Pretzels, Christmas Parties and SNOW, GLORIOUS Snow!!

Now I know that it is past Christmas already, but I am a little behind so bear with me!

One of my favorite traditions has been making Christmas goodies with my family so I decided it was time to have to kids get in on it. After school one day we got the almond bark, sprinkles and pretzels out and started having a lot of fun! Luke and Gabby really got into it, but Lily decided that she just wanted to eat everything we were making so she was exiled to a chair out of reach.
Gabby's favorite part was putting the sprinkles on... and boy did she!! There were a few that we definitely more sprinkles then pretzel or chocolate!

Luke was a little perfectionist! (Again, I have NO idea where he gets that from!!;)) He concentrated so well and got just the right amount of everything on each pretzel, it was so cute to watch!

Don't they look appetizing?!

On the 12th we had a ward Christmas party and we asked to come decorate a table for 8. I had limited supplies, but thanks to my wonderful Grandma I had some beautiful China that I rarely get to use. I decided to show it off for this occasion, and I must say I think our little table turned out pretty darn cute! (Especially with the cute little blondie sitting there!)
The primary kids did a little presentation about the birth of Christ. Luke was stuck behind that very large star so i couldn't ever get a good picture of him, and Gabby is in black next to the sheep.

Gabby was the only one of the kids that wanted to sit on Santa's lap! Luke said he saw Santa at school and already told him what he wanted so there was no reason to do it again, and Lily was just scared.

On the 19th we had a WONDERFUL snow storm! I woke up to more snow then I thought was possible here in West Virginia, it was AWESOME!! We had been over at a friends house and when we tried to come home we got stuck in our own driveway!! Nate and a few neighbors had to get the shovels out and dig us all out! I LOVED it! (if you can't tell, I really like snow!)

The kids and I took advantage of the snow while the shoveling was going on and built a snowman! I was pretty proud of it considering I had no help.

After the shoveling was done, Nate decided to make a ramp on our front lawn since it is sloped already and there was extra snow there from the road. The kids LOVED it! We hadn't been sledding in a few years so this was prefect!

This, to me, is what it is all about!

Lily was a little apprehensive about the snow and everything so I made her a piece of toast and then life was just chill. She never even flinched the whole ride down, she just kept eating that piece of toast.

Then on Sunday last week we went over to our second home, Stan, DeNae, and Tia's, for a Christmas party of sorts. We all exchanged gifts and had a great time together! We love these guys!!

I had to post this picture of Lily and Leah for two reasons. One because they are so cute together and you have never seen such cute little girls before; and two because I wanted to show the dress that I made for Leah off! I was going to make some for my girls too, but never got around to it. However I LOVE the way Leah's turned out and she is such a beautiful little girl!

We are so blessed and have had a wonderful holiday season!

This was a long post, I know, and if you are still reading just know I cut out a lot of pictures and condensed as much as possible so I can post about Christmas soon and not be behind anymore!!

Gratitude

This is going to be a little more personal then I have been before in my posts but I really feel like I need to say this, today. There have been and continue to be times in my life when I am compelled to be humble; and then comes the overwhelming gratitude for what is learned during these times. It has been a rough go these past few months, in more ways then one...or even two or three.... . I know that these times are for growth and learning. However I am not even close to being perfect, and as such I seem to "forget" that these times are meant for that. It is easy for me to get angry, frustrated or even just sad about the things that are going on that I have no control over. I tend to be somewhat of a control "freak" and so this is particularly difficult for me. I always know that the Lord is directing my life. I always know that he is mindful of my needs. I always know that he loves my family and myself. I always know, but I don't always "know". It is during these times that the Lord decides to show me. I am so very grateful that he hasn't given up on me yet. I am so grateful that he truly does love me and has a specific plan for me; and not just me but everyone. Yes, Everyone. I have been blessed more then I could ever express. There have been a few people through which the Lord has chosen to "show" me some of these things. Angels here on earth, sent to help me and my family. These people have done so much for us in ways that I would have never dreamed were possible. I honestly can't even begin to thank them for their kindness and generosity. I don't even know where we would be without these people. I want to write each one of their names on here so they know I am talking about them, but I don't feel that is appropriate. But I would hope they know who they are, and there are a few. Really truly they have lightened our load and blessed us more then they know. Things are still rough, and will continue to be in certain areas, but at least I have a few less worries and that makes a whole lot of difference. So I want to say thank you, I love you and I can't ever thank you enough! Also I will keep praying for miracles in the other areas, because I have been "shown" by the Lord that miracles have not ceased nor will they. Just hold on.

