CHRISTMAS

We had a great Christmas! We were a little homesick for Utah and all the family, but it was such a relaxing day. It was fun starting our own family traditions. It was nice to not be rushed, and have to hurry to get someplace. The kids woke up about 7:30. They came and jumped into bed with us. We read the Christmas Story out of Luke and than had to wait while Dad took care of his dog. Finally we got to go downstairs. The boys had so much fun opening presents. Santa spoiled the kids and was way to generous. After presents, we ate a yummy breakfast, monkey bread and breakfast casserole. We lounged all day long. The boys played inside and out. I played around with my camera (which I am still trying to master), and Jared help dig out all the neighbors who are out of town (what a great guy!) For dinner, we went to the Stingham's for the traditional ham dinner. It tasted SO good. It is amazing how long we look forward to Christmas and how quickly it comes and goes. Now it is time to take down decorations, go back to work, and start eating healthy.

Christmas Eve

We had a great time on Christmas Eve. We took the boys to see the new National Treasure movie. We highly recommend it. It was great! While there, we managed to down popcorn, candy, and drinks (we splurged since it was a holiday). That night we had some friends over for a party. We ate lots of yummy appetizers, and drank hot wassail. (Yes, I gained about 10 pounds today, but it is the holiday's, right.) We ended the evening with the kids all dressing up for the Christmas story. We read the story and sang Christmas songs. It was a lot of fun. Before our kids went to bed, we opened up our Christmas Jammie's and decorated sugar cookies for Santa. What a day!

Let it snow, Let it snow, Let it snow!!!!!

We got dumped on here in Iowa! It wasn't that we got a lot of snow, but it was the wind... the famous "Iowa wind". We had snow drifts everywhere. We had to put our vehicle into 4wheel drive to get down our street. The driveways were buried in snow. We have some friends who are out of town, so Jared not only tackled our driveway, but two others. What a great workout! The boys had a great time playing in the snow, making snow forts, and sledding. Snow is fun, but the cold wind isn't. Hopefully we will be living in a tropical paradise next year!!!!

School Christmas Parties

It is hard to juggle two parties at school. I am running back and forth between Kindergarten and 3rd grade, but it is worth it. The boys had so much fun. Nathan had a sing-along concert and then went to his room and decorated Christmas trees, played games, and ate lots of treats. Joshua made beaded candy canes, colored, and ate lots of treats. The key word here is TREATS! We have so many treats sitting around our house, I think I am going to pop. All I can say is "Weight Watchers, here I come" (in January!) Merry Christmas!

NOT OUR PUPPY

Jared's brother Anthony flew to Iowa to pick up a puppy he bought. The boys were SO excited to see Uncle Anthony and the new puppy. I must say he really is a cute puppy, if only they could stay that way.

NO CAMERA!!!!!

Okay, I know it has been a long time since I posted anything. No, we didn't skip Thanksgiving, or all the "lead up to" Christmas activities. My camera broke and I have been frantically researching cameras. The good news is we purchased a new camera. The bad news is I have no clue how to work it (I am not a very gadgety, electronically talented person). My goal this week is to sit down and practice. So don't worry, pictures will follow!

I did however find time to steal some pictures of our recent ice storm from my friends blog. (Thanks, Jenn!) It is amazing how beautiful everything is after an ice storm. It is like living in a world made of glass.

Elf Yourself

I got this from a friend of mine. I am sure you have seen this before, but check out our family at http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=9584800826 . You're in for a good laugh. Happy Holidays!

Explore, Explore, Explore

What do two boys want to do when they have a day off from school...... go shopping, relax, paint their nails, play at home..... oh no, they want to explore, explore and then explore some more.

We went to Coralville lake to hike and have some fun. We spent hours walking through the trees, climbing trees, throwing rocks, running, looking for fossils and getting very dirty. They had a blast.

The BESTEST day ever!

This is what my boys will be doing on Saturday's for the next few months.... Hunting season has started. Anyone who knows Jared, knows that he is heaven, and he has started training the boys too. This Saturday he took the boys with him pheasant hunting. They had SO much fun! The left at 8:00, stopped for breakfast at McDonald's (a hunting tradition), and didn't come home until 3:00. They hunted on our friend's property. They stayed after and helped him with some work. The boys found an old tree house and did some exploring. Joshua's words were: "Mom, this was the bestest day ever!"

