All I want for Chrithmas!

Well it FINALLY happened!  The day after Christmas Dallin lost his first tooth!  At age 8!  He was so excited!  All he has been talking about for months is loosing a tooth!  He was very brave and didn't even squeek while we wiggiled it the rest of the way out with the tweezers...now he's talking about just pulling the others!  Grose! 

Christmas 2010

There is nothing like a kids face on Christmas morning!  We had a great time!

 

Alex got the iPod he has been asking for for months...I don't think he could believe he really got it!  He was stunned!  LOL!

 

Thanks Gramma Herb' for the cool Night Furry!  It was a hit!

 Dallin got an ipod too!  He was soooo excited!

 Derrick just knew there had to be an ipod in there for him too somewhere!  He was on a mission once he saw Dallin and Alex with theirs.  He was over the moon to get the same as his older brothers!

 Zeke was pleased as punch with his race track.  He love to drive cars all over the house and pretend that anything with a bump or a hill is a race track.  Maybe this will help keep the track marks off my walls!

I love that Zeke is still small enought to be exctied over the fun little kid stuff! So happy!

Happy Holidays!

It's great to be Eight!

Our little Dallin has made it to the big time!  He is eight years old!  He has been so excited to turn eight so that he could get ready to be baptized, and go to scouts!  I can't believe he is old enough to be doing these things already!!!!

Our cute Dallin all grown up!  It's goes look like a lot, but he wanted a "BIG" remote-controlled monster truck this year.  He was so excited!

 

Dallin at Age 8...

Favorite Food: Good Hearty Meals!  He loves chicken and rice and rolls and good big breakfasts with all the fixin's! 

Friends: Carson and Kaden

Favorite pass time: Playing with friends outside...away from his brothers if he can help it. LoL!

Dallin is a worry wort like his Mom.  He pays close attention to detail and always wants to know whats going on ahead of time and the rules so he can make sure and follow them.  Very typical oldest child.  Very Type A.

We are so proud of Dallin and all the great things he does.  It always amazes me that he goes to bed at night and seems to grow an inch in his sleep and wake up even smarter than before.  He looks older to me this year.  He's lost that little boy look.  I will miss it.  We love you Dallin!  Happy Birthday!

By the time Dallin's birthday rolled around we were birithday caked out!  So he opted for a chocolate pie...as long as he got to have the biggest piece!  LOL!

Alex is Six Today!!!

Our little Alex turned Six today!!!

 With Elementary age kids in the house you can only imagine how often the topic of "When is it going to be my Birthday??" comes up.  Well today Alex had his special day and he was over the moon!  I can't believe how grown up he is all of a sudden.  It's funny how you wake up and notice little things that are different about your kid all of a sudden...

Alex 101:

Favorite food: Ham and Cheese sandwiches with the "white stuff" aka: Miracle Whip

Alex would eat this all day every day, but he will also settle for anything with sugar, pizze and the occasional chicken nugget.  He loves to play!  He loves to play ball, play with friends, play the Wii, Play Play Play.  He likes to laugh and listen to himself sing and quote movie lines.  He is still way into movies by the way.  Still studies them and dresses up like the character of whatever he is watching if he thinks no one is looking.  It's so fun to watch him use his imagination.  Happy Birthday Alex!  We love you!

 Surprised with his presents!  Wasn't expecting the Duck Hunger game.  Loved it!

(Do you love Derrick and Dallin hovering?  LOL)

Six candles...so grown up! 

(Zeke is loving all the birthdays we are having around here...loves to blow out the candles!  It's hilarious!  Wouldn't be surprised if we all got a good dose of Zeke cuties this week from all the "spitty" help he gave us!

'Tis the Season!

Christmastime always seems to hurry past me with so much hustle and bustle that I forget to really relish in all my favorite little delights of the season, so I thought I would share a few in hopes to better remind myself to enjoy the journey and the time of year that everything seems to be a little brighter....

1. My camera and all the fun things that it can do!  I have barely scratched the surface with this baby, but after following the directions on Stephanie;s blog and realizing that maybe I have a smidgen of talent compared to her I took a picture of my #1 favorite thing at Christmastime...LIGHTS! I love this picture!  This is how I see my tree when I find a few spare moments in the day to enjoy the beauty of it.  I squint my eyes so I can see all the little twinkles and somewhere in my deranged Type A brain I say to myself..."The tree looks so pretty!  Look how symmetrical you strung all the lights this year!"  LOL!  I love twinkle lights.  Somehow they just make a bad day better.  They put your mind to rest.  They ease tension.  They make a messy house look cleaner.  I think the New Star that Heavenly Father gave the Baby Jesus was the perfect gift.  The best twinkle light ever.  Peace, Light, Brightness, Hope.  That is what I think about when I see my cute little twinkle lights!

 2.  My Christmas tree in general.  it's nothing spectacular.  In fact it's a fake one that we've have for years.  It's tall and skinny and on it's last leg and if I was proud I would go by a new, bigger, better one that filled the room and reached the vaulted ceiling of our new bigger house, and put ornaments on it that matched or had a theme, but I like this one.  I like that it's a little humble and reminds me of what it took us to get to where we are.  It was hard some of the time.  It was a mismatch of trying to make ends meet.  It was a tight squeeze.  it was bending and breaking and sometimes not being the best. But it was and still is a great journey that I don't want to forget.  I like the old fashioned look of it.  I like the wooden ornaments that we once upon a time we had to have to so little hands wouldn't break them.  I like that the kids can still play with them and decorate and un-decorate it at will.  I like it simple.

