Christmas

 Here is our house all decked out with lights. It looks so much better in person, but had to at least capture what I could. 

Here it is from the main street on the side. 

 We made gingerbread houses with the Onofrios the Saturday before Christmas. Lyla did a great job putting the candy on and decided to add a pool. (the bottom right part with the blue candies for water) :) 

Couldn't get a decent picture of the two of them, but here at the Christmas outfits they got from Grandma Green. 

 The Monday before Christmas (the 23rd) we headed over to Grandma and Grandpa Roskelley's. We didn't get there until the evening so we just ate dinner and relaxed. The next morning was Christmas Eve and while waiting for Wally and family to come they got some quality play time in with Grandpa. 

After Wally arrived we put on our snow gear and went sledding for a few hours. Lyla had WAY more fun this time around now that she had her cousins to sled with. She stayed out for quite awhile and laughed and screamed the whole time. 

 Sadie and Lyla going down together. Lyla  idolizes Sadie and always wants to do everything with her. Sadie is such a good sport and is always willing to let Lyla be right there with her. 

 Cute cousins! 

 After sledding we rested and laid around awhile, the kids also played in the basement, and then it was time for turkey dinner. We had a wonderful meal and then did the tradition of "snuffing" the candles out, one of my favorite traditions from when I was little. 

 Then it was time for present opening. We just opened the Christmas Eve pajamas although my kids had always gotten theirs at Disneyland from Grandma Green so they just opened a package also from Grandma Green that had new clothes. 

 Wally went home and we tucked the kids in to bed. They both went to sleep really quick from all the playing they had done all day. Here is the tree with the presents all ready to go for Christmas morning. 

The kids were both pooped and slept until about 8:30! It was great :) Here they are at the top of the stairs waiting for Grandma and Grandpa to join us before they went down to see the presents. 

 Lyla got a new scooter! 

 McKay got a tool bench and immediately went right to work with both screw guns, haha

 Mac was excited to open presents no matter what it was. It was so cute seeing him with such a happy face just soaking it all up. 

 Lyla also was loving it more than ever this year and got lots of her favorite things, including "lips" (chapstick)

 She asked Santa for an Ariel doll with a matching dress. She must have been a good girl this year because that's just what she got. (there is also her Rapunzel doll in her other hand that she got from Uncle Davis)

 Mac had to use his screwdriver on several presents, just for fun, before opening them. It was so cute 

 One of the most popular gifts this year was one we got for both kids, a vacuum. It was continuously pushed around by both of them all day. 

 Mac got a little dog that walks around and barks. He loves dogs and its not quite time to get a real one so this one will have to do for now. 

 After picture! 

 Josh made us some amazing fruit waffles with our waffle maker. They were SO delicious. 

 Later that morning Wally came over and we finished up presents between each other. 

 Wally gave Mom this hilarious Elvis blanket. We all had a good laugh over it. 

 We gave Dad a BBQ and it was a fun big gift that was from all of us

Overall we had a wonderful Christmas with more great memories made. It was the first official Christmas that we had in my parents new house and we fully enjoyed every minute. Can't wait to do it again! 

Temple Square Lights

We continued our yearly tradition of going to Temple Square to see the lights. I love the Christmas feeling downtown and is always fun to see the beautiful lights with the temple in the background. We went with my parents and Aunt Cindy although she is not in the picture because she is taking it. First we had dinner at the Lion House which was delicious and then walked around to see the lights. It was a cold night, but still a lot of fun. 

Sledding in Elk Ridge

There is always one big snow at my parents house and then it never goes away the rest of the winter. More and more snow just keeps piling on top and you end up with several feet of snow all over the yard no matter when you go. So we decided to head up for the day and do some sledding even though it wasn't snowing that day. 

There are lots of places to sled on their property but one of the best little hills for the kids is where the driveway splits off down by the bottom. Dad purposely doesn't snow blow it for our sledding enjoyment. Its a perfect hill that isnt too long or steep but fast and long enough to be fun. 

 Lyla did several runs but after snow got in her gloves she called it quits. Mac stayed out and went down a ton more and was happy going with me, papa, or by himself. He would have keep going as long as we pushed him down. 

 After sledding Mac still didn't want to go in even though the temperature was in the single digits. He played around in the garage and "fixed" the golf cart and sat on the motorcycle. Grandpa's garage is a little place of heaven for McKay and it is adorable to watch him putt around in there like he's a big boy. 

Disneyland

 Day 1: Disneyland

We started the day off right by going on the Peter Pan ride and all of the other small rides in Fantasy Land. It was a little more chilly than we expected but still doable. 

