December

December in a nutshell: fun and busy. We had most of our shopping done really early this year and we wanted to spend the month doing fun, memorable things as a family. We took the kids to the Festival of Trees (which they loved), went to the lights at Thanksgiving Point and fed the reindeer, and did lots of Christmas crafts at home. I got to help at Emily's Polar Express Day in kindergarten, which was so cute! Here she is with our next door neighbor Reese. They are in the same class at school (that may have something to do with me crying in the principals office when I was 9 months pregnant about how Emily needed a really sweet teacher and a friend she knew in the class). But it worked out wonderfully because they are inseparable at school and have both helped each other to come out of their shells and it has been so fun to see. John got to watch the girls Christmas singing program at school (I watched via video camera after preschool) and it was adorable. I was sad to miss it.

We did our traditional Gingerbread houses at Grandma's houses which the kids LOVE. It wasn't quite the same without Uncle Brenton and his crazy Gingerbread designs though--we sure miss him. The girls also went to a cousins sleepover at Grandma's house and had a blast. It was super for us parents too cause we got most of Christmas wrapped and organized while the little peekers were gone for the night. We love that tradition!

John took several days off this year and it was so nice to have him home and have a break from the regular schedule and stress. The kids loved going sledding and playing outside with dad. It was especially nice because I haven't felt like the funnest mom lately. It's really hard to take the kids to do much outside with a 4 month in tow so we were very behind on our sledding and snow man building this year.

John got to go to the Jazz game with his friend Dane. They were in a box suite and enjoyed their up close view of the game, tickets courtesy of a guy who was trying to sell them something. :) They looked over and could see President Monson sitting two boxes over. Pretty cool. John's got all sorts of claims to fame now.

The Bond

Emily has this special little bond with Matson that's so special. She is happiest when she's cuddling this little guy. The first thing she does when she gets up is to come in and hold Matson and get him smiling at her. They are so content together. She is always telling him "you are the cutest baby their ever was". It always makes me smile because I tell her that it's like she's looking in the mirror. Their baby pictures look so much alike and he totally reminds of Emily as a baby..... the same bald little head, same rashy skin and head, same mannerisms, same super happy baby that's always grinning at everyone. Guess that's why they adore each other so much and it sure is sweet.

10 Years

John and I also celebrated our 10 year anniversary in December. I really can't believe we've been married for a DECADE. Sometimes it feels like we've only been married a few years and other times it feels like forever. It's weird. All I know is that time is flying by way too fast and every year passes faster.

I was a little sad that we weren't able to go away or do something fun for this big anniversary. But we weren't in a position to do that right now and that was okay (after I came to terms with it). We feel grateful for all that we have done and experienced in these 10 years together. I mean 4 kids, 2 jobs, 3 moves, and 2 houses isn't bad for a ten year stretch!

I can honestly say that on our wedding day I never imagined this is where we'd be 10 years later. I guess I just couldn't see that far at that point. I wanted a big family but I certainly couldn't imagine 4 little people that we'd be responsible for. As we look back I'm grateful for the happy, sad, good, and bad times we've been through and where we are today.

Merry Christmas 2010

Seasonal Chic 2010 Christmas 5x7 folded card

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November

Here I am catching up on the highlights of November.... The most exciting news of the month is that Carter is binky free! It only took us until he was 2.5 years to get up the courage to get rid of it, but we finally did it! It got lost one day and when I found it I chucked it in the garbage so I wouldn't be able to give it to him ever again. He has adjusted amazingly well and only asked for it for one day and then got over it. Pretty amazing if you know how addicted he was to it! And it is a great relief to not have him whining and crying for his binky 24 hours a day.

Carter has decided that Matson is pretty cool now that he's more interactive. He greets him after every nap (no matter how late at night it is) with a high pitched sing song "Good Morning Matson. Did you sleep good?" He copies everything we say to the baby and makes us realize how ridiculous we must sound. :) He also likes to poke him and tell him how much he loves him. I'm coming to realize that gentle and a 2 year old boy don't go together so I'm trying to adapt.

Matson enjoyed his first Thanksgiving by sleeping through most of it.

He has become very into his toys. He likes to bat at his toys and talk to them. Sometimes he gets so excited that he lets out a giggle as he talks to his doggy toy. It's pretty adorable!

Kelsie is working on persuasive writing at school. She is currently writing a letter to me to convince me of all the reasons she should get an Easy Bake Oven for Christmas. She tells me her latest reason every day when she comes home from school. I saw her letter when I was helping in her class. It was quiet persuasive and well written, but I'm still not convinced. I think the problem is me...not the writer. She has been practicing the piano a lot to prepare for her first piano recital which she is very excited about. Her 3rd grade class went to see "Knuffle Bunny" which was on tour from the Kennedy Center in D.C. It was a fun experience for her.

This is Emily on Thanksgiving and the last time I saw her with that much color. She has had 2 bouts of Strep Throat in the last 2 weeks and has been so sick. The doctor thinks she probably breeds strep since she's had it 4 times in the last year and may need her tonsils out, but we're not thinking about that yet. She cried for an hour when I told her she couldn't go to school. She loves it so much! I had no idea a kid could love school this much but it sure is nice.

The hardest part of being sick has been not being able to hold her baby brother, and that about drove her crazy. She can't get enough of him. The nice thing (for me at least) has being able to spend some 1-1 time with her while she recovered. She is quite a talker if you get her alone. I've learned more about her. She was telling me about a friend on the bus that was feeling sad and left out. She was very upset about it and told me "I'd rather be the one that is left out then see one of my friends be left out." She was so sincere. How sweet is that?

Student of the Week

Emily was given the award of Student of the Week at her school.

This is why her kindergarten teacher said she was chosen:

She is such a hard worker. Emily always does her work neatly. She works quickly and quietly. She is a great friend. She is wonderful in writing and is a great reader! Her smile always brightens my day. :)

We are so proud of Emily. When she came home she was SO excited about her award but didn't really know why she'd gotten it. She was just excited to have her name called over the intercom to come to the office. First she told me her name was picked from a drawing and then she said maybe it was because she's always nice to everyone in the class. When I explained the award to her and read what her teacher wrote she was so happy and proud.

And the best part for the parents was that she got a free meal at Cafe Rio. Pretty awesome since it's our favorite restaurant ever. Hopefully it won't confuse the kids too much when they find out they have real kids meal there...not just free kids quesadillas. :)

Shutterfly Christmas Cards

One of my favorite Christmas activities is sending out Christmas greeting cards each year. Mostly because I love receiving Christmas cards from family and friends from all over and getting a little update on people I haven't heard from since last year. This year I was seriously considering opting out on the Christmas cards UNTIL I saw Shutterfly's new holiday card collection. I absolutely love their cards and I'm so excited to try something a little different this year. They have lots of new, modern designs that are so cute. Here is one of my favorites:

The folded greeting cards were the ones I plan to use. They have the traditional picture on the outside. But inside they have room to write out your message, complete with pictures to go along with it. I think this will be an easier way to send out a message along with the photo cards. Here is one example:

To see more examples of their Christmas cards go to:

http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/christmas-cards

Shutterfly has lots of other photo gifts you should check out. I have used their site to make photo calendars and photo books. I am always impressed by the products I get from Shutterfly. Their products are very professional and high quality. The pictures are crisp and clear.

Here is a link to their photo calendars: http://www.shutterfly.com/calendars

If you are a fellow blogger and are interested in blogging about Shutterfly's Christmas greeting cards you can receive free Christmas cards!