Decorating the Christmas Tree

Yes, I'm still playing catch up and will be for a little bit.  So here are the pictures of us decorating our Christmas tree at the beginning of December.  I love decorating our tree because it brings back good memories.  Every time we travel we buy an ornament so when we put it on the tree it reminds us of that awesome trip.  Now we are starting to collect the homemade ones from the kids.  So many great memories all hanging from a tree.  I love it!

Leaves instead of snow

We've had a warm winter so far.  We are patiently waiting for the snow to fall.  While waiting we thought it would be fun to jump in the leaves. 

 Spencer is getting better at taking pictures with our camera

Eleanor didn't really like being in the leaves with her brothers.  She's way more sensitive to things then they are.  She had more fun watching from moms arms.

Catching up.......Christmas tree hunting

Each year for Christmas I do a activity advent calendar for the kids.  The first activity was talking about the true meaning of Christmas versus Santa.  I put a powerpoint together for the boys to help them understand.  Spencer loves stuff like this and definitely gets it.  For the second activity we went and got a Christmas tree.  After running up and down all the rows and through all the trees Spencer found the perfect one.  I have to admit that he did a pretty good job.  I was happy it was only $49 unlike last years that was $75.  Way to go Spencer!  

Thanksgiving Weekend

We were lucky this year and had family come to visit.  Chad, Cassie, and their kids, Justin, Jessica, and Caleb came from Colorado.  However, we weren't so lucky with our Thanksgiving meal.  

The first thing that went wrong was our turkey finished an hour and a half before it was suppose to so our rolls weren't ready.  Instead of panicking we just bought some from Golden Corral.  Then Casey accidentally dumped all the juice from the turkey so our gravy was really bland.  Then something happened to our pie crust so we bought pre-made pie crust however; all the hiccups bumped back the finish time.  We didn't get to eat pies until 9:00 pm.  Even with all the mishaps we still had a great time.  

We met Grandpa and Grandma Erickson at Temple Square.  Cassie's kids had never been and the timing couldn't have been better.  It was pretty busy because it was the first night with the lights and the weather was warm.  We had a scare when we couldn't find Justin but that only lasted 15 minutes.  Our kids got tired so we left sooner than Cassie's family.  We had a wonderful time!

The last meal with the cousins

Hogle Zoo

During the winter Hogle Zoo has free admission on the last Wednesday of the month.  We knew it would be busy but Casey had the day off so we went.  It was a beautiful warm day so everyone and their dog was there.  We went later in the day so an hour or so before closing it started to calm down.  We had a blast and will look forward to going in January.  

Eleanor is 8 months old

Our sweet Eleanor is 8 months old in these pictures.  She is keeping up with her brothers and finding out how fun it is to help with chores.  She loves unloading the dishwasher whether you want it done or not.  She loves the fridge and all the yummy food that is inside of it.  But her most fun place to be is in the tupperware drawer.  She can spend forever taking all the bowls, plates, and cups in and out.  She still likes to be with me and still cries more than the average baby. So when she's happy doing something I embrace it even if it means cleaning up a big mess later.  We love this girl!

Thanksgiving Kid Party

For each holiday I enjoy inviting 12 or so neighbor kids over for a fun holiday themed party.  I would like to believe that my kids enjoy it as much as I do but they probably don't.  I know they like having their friends over but they could probably careless about the crafts/activities I do.  Anyway, I had each kid make a turkey and then put a bag of "turkey feed" together.  The turkey feed consisted of goldfish crackers, marshmallows, chex cereal, jelly beans, pretzels, and candy corn.  Really you could put anything your kids like in the mix.  I added a cute tag (verbiage in the picture below) and voila done!  I wish I had pictures of the kids putting everything together but it's not easy helping 12 kids while holding Eleanor.  Something had to give and it was the pictures.  

Letter J

One of the activities we did for the letter J was juice testing.  It was fun to watch the boys try each flavor without knowing what they were trying.  Ollie was fearless and loved every flavor while Spencer was more hesitant and only liked the common flavors.  Eleanor didn't try any of the juices but she was happy watching from her highchair.  

Family Photos 2014

Our dear friend, Corinne, took our family photos this year.  We picked a date and went for it even though it was freezing cold.  You'll notice our little red noses and rosy cheeks.  The kids did awesome but that could be because we bribed them with marshmallows.  We did what we needed to do to get some cute photos.  Enjoy!

These two are best of friends and do everything together.  I hope it stays that way forever.

Olliebug at 2 1/2 years old.
He is full of energy and naughtiness.  He has the best expressions and kisses.

Spencer at 4 1/2 years old.
He is full of energy and questions.  He has the best competitive nature and snuggles.

Eleanor at 8 months old.
She is full of movement and giggles.  She has the best waves and tongue kisses.