Merry Christmas

 

Our first Christmas on our own!  This is the first year we didn't go to Utah for Christmas which meant creating all of the fun and magic of the Christmas season was totally up to me and Dane.

 



 

 We saw Santa 4 times this year, Beck is the most observant child ever so it confused him because he knew right away they weren't all the same guy in the red suit...but as soon as we went to see Santa at Briar Cliff he knew that must be the real one because he knew Beck's name before Beck even told him and the first thing he noticed was that he was wearting his basketball medal. 

 

 

Our sleepover underneath the Christmas tree

 

 

The kids acted out the nativity at a rest home...it was darling

Church was cancelled the Sunday before Christmas because it snowed...so of course Dane went right to work building himself a snowman, he was much shorter than usual but I'm glad we got our snowman.



We made "gingerbread" houses out of rice krispies this year...genius idea from pinterest...they were super tasty and they didn't collapse everytime we went to put a piece of candy on them.



 

Christmas Morning!!

 



 

 

 

Everytime Beck sat on Santa's lap this year he got stage fright and ended up asking for things he already has (like tools, which he just got for his birthday), or things he really didn't want (like a monster truck, he has been over the truck phase for a couple years now).  So finally on his last chance seeing Santa I told him to think of something he really wanted and to not worry if Santa laughed at him (we figured out that was the root of his problem).  He finally decided to ask for a badge which was too good to be true since the night before I had picked up a fancy badge at the dollar store!  I didn't even plant the idea in his mind, it was pure inspiration.



 



 

 

Quinn gave the best reactions this year she was ecstatic about each and every thing.  We knew she would be easy to please since all she wanted for Christmas was candy.  Two different times Santa asked if she wanted anything else along with candy like a baby doll and both times she said "no, just candy".  Santa got a baby doll for her anyway and she was really excited

 



 

 

It was such a great Christmas we had our traditional breakfast of cinnamon rolls and breakfast casserole and then went to see Frozen with Trent and Lindsay and the kids and then came home for bbq next door.  Glad we have some family out here to celebrate with.  Our kids are at the perfect age to make everything so fun this year so grateful for this darling crew of mine.

Moms Are The Best...Especially Mine

 

 

I knew before we started residency that it wasn't going to be a cake-walk but I thought (and hoped) I'd be able to make it past the first 6 months before I had to call my mom to vent about being a little overwhelmed with life.  Not the case... I called her the day before they left to Arizona for Thanksgiving knowing that she would know exactly what to say to give me a little bit of comfort and encouragement and on the day they got home from Arizona she called me to tell me she had booked a flight to come out and visit me that next week.  A few days with my mom was exactly what I needed we spent most the time shopping and eating which are the two things we do best and just had a really good time.  I'm so grateful to have a mom that will drop everything right in the middle of the busy holiday season just to come make sure I'm happy...I'm one lucky girl.  And let me put out a disclaimer that even though I know this post sounds really dramatic about residency...I don't want anyone thinking I'm over here having a real major breakdown...I just wanted my mom for a few days ok!

Basketball...Take Two

best pose ever..two of the most manly men I know

 

We signed Beck up for basketball last year and it turned out to be a traumatic experience for us both, but I decided to give it one more shot this year.  I knew where I went wrong last time so this year I made sure that he was one of the older kids on the team instead of the youngest and I signed him up with his best bud Nate.  It went much better this time around and now he doesn't even claim to hate basketball anymore.  They spent 3 nights practicing and then they had 3 games, the games were HILARIOUS none of the kids had a clue what was going on they just ran around chasing the ball and pushing eachother down.  I could tell Beck felt totally uncomfortable and confused but he stuck with it and on the third game he made a basket and then holy cow he came alive!  All the sudden he was doing everything he could to get his hands on that ball including stealing it from his own teamates of course. But the most exciting part of all was when they gave everyone on the team a medal after the last game...I truly don't know if I have ever seen him more excited in his life, he wore it proudly around his neck for days after and has requested we get a special hook on his wall to hang it on...and sometimes when hes feeling really generous he even lets me and Quinn hold it for a couple minutes

 

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Beck's 5th Birthday

 

 

Beck's birthday this year was so good.  I was worried he would be disappointed because he had some pretty high expecations for his bday.  He told me weeks before his birthday that on his birthday nobody was supposed to call him Beck we were all supposed to refer to him as "birthday boy".

