December 2023

 

One morning we showed up to play pickleball at the gym and found this! You've got to make a secondary plan at Christmas time because there are so many Christmas parties in December.

Corban likes to wear this textbook cover on his head occasionally. 

We went to "Christmas at the Princess" as a family and had so much fun. The lights were pretty, the snacks were decent, and a lot of the rides were fun. We were a little rushed because Isaac had plans later that night and we didn't want to go without him. 

We watched the Christmas Devotional as a family in the loft and I got to play with Lucy's hair. Here is the hair progression. 

Corban's love note to the elf. The elf responded with a heart so Corban decided to call him Love.

Our merry entranceway

The top picture shows what pickleball looks like in Darcee's gym.

A hike with Amber, Mel, and Jodi on West Wing Mountain. It was really pretty. 

My favorite restaurant right now! I love that you can have unlimited soda, a delicious slice of pizza, and a salad you design for a reasonable price.

We got to see Michele, Doug's DON, get married to Todd, an administrator at a Lifecare facility. It was a beautiful wedding and I cried. 

Our family got jammy pants from the elf before leaving for Utah for a week. Some of our jammy pants fit, but mine and Lucy's were interesting. 

We knew our primary presidency was dissolving so we decided to go out in a "blaze of gratitude". I bought angel ornaments and cards and we gave all the teachers angels and cards and all the kids chocolate bombs with a Christmas story. Then our presidency met together to assemble our gifts. 

Lucy's beautiful drawing of Tate McCray. 

Packing up the car with essentials for Utah: my pickleball bag and several paddles, plus racquetball rackets. Doug was like, "Are you serious?!" Yes, I was. 

I make lists for all the kiddos so they can pack for themselves.

We were jam-packed.

Isaac got to go to the dinosaur museum with Corban, Mom, and Fisher, while Doug and I took the other three kids skiing. But this pic may be from the aquarium--I think it is. 

The elf on the shelf was all over the Aquarium.

We love the hands-on exhibits. The sea stars were awesome. 

Cason and I had so much fun with the rays!

We loved our visit with Grandpa Bowen.

The girls talked Dad into getting hats for skiing. 

Fun temple trip with Buechners

A new park right next to Dad's middle school. It is so awesome. They have tons of pickleball courts, too. Utah is spoiled. 

We wanted to play at Grandpa's gym but got thwarted because cleaners were working on it all day.

We returned late Saturday night from Utah and discovered Jessica in the grocery store. She was literally right behind me in line and we didn't notice each other. That makes me want to be more aware of others. We had a wonderful time with her family, as always. 

It looks like Cason in church with Brooklyn?

Christmas Eve dinner at our house. 

This was my clue for Lucy to tell her she got to get her hair cut and highlighted by Meredith. It reads, "MEREDITH + LUCY + HAIR + JAN 2 + 10:45 Love, Mom She figured out the clue right away. 

Christmas Eve magic

After waiting until 8:30 am to meet up (a rule), reading scriptures and brushing teeth, we were all ready to go downstairs and open presents. The kids still line up in birth order. Lucy was sporting some fabulous glasses. 

Isaac accidentally got Lucy's gift card for Sephora.

Doug got a great dinosaur golf club cover from Shauna and Marshall. 

My amazing socks from Peanut

We went to Willy Wonka on Christmas day and really enjoyed it until a man fell down the stairs and crashed hard at the very end of the movie. It was really sad and we hope he is okay. 

Grandma Kayla had all the ladies over for high tea. It was nice. Our goofy hats were a delightful touch.

Baptisms with Williams cousins were great.

We had a little breakfast with Sara and Valerie. It was great to connect. I want to get together with their family more often. 

A short hike with the Williams family

Enjoying the Mesa lights. The best part of that night was watching Lucy sashay up to one of the camel guides (made of lights) and give him a kiss. I have it on video, but not a regular picture. 

I have to be careful about listening to the Wish soundtrack. It is so addictive that I can't get it out of my head when I am trying to go to sleep at night. 

Wedding day! Noelle and Petey got married.

After the ceremony

The crazy ladies who married into the Bowen family. Derek and Holly got married in November and we're so thankful to have her in our family!

The bridesmaids and grooms decorated Noelle and Petey's car pretty scandalously. I'm so happy for them. He loves her so much and they seem like such a great match.