Bowling at Christmas!

This has been our tradition for as long as I can remember---it started when the kids were little.  We bowl on Christmas Eve.  Partly just to keep the kids busy and keep their minds off Christmas.  However, as they got older--we started being at Gma and Gpa Bergers a little later on Christmas Eve--and it got harder to find a bowling alley that was actually OPEN Christmas Eve.  About 3 yrs ago--we decided to keep the tradition--just move it up earlier in the week.  It took me planning this a month ago and telling everyone they HAD to get off work in order to pull it off.  It's so rare...but so good...to have all the kids home at one time!

We ate first at Whistle Wok---or as Kaylee calls it---Asian food.  YUM!

Shawnee, Kaylee, Devin

 Stefanie, Garrin, Jaycee

 Twinners in their hats

 Go Kaylee!

 Jaycee!

 Garrin was doing great on the first game

 Shawnee

 Devin

 So....because this never happens...I have to brag!  I got my FIRST EVER turkey!!!  THREE strikes in a row!  I got a strike or spare in every single frame except one--and ended up with a 184.  So I won the whole 2nd game.  Even if we added the scores from the first and second games together---I still won overall!  So rare....probably will never happen again.

So much fun!  Our favorite Christmas Tradition!

Christmas Traditions

We have lots of Christmas traditions---but we start with the tree decorating.  Each of the kids gets a new ornament each year, and we pull out the huge box and each kid puts up their own ornaments--plus a few extras.  We were lucky enough to have all 4 kids home this year!

 Devin was so tired that he fell asleep after decorating the tree---right on the floor.  The girls put stickers on his clothes and he didn't even notice,

Shawnee missed decorating the gingerbread houses because she was away at college--and she was sad.  

                                                         Frosting war with Devin and Kaylee

                                                                        Done!

                                                   Now---can we EAT it????

 While Shawnee was home the week before Christmas, we went shopping at Winco for groceries and supplies to make our holiday treats.

 We made poppyseed bread, chocolate dipped pretzels, chocolate candies, chocolate dipped Oreos, and tiger butter--YUM!

Live Nativity

Every year for the past several years, we have made it a family tradition to help out at the Live Nativity.  It's always so much fun for us and helps us remember the true meaning of Christmas.  Only Jaycee helped us this  year, but it was lots of fun.  It was very warm for Dec, but we were NOT complaining!  It was about 50 degrees when we started out.  There were about 4,000 people that came through Sat night when we helped.

Garrin, Stefanie, and Jaycee

 PHOTOBOMB while I was trying to take a picture of Garrin.

Garrin was one of the 3 Wise Men with a small speaking part.  

Jaycee and her friends Madi, Ali and Ryah.

Most of the evening, I was outside the barn welcoming people to Bethlehem--which I rather enjoyed!  Glad it was so warm.  It was great because I could see people coming up the walkway--and some didn't seem in great moods (there was a really long wait for the shuttles to take them from the church to the Bethlehem city).  By the time they left, they were thanking me and very quiet and had really gotten into the spirit of what they had witnessed.  Although I didn't get a picture this year of baby Jesus and Mary and Joseph--it's always my favorite part--to imagine having been there.

January Wrap-up

Devin was always begging for pictures---so here are Dad and the girls.  We couldn't get us all in the picture as we had nobody to take it for us

Mom and the girls

Here is a run-down on our January......

This month, Kaylee had tickets along with all the youth in our ward to that seminary broadcast up at the conference center.  She said that they were on the FLOOR...so how exciting is that?  It's to celebrate the 100th anniversary of seminary.  She also had a fireside with TC Christensen...the director of 17 miracles.  How lucky is that that she got to do 2 fun ones in a week.

We got up yesterday and did the usual boring cleaning stuff and had to take down all the Christmas stuff.  That took most of the day.  We had Bailey staying over here with us.  Then we made some food to take over to Aunt Teresa's house.  (ie....Grandma'sl).  She had planned a NY Eve party. We ate and then played games for most of the night.  It was pretty fun...we ate ourselves to death.  We actually ended up pulling away from the house at 11:58pm.....and then a loong drive home.  On Springville Main Street they had a checkpoint where they stopped us, shined the flashlight into my eyes and asked if I had been drinking.  HA.  Then they asked Garrin...and looked back into the back seat to see Jaycee.  Funny, huh.  Shawnee had plans with her friend Shylee...they went to a singles dance.  Kaylee house hopped to several houses with friends.    Fun night!

Shawnee stayed the first week of January.  She was going to leave on Sunday...but that's moved up to Friday and now possibly Thursday.  She is bored here with her family and just wants to get back.  Her car is going to get fixed this week by Shylee's dad.  Shylee was driving it with Shawnee in the car and rear ended someone.  Not tons of damage--but the whole hood was crumpled and some other problems.  Kaylee's been working quite a few hours lately...so it seems like someone is always coming or going.  I can hardly keep all the schedules straight.    

