What a crazy week we've had

Our Christmas festivities started on Saturday when my sister Kelli and her family came to Cleveland for a few days before they flew out to Utah. Adam had just finished his written boards (YEAH!) so it was nice to have him home and able to hang out with us. We all drove to Kirtland and visited the Lake Farmpark there for their annual Country Lights. It was freezing cold and my weird son wouldn't wear his gloves or his hat, but the kids loved seeing Santa, all the amazing lights and animals and making a toy in the elves' workshop.Don't let this picture fool you. Jack, even with his Santa obsession, wouldn't go near the guy without Adam holding him. Olivia asked Santa for... get this... a booster seat. Don't let this picture fool you either. He wanted to go on this pony so bad and then half way around the lap, he freaked out and Adam had to take him off. Olivia, on the other hand, is a pro at pony rides. She's my little cowgirl.Jack could have stayed here all day. He loved looking at the trains and watching them go around and around. I'm just glad they were behind plate glass because he would have torn them apart.Olivia had just started making her toy when the "Elf Dance" started. She was a little weirded out by it all. When I told her to dance, she would just look at me with wide eyes and shake her head.Roman, Olivia and Hayden painting their toys. Olivia made a purple helicopter. It was very purple and took forever to dry. Thank goodness for the newspaper they provide for you to wrap up your toys. We asked Jack if he wanted to make a toy and he said no. He was having way too much fun in the play area (which was fine by me seeing that if Olivia made a mess with paint, I don't want to even think about what Jack would have looked like!)

Kelli and her family left on Monday and then we welcomed my mother-in-law Sharon on Wednesday, Christmas Eve. We were so glad she made it in on time because she was flying in from Portland and the weather there was so bad that some people were waiting as long as 2-3 days for their flights. Santa dropped some presents off early for the kids. Of course, they were pajamas. The kids were so excited and had to put them on right away. Notice Jack's red face? He had a 103.8 temperature that night, up from the 102.4 he had the night before. He still had the fever all through Christmas and wouldn't eat much for those three days, but drank a ton. The fever left as soon as it came and I'm not sure what it was, but he was so clingy and cuddly that I kind of enjoyed it (secretly, of course).Christmas morning was very laid back for us. We are used to the chaos of tons of family in one house, so it was weird for Christmas to be so quiet, but it was a nice change. Jack wasn't feeling well enough to actually open presents, but Olivia was more than happy to open his for him.

If you can't tell, Olivia was a little excited to get her booster seat from Santa. She also got a Disney Princess talking kitchen from Adam and I, as well as some "princess" make up and a Sleeping Beauty doll from Jack.Jack and his Imaginext castle. He plays with this at his cousins' house all the time and we found it on a great deal, so we got it for him. He hasn't stopped playing with it since. He also got a dump truck and an animal hospital (it sounds weird, but he plays with it at our neighbors house and loves using the keys to "lock" the animals in their cages). The kids got a VMotion from VTech from Nana and Papa, and Olivia absolutely loves it. It's like a Wii for kids, but much more affordable and teaches her things like letters and healthy eating and colors. I really like it. Adam was a little excited to get a Nintendo DS in his stocking this year. We only got stocking presents for each other, but I figured that the DS fits into a stocking so it went in. He loves it and was really surprised. Adam cheated a little bit and got me a new Kitchenaid knife block (it does not exactly fit in my stocking) but it is awesome. We needed new knives very badly! My brother and sister-in-law also got us this awesome cutting board with two knives and they are really helpful when I need Adam to help out in the kitchen (thanks Kory and Ana Lee!). I love cooking and these new knives have already made my life so much easier.

On Friday, Adam took his mother to the church sites in Palmyra. They left at 7am and got home around 10:30pm. They had a lot of fun learning about the beginnings of the Mormon church and about Joseph Smith and the other Saints who sacrificed so much to bring the gospel to the world. While they were gone, the kids and I hit a couple of after-Christmas sales and they got Happy Meals for lunch, which is always a treat for them. We came home and played with their new toys all day until early bedtime, since neither of them took a nap for me.

Today is also Adam's and my 7th wedding anniversary. My mother-in-law let Adam and I go on a date last night. We just went to Applebee's and got an appetizer and a dessert and had some one-on-one time. It was really nice to sit and talk without kids interrupting us. With a new baby coming, we didn't really have the time (or the energy) to do anything crazy. Can you believe we're going on seven years? It seems like time just flies by when we're having so much fun. I love you, Adam! I'm looking forward to the years ahead of us while we add more children to our family and move to greener pastures after dental school and I'm so excited to see where life takes us. You are such a sweet and caring husband and father and I couldn't have asked for more. Hey, and did you realize we'll be on a cruise for our anniversary next year?! How exciting!!!