Gingerbread House

Last weekend, when we were at Wal Mart waiting for Julie's plane to land, Luke BEGGED for a gingerbread house kit to make. We usually do this on a family night, but since Julie had caught the red eye and needed some sleep and the kids had been so good during our really long trip to Charleston, we decided to put it together that afternoon. We have done one of these every year since Luke was two and I love doing it every year! They get so excited and they do a really good job! This year the kids looked through the instructions and found a picture that they wanted to replicate. So Nate took control of the frosting and the kids the candy.

Of course Gabby and Lily had a hard time putting the candy ON the house instead of IN their mouths!!

She just chilled on the chair most of the time eating snacks. Trust me, it was better this way!!

The finished house, I think they did a pretty good job!

What a good looking family I have!

Juicy!!

It is amazing what a new month can bring!!! (Ok I know we are pretty far into the new month, but I have had a few things on my plate to keep me from blogging so humor me!!) The month of December has started off with a lot of fun, excitement and surprises for our little family!! First off I got a phone call one morning from my Julie, in Utah, asking how far Charleston was from where we are because she just found a flight for super cheap and she was buying it!! And the best part?!?! She was coming in THAT Saturday!!! Only 5 days away!!! We decided to keep it a secret from the kids and surprise them, which almost didn't work. We got up Saturday morning to go to the airport, and what to our wondering eyes should appear, but a blanket of snow covering far and near!! We were super surprised because we had had LOTS of rain for the last few weeks and it never got cold enough for snow... until now!! I was soooo excited, two of my favorite things in ONE day!! So we loaded up, after Nate got home from delivering a baby with his doc, and headed to Charleston telling the kids that we had some errands to run. I was super excited and was admiring the snow that was continuing to come down! It was beautiful. We drive up at the airport right on time, her plane should have landed and she should be just getting her bags. One problem, I hadn't been able to get a hold of her yet. So we are sitting out front and the kids are asking why in the world we are sitting in front of the airport. Nate smoothly replies that he must have made a wrong turn and we are going to try to figure it out. We wait and we wait. Finally I ask Nate to go ask someone, and yup the plane was delayed. Apparently the snow was not great for plane visibility and they had to fly to Cincinnati to refuel as they were low after circling Charleston for 30 min. We decided to go get some lunch. In the meantime Julie landed in Ohio and called to say they were going to be another 2 hours! So we went looking around Charleston and then to Wal Mart, I know we are so creative. Finally we went back to the airport and the kids were a little annoyed now. How is it we were BACK at the airport mom and dad?! I said, well we just wanted to drive by and see if we knew anybody. And at that moment Julie walked out! It was prefect, Luke and Gabby practically jumped from their seats to get to her! It was great!!

We had a really fun weekend! It was so nice to have her here and the kids LOVED it!! Lily affectionately decided Julie's name was to be "Juicy". After all we have a Lukey, Gabby, Daddy and Mommy, so naturally Julie needed a "y" at the end of her name! (She has a way of changing peoples names to suit her fancy... i.e. Dodu ;)...)

Gabby and Lily with their Juicy

The beautiful snow that almost kept Julie from landing!

I LOVE the snow, too bad it was almost all melted by the time we got home and we never got to play in it! I am hoping it will snow again soon, and LOTS!!

Thanks again Julie for the super fun weekend, and for all you do for us!! We miss you!!

