Holidays

I am getting so bad at taking pictures.  But we had a good Thanksgiving.  We went to the church and played broom ball, which was a lot of fun, and then had a delicious lunch.   Then Scott and I went shopping at Walmart and got almost everything we needed for Christmas.  It was nice, because when school is in session I can barely keep my head above water.  And add to that all the recitals, performances and parties there is no time in December.  The next evening we went over to the Thompsons and had crackers and meat and began our Star Wars marathon, since Gator got us all tickets for Christmas. 

Christmas was really good.  The week before I was just busy buying food and odds and ends, but Christmas day was relaxing and nice.  Alyssa got a new pair of headphones, an iTunes gift card, and money.  Christian got a raspberry pi, clothes and a mini drone.  Amber got an electric scooter, clothes and a sewing kit.  Alivia got a star lantern, a projector, and a Narnia book.  Soran got a new bike, some shopkins and art stuff.  Grandma and Grandpa Reece did the 12 day of Christmas and I think we all got thoroughly spoiled.  Scott and I got new phones, I got a zipline tour, and Scott got new boots.  The Massengales came and spent the night and we went sledding and played Mormon Mouthful and watched a movie.  We went to the Henlines for New Years and played games and watched the Pirates of the Caribbean marathon.  We went to the cabin a couple times and relaxed.  It was a great holiday.

Chef Amber

Amber is getting to be such a pleasant girl to be around, and so helpful!  Whenever I want something baked, I just tell her and it's done.  And she loves to try hard things.

Fall break in Kanab

Scott hadn't seen Mike since he got back from Anguilla, so we decided to head down to Kanab for fall break.  We went hiking and found some dinosaur tracks, although I think the kids' favorite part of that trip was riding in the back of the pickup truck on the way there.  Then we went to the pink sand dunes and played in the sand.  We took Mike out for his 50th birthday that night during a crazy rainstorm.  It was so good to see them.

 The challenge was who could get down this hill with the least amount of steps.  I think Amber won with 5.

 The boys were boring and just stood around talking about their computer games.  But we finally made them run down the hill.

Horan loved this little chair just her size.  

Cornbelly's--again!

 As my children get older I love to watch them be friends.  They have always gotten along well for the most part, but seeing them laugh and have fun together makes my joy complete.  Alivia and Soran can barely be separated.  Christian and Alyssa are movie buddies and Amber goes back and forth between the two.  

 The favorite game of the year was actually a foosball game.  They had long pipes that you hooked yourself onto and then a soccer ball.  Sad to say the boys won again.  Another couple years when we have older girls and we will kick their butts, though!  Then they found a softball throwing game and played that for awhile.  You had to make into a target.

 Liv and I watched while Alyssa, Scott and Christian played a bean bag toss game.  I love the tree all it up.  And the slide in the back is my favorite thing.

Lots of dates and an anniversary

 Most of the time I just can't get enough of him anymore.  So we have been going out a lot more than we used to.  Our poor kids probably feel like orphans.  But on the 2nd anniversary of his accident, we  went to Taste of the Valley and then to the temple.  It was really good to remember how grateful we are he's still here.

 Standing in line at Taste of the Valley.  There was a lot of that.

 We threw a How to Host a Murder party at the cabin.  It was 80s themed and a lot of fun.  

Thriller!  We found a way to get in free--usher.  So we have done that for the past few years.  The show is so good, and even though we don't get to sit together it is fun.

Daddy time

 I was throwing a baby shower on a Saturday morning and needed the kids gone, so Scott took them to the UVU family day.  They had green pancakes with ice cream, got to grab for money, played lots of games and came home with a lot of junk.  It was the first time he's taken all the kids out since his accident.  It was awesome!  I forgot what it was like to have help, and I think they had a great time.

 Daddy-daughter date.  A blonde and a red-head on each arm.  What a lucky man.

One bonus of having Scott a little broken is he likes to ride bikes since he has a hard time with most other kinds of physical activity.  I love it!  This summer we rode bikes a couple mornings each week and then usually at least one evening with the kids.  I have always loved biking, and now even more so that he's with me.  This was a dead owl we found on one of our rides.  It was right underneath an electrical power line, so we think it got electrocuted.  It was so beautiful still. 

Fall drive 2015