Valentine's Day - Heart Attack

We heart-attacked Kevin's tahoe on V-day.  I almost chickened out of doing it but Allie was persistent so we got up at midnight when Kevin was fast asleep, with the hearts we all made for the "deed" earlier that night along with all the valentines.  It was the funnest thing ever.  Next year, we'll have to do it to his office or something.  Shh!

Some of my favorite hearts say: I like how you keep on the annoying Sunday music on all day on Sunday.  I like how you sing weird songs (aka 80's music) on Saturday morning.

Since it was Monday, the kids opened their valentines, were off to school, then we had a quiet family dinner and FHE that night.   Collin and Kevin did their flower-shopping together, and they got flowers for all of us girls.  It was so cute.

Christmas 2010

Us on Christmas morning

Christmas was quite different for us this year - and exciting, with a brand-new baby boy!  That said, I don't think I would like a Christmas baby again :).   I got home from the hospital at noon on Christmas Eve.  I rested for a bit before helping the kids get ready for Christmas.  They got their beanbags out and camped out by the Christmas tree, said they would sleep by the tree to try to catch Santa this year.  Allie tried to set up the mino but it was not charged up (I bet Santa was glad!).  Then they set a sugar cookie and milk for Santa and a long letter from Allie.  I wish I took a picture of that.  It said some really fun things.  Kevin got the kids ready for bed while I took care of myself and the baby.  Allie checked noradsanta.org and saw that Santa was in Tucson, so I told her they had better get to bed fast!

Of course Kevin and I were up very late and didn't go to bed until way past midnight.  I finally got me and the baby ready for a long 2-hour stretch around 2 a.m. At 4 a.m., I heard Allie and Collin talking telling each other that Santa hadn't come yet, except that all the stockings were gone, so maybe he had already come.  They went on a hunt around the house to try to find their stockings - and they found them in their bedrooms, with some wrapped presents.  They came and woke me up and asked if they could open their Santa presents.  I said yes, and couldn't resist to get up and take pictures of them.

 The kids decided to give each other presents this year - Here's Allie holding up Collin's present to her: 1 Reese's peanut butter cup and 1 homemade card, wrapped in homemade wrapping paper.  That boy is so creative and sweet. She gave him a pack of Nerf darts.  

Collin got a fortamajig and head lamp from Santa, which he loved because he likes building forts to sleep in, and Allie got her very own digital camera to take pictures with.  Maddie got an iXL and software (which she calls her DS) from Santa, too. They built a fort by the tree and checked noradsanta again and found that Santa was in Gilbert AZ!  We all decided that Santa had just come right before they woke up. I was still tired and sore, so I went back to bed.

A couple of hours later, the two were up again for the day.  Kevin made us some wheat blender pancakes for breakfast then after I got semi-decent and ready, we opened presents.  It was just us this year (vs with cousins in years past) so Kevin helped them get toys out of boxes (quite the task with all the screws and wires) while I videotaped and took pictures.  I didn't get very many pictures this year!

This was Allie's gift to me and Kevin.  She wrapped a See's gift certificate and made a very cute and glittery card.  So sweet!

Our Christmas gift tradition: the 3 Gifts of Christmas

We give the kids 3 presents at Christmas: the gift of usefulness, the gift of wonder, the gift of meaning to represent the 3 gifts that were presented to the Savior by the Wise Men.   The gift of usefulness: anything useful (clothes, tools, etc); the gift of wonder: possibilities are endless with this one - it could  be the #1 item on their list for Christmas, something you want them to have, etc; the gift of meaning or time: something that helps them spend time with you or with their family (books and movies or games count) or something that has special meaning for both people.
Since we started this tradition over 7 years ago, it has been great because not only is it an easier wrapping job for me, but the kids only expect 3 gifts and not more.  There are years when there is an additional family present and they are so grateful for the extra that they get.  So back to the tradition, a box can contain more than one item, like say, Allie's gift of usefulness this year was a spa/beauty set: the big tower contained a makeup kit and a hairdryer.  Her gift of time was a spa foot bath. And her gift of wonder was the ipod shuffle and a itunes gift card.  So you could get really creative.

She loves her new addition to her American girl doll collection: this year, she got Felicity from my parents (Felicity is now in the AG archives).

Collin got laser tag cars, the new u-draw plus games for the wii, and books.  He lined up his loot and asked me to take a picture.

