Christmas Catch Up

So I thought I was going to be so on top of the blogging over the Holiday season but apparently that was a JOKE! So here is a recap (a very long one) of what we did during the Christmas break (and a little before). There are some photos, but unfortunately I did forget my camera several times, and thus there are no pictures for some of our activities:)

*We took the kids to go and see a local production of The Nutcracker. They loved it! I thought they were going to be bored with all the ballet and no talking, but they were so mesmerized. The plus, it only lasted a little over an hour. Perfect amount of time to keep them interested:) *We made the yearly Gingerbread Houses. I love the Costco Kits and so we went out and bought one again this year. The kids had a blast decorating and wanted to dig in as soon as we finished.

*Mikaela and her preschool went Caroling at the local Senior Center. It was so fun to hear her sing all the carols she's been singing at home. I took a video of her instead of pictures, but the video is not great at all. With Lexie pulling on my arm and legs during her performances, I couldn't hold the camera steady.

*Here are the kids the Sunday before Christmas. I loved these green outfits, and even though I really wasn't going to have them all match, when I saw these I couldn't resist:) This Sunday the Primary performed alongside the Choir during Sacrament meeting. I must admit, through some of the songs that they sang with us I just couldn't get through them without crying. Those little voices just warmed my heart beyond belief.

Oh yeah, I told them if they gave me somewhat of a decent face for one of the pics I could let them do a crazy face for another. Here's what they came up with.

*Christmas Eve. Every Christmas Eve they get to open one present. And it's usually the one my Mom sends them...their annual Christmas Jammies. They were so excited! This night we also ate our traditional Salvadorean meal of Pupusas and then had a yummy dessert following. We let the kids stay up and watch some Christmas movies but then put them to bed so Santa could get here quick!

*Christmas Day. Oh what a day! The kids thankfully slept in until about 8:00 a.m. and the festivities began. There are too many pics so I made a collage of all our funny faces while opening gifts:) By 10:00 a.m. we were finally done and Jared made us the best Brunch ever, CREPES!! We ate and snacked all day long. It was fabulous! Lexie was the only one that pooped out on us early on the gifts. She was so tired after opening a couple gifts that we let her play with what she had and then she opened the rest after her afternoon nap. I think she liked that better. Not so much chaos from the siblings at that point:) Oh yeah, and her pic down in the collage is how she went around all day. After opening the Tinkerbell costume she would not take it off! I had to pry it off of her for her nap and as soon as she woke up she wanted it back on. What a silly girl:)

*I got to go and meet up with some college roomates down in Sugarhouse and surprise one of them on her 30th Birthday! Her husband planned the entire thing and fed us a great lunch. Of the seven of us that lived together, we were only missing two (we missed you guys!!), and it was great to retell old and new stories. I was even surprised when two of my roomates told me of one story about Jared and I that I have no recollection about! It had me laughing that's for sure! It was so much fun to catch up.

*We made our annual trek to BYU. Jared said the kids were low on BYU paraphenelia and so off we went. It was so cold that we didn't really walk around campus, but we did hit up the museums that were thankfully open. We went to the BYU Museum of Art and then to the Bean museum. Obviously the kids liked the Bean museum better hands down. But we have to introduce culture at some point right!!

Here they are in front of the big old Moose in the Bean museum! Since they are half-Mainard we thought it was only fitting! Too bad they are making the weirdest faces. At any rate, here's a pic for you guys on the East that we love so much!

During our visit we got to watch a presentation on reptiles. Jackson was enthralled and kept asking a ton of questions. Mikaela on the other hand...well look at the pic below. She decided to lay down on Jackson and take a nap!
The last animal on our way out, the White Wolf. They insisted on a pic in front of him.

Later that evening we caught up with some friends down in Orem. It was fun to chat, eat, and play Wii. Jackson particularly loved Wii Fit. He was so into it I had to get photos.

*We had our great friends the Zincke's come and visit from Texas for a day. The kids played great the entire day, as if they'd never been apart. It was so nice. The men took the kids sledding while Charity and I got to stay in the warmth and chat. Then we headed out for Temple Square, but quickly had to change our plans because of all the accidents on the freeway from the snow. We ended up in Layton (45 minutes later!!) and chose to have dinner instead.

*We had a friend from Cali come and visit before he started school at the Y this week and got to celebrate his New Years Eve birthday with him. The kids had a blast since they always love a reason to make a birthday cake.

*And last but not least...We Cooked and Ate all the time! I made two batches of Biscotti and I believe I ate an entire batch myself within the span of 3 days! Jared and I tried our hand at another traditional Salvadorean dish "Panes con Pavo" which translated is Turkey Sandwiches, but really it is so much more. I had to grind spices, boil chilies, and strain strain strain!! It was quite a process but they tasted oh so good! And we made a ton of appetizers. Now it's time to work off all the "Holiday Cheer" we have acquired!

Hope all of your Holiday Season was as fun as ours. I must admit, this week I have been exhausted playing catch up on my house even though I never really left this entire time! Ha ha!! Here's to next year!