Christmastime

It seems like we hit the month of December and time speeds up.  There are so many events and activities it is hard to keep up with everything.  But, it is also fun to watch the kids perform, see others perform, participate in Christmas activities, and serve those around us.  Some of the highlights of our Christmas season were:
Heather, Savannah and Matthew sang in Gingerbread Kids and had various performances,
Heather had a voice concert where she sang a great solo,
Lindsey had a madrigal concert which was wonderful,
Luke had a band concert-- he had a solo in Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer,
We participated in the "giving tree" at Church,
Heather played the violin at Temple Square,
Most of us went to see the Forgotten Carols,
Anderson Christmas party at "This is the Place"
Kids had sleepover with cousins,
Matthew, Savannah and Ashlyn got sick!
Mom and Dad worked to hold it all together,
Love and joy was felt.
We hope you all had a great Christmas!!

Lindsey's Cheer Competition

Two days a week Lindsey wakes up at 5:30 am to go to cheer practice and one night a week they have a 3 hour practice.  This doesn't include the time they practice during school, during their cheer class.  If you don't believe it takes dedication to be a cheerleader I would have to disagree.  This week, it all paid off when they won the cheer competition they competed in.  It was a lot of fun to watch them.  More than half of their squad can do a back tuck and they can all do back handsprings so it looks really neat when they do it together.  I know they were excited to win and it was exciting to watch them.

Thanksgiving

We had a nice Thanksgiving this year.  We spent it in Salt Lake at Taylor and Shauna's house.  It was fun to get together with everyone.  The kids always enjoy seeing their cousins and the weekend usually turns into a sleepover fest with cousins sleeping at each others' homes.  This year was no exception.  The girls got together and had a great time.

We had our own family Thanksgiving the Sunday before the big feast.  We all shared what we were thankful for and how we had been blessed throughout the year.  It was fun and will probably become a tradition as we usually end up with other people on the actual holiday.  It won't be long before our kids will have their own Thanksgivings to go to.  It sure goes by fast.

Matthew Gets the Reading Award

Matthew's kindergarten class had their first program.  It was excellent-- full of singing and dancing.  Is there anything better than watching 5-6 year old children sing at the top of their lungs while doing a fun dance.  You can't help but smile.  We had many smiling opportunities with this program, but our favorite was when Matthew was presented with his reading medal.  He was the first student to finish the reading program.  When his teacher asked him if this meant he was done reading and didn't have to read anymore, he replied, "yes."

I asked him that night if he would like to wear his medal to school in the morning.  He informed me he didn't have school.  I reminded him it was only Thursday night and tomorrow was Friday.  He responded by telling me, "he graduated tonight and didn't have to go to school anymore."  I guess when you have a program and get a medal that means you're done.  I reminded him how they had just had their 50th day of school celebration and then explained there are 180 days in a school year.  He quickly got over his disappointment because he loves kindergarten.

Happy Haunting

We had a great Halloween this year.  We didn't get to have our annual neighborhood Halloween party because Luke's game was on the night we would have been able to have the party.  After a discussion with the kids, we decided to forgo the party this year.  In lieu of our party, we did get to help out at the junior high spook alley.  Luke being an officer means that his parents get to help with student body officer events.  It actually was fun seeing all the kids.  Luke and Lindsey participated in the spook alley dressed up as various characters.  

We did have a fun Halloween dinner together with pumpkin stew, witches fingers and bats brew.  That will probably become our family time for Halloween because the kids all have their own things that they want to do now.  The younger kids went trick-or-treating.  It was perfect weather.  Ashlyn had her first Halloween experience.  She mostly rode in the wagon and ate a sucker, she seemed to have a fun time.  We went trick or treating with some friends so the kids had fun hanging out with them.  Heather went with some of her friends and we didn't see her the whole night.  I guess she is growing up.  Of course, Luke and Lindsey had their own parties to go to.

Football Champs

I know that I mentioned that Luke had decided to play football this year.  He had a tremendous experience with his team and his coaches.  It is amazing the difference good coaches can make.  Their team played in memory of teammate that died last year.  It was inspiring to watch these boys play and how humble they were.  This teammate's father was at every practice and every game and cheered these boys on to the championship game.

The team played in the final game at Weber State University.  Cold weather had set in but it didn't diminish the excitement that everyone felt.  It was a close game, but in the end, the Syracuse Storm pulled it off and won the championship.  It was great to watch these boys play and grow together throughout the season.  I know Luke considers his teammates his brothers and shares a special bond with them. It really was something special to be a part of.

Matthew is 6

I can't believe how fast time flies!!  Matthew had his 6th birthday already.  I kept telling him all year that he wasn't allowed to turn 6.  He was OK with that until he realized that meant he wouldn't get a birthday party.  One night, after stories, he asked me if it would be all right if he turned 6 years old.  I sadly relented.

He woke up to pancakes and a smoothie for breakfast in bed.  It seemed like his room was full of presents.  A lot were clothes because he needed new pants for school with the season changing.  He wasn't too interested in that.  He got books, legos, and a pillow pet.  All of his favorite things.

It's a good thing that we all love Halloween at our house because we have a few Halloween birthdays.  Although Savannah insisted she wasn't having a Halloween party this year, Matthew was all for it.  We painted pumpkins, decorated Halloween cookies and had a Halloween carnival.  Matthew invited friends from church and the neighborhood.  It was a great day for a great kid.

We are so lucky to have Matthew in our family.  He brings us a lot of laughter and joy.  He has a great sense of humor and is always coming up with something clever to say.   He is a deep thinker that loves to understand how everything works.  We sure love him.

Pictures from our family party