Christmas 2012 Activities

Okay, so this entry is as much for us as it is for you. Here is a list of all the Christmas activities which helped make for us a marvelous, magical, and memorable Noel:

• The Festival of Trees
• Temple Square lights and walking around the very Christmasy City Creek
• The Messiah Sing-In at Abravanel Hall
• The Mormon Tabernacle Choir Christmas concert with Alfie Boe and Tom Brokow. Oh, and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir :). 
• The First Presidency Christmas devotional.
• Black Friday shopping
• Elayna and Aubrey's ballet performance in the Nutcracker 
• The Festival of Lights in Spanish Fork
• BYU's Christmas party
• Christmas at Nauvoo program at BYU
• Ryan Shupe and the RubberBand concert at the Covey Center
• Our ward Christmas party
• Gingerbread house at our great friends, the Wilkins', house
• Elizabeth and I singing in our ward Christmas program
• The Utah County Christmas Craft Show
• Utah County Handbell Ringers concert at the Springville Museum of Art
• Nelson Family Christmas party
• Our regular Christmas Eve dinner and nativity
• Christmas get-together at Dad and Donna's house
• Christmas cards and neighborhood gifts
• The wonderful cadre of Christmas movies
• Non-stop Christmas music
• I was able to do the 12 Days of Christmas for the ninth straight year for Elizabeth and the kids. Have to be creative more and more these days!
• Too much food

It was the best Christmas yet, and we have no doubts that this will be the case again in 2013!

Things We Love About Our Children

There are so many things we love about our children. Here are just a few that come readily to mind this morning.

Here's us playing with the webcam feature... :)

Cambria: her heart-melting smiles; the way she pats our cheeks without knowing she is doing so; her patience with some siblings who love to "take care of her;" how sweet and mellow she is, crying only when she's hungry or tired; the way she beams at everyone.

Stockton: the way he runs as fast as he can, whether is does the street or from the couch to the dining table--gives it his all!; how he still snuggles on demand; how easily he goes to bed; the way he carries around his blankie.

Tayah: She is such a helper; we've seen a dramatic decrease in fit-throwing and an equally great increase in sweetness!; how she asks how we are doing; how determined she is when she is working on a project; the way she dances to keep Cambria happy; our extrovert!

Kadence: She's Cambria's second mother--so nurturing and loving, she just dotes on her baby sister; what a voracious reader. Sometimes we have to pry books out of her hands; so dainty; she sings with all her heart...and is starting to get better with pitch :); so shy in public and anything but at home.

Mission Impossible (Piano/Cello/Violin) ft. Lindsey Stirling - ThePianoGuys

Elizabeth and I LOVE the Piano Guys. Here is yet another wonderful, hilarious, and awesome video and arrangement. They have so much fun doing what they do. And they do it so well. Enjoy!