Merry Christmas 2018!

December was a busy, but simple month for us. We spent time together doing the fun Christmas stuff--watching movies, baking treats for friends, going on walks, seeing the lights, etc.

 Opening our package from Grandpa Steve--UNLV hoodies

 Can you see the blue heron? We walked around the lake at Pertle Springs one day after school.

 Van had his Christmas music performance. His favorite songs were "Naughty or Nice" and "Venite".

 The boys have been taking piano lessons from Miss Jenae since September. They had a winter recital and did a great job! I loved their bows at the end.

We went with the Sentgeorge's to Kansas City to see a Christmas Lights display at the golf course. You had to stay in your car and watch the lights from the car. The boys had fun hanging out the window!

   On Christmas Eve, our friends the Huffs came over for brunch. Then Isaac took the boys to a new playground that recently opened and I stayed home and took a nap. Then Will and I watched Infinity War (finally!). We ended the day with dinner, sang carols around the piano, watched the Bible Nativity video , opened our new jammies, tracked Santa online and read the nativity story in the Bible. After prayers, I read The Night Before Christmas. 

 Christmas Day was in the 50s! We went on a family bike ride and Van got to try out his new scooter from Santa wearing his Spiderman suit from Grandpa Steve.  I laid in the hammock amazed that it was Christmas Day and so warm! 

 Christmas dinner! I wore my new one piece pajamas most of the day.

 We flew to Utah on Dec. 28th. We had to be to the airport by 3:30 am so we stayed in a Super 8 the night before right by the airport. We had a transfer in Phoenix and saw our friend Justin Bird! He works there and it was so awesome to catch up and visit for 20 minutes. By the time we got to SLC, we ate lunch and then went to see the new Mary Poppins Returns. In the middle of the movie, Van threw up. I think it was the combination of lack of sleep and that he played on his iPad during both flights. It never did turn into the flu, but he did sleep through our entire Garrett family Christmas party that night. Poor kid! It was nice to see my brother Reid and his family, and my friends Trish and Natalie. Thank you Lana for hosting the party!

 My brother Ryan and his family. My niece Courtney was out of town meeting her now fiancé's family. It was so funny watching Ava and Lauren--it reminded me so much of how Lana and I used to act and interact with each other. 

 We spent New Year's Eve at Sophie's house. We played games for three hours. It was sooooo fun! We played the Name Game, LCR, Nuts, and Greed. Sophie always throws a fun party!

 For Sophie's birthday, we got manicures. Sophie got this picture of me kicking back with my eyes closed waiting for my nails to dry. 

 I told Isaac my main goal of the trip is to meet baby Wyatt! Brittany and Tyler found out they were selected as the adoptive couple for Wyatt right at the end of our trip in the summer. He is the best baby. So mellow and happy. Brittany is such a cute mom and I'm so glad I could snuggle Wyatt for a few hours.

 Of course it wouldn't be a complete trip until we got to see Grandpa and Grandma Orme. Doesn't Grandma always look lovely?

I'm so glad we could see our siblings (most of them), parents, grandparents, and friends. A week is over in a blink, but I'm glad we could travel and spend time with loved ones. William was really sad to leave his cousins and return home. He was crying on the way to the airport. He kept asking when we'll be coming to Utah again and why we only spent one week there this time. Awww! So, yes, it was a great trip and we're looking forward to the summer!