Merry Christmas!!

He still loves Lego's.
Dylan was super excited about this game.

Braxton loves his pillow pet and his new book.

Natalie has been wanting a pillