Christmas

I have to say that this Christmas was Magnificent! We stayed in Austin, and our family came to visit us. Things didn't go quite as planned, but they still turned out great! We enjoyed getting to spend this special time with our loved ones. It was nice to have all the Christmas "work" done, so we could really enjoy each other. And did we ever!!
The boys & I also attended Christmas Eve mass together, from the front row no less (if it is standing room only, you can always guarantee a little space in the very front row!). Sharing the magic feeling of mass with the boys was definitely a highlight for me, and really helped to put Christmas into perspective. Plus I love singing the carols with the whole congregation! It was lovely.
Looking at these pictures really brings a smile to my heart, and I will cherish these memories for a lonnnngggg time.

Uncle John helping Lucy open her mermaid!

Before the rampage!

He will definitely shoot someone else's eye out!

Girls with their morning "joe"

The only gift she really wanted.

Aaah vulcan blasters, and yes they really are that cool!

My favorite present of the day!

His shirt says "Define Naughty". I think this pic says it all for Rhys.

Jake's favorite present: a remote like Dave's (until his wife upgraded it for him)

Some people needed to escape from the excitement.

He looks deadly, doesn't he?
Opa & Rhys battled it out in the living room for quite a while!

One of my favorite pictures.
It really represents some of the special moments that we were able to share.

Thar Be a Parrrrty

The curse of being born so close to Christmas is that your parents are usually too busy with the holidays to throw you a birthday party. So for the first time ever, Rhys got a real party this year. It shouldn't shock anyone that knows him that the theme was Pirates. We dressed our guests up (mad props to Uncle John & his face painting skills), gave them pirate names, and played pirate games. It was an exhausting two hours, but it was totally worth it. The birthday boy, um I mean pirate had a great time.

O Tannenbaum

It's a beaut Clark

Jake does a wonderful job on our lights! Lucy was so excited by the lights; she gave her Dad a billion high 5's!

Trip to Denver, Part 2

We did so much in Denver that I couldn't fit all the pics on one blog!

Jake & the rental car!

Trip to Denver, Part 1

For Thanksgiving we packed up and headed North to Littleton, CO to spend time with the Sundquists! We had an awesome week of just hanging out. We got to see Madden play hockey, us girls went to tea, the boys skied, we saw the new HP movie, we went skating, they boys played many a Nerf battle, and we chilled. The week went by wayyy too fast. We really cherish our time with Dave, Jennifer, Madden & Mia, and we always have a great time!

I had a ton of pictures, so tune in tomorrow for more!