2012 Really?

I still can’t get over the fact that it’s 2012.  Where has the time gone?  Jared and I will be married 12 years this September and will have a 10 year old this year.  Definitely crazy.

We had an awesome Christmas.  Simple, yet wonderful.  For Christmas eve, we invited our closest neighbors to come over for our Christmas Eve dinner.  We enjoyed having the Price’s at our house!   We had a yummy dinner and visited for quite a while.  We read the story of the birth of our savior and then everybody opened one present.  It’s always pajama’s but I love that fun tradition that we share!   The kids were so excited- they hardly slept.  Jared and I got to bed about 1 in the morning and at 4am- the kids were wide awake ready to see if Santa came.  All four kids were wired!  Jared said- we might as well get up- we aren’t going to sleep anyway-  so we did.  Santa brought each kid a brand new bicycle!   They were pretty excited!   Abby got a new camera- Logan got a small video camera, gracie got dolls and ethan got lots of cars.  Plus they each got a book, clothes and some other fun things.   Then it was time for church- so we got ready and went to church.  Jared sang in the ward choir- so it was me and the kiddo’s and they did pretty well but Ethan was sure tired.  Ethan did see a member of our ward come in who happens to look just like Santa- and said—Mom, Santa is at church!  Awesome!  So cool to make it seem real- that Santa claus really goes to church. J  Ethan was in high heaven.   Believe it or not, but we were all in bed on Christmas night at 7pm.  Everyone was tuckered out!

 We had planned to go to St. George as a family a couple days after Christmas.  On Tuesday, Jared was doing a case and the plan was to leave after that case.  I got a text message from Jared saying he was not able to go.  His bosses wanted him to stay in Casper.  I was so mad.  But- I still wanted to go. So I loaded all the kids, and their stuff- and we left for St George without Jared.  We drove and drove and drove and the kids were pretty good.  We stopped a few times and kept on trucking.  I decided to go through Heber City, Utah as it would save us a couple hours and then called my little sister and she and her hubby Jake, met us at McDonald’s in Heber!  It was so fun to see them.  Then we went to Orem and found a hotel and stayed the night.  The kids couldn’t sleep so- at 7am we were out of the hotel and on the road to St. George.  We got to my parent’s house at 1030am.  

The kids and I laughed as we saw people all bundled up in their warm winter coats thinking it was freezing when it was 55 degrees.  I told the kids we should have taken our shorts and flip flops- it was summer weather to us!

We had so much fun with my side of the family.  We hardly ever get to spend time with them.  The adults went to dinner one night, all the grandkids had a sleep over at Grandma and Grandpa’s house, Aaron & Lisa had little Livvy blessed and celebrated new years. 

The kids and I made the long trek home.  We left my parent’s house at 9am and decided to go as far as we could without stopping to stay the night in a hotel.  ELEVEN hours later- we were home!  I was way exhausted and the kids did pretty good—but we made it home in one day.

I don’t think I will attempt that again- but it’s nice to know I can do it.  Here’s wishing everyone an awesome 2012!