Christmas!

Here goes my last post for 2012. Christmas was awesome this year. I love everything about Christmas, and it's the only time of year I truly love to shop. It was so fun to have Leah home for Christmas this year. Last year we hung her stocking and opened presents for her but it was hard to think of her so far away in a cold orphanage without her family. This year was different, and I think she had a great first Christmas. It was fun to shop for a girl for a change and have some pink on Christmas morning (I'm warming up to pink a little; in limited quantities)!

My parents came over on Christmas Eve, and we had a fun party.  The kids put on a program that included (and this time we did actually video) piano and a poem by Luke, reading the nativity story from the Bible while Ian ad libbed with some pictures, Seth singing Little Elf and a few of his other schools songs, and Leah just being in the mix.   We of course ate a ton and played games.

  

The kids opened their Christmas pjs and posed for the mandatory pictures.  They all loved their slippers.

We told the boys 7 a.m. would be good for Christmas morning.  They were up way before that but tore upstairs on the dot of 7.  Ian and Leah were still out.  We woke Ian up but let Leah sleep in a little.

Ian got lots of dinosaurs and a razor scooter.  He pretends it has a button on it to go fast!

Ninjago legos are a big thing around here.  Luke and Seth both got big sets, electric scooters, and jerseys as their main gifts.  They also got Nerf type bow and arrows which have been a huge hit.  On Christmas Eve morning Luke wrote a letter to Santa asking for a Peyton Manning jersey and football gloves.  Santa managed to come through with the football gloves, but I assured him Santa's sleigh was already locked and loaded with the jersey he had previously chosen!  He loves it though.

 Leah got a little kitchen that is so cute and all the food and dishes to go with it.  I got Ian a little chef outfit because I figure he'll play with it too and let's face it—it's really pink.  I thought it might send Jer over the edge if Ian was fighting Leah for the pink oven mitt!  So far he hasn't given it a second look since Christmas morning.

    
I just had to throw this in because Leah's doing her "China squat."  I've never seen a kid that can squat like she can.  We did on the other hand see lots of Chinese women doing this when we were there—maybe it's in the genes.  She can deep squat up and down all day.  I love this record player.  I had one just like it when I was a kid and Fisher Price brought it back this year.

After a huge breakfast complete with "fizzy juice" we spent the rest of the day with Jer's family.  The boys all sported their jerseys and we ate, played, and of course got more gifts.  Luke and K'Lee each got a real bow, and they were both so excited about it.

Cid made each family a book of pictures from Disneyland.

It's always bittersweet when Christmas is over.  Even though it's busy I love this time of year when you get together with family, friends, and neighbors that you don't see as much as you probably should.  I love Christmas lights and decorations, listening to Christmas music, and getting Christmas cards.  The kids had a great experience this year helping us with Secret Santa.  Luke even has wounds to show for it. When they were running away from the door in the dark he ate it and went down hard on the sidewalk which I'm sure he'll never forget.  It's always sad packing stuff away but I'm sure next year will be here before I know it.  Jer completely surprised me and took me to Provo during December to a Mindy Gledhill concert.  I had no idea where we were going, and it was so awesome.  She sang her regular songs plus Christmas music.  Her song "All About Your Heart" has become "Leah's song" in our family, and I'll admit it gave me a little tear in my eye to hear her sing it live.  She also sang "Hourglass" which is a song about her own kids and how life is like an hourglass with time passing so quickly.  I know I don't always feel that way, but it's so true.  I am so grateful for my kids ages 8, 5, 3, and 2 and all the love they give me.  2012 was beyond amazing for us with a trip to China and Leah's addition to our family.  I am so grateful for my family, the gospel, the blessings of the temple, and of course the Savior's love at this time of year.  We are truly blessed.  2012—that's a wrap!

December Goings On

When I go nearly a month without blogging, especially a month like December, then I'm so behind I can't really do any event justice.  This post is just tons of pics of things we did during this busy, crazy month!  I guess it's better than nothing.  The next two weeks are going to be insanely busy so I'm just trying to get December on here so I can slurp it into a blog book.  Sadly I'm still working on the 2011 blog book.  It's the worst to get so behind!

 This little snowman with the babies under it that lights and sings was Leah's nemesis at first and then it became her favorite.

 The kids decorated big gingerbread men this year.  Leah just licked or ate off every topping we gave her for hers.  The kids also tried to eat them even though they were rock hard.  On Christmas Eve we made gingerbread cookies that were actually edible!

 Seth rearranged every nativity in our house so they were like this with all the characters really close.  He said that "everyone should be gathered around the baby Jesus."  I thought that was pretty sweet.

 Seth wanted so badly to make sugar cookies, and we finally got around to it.  I feel bad I don't do it more often because he loves to help so much.  He just kept saying how fun it was.  He got his own rolling pin for Christmas.

 Ian just showed up in time to frost and sprinkle.

 Seth had his kindergarten program and my picture taking was an epic fail.  Sorry Seth I did auto everything and the camera's focused on the guy next to you!  I also thought I took a bunch of video, but it turns out I didn't.  Anyhow Seth was so excited for this, and he sang his little heart out.  So cute!  This program was only a few days after that school shooting in Connecticut, and I couldn't help but think about all those poor families of kids Seth's age who are now missing their own kids.  So sad.

  

My slippers were a hot item around here for a few days.  Luckily everyone got their own pair on Christmas Eve.

Luke also played basketball again this year.  He had a fun team and really enjoyed it.  I took virtually no pictures, but it was a good season with lots of friends!

Croupy Leah

By the evening of the Christmas card pictures Leah was not feeling well.  She went to bed feverish and sounding very croupy.  During the night she got less and less barky and more quiet.  By morning when I was checking on her she was just laying there breathing very labored.  For a while I thought we could take her in to the doctor first thing, but it kept getting worse, and after I called up to the hospital they said to bring her in (which I had already decided to do).  Jer was already gone but I called him to meet me and shortly after 7 hurried all the boys out of bed and to the neighbors.  By the time we got to the E.R. Leah was having a very difficult time breathing.  She was pale and very sweaty, retracting, and just sick!  I was pretty nervous.  My kids have all had croup but nothing like this.  They took us back right away and got her on the oxygen with epi which she fought like a baby badger.  It eased the really labored breathing, but she was still very unwell for a few more hours.  They also gave her an oral steroid and said they would watch her for four hours before deciding to admit her.  At the halfway point it was not looking good but then she started perking up a little.  Her breathing improved, and she started showing some signs of life.  We were back at the doc for more steroids and follow up a few days later and it was not for over a week that she was herself again.  She coughed, cried, did not eat, and fevered for days and was just totally miserable.  It was such a long week and I'm so grateful she is feeling better and back to her sweet self!

Christmas Card Fails

I attempted to get some cute shots of the kids for our Christmas card this year.  It was not a great success for many reasons including but not limited to:  they hate getting their picture taken, it was cold, there are four of them, I was experimenting with a new lens/settings, Leah was in the beginning stages of being very sick....but here are some of the keepers and outtakes.  Beggars could not be choosers on this occasion!