 

We got up and opened presents and soon as he woke up and he kept saying THE CUTEST things while he opened them.  He kept sayings likes like "this is the best birthday of my whole life!" and "I don't even know how to thank you for this!"  Quinn gave him a pack of gum and he said "Aww come give me a hug" and then he went downstairs and got her one of his treasures to thank her for giving him a gift.  It was too cute!   We ended up getting him a game, weapons, and a bike from us and grandma Myrna and grandpa Doug, but he didn't want to ride his bike because he was worried the tires would get wet since it had rained the day before (he is totally his father's son).  He got "real tools" from my parents and couldn't have been more excited about that!

 

We had a big breakfast and he played with his toys for a bit and then my friend Kim said she would watch the little kids so I could take Beck out for lunch but Beck was really feeling the love and said he wanted to bring Quinn and Foster with us since Quinn had been so nice and gotten him a present.  So we went downtown and went to Kaleidoscope, and then went to the candy store, (I'm trying to forget that we spent $6 on like 4 gummy bears...he requested it and he was happy), then we went to sea life, and wrapped it all up by sharing mac and cheese at Panera Bread ( I couldnt afford to buy us all our own meals after the candy store robbed me like that!)  After that we headed to Beck's basketball practice and luckily Dane got home to see Beck and bring him more treats right before bedtime.

We had his birthday party a couple days later.  We had talked about what theme and who he wanted to invite over and over and he finally decided on Ninja Turtles.  I missed doing our combined birthday parties with Lily it wasn't the same this year!   This party was definitely low key I just did a couple simple games and cupcakes...but if I've learned anything from past birthday parties with 3-5 year old kids...its to keep it simple!

 

Beck is seriously the best boy ever,  he is so obedient, helpful, very sensitive, watches out for Quinn and Foster, and he is so so smart.  He's such an old soul I forget that he's only 5 sometimes.  I love my little buddy and he really is my buddy I love our conversations and how he is so curious about so many things that I swear most kids his age would never think about.  I love my boy so much!

 

 



Going Private

I'm going to make my blog private in the next couple days.  I don't know if anyone is still reading this thing but if you are and want and invite when I go private just leave me your e-mail address!

End of October/November

 

At the end of October GG and GGpa came to visit.  It was so fun to get to hang out with them, lucky for us they kept getting lost trying to find a hotel so they gave up and spent the night with us.  I'm sure they regretted that decision the next morning when my kids were jumping all over them at 7 a.m. They were only here a couple days but I'm pretty sure they were totally exhausted by the time they left! 

 

We made sure to take advantage of any good weather we got in November by going to the park or on this day going to the zoo.

 

 

I love taking the kids downtown to play I think we go at least once a week.

 Dane's work schedule the last couple months was crazy he spent a TON of time at the hospital, lucky for me I have my night-owl Beck to keep me company...don't let this picture fool you, Beck is usually the last one asleep.

 

Shopping for Thanksgiving

 

 If I had a quarter for everytime somebody said "you sure have your hands full" to me when I go grocery shopping (or anywhere for that matter) I'd be a rich woman.

 

 

before Santa comes to the mall the snow princess comes to hear the kids holiday wishes, it was super cute, and Beck was SUPER excited about sitting on the princess's lap even though he tried really hard to hide it.

 

These two may have their fair share of fights but at the end of the day they usually end up in the same bed...pretty cute!



 

Once again, Foster is the most good-natured and content little boy even when we take him to the park in freezing cold temperatures.

 



 

Beck couldn't stand the thought of Quinn not getting a treat if she didn't eat her dinner so he took it upon himself to feed her...this is a common occurance

 

I can't get enough of this girl running around in her high heels all day, she is slowly becoming more and more girly but I don't think she'll ever be able to totally give up her guns and boxing.