Christmas Eve.

Christmas Eve we went out to Grandma & Grandpa B's for a BEACH PARTY!!! With all the snow we were getting, a little part of me wished we were really spending Christmas on a warm, sunny beach somewhere. But I guess that's the beauty of living in Utah, right? We had tasty Hawaiian haystacks & exchanged beach buckets that we had filled up for the people whose names we had drawn & got spoiled, spoiled, spoiled. Another great Christmas Eve, just over too fast, as usual.

Christmas with the McCrackens.

Christmas was, as usual, busy & splendid this year. We were able to do pretty much all the things we do every year, which includes a get-together with my mom's side of the family where we get to see many of my cousins who, despite living within about a 1/2 hour range of, we rarely see. Surely you'd like photo evidence, but alas, I have none. Just a few cute/ funny ones to document the night.










The cutest little boy. Ever.


















My cutest Grandpa Stick












Cutie pants Owen.

The Depot.

I was under the impression that my brother worked for a company that sold home improvement goods. Now I'm not so sure. Should I be worried?

Blargh.

Attractive, eh?

Book Night.

I'm sure I've mentioned this a time or 2 before, & many of my avid readers don't need to be told this, but I have really awesome parents. They are really big on reading & education & such things, & some years ago started a tradition where every year at Christmas time we get together for what we call 'Book Night.' We get together for dinner & then head to a book store where everyone chooses a book, my parents buy them, write a note in them, wrap them up & have them waiting under the tree for us on Christmas. I don't know exactly how this tradition started, but I'm sure glad my parents were thoughtful enough to think of it & generous enough to continue it, even when the number of us has exceeded expectation. It's nice to have parents who instilled a love of books & reading in me, & nice to have the help in doing the same with Mr P. Thanks, mom & dad!! (These pics are just some of my faves of the boys on book night. By the time I dug my camera out some of the kids were gone &/or sleeping, so I don't have all the cute faces.)

Oh Christmas Tree.

This past weekend we ventured to Cub River, ID to complete our annual Christmas tree cutting tradition. It was a gorgeous day, & though quite chilly in the shade, the sun was out, the snow was sparkling & we found lovely trees. Mr P had a great time venturing around, with no fear of the snow, cold or anything else. (Even the flu that would hit later that day.) Thanks for the splendid time, little Olsen family.

We also celebrated Lydia's 20th & Jaden's 8th birthdays that day-- HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! --Before an untimely departure due to Mr P's vicious flu attack. (Sorry, all.)

We got our tree decorated on Monday night & sat & admired it's cheery glow before the flu then hit us. It's a gorgeous little tree & we're quite pleased with the selection. It's now official, Christmas is on it's way.

I Like Motors.

Yeah, this scooter's pretty fun. Unless...

You've got something with a motor!
Now that's more like it.

New Kicks

I love that my kid can appreciate the goodness of a stylin' new pair of shoes. We picked these up in Park City a couple of months ago, & just the other day Mr P found them on the shelf. Despite the fact that they are still quite a bit too big, he insists on wearing them most of the time-- even with his pj's, as you can see. Some days I try to put other shoes on him & he will shake his head, look me sternly in the eye & point to these. This could be a bad omen of things to come, but he's not a girl, so it can't get THAT bad. Right?!

Momma Didn't Raise No Dummy

Here's how I found Mr P the other day in his room. He was just reading stories & laughing & you could just tell he knew what he was talking about. Even after he caught me spying on him & taking pictures he continued to read & then proceeded to show me this pictures. Looks like his smarts might just come out even with his good looks.