 3.  Advent Calendars!  I will admit that these have never made it the full 24 days at our house.  The boys love them...especially Zeke who likes to get it all over with in one night and eat them all at once.  That was fun to watch.  More than that though, it's a memory from my childhood.  I remember my best friend Amy Klemm's Grandma would giver her family one every year and they would take turns opening them.  She even let me open the door and have one once when it was her turn.  It was a small act of kindness and I remember it.  I remember feeling loved by someone other than family.  I remember wanting to return the favor. It's a sweet memory and now I like sharing that with my kids...hoping that someday they too will want to share that small act of kindness with someone else.

 4.  Mittens.  I don't know why , but I love mittens!  They are so cute!  They are warm.  They are winter!

 5. The Baby Jesus.  I love this story.  It is my favorite.  I like to think about what Mary was thinking about.  I love that she loved him and us enough to give us that most precious gift.

 6. My New Nativity Set!  Anyone who knows me knows that I would never spend the kind of money on myself that this costs.  For years I have wanted this and this year I got the first piece of my collection!  I love That I now have something to collect.  I love that it's simple.  I love the story that it tells.

7.  Last but not least Christmas Programs, Festivities, Parties, Family and the Hustle and Bustle!  It's crunch time...I mean Christmas Time!  Hey I work the best under pressure!  I pull off my best P.J's and Primary Lessons and Parties at the last minute.  I love all the Hullabaloo!  (This is Dallin's 2nd Grade Christmas Program.  It was darling! He did a great job!!)

I hope you enjoy the season as much as I do.  Hopefully you'll take the time to really notice the little things that make you smile too!

Merry Christmastime!

Happy Birthday Dustin!

We went to Dustin's Mom and Dad's the day after Thanksgiving to take some tables up that had been ordered and his birthday happened to fall on that day.  I secretly think he likes to be home for his birthday.  It where he can be "a kid" again.  This is Dustin at age 32.  He is still a kid at heart.  His favorite food is still Spagetti!  He still loves football and teasing the kids!  Happy Birthday Dusty!  We Love you!

While we were there Dustin's Mom had a fun game for the boys...they went "fishing" for their birthday presents.  They loved it!  Alex wouldn't  hold still long enough to get his picture, but she made them all a cute vest/outfit to dress up in and play all their lost boys games in.  She gave them both hats that used to belong to my dad and grandpa that I had given her to keep in the cabin.  It was special especially for me to see them love them so much.  She put a lot of time into their gifts and they won't take them off.!  Dallin looks way to grown up for his own good in that old fishing hat, but I guess that's the way it's supposed to be.  Thanks Mom, for making things special while we were there!  (We all enjoyed the pie too!)

Thanksgiving 2010

Thanksgiving 2010!  This year was special.  With Tara's wedding the week before Thanksgiving, we decided have dinner at my Mom's on Sunday.  It was so fun to have everyone there together.  A tight squeeze, but everyone seemed to have a good time.  Thanks to everyone who chipped in to make it a success!  It was so good to see family and remember what's important.

 This is my favorite Thanksgiving 2010 picture!  Becky and Robyn getting their game on with the Wii!  So fun!

 Cousins!


 FAMILY...is EVERYTHING!

 

 Relaxing after dinner

 

 Dustin clinging to his slush cup...LOL!  He said all he wanted was slush for his birthday.  Good thing his birthday falls at Thanksgiving time.  The look on his face says it all.  He was telling me to stop taking picture of him.  Everyone was picture out from the wedding the day before I guess.Oh well...smile for the camera!

 Uncle Craig

 Mom and Carolyn---can you tell they're sisters?

Uncle Ross---This look is so him!  Reminds me to laugh once in a while!

Mr. & Mrs. Wilkinson!

Tara and Jonathan tied the knot at the Salt Lake Temple on Saturay, November 20th 2010!  We are so happy we could be there to share their special day with them.  Here are a few of my favorite memories!

 Just Married!!!

 This is sooo my Dad!  I think it's cute!

 Family

 Siblings...I love this picture!

Hip! Hip! Hooray!!!

 Mom and Tara

 Nephews!

 Dallin and Derrick pooped after the temple.  Someday they will kill me for this picture...all snuggled up together, but I love it!  So cute.

 The boys with their new "Uncle J"!

 Handsome men!  The brown suits were killer!

 Zeke found himself in the mirror and loved it!

 Boys with Grandma Herb'

 Derrick trying very hard to make a heart like the picture!  So sweet.
P.S.  I made the quilt that the picture is sitting on---I must admit I even impressed myself with that one, and I found a new friend in the process!  I lady that machine quilts at a price I can afford!  I am in heaven!

 One big happy family!

 

Bridesmaids!

 Dallin and Alex were in charge of getting the presents at the door.  They about ran a few people over tackling the gifts out of their hands.  It was a contest to see who would get chosen to carry the present to the table.  They were in heaven!

 Tara and the boys

Our side of the Fam...Not a bad looking bunch if I do say so myself...LOL!

 Yummy cake!  Rum frosting...who knew?!?

 So Tara.  Always prepared with a coke and some suga'!

Proud Dad!

The Alldredge Family---This is us trying to be formal.  I talked the photographer into snapping a picture of our little family.  Pretty funny!  I won't even attempt to point out the flaws...LOL!  Let me just say this...Who gave the boys the gum??? 

We had a great time!  It was an awsome party!  When we left the reception center it was a blizzard!  Snow everywhere!  The kids were amazed!  I guess we need to get them to the snow more often.  Dustin was glad he only had to help shovel for one day and then it was back to St. George.  We forgot how cold and wet it can get up there!  We've turned into wimps when it comes to weather.  LOL! It was so good to see everyone!  Friends and family I haven't seen for a long time.  Made me a little homesick for my childhood. Thanks to everyone who make a special effort to come and see us, we wished we could have spent more time with all of you! Welcome to the family Jonathan!