Thanksgiving!!!

This year was a GREAT Thanksgiving!!

First off, these pictures are not the greatest because for some reason no one wanted me to take pictures of them. So every picture that I took was a quick snapshot and therefore really not great quality. However it is about the fun that we had so I will have to allow myself to not feel bad that I am not as good as a holiday picture taker as my Grandma de Hoyos. (She ALWAYS manages to get great photos, and photos of EVERYONE. Which is impressive as she has 12 children plus all their kids and their kids' kids.)

Thanksgiving, to me, means family. For the longest time we would go over to my grandparents house and have Thanksgiving dinner. It was some of my fondest childhood memories; all the cousins, aunts and uncles, laughing, eating and having fun. My grandparents, however, went on a few missions and had to stop the tradition. As a result Thanksgiving moved to my parents house. As we, the older kids, got married and had kids of our own, this also became a cherished tradition. Then we moved. No more family, no more family get togethers and no more family Thanksgiving Dinner... We have made due, eating with friends and ward members. We have had fun. But this year, this year was different. This year it felt almost like home, it felt almost like we were a family. It was so fun and soooo needed. I can't even describe to you how wonderful it was, I really felt like I was at one of the Thanksgivings I have grown up loving.

DeNae and Stan graciously invited us to come spend the weekend at their house. Sure we only live 30 minutes down the road, but that is a lot of gas when we are getting together everyday during the break! They also had the Smith's down from Indiana, who we had met before but now absolutely love!! And the day after Thanksgiving they had a friend and her kids come from DC. Needless to say, they had PACKED house, but it was so much fun!!! Poor Stan had to work everyday of the break, including turkey day, but he got off early enough to still enjoy some festivities. Nate went in the morning with Gordon McLemore to play football with some other guys from his ward, while the women folk stayed at home and prepared. He had fun, even though he broke his finger!!

I love all the preparing and baking, sure it is chaotic and a little stressful, but it is so worth it! We made 2 turkeys (thanks to Lily I was up at 4 am to put one in the oven) 12 layer jello, 24 hour salad, raspberry ribbon salad, sweet potato casserole, etc, etc, you get the idea. We wanted to make sure everyone had their traditional dishes. A new addition to the traditions was Chisa's homemade pot stickers. (She is Japanese and a fantastic cook!!) We are so glad the McLemore's joined us!! Again, the ladies didn't want photos taken but I tend to ignore so here are a few of prep time.

Ana, DeNae and Tia

Luke and Caden playing while waiting

Kaliah, Gabby and Matty

After football, the men decided that it was a good time to put up chair rail and the stuff around the base (yes that is the technical term...). Men

Leah and KaliahI love you DeNae!!!Thank you Chisa for posing and for the tremendous work of making all those pot stickers!!Some of the spread, it was soooo good! PIES!! Tia made them all, chocolate, lemon meringue, apple, berry and pumpkin!!Getting the kids situated to start eatingYes this is my best adult picture and it isn't even a complete one! We had Ana and Silas, Chisa and Gordon, Stan and DeNae and Nate and me. (Plus all the kids :)!!)Stan wanted to pose for a picture. What a loving husband! Tia pretending to give baby Koyo a bite of pie. (Chisa doesn't know;)!) P.S. Is he not one of the cutest babies ever?! After all the fun everyone was tuckered out! The kids actually did REALLY well sleeping all together in the play room!! (Is there someone here that doesn't belong??!)

It was really a great Thanksgiving. I am so grateful to have been able to have these great people as my family this year! I am really blessed.

