Personal Progress...

When Abby found out last January that they would be ending the Personal Progress program in Young Women's in 2020, she made a goal to finish the program so she could earn her YW Medallion. That is a lot of work to cram 6 years worth of goals and projects into just under 2 as a Beehive but she did it!

Three other girls all finished the program as well and were all recognized on the last Sunday of 2019.

Here is Jessica, Abby, Megan and Lauren!

We are so proud of this girl and her determination to finish this wonderful program!

Consignment store find...

I have been wanting this Willow Tree nativity for years. I think it is so classic and beautiful but also very expensive! We were very surprised to walk into a consignment store on the Saturday after Christmas to find one for sale for less than half of what it would cost new.

Even though Christmas had already passed, we still set it all up so we can enjoy it for the few days we have until all the decorations are put away for another year. It just goes to show that you never know what treasures you will find at the consignment store!

Christmas Morning

The boys were up by 6 a.m. on Christmas morning but the girls were still sleeping at 7 a.m. when we went to go wake them up. There was lots of excitement as they discovered the wonderful items that Santa had left them.

We then made a yummy breakfast and ate it all up when this little boy finally woke up so we could continue with the unwrapping of all the presents! He loved his new tricycle from Santa and feels like such a big boy with someone pushing him around in it!

There was a big pile of presents for everyone to open so we took turns from youngest to oldest opening them up one at a time!

Just when the kids thought every present had been opened, we told them there was one more gift yet to find...in the basement!

There were squeals of delight when they walked downstairs to discover this...

This jumper has already provided hours of entertainment for the kids and an added bonus of lots of exercise too!

We spent the rest of the day enjoying our gifts and some great family time. 

Merry Christmas 2019!!

Santa Gifts...

There were some fun gifts from "Santa" to walk down to on Christmas morning.

Hudson got a new tricycle/stroller!

Maylie got a doll stroller...

Landon got a telescope...

Nolan got a rock tumbler...

And Abby got a new dress and a Gel nails kit.

T'was the night before Christmas...

There was a lot of excitement in our house on Christmas Eve!! After eating some pizza, we opened up our new Christmas pajamas!

Jason and I even got matching pajamas this year but this picture was the best we were able to manage with all of us in it!

Then it was time to open up a new family game (Disney Codenames) plus all of the sibling gifts. It was so fun to watch them hand out the presents that they had all bought for each other with their own hard-earned money.

Then it was time for some Christmas goodies, a Christmas movie, and then bedtime for these little ones!

Gingerbread House Decorating

Whoever invented pre-assembled gingerbread houses is a genius! We bought two of them this year so we let the older boys decorate one and the girls decorate the other!

They did it all by themselves in the afternoon of Christmas Eve, complete with lots of candy and icing eating along the way! I think they turned out great!

Temple Lights

On Saturday, December 21st we headed to Washington DC to see the Festival of Lights at the Temple Visitor's Center with my sister Tasha and her family. This has become a yearly Christmas tradition that we all enjoy so much. We always start out touring the Visitor's Center and seeing all of the different nativities set up from around the world. Then we headed outside just as the lights were turned on for the evening and before the crowds got too big!

These cousins sure have a good time together!

Love all these lights and how they turn our thoughts and minds to the light of the world, Jesus Christ!

Afterwards we had dinner at the Corner Bakery (another fun tradition) and then had some treats at Tasha's home before heading back to Hagerstown. Can't believe Christmas is just around the corner!

Decorating cookies

Our neighbors were headed out of town and had a bunch of leftover gingerbread cookies, frosting and sprinkles that they donated to our family. We invited some friends over on Saturday, December 21st to help us decorate them. It was a fun little activity that was so nice of our neighbors to share with us!

The kids, their friends, and their finished products!

Letter from Santa

On Thursday, December 19th Maylie got a special treat in the mail...a letter from Santa!! She was so excited about getting this letter and had it read to her several times throughout the day. She was especially glad to hear that she was on the top of Santa's nice list too! When Nolan came home from school, she smugly told him "See, I told you Santa was real!" The Christmas magic is still very much alive with this little girl!

Preschool Christmas Party

Maylie had her last day of preschool for the year on Wednesday, December 18th. They had a great time playing Christmas Bingo and decorating sugar cookies. Plus they got to wear their pajamas to school which was a fun treat!

Ward Christmas Party

We had our Ward Christmas party on Saturday, December 14th. We had a yummy dinner followed by some fun performances from local ward members. These two girls looked so cute with their red and green Christmas dresses!

Then it was time for the Primary to perform...

Landon even got to play the bells for "Christmas Bells!"

Such a fun treat to gather with our Ward family at Christmas time!

Another milestone!

On Saturday, December 14th I got another charm during my WW meeting for losing 10 pounds! I know the weight loss will start to slow now that I am so close to my goal weight but I am just thrilled that I was able to lose 10 pounds during the holiday season and finally get back to my pre-pregnancy weight. I am trying to be more mindful of my eating and choosing my treats wisely, splurging when the treat is really good but avoiding the mediocre ones. I don't have to eat it just because it's there! It feels nice to be in control of my eating again, instead of feeling like food is controlling me.