Merry Christmas!

Hope this posting finds everyone happy, healthy, and with memories of a wonderful Christmas yesterday! For us, Christmas wouldn't be Christmas without craziness! Quentin only got 2 hours of sleep on Christmas Eve because he was busy playing "Santa's workshop"; schedules and plans changed and our Stephens party was rescheduled from Saturday morning to Friday night - so we had only had muffins and juice to offer for dinner! But in spite of the craziness, we had a good holiday. We spent Christmas Eve at Mom's with her and Grandma Johnson (being at Mom's house just sets the mood for Christmas - we all love being there!!). The next morning, Mom and Grandma stopped by to see what Santa brought, then we went back to Mom's house for leftovers and to do gifts - and we had a nice surprise visit with Aaron, Lisa and Beau! Then we came back home for the party with the Stephens family. Lots of fun! And today has been a nice "down" day - the girls played with their cousins for a bit, and they've had lots of fun playing with their new toys. Tomorrow will be the Johnson family party, so there's lots of celebrating this weekend! And next week will be nice, relaxing and uneventful - just what I need!

MOM GAVE THE GIRLS A CHRISTMAS EVE GIFT WHICH THEY PLAYED WITH FOR HOURS! KIERA EVEN PLAYED WITH IT FOR AWHILE ON CHRISTMAS MORNING WHILE SHE WAITED FOR HER SISTERS TO WAKE UP!

QUENTIN READING THE TRADITIONAL CHRISTMAS EVE STORY (KIERA AND MAKENNA HAD TO WEAR THE HATS NANA MADE THEM, AND KASIDEE HAD TO TAKE HER CLOTHES OFF)...

SANTA BROUGHT A WOODEN KITCHEN SET FOR THE GIRLS AND A DOLLY BED FOR EACH OF THEM.

SANTA BROUGHT KASIDEE A READING CHAIR FOR HER BEDROOM...

Christmas is Coming!

After such a busy week focusing on Dallin and Crystal's wedding, it was nice to go to church and remember the season and get in the mood for Christmas. We had a wonderful Christmas program, and in Primary the kids got to "Journey to Bethlehem." They each dressed up (in simple costumes) as a shepherd, wise man, etc., went to pay their taxes, talked to the inn keeper, then had goat cheese, olives and unleavened bread for a snack. The journey culminated at the nativity scene. Quentin and I were asked to dress up as Mary and Joseph, and we held a doll wrapped in "swaddling" clothes. I felt sort of silly draped in an old sheet, but when the Primary children silently came into the room and reverently sang "Silent Night," Quentin and I bot teared up. How would it have been to be there to witness and worship our Savior as a newborn baby? Something to ponder during the hustle and bustle of the season....

Congrats, Dallin & Crystal!

Quentin's younger brother Dallin got married today!! Can I just say I love his new wife Crystal and am so glad she's part of our family - I'm anxious to get to know her better! I'm so happy they both found each other, and I wish them so much happiness in their new life together! Yay!

Happy Birthday Quentin!

Happy Birthday Quentin! #34! Quentin is always so sweet and sentimental and makes sure he arranges to get the girls birthdays, my birthday and our anniversary off of work. But it stinks that he has such a horrible time getting any days off in December, so he usually has to work on his birthday. And what's even worse, he has to work nearly 12 hours today. Bummer! But we want him to know we're thinking of him today and hope he has a GREAT day! We love you Quentin / Daddy!

(P.S. Quentin's family celebrated his birthday last Saturday - here's the "cupcake cake" the girls and I made!)

First Recital

Kiera has been taking piano lessons for, oh, about 6 weeks now and last night she had her first recital! She said she was nervous, but then she'd giggle - I think she was more excited than anything. She played "Away in a Manger" and did it just perfectly. We're so proud of her!

Happy Early Birthday, Quentin!

