Aunties and Uncles, Grannie and Pops

The best part of Arizona was the Shinkles.  Hands down.  My kids loved loved loved hanging out with their aunties and uncles.  I couldn't get enough of Grannie and Pops.

Hyrum and Hayden built and played with these race tracks (Hayden's Christmas gift from 2013) all day long for days.  No lie.

Trips to the park are always enjoyable when it's been too cold for the park in Texas for weeks.

I love love love my family!  It was our first time all together in two years.  What a reunion!  I can't wait to be together again.

Late Night Bowl

One of our first nights in Arizona, we put the kids to bed and the big kids went out to play-- my dad, Bryton, Keila, Sydney, Husband, and I.  It was unlimited bowl from 9pm to midnight.  We had such a fun time.  I slowly improved my score throughout the night.  Husband bowled his best game ever!

Dallas Temple Nativity

My husband and father-in-law designed and built the stable for the nativity at the Dallas temple.  I'm pretty proud of it.  Fifteen years from now I'll be able to see it and say "My boys built that!"

36 hours in the car

We took two pictures to record our 36 hours in the car on the way to and from Arizona.  I find them an appropriate representation. 

Trip to the North Pole

Our favorite library ever had a "Trip to the North Pole."  It was so fun.  They did a little presentation with books and movie clips.  Then the kids got to eat gingerbread cookies and hot chocolate with ice cubes.  ;)

Santa Claus was the grand finale,  Just look at the excitement!  I will admit, however, that the library Santa was a little bit sketchy.  Hyrum did tell him he wanted a helicopter for Christmas.  Why do parents get such a kick out of these terrified children?

Sparkle

Grandma Brown took us to the Anatole in downtown Dallas for their Christmas event called "Sparkle!"  We went on a Monday night early-ish in December, so we had the whole place to ourselves!

There were a couple of bounces houses, where the kids spent a majority of their time.

Meanwhile, the adults took turns playing ping-pong.  Husband was re-living his pre-mission days when he and his mom played a lot of ping-pong.  They're pretty evenly matched.

Hyrum had talked all day about going ice skating and boy didn't he look cute with those fancy skates on??

It only took him two seconds on the ice to realize he was terrified and wanted nothing to do with the sport.  I was a mean mom and made him finish the lap around the rink.  There were lots of tears.

It was a fun little family night out. Oh! and I can't forget to mention that we ate dinner at Desperados.  We all wiped our plates clean.  Their food is to die for!

Main Street Holiday Parade

We love living on Main Street.  We love being close to the library.  For Main Street, it's really not too busy (yet).  We're just happy where we are and plan to stick around for a while.

For Christmas, the city hosted a holiday parade.  Husband was working, but the kids and I went and hung out for a little while.  We saw all the tractors, trucks, and buses, did the bounce house, and then got a front row seat for the parade.

The kids had a blast collecting candy and watching all the cars and trucks and people drive by.  It was a successful outing.