Christmas

We had the best Christmas ever this year. It was so nice to be in our own home and beds and not stressed out about traveling. Of course, me and the girls still got little colds, but other than that things went smoothly. We had a perfect Christmas Eve with long baths, treats, lots of stories, and acting out/reading the Nativity. 

 

We made sure the stockings were ready and left out treats for Santa and then off to bed!

Luckily the girls fell asleep quickly and Lance and I got right to work. We had a big plan. Santa brought the girls bunk beds! We waited until they were dead asleep and then carried them into our bed. Then we assembled the beds in their room! It was a lot of work and we didn't finish until about 1 am.

Then we carried them back into their room to wake up with their new beds.

 

They still slept nice and late Christmas morning- I think until after 8, but they were so excited when they woke up! We told them the elves built the beds. 

Santa also brought them a gymnastics bar, and of course their beloved music boxes. 

And the big guy didn't leave Maddie out either! She got a giant elephant and a new carseat!

Peeking in her first stocking and opening her first present!

 

The girls got some wonderful gifts they were very excited about. 

And we got a very very white Christmas! Went to bed with nothing on the ground and woke up to over 6 inches and it kept snowing most of the day! It was magical. 

We had a short church meeting. It was a beautiful choir program (Lance sang) and the perfect way to celebrate the Savior's birth. 

We ended the day with a yummy prime rib Christmas dinner and cheesecake and then an early bedtime (you can see the kids were a little grumpy from the excitement at this point). 

It was an practically perfect quiet Christmas day. 

Friends and Family

A few days before Christmas, Sharon, Andrew, and the girls came to visit from staying at his parents' in Provo. The first night, we kept all their kids while they stayed at a hotel (it was our Christmas gift to them). 7 little girls ages 6 and under was no joke! Luckily, Lance and I knocked it out of the park :).  We watched Christmas movies. 

And had chicken nuggets and mac n cheese for dinner. 

Cora was obsessed with this bell pepper. 

The four big girls got to sleep downstairs on the floor, and despite Daryn's attempts to keep them all up past 10, did great. Everyone wanted to play on the beds the next morning. 

After a yummy pancake breakfast Sharon and Andrew came home and we decided a trip to the Treehouse Museum was in order. 

Daryn is becoming quite the crafter, just like Reagan. 

The whole gang left the next morning, but came back up a few days later on the 26th and we all got together at Sharon's friend Katie's house (they live near us). 

Delicious food and we got to reenact our picture from last year! (When we were all pregnant). Look at those cute babies!

We pretty much kept to ourselves this Christmas and didn't see any family on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, but Lance's parents and grandma came up a couple days after and we had a belated celebration with them. They even watched the girls one night so Lance and I could go out!

So grateful we were able to see family this year even though we didn't travel. 

Tiny Dancers

Since she started dance in August, Daryn has been counting down the days until her first recital. It finally arrived the week before Christmas and both girls were so excited!

Dress rehearsal the week before. 

The big night! I spent hours curling their hair. They were so excited and nervous! I was too as I dropped them off backstage. They each had a ballet and a tap number. I wasn't sure how they (especially Daryn) would do on stage.

But of course, they totally rocked it. No stage fright or mishaps at all. They were the cutest dancers ever! Daryn was so tiny up on that stage, it was just adorable. Lance and I were so proud!!

They were both very excited to get flowers from their daddy afterwards. 

Going home for a well-derserved treat. Cutest ballerinas ever!!

Family Pictures

We realized it had been over 2 years since we had taken family pictures. With a new member of the family, we figured it was time. Genevieve took these down in Farmington the week before Christmas and I love them so much! 

They are so cute I could die. 

It was very cold so we made it short and sweet and stopped by Krispy Kreme on the way home to warm up.