Trick-or-Treat

We had a fun Halloween night. We met at our friends for a yummy chili dinner. We then got the kids all dressed and headed out. It was cold and windy so we had to wear coats. Nathan went as Captain Jack Sparrow and Joshua was a "military man". Oh to have the energy of a 9 year old and 5 year old boy. The ran and ran the whole time. Mom was done after 2 houses, but we continued on. We managed to cover about 3 blocks, before calling it quits. The boys came home with a TON of candy.

School Parties!!!!!

Nathan and Joshua both had school parties today. Joshua's was a "Fall Party". They didn't get to dress up, but they had lots of fun eating, making bats, and doing other fun activities. Joshua brought orange play dough for everyone and was so excited when Mrs. Hilsman said he could pass them out. Nathan's was a "Halloween Party". There was the annual parade through the school. He had lots of yummy treats to eat too. I was in charge of the game....we played "Mummy Wrap". The kids had a great time wrapping each other up as mummies with toilet paper. What a fun day for the kids and not so fun for the teachers!!!!

Annual Pumpkin Carving

I almost forgot about pumpkins this year. Sunday I realized that I hadn't bought pumpkins. I almost decided not to do it at all, but then I realized that I have pictures of us doing it every year, and I couldn't stop the cycle. Needless to say the pumpkin selection was a bit to be desired. The boys had a great time designing and carving. This was the first year we let Joshua do it himself. He thought he was pretty cool. They both did a great job and were proud of their "jack-0-lanterns". Happy Halloween!

Haunted Halloween House

Tonight for Family Home Evening, we decided to tackle decorating our Halloween house. The frosting was messy and stained everything it touched, but the boys had a great time. They decided to use their imagination and not copy the examples on the box. It didn't take long and this was the outcome......... They decided to model their "scary faces"!

Bloomsberry Farm

Joshua went on his first kindergarten Field Trip today. They went to Bloomsberry Farm. He had "way to much fun!" He and his buddy, Brandon, ran and ran and ran. He did take time to feed the animals, play in the corn, take a tractor ride, and pick out a pumpkin. He was the last one to pick a pumpkin. His had to be the biggest and the best. He would pick up one, go get in line, and then decide that it wasn't good enough and go back to choose another. Finally Mom said, "enough is enough". He loved riding the bus and informed Mom that next time she was to ride too. (I followed the bus in my car, much more relaxing!) You know the Field Trip was a success, when every kindergartner comes back sweaty, tired, and dirty! Hurray!!!

Our Cub Scout....

It was Pack Night last night. Nathan earned his Wolf badge. He also earned a gold and 2 silver arrows. He is now a Bear. We are so proud of him and all his hard work! Way to go Nate!

Wilson's Apple Orchard

We took the boys to Wilson's Apple Orchard. There were not very many apples, but we still managed to have a great time. We ran into the Stringham Family and took a tractor ride with them. The driver was none other than Mr. Wilson himself. We drove out into the orchard and ended up eating more apples than we picked. The boys were more interested in running, catching bugs, and throwing rocks. The highlight was eating the warm apple turnovers from the bakery, yum!

Soccer, Soccer, and more Soccer.....

Soccer has started, yippy!!!!! We will be spending 3 nights a week at practices and all day Saturday at the Soccer Fields for the next 2 months. Jared is coaching Nathan's team and is an assistant coach for Joshua's team. I am just soccer mom! Busy, busy, busy! We love it!

Free Food!

Now that my boys are in school, I have time to run all my errands without kids! This is what I was suppose to be doing one day last week. I was on my way to Walmart when I got a call from a friend of mine.

"Where are you?" "Hurry get over here as fast as you can!"

I thought something serious had happened. Turns out a new Chipotle was opening up in Iowa City. For one day they were giving away anything you wanted on the menu, for FREE! So my friends Jenn and Rebecca and I ran right over to get the good deal. Mind you, we had to wait in line for over an hour, with a bunch of college students. I am sure people were wondering why a bunch of Mom's were so excited about free food, but boy was it worth it. I had a huge burrito, chips and salsa and a drink and we didn't even pay a penny! Walmart had to wait!

First Day of School

I realized I hadn't included pictures of the First Day of School, and as all of you know in the blogging world, this is a must!!!! Nathan is now in 3rd grade and my little Joshua is in Kindergarten (full day!!). They were so excited for school and mom was too, although I was a little sad to send Joshua. I must say I held my composure until I got back to the car. They grow up so fast. Now what will I do with all my time?