Closing Out 2013

It's a good thing we have kids to teach us our new technology! :)

 Below is Hailey teaching Brian all about his new Ipad mini.

 On Monday we headed up to Soldier Hollow with Nick, Hailey, Courtney, Sis. Dahl & Sis. Cochrane. (It was their P-day.)

 This is my kind of tubing...you sit in your tube and they pull you to the top of the hill!

 Sis. Dahl chillaxing on the way up the mountain.

 ...and Courtney doing the same!

 Sis. Dahl, Hailey & Courtney on there way down...

 Brian always gave good pushes at the top...

 Nick & Courtney heading down...

 ...and the photo bomber is back!

 Sis. Cochrane needed a picture of her in her hat to send to her grandma who made her the hat.

 Then on New Years Eve we headed down to Provo to meet up with the Atkinson's for our traditional Tucano's dinner...and we brought the sisters with us as well. Since Sis. Cochrane is not a big meat fan she enjoyed the salad bar. :)

We asked our waiter to take our picture but he did not have the patience to figure out how to get the whole group in...he just took the camera, snapped the picture and gave it back...haha.

 Of course immediately after dinner the kids scattered in different directions to go to their own parties...no one likes to hang out with their parents anymore. :)

After getting his car unstuck from a snowbank he ended up in, Nick and his friends came rushing into the house around 11:52 and hurried downstairs to turn on the countdown and toast in the New Year. Then they were off again to visit other friends. It was good to at least see him at midnight. :)

As we say goodbye to 2013 we cherish memories and amazing experiences this year has brought and we take into 2014 the lessons learned from the harder experiences. We look forward to the New Year and the sense of renewal starting a new year brings. I have a strong feeling of gratitude for the opportunity of spending this last year with those I love and look forward to creating many more good memories.

Christmas

Sadly I have exactly ZERO pictures from Christmas Eve "Eve" (Hailey says the day before Christmas Eve is actually Christmas "Adam" because Adam comes before Eve...haha) with my family and ZERO pictures of Christmas Eve with Brian's family. :(

I do have some pictures of Christmas though. :)

The kids actually let us sleep in till almost 8:30 this year which was awesome! Nick already had his main present which was a ski pass to Sundance which he's already used. But he still had a few things under the tree. Hailey only knew of a couple of things that were under the tree for her so she was more excited to dig in. :)

Her stocking actually blends in with her sweatshirt in this picture. 

 I put together photo albums for both of the kids of their lives and it was a huge project to find, print and put the pictures in order but well worth it.

 We brought Brian kicking and screaming into the world of Apple by giving him an Ipad Mini. Up to this point he has refused to buy any Apple product because he rebels against the big dominant companies. He didn't even open the box for a couple hours debating on whether he was going to keep it or not. He has wanted some kind of tablet for awhile now but was pretty sure it wasn't going to be an Ipad...haha. Once he decided he would try it, he loved it! :)

 The absolute BEST part of the day was Skyping with Bryson. I can't even tell you how awesome it was to see his face and hear his voice...and he's only been gone 3 weeks. Just think how excited we're going to be on Mother's Day. :) It sounds like he had a pretty low-key Christmas and actually didn't feel much like Christmas to him. But he's happy and that's all that matters!

 Our family picture on Christmas. :)

 Sis Dahl, Sis Cochrane & Courtney joined us for Christmas dinner and that did our hearts good!

After dinner the sisters, Nick & Hailey and I went downstairs and played "Around the World" ping pong for an hour and a half or so (which is basically running around in circles for that amount of time) so we were all hot and sweaty and felt like we earned the pie we then went upstairs and ate. :)

It was a wonderful Christmas and the spirit was there. We read a talk by Elder Holland on Christmas Eve that really helped remind us why we celebrate this holiday and gave us the spirit of gratitude for our Savior and for Mary & Joseph. I love this time of year and I'm a little sad it's coming to an end. I told someone the other day that after how busy the last couple of months have been I now feel like it's the day after "everything". It's the day after the planning & preparation & activities & goodbyes. It's just the day after everything and I know I should appreciate the few minutes to relax but I really have enjoyed the last couple of months.

So now I will look forward to what 2014 will bring. :)

The Days Before Christmas...

You know what's awesome about the sister missionaries? When they come over to your house in between appointments, they coming in asking, "What can we do to help Sis. Morrow?" 

So I put them to work helping me set up the Christmas Tree and decorate for Christmas...since I was a little late getting around to it this year. 

Sis. Dahl is a trooper to be down on the ground in her skirt attaching the bottom of the tree into the stand. :) About an hour after this, she put on our boots, coat and gloves and went out and shoveled our front walk. I LOVE her!!! :)

 Last Monday we had Courtney and her friend Maddie come over and all the kids made caramel/chocolate pretzels for their friends. It was a good time full of laughs which I love! :)

 Thursday Hailey had her piano recital and even though she only started practicing for it in the last couple of weeks, she played beautifully. That girl is a natural!

 Saturday Nick and Nick Jackson headed up to Sundance to ski...in my expedition. I gotta be honest, it totally freaked me out to see them DRIVING THEMSELVES up to the ski slopes!!! It's hard to let your kids grow up!!!

 ...and this is where I spent most of my time the last month or so...in the kitchen. :) I have cooked, baked and cleaned my kitchen more in the last month then probably in the last few years combined with all the luncheons, holidays, friends gathering, etc. And I have honestly loved every minute. I love a busy house, fun friends and my family!!!

 These awesome sisters were part of just about everything and I have grown to love them like my own daughters.

Hearing from Elder Morrow...

So Brian and I learned a valuable lesson last week...CHECK THE MAIL!! 

We wrongly assumed that the way we would hear from Bryson first would be by email. So everyday we were fanatically checking our email...and no one checked the mailbox. When we finally got our mail on Monday, there was a letter in it from Elder Morrow that had been mailed on the 5th which means it had probably arrived in our mailbox on Friday or Saturday. AAAHHHHH

It was awesome to hear from him and learn that he was loving the MTC and having some really amazing experiences. 

Then today we did get an email from him with some pictures attached. So great to see his cute face!! He shared with us that they made him a District Leader after a couple days and then a Zone Leader a few days after that. He's staying busy and is tired but it's the good kind of tired. :) 

He and his companion, Elder Gardner...who he loves!

He is only spending 12 days in the MTC so he flies out Monday to North Carolina. He gets to call from the airport so we are very excited for that!!

Busy Day...

It's probably good that the day after Bryson left was a really busy day.

We're in the middle of our Winter Conference at work and part of our day was spent "giving back". We went to the Utah Food Bank and helped sort through a huge shipment that had been sent from California. It felt great to be doing something that benefits those that are going through a hard time. 

 After we finished up there, I headed home to pick up Courtney at the house and head to Hailey's basketball game.

 Hailey taking a shot...

 ...and it's good! You can barely see the ball coming through the net at the very top of this picture.

 That night, was my company Christmas Party so Brian and I got dressed up and headed to Salt Lake. It was at the Grand America, which is beautiful. There was a yummy dinner and very funny entertainment. Great night.