Maddie was happy to find Strawberry shortcake movies and toys, Pinkalicious cupcakes and dolls, fairy books, and her very own pink scooter.

Maddie loved all the new books she got for Christmas.

Grandma and Pop came by to open their presents from us and we opened our presents from them.  We got new white dishes and glassware (after 13 years of the same old dishes, I decided it was time for an update/change!).  Allie was so excited to find Grandma got her a new curling iron along with some new clothes/pajamas and matching accessories.  Maddie was so glad to find a new Pinkalicious doll and pajamas, and Collin got a new wii game.  

(kevin and me + my post-baby fat and swelling, & the handbrace I had to have on the last 4 weeks of pregnancy)

The kids spent the rest of the afternoon playing with all their new stuff and helped pick up all the mess before our Christmas dinner.  The Harris' and Merrills came by for our traditional ham dinner - it was so good!  We had a great Christmas and love this time of year when we can spend time with family, and reflect on the Savior's birth.  I am so grateful for the wonderful gift of life He gave us.  With a new baby this Christmas I couldn't help but think of Mary and how much of herself she also gave to give birth to the Savior.  What an amazing woman.

Thanksgiving 2008

The centerpieces and place cards

Our Thanksgiving Book (which I forgot to get out :()

The little shoe people

The crowd
More of the crowd...

We had a great Thanksgiving with everyone present (well, almost - minus Grandma Beth and Pappi who are in the Bahamas, and Anna's family who spent Thanksgiving with the Dickerson fam -- they came the next day though, it was almost like they were here!). Archie came in from Las Vegas, Jake and Abby from Cali, & Aireen, Danny & Andrea from Utah. It was nice to have all my siblings come and join our already big Harris clan from around here.

In total, we had 25 people (including the little babies, who had their own places). I have been doing our own Thanksgiving dinner every year for the last five years so this year was less stressful since everyone brought something and Lorraine and Jack made the turkey, noodles, and dressing (the major stuff!). The double ovens came in handy though, now I can't remember how I used to do it with just one. It was an afternoon filled with lots of laughter and good conversation. After dinner and clean-up, I got our Christmas tree out and went late into the night trying to figure out the lights and decorations.

Here is my personal list:
1. I am thankful for my family - Kevin and our three kids who are healthy and happy and always makes us smile. Also Kevin's fam and mine. It has been so nice to live close to family -- having dinners together and having our kids play together.
2. I am thankful to have the gospel in our lives, and for the hope and comfort that it gives us especially during this terrible economic downturn and many other uncertainties.
3. I am thankful to be in Arizona and to be with Kevin all 7 days of the week. It is so nice to be able to eat at the dinner table together every night, and to enjoy the many other simple things that you do as a family that we only got to do on the weekends last year.
4. I am thankful for Kevin's job, our house, and that we have the things that we need. I am thankful I can stay home with the kids.
5. I am thankful for friends, blogging, coupons, my camera, my preschool, FHEs, chocolate, and all the other little things that make life a little more interesting!

Thanksgiving Traditions

One thing I forgot to get out was our Thanksgiving Book (see photo above), which we get out every Thanksgiving (almost, I didn't get it out last year either) and write things we are thankful for on paper leaves or on the back of the place cards. By the time I remembered the book, everyone had left. But I am still making a list of things we are thankful for this year, and adding it to the book. So if you were at our Thanksgiving dinner, please comment - tell me 2 things you are most grateful for this time of year. I will type it up and put it in our book.

A tradition I want to start for next Thanksgiving is to put together a Thanksgiving Alphabet Book. I saw this on one of my favorite blogs the day after Thanksgiving! - and want to copy it for my own family next year.

To make the Thanksgiving Alphabet Book (from My Montessori Journey):

You will need 28 tags (you could do really cute ones!) and place a letter of the alphabet on each of 26 tags using letter stickers. One blank tag will be the title page - and you can spell out "Thankgiving" or "We are thankful for...". The other blank tag will be the back cover on which you would write the time and place of your Thanksgiving dinner. On Thanksgiving, you pass out the tags (and pens!) and directions that each person think of something they were thankful for that begins with the letter on their tag. They would then write what they're grateful for as well as their name on the tag. After everyone is finished tie all the tags together to make a "book". It would be fun to look back at this in the future years and see what everyone was thankful for and their handwriting.