Quentin's birthday is next week. He absolutely loves having a December birthday, but I am always nervous that his birthday will get lost in the craziness of the season. And this year is crazier than ever! Quentin's brother will be getting married the day after Quentin's birthday, so next week is full: a temple endowment session, a bridal shower, a wedding, a wedding luncheon, and a reception - as well as Kiera's piano recital, Kiera's piano lesson, the girls' play rehearsal, me teaching preschool, and a ward party. Whew! So anyway... To avoid planning ANOTHER thing next week, Quentin and I celebrated his birthday early yesterday. Mom was in on the plan - she watched the girls while I taught preschool, then she continued watching them while I "kidnapped" Quentin and took him to Pioneer Theater Company to see the play "A Christmas Story." Quentin and I both LOVE live theater and the dorky Christmas Story (you know, the one with Ralphie) is one of our favorites. He was so surprised and it was nice having a night out together!

Catch-Up

I had been feeling a little overwhelmed about all the blogging I haveN'T been doing lately when I came across my friend's blog entitled "Bullet Point Blogging." I think I'll follow Candi's idea for a quick way to catch up on what's been going on:

* We took a couple buckets of our leftover apples to our neighbor's horses just down the street. The girls loved feeding them!



* Makenna made a gingerbread house at school - she secretly picked at it all day long until nothing was left by bedtime!



* We went to the Festival of Trees with Corbin, Nikki and kids. Even though it was crowded and crazy, it's a fun tradition that helps remind us what the Season is all about.

* We went to the Stephens family Christmas party - food, games, stories, a visit from Santa (Quentin's brother Chris!), and lots of visiting and catching up. It's something we look forward to every year!

THE KIDS LISTENING TO GREAT-GRANDMA'S STORY...

KIERA WITH SANTA...

MAKENNA WITH SANTA...

KASIDEE WITH SANTA...

GREAT-GRANDMA STEPHENS WITH SANTA...

THE WHOLE GANG AT THE PARTY...

QUENTIN (THE PHOTOGRAPHER) MAKING A LOVELY LEAP TO GET EVERYONE TO SMILE!


* Since Makenna has a summer birthday, she gets to celebrate her "VIP Week" this week. Monday she took a poster with a bunch of pictures of her and her family and the kids got to ask her questions about her favorite things. She got to hand out a treat, plus she gets to be the line leader this whole week - Lucky!



* My good, sweet mom usually has some sort of craft or activity up her sleeve when she watches Makenna and Kasidee while I teach preschool every week. Last week she and the girls made bird "feeders" with pinecones, peanut butter and birdseed. We all have really enjoyed watching the birds enjoy their treat!



* The other night, Quentin came home from work and suggested we all go to Gardner Village to browse and to look at the elves hiding around the village. It was bitter cold, but helped get us in the Christmas mood!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving! I just love Thanksgiving - I love the craziness of preparing tons of food and "entertaining" loved ones. I love mashed potatoes (with corn in it!), yams, succotash, wild rice, pumpkin bread and cranberry sauce. Yum. I'm eating some leftovers as I type! I love watching Planes, Trains and Automobiles (edited version). And I especially love this time to pause and reflect on how blessed we are and all of the things Heavenly Father has given us. President Hinckley said, "Gratitude is the very essence of worship." I'm so grateful for my family, my home, Quentin's job, this beautiful world, the opportunities we have, the gospel, and my life! I try to seek the "little blessings" in my life each day - by living with awareness and enjoying each moment! Happy Thanksgiving!

You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown

So...after seeing Rodgers Memorial Theater's "Stone Soup" production a couple of months ago (performed by children), Makenna has been talking about how much she wants to be able to do that - to be up on stage dancing and singing and acting in front of an audience. I know, it sure doesn't sound like Makenna does it? But she has been so excited about it that we checked into musical theater classes at RMT. For Kiera and Makenna to attend the class weekly for 7 months, it would be $550. Ouch. So we decided to wait, and I'm so glad we did. Just a few weeks later we got a flyer from the school that said they would be putting on their first annual play! The girls were so excited and "tried out" on Monday. All the kids learned 2 lines of a song, practiced it over and over, and then each person was asked to sing it solo! I was so proud of the girls - they did great! And they each got cast as a little bird in the play - Kiera as Needy Bird and Makenna as Petty Bird! It was fun to see lots of our friends and neighbors cast in it as well. It will be fun going to weekly rehearsals and finally seeing the final production in February!