Kaylee had the flu this month so that wasn't fun.  She was sick I think Monday night late late ...but Tues morning woke up early as I was getting ready for work and was throwing up....or maybe it was Monday night late...I can't remember.  Anyway--she had Tues off which was good.  When I got home from work she was still laying on the couch..she hadn't moved an inch since I had been gone.  She ended up having to call in sick on Wed to work as she was still kind of iffy...but was feeling good enough by that night

I got released as nursery coordinator.  Although I think I needed a change---it was easy and I didn't have to spend much time at it.  I'm back in RS.  I'm over Enrichment night..isn't that funny. I'm not really good at that kind of stuff...but guess I'll get the chance to learn to do better, right?  That's what we do in the church....learn and grow and serve.  

Shawnee came down one Thursday night and got up at 5am Friday to go ice fishing with Gpa.  I guess aunt Teresa let Landon skip school to go with them.  They each caught 2 fish..and gpa caught 3.  They had fun.  They came home not long after I got back from work.  Saturday we slept in a little...Shawnee went to ballroom earlier to see her old friends.  I got my hair cut and Shawnee and Kaylee went to the movies. (Beauty & the Beast 3-d) that just came out.  It seems like Shawnee always gets to go to free movies with Kaylee when she comes home.  We are still waiting for our turn.  LOL.  Dad wants to go see some war show with her....I'll stay home :D  Last night we just hung out.  Fri they had pizza and watched "The Help" .  I didn't get pizza since I am back on my diet for a little more.  yuck.    It's not been as easy this time....but I definitely won't be on it as long.  Maybe another month is all...that's what I'm hoping!  Dad's has been working out trying to lose weight too.  But he is not too excited about trying my diet and eating my food.  LOL.  He was eating queso sauce in front of me last night and I got mad at him cause I wanted some and he shouldn't eat it either.  LOL.  

Koda and got shots and got him micro-chipped.  That needle is HUGE that they use to micro-chip him.  Poor thing.  He didn't even flinch on that..but whined a little with the shots.  Jaycee got out of the car at the vets and he got away from her for about 50 feet towards Main Street...scared me to death ...so I decided to go ahead and "chip" him that day.  Little turkey.

That's about it for January....................

Snow Family courtesy of the Fowlers

We answered our door one snowy day to find nobody there---but we DID have a whole snow family across the end of our driveway.  Our neighbors, the Fowlers, were seen leaving the scene :)  Fun!

Beautiful Seattle Skyline and Seattle snow!

  From Devin on his mission:  "we GOT SNOW! about 6 inches or so on sunday.  We had church and well in the morning it was snowing pretty hard so we werent sure if we were even going to have church... but i will tell you what... i have never seen our chapel so filled up before in this ward... everyone showed up late but they were still there...  church only got cancelled for the last ward to meet that meets at 1 though... and that was after sacrament meeting... then well we couldnt really go anywhere because of the snow cause it was everywhere so we stayed in for a bit then we went and walked around for a little while and actually had to park our car at the bottom of the hill to where we live because there was so much snow.. so that was definitely fun... walking back"

Beautiful Seattle Skyline 1/13/12

Snow in Seattle!!

Visit to Sister Ridley

We got a call that our favorite Sister Ridley from Elder Ellis' mission would be here in UT visiting her daughter. We decided we better make a drive up to the Salt Lake area to meet her for the first time. She has taken such great care of Elder Ellis and even though they aren't in the same area anymore, she makes sure and checks up on him. When we first got there and she opened the door...she said...wow..Elder Ellis...and pointed at Garrin. I guess she thinks they look alike or something. LOL. She was delightful to visit with and we spent several hours at her daughter's home visiting. I can see why she and Elder Ellis get along so well....they have the SAME sense of humor!

Stefanie, Garrin, Kaylee, Jaycee, Sister Ridley

We realized that she and Jaycee were about the same heighth...so had to take a picture of just the two of them....how cute!

Since we were so close by and had never seen the "UP" house from the Disney movie...we decided we better drive by and see it. How fun is THAT??? I loved the house!

We had lunch for Kaylee's birthday at Wendy's before heading home. It was a fun Saturday to do something a little different than our normal "cleaning" Saturdays!

80's Dance

Sadie and Kaylee before going to an 80's dance at the High School.

Kaylee is 17!!

Kaylee turns 17!!!  Her friends decorated her car---even writing on the paint--eek!  Shows how dirty a black car is in January in Utah!  Happy Birthday Kaylee!

OUCH

Kaylee had her first track practise today and decided she missed hurdles and wanted to try for the first time this season.....oops....guess you should not try hurdles on the first day after being off almost a whole year. OUCH. She is hoping for a cool scar...just like Devin always wanted. Funny girl!