and have a sledding morning. So we scarfed down breakfast and bundled up for about an hour or so worth of sledding.

The cast: Joel, Vance, Bergan, McKinley and Traye

Pa the original ski-lift.

Vance with Bergan and McKinley

Joel with Bergan and McKinley

Traye and Vance

An overview of the ride.

Building the ramp.

Traye catching some air.

Bergan getting ready to catch air.

Joel making snow angels.

Vance making snow angels with some assistance from Pa.

Sledding in a winter wonder land!

So after a few days snow free the white stuff started coming down about yesterday afternoon and fell all night and all morning. We woke up to a fairly thick blanket of snow. So with the insistence of Nama and Pa we suited up and headed for a small hill near their house. Pa had gotten some small sleds and we were excited to try them out. Pa also had the great idea to tie rope around the handles to pull the boys to the hill. Talk about getting there in style. Once we got there we were a bit interested to see how the boys would take to the snow hill. They LOVED it. If they had proper snow coats and boots I'm fairly certain they would have stayed out there all day! We had to come back because Nama and Pa both had work to do but it was a fun morning.

Joel being hauled to the hill.

Vance being hauled around.

Joel, Molly and the sled.

Group shot!

Joel loves the snow!

Vance loves the snow too!

Vance with Nama and Pa.

Vance going down with Nama.

Joel coming to a stop.

Vance getting ready to go down.

We couldn't believe how much snow there was. The schools around Nama and Pa's neighborhood were all closed. We're looking forward to our cousins coming over this afternoon (maybe!!!) and going sledding again!

An Idaho Thanksgiving

We spent Thanksgiving with the Berg side of the family (that would be Tj's mom's family). His sweet Aunt Becky got suckered into not only hosting Thanksgiving dinner but also housing about 10 extra people. It was close quarters but there's a reason that everyone vies for a spot at Becky's house and that's because she and Steve are the best hosts! Her house has all the fun toys and chaos is practically a requirement in order to be a guest. We rearranged their furniture, kicked their kids out of their beds and ate their food and played video games until all hours of the day and night. Did I mention she's also like four months pregnant- yes, she's practically a saint! So without further ado here's our Thanksgiving in photos.

There were good looking guys,

even better looking gals,

little boys with guns,
(Joel is second guessing his choice in comrades here)

a little guitar playing,

and of course Santa!

Here's Vance and Uncle Steve
(Vance looks like he had one too
many glasses of the lemonade, lol)

The Mohawk and the Reverse Mohawk

And Vance's bum.
(So Pa had the camera and Vance bends over and says,
"Take a picture of my bum!"
So Pa obliged.)

The boys on the 4-wheeler with Dad.

And a shot documenting Joel's first tubing experience.

Of course there was the traditional ham, turkey, potatoes, pies, stuffing, etc, etc, etc. But these were the true memories. It's always fun getting together with family for the holidays and this was no exception. In no time at all Tj was flying home to go back to work and we were gearing up for another 2 1/2 weeks of REAL winter.......