Leaves

Yep, 'tis that time of year for lots of pretty, fluttery leaves that crunch beneath your feet as you enjoy walks in the crisp air. 'Tis also that time of year for raking up all those little buggers! Quentin spent nearly two hours last Saturday, mowing and sucking up all the leaves - it looked like our lawn had been vacuumed. But by today, not even a week later, it looked like we hadn't done anything! The girls and I got to work this afternoon and spent over two hours raking and bagging - oh, and throwing and jumping! They were (for once) happy to work! I guess now it can snow!

New Specs!

Kiera got her new glasses today! She was so excited she could hardly stand it. Doesn't she look cute?!

Piano Lessons!

More big changes for Kiera - she started piano lessons! Of all the things my girls can learn, I think piano (music) is at the top of the list. I think it is so important. We checked into lessons over a year ago and found a lady in our ward who is rumored to be excellent. When I asked about starting Kiera, she said she likes to wait until they are at least 7 years old. She also mentioned that she wouldn't have an opening until January 2010. But then she called us a few days ago, said she had a cancellation and could fit Kiera in starting this week! Kiera's first lesson was yesterday and, though the teacher seems pretty strict and rigid, Kiera is excited and anxious to learn!

Winner!

We got a letter about a week ago saying Makenna was selected as a Reflections Contest winner! (see "Reflections Contest" post from October 23). Last night was an official awards ceremony at the school. Makenna was especially excited to receive an awesome trophy with her name on it! She was so excited and proud - and so were we!

Big Change

Quentin and I knew our kids would be doomed. I got glasses when I was in fifth grade, and Quentin was only in first grade when he got his, so we knew that our offspring would most likely have the same issues. Sure enough - after the school nurse tested the student's eyes, we got a note saying she recommend we get Kiera tested by an eye care professional. Yesterday was the day, and Kiera was so excited to find out that she does indeed need glasses. She tried on glasses for about an hour and narrowed her choices down to 5. Actually, she knew which one was her favorite - a gold, wire-rimmed pair with a "cheetah" pattern on the sides. She thought they looked like princess glasses, but Quentin and I thought they looked a little Grandma-ish. We wanted her to pick out ones she loved and we didn't want to sway her, but we were nervous that she would quickly get tired of those glasses. With the help of one of the staff members, Kiera soon changed her mind about the Grandma glasses, but still wasn't convinced about any other pair. Then the lady helping us said she just got in a pair but hadn't put them out. She brought them out, Kiera tried them on, and Kiera instantly fell in love with them - and I have to admit they were the cutest ones she had tried. She said, "I HAVE to have these glasses!" She was so excited and can't wait until she gets them next week!

THE MODERN, COMPUTERIZED EYE TEST

THE MANUAL TEST

SEEING ONE OF THE EYE DOCS

TRYING OUT ONE OF ABOUT 400 PAIRS OF GLASSES . . .

HERE'S THE NEW SPECS - WE'LL WAIT TILL SHE GETS THEM TO SHOW YOU HOW SHE LOOKS WITH THEM ON! (P.S. Sorry for the blurry pic - we didn't take our good camera)

Halloween - Finally

So Halloween finally came. We visited Granny and Nana at Nana's house in the afternoon then got ready to go trick-or-treating. We took the girls around the block and caught up to their good friends Chloe and Sophie. When we reached our house again, I took Kasidee in and Quentin continued with Kiera and Makenna and their friends (and their dad). They were gone for 2 HOURS and came back with their buckets full. Yay. At least they had fun.

(P.S. I'm not sure if you noticed, but in the 3 Halloween postings I've done, Makenna has been wearing a different costume in each. About a month ago, she found a green M&M costume, fell in love with it, and begged for me to buy it. She thought it was cool that it had "M for Makenna" on it. She wore it that whole day and even slept with it for several nights. But when it got closer to Halloween, she decided she wanted to wear Kiera's old ladybug costume. Then for the next event she chose an old princess costume from our dress-up box. Finally on Halloween night she decided to pic the M&M costume! Silly Makenna - she has a mind of her own!)

(P.P.S. Oh, and poor Kasidee suffers from the Third Child Syndrome. While Kiera and Makenna chose new costumes for this year, I figured we have enough leftover costumes from previous years that Kasidee could choose from. Oh well - at least they're new to her!!)