Thankful

Even though Thanksgiving was a few days ago I wanted to make sure I expressed my gratitude. It is important to be thankful always, but especially nice that we are reminded once a year to express it a little more. I am thankful for many things:

Family

Friends

A place to live

Food

Love

The Gospel

People who care

Health (for my loved ones and myself)

The Atonement

Technology (so I can keep in touch with those I love)

The beauty all around us

Seasons

Working vehicles

Friends

(did I mention this one already? Well they are especially important to me this year as they are filling in for my family and really doing a great job of taking care of us!!!)I really can't even begin to express my gratitude for them but this is a start. There are many people, family and friends, who know who they are, that are special to me. I really don't think I would be who I am today without those people. Even the ones that I have only recently become acquainted with. I feel overwhelmed with all that the Lord has seen fit to bless me with, and at the very top of that long, long list are these people:

The LOVE of my life

The absolute best boy in the world!!!

The cutest little princess there ever was,

And the sweetest little curly haired bug there ever was!!

I thank the Lord each day for my beautiful and wonderful family, I am so blessed to be a part of it. I miss the rest of that wonderful family, but am grateful to have these gems with me always! Happy Thanksgiving!!

NANA!!!

A few weeks ago my mom was able to come out and visit us! It was sooo nice to have family come, especially when we could actually go out and have fun and not just because I had a baby!! We were only sad that the rest of the family couldn't come! (hint, hint..) While she was here we went to Luke's field trip, watched Gabby dance, went to the library and just had fun. The kids had an absolute ball the whole time she was here, and I have to admit so did I!! I love my mom and was so glad that the kids were able to have some quality time with her. It wasn't long enough, it never is, but we were able to do some fun things and above all just enjoy each others company. While she was here she got us our Christmas present, a chest freezer, and the kids decided that the box made a great fort! Nate cut windows and doors in it and it has continued to provide hours of entertainment. (Thanks again mom and dad!!) I am sad she is gone but I am grateful for the time we had. It was nice to have an extra set of hands, have someone to stay home with sleeping babies while I took or picked up Luke from school. It was nice to have someone to talk to that is above the age of 7 and nice to have someone to occupy my time when Nate is gone. Thanks mom for the fun time and for taking time off of work to visit with us!

BIG Girl!!

My baby is not a baby anymore!!! She has official given up her Binky now! It has been about 2 weeks now and she hasn't asked for it once! I just stopped offering it to her (after we cut off all the tips - thanks Darlene for the idea!!:) )And she didn't even seem to notice! Now I can't get her to be quiet and she doesn't sleep at night, but hey baby steps!! She has also decided that she wants to sit on the potty, ALL THE TIME, but not do anything on it. She did pee once, but that hasn't reoccurred. I can't believe how big she is getting, I have no little baby anymore!

Family Photos

This is my disclaimer: I know these aren't the greatest, since I took them using a timer, had a VERY uncooperative 2 year old and wind and mud to deal with and I don't have photo shop like everyone else, but these are our family photos for this year. One day I will be able to afford to get pictures taken and/or get photo shop where I can make things look really cool and also maybe by then I can learn to take better pictures. But until then this is what I have and I am not too ashamed by the results. The leaves were beautiful and I am glad that the kids worked with us at least as well as they did. We had to bribe them with candy, but hey you gotta do what ya gotta do!!

Which one is the better picture out of these 3? I would like some opinions, please :).

Lily just wouldn't smile. She didn't even want to look at the camera most of the time. I guess part of the problem was that we went to the park to take the pictures. Ya, not too smart!!

Luke was having a VERY photogenic day and I just can't decide which picture of him is the best!! I have maybe 15 that are all really good. I picked some of my favorites to share, but not necessarily the bests.

Gabby, who normally shines in front of the camera, was having an off day. This was really the only good one I got. But she is adorable anyways so it doesn't really matter.

We were able to get Lily to smile about 3 times and I caught one, but she wouldn't look at me. It is so her though!

In the past I haven't take many pictures of Nate and myself so I am making an effort to change that. I think we are a pretty good looking couple, if I do say so myself! Then there was the attempt to take a picture of all three kids together. That was a disaster. I really didn't love any of the pictures that we got, but this one isn't too bad. All in all it was a lot of fun and I love having picture of my little family! Boy am I lucky to have these guys in my life!!