 Lyla got to see the REAL Belle and couldn't stop staring at her. It was so cute to see her eyes light up when seeing her. This is one of her top favorite princesses right now so we were lucky to see her today. 

 Lyla and Mac were still exhausted from the long drive out and early morning so they went back to the hotel and took naps. When they got back we got our spot for the parade and ate some snacks. 

 Both Lyla and Mac were really into the parade and standing up dancing and waving the whole time. It was probably the best part of the entire day. 

 Day 2: California Adventure

Josh ran to get a fast pass for the new Cars ride since it is always a really long line without the pass. Then we headed over to Bug Land. 

 Got to see Flik from Bug's Life. 

 After Bug Land we went to the Cars Land and got to go on the Mater ride. One ride she still talked about from last year. She loves the way it swings you around and around. Lyla laughed and screamed the whole ride. McKay went with grandpa and didn't cry but also wasn't too sure about the fast jerky ride. 

 Lyla and Dad plotting out where to go next. 

 Again the kids took naps. Lyla fell asleep in the stroller but Grandpa took Mac back to the hotel for his nap. When they woke up it was time for the parade again. This parade is quite a bit shorter than Disneyland's but was still a lot of fun and a highlight of the day. 

 This guy from Bugs Life came right up to Lyla and gave her a high 5. She loved it. 

 Day 3: Back to Disneyland

Well, to say the least it was a little wet. Ok, a lot wet. We bought ponchos, stuck it out and went on a few rides. After trying to stick it out we ended up spending a little bit of time in the Inventions building back by Space Mountain to get dry and warm. It was still raining quite a bit and long lines everywhere since it was a Saturday. We decided we all needed a rest and went back to the hotel for lunch and naps. 

 When we got back to the park it had stopped raining and warmed up a bit and after long naps everyone was smiles again. 

 Me and Mac on Autopia

We ended the night with a few more rides, and then Mac went back with grandma and grandpa to go to bed. We stayed with Lyla and went on a few rides she had missed and got one last Churro. 

It was a fun, yet exhausting trip. We might take next year off until all the kids are a little bit bigger. Until next time Disney! 

First Snow

 The first big snow came! It was several inches, probably 6 all together, and was amazing. There is something about the first big snow that gets me so excited. We pulled all our snow clothes out and went outside to test out the sled and shovel the driveway. 

 Lyla is king of the rock

It is always a new experience each year for the kids as it seems they forget all about the snow in between. Lyla loved being out there and was having a blast. Mac was still unsure why we were standing out in the cold in clothes that we can't move in but still was a good sport and indulged Lyla and I for a good half hour. 

Thanksgiving

 Josh's parents came to UT this year since all 3 of Josh's brothers are all already here. (Ty still on the mission) We had it at our house and was a lot of fun. We ate an enormous amount of snacks and munchies while we waited for the turkey. We also played Wii bowling and looked at the black Friday ads. 

Before dinner was even served Lyla conked out on the counter. She was pooped out and slept through dinner. 

 The turkey is done! Josh did a great job preparing the turkey and turned out delicious. 

Here we are all ready to eat. A friend from Russia, Ira, (bottom right) also joined us since she was visiting the USA and didn't have anywhere to go. It was a great day, relaxing and delicious. 

Josh, Ira and I went out that night to cash in on the black "friday" deals at Target. We got a few things for the kids for Christmas and introduced the madness and fun to Ira. 

16 Weeks Pregnant

I have made it to the 16th week, feeling better for the most part, but the midday sickness and exhaustion is not all the way gone yet. I have had the best pregnancy I've had yet. I have felt nauseous here and there throughout the day but mostly just super tired. I try and take a nap every day while Mac is sleeping and Lyla is having "quiet time". It has been a nice break though to not be super sick every day all day. I still get my weekly migraines and hoping they will go away in the next month or 2 like they did with the other 2 pregnancies. I thought it would be fun to see a collage of each baby at 16 weeks. I felt like I popped out really quickly and was much bigger than the 1st two but looking back I guess I'm not THAT much bigger after all. 

Swimmy

Our kids want a dog. I can't handle a dog and 2.5 almost 3 children, so we went with the next best thing, a fish. OK, so its not even close to a dog, but it just sounded fun. So we went to Petco and let Lyla pick out our fish. She chose this one and on the way home we asked what his name should be and she thought for a few seconds and came up with "Swimmy". I thought it was an adorable and creative name. He now lives on our kitchen counter and gets fed only once every 2-3 days which Lyla was completely disappointed about and thinks it should be 2-3 times an hour. It has been fun though and we are enjoying our small needless pet.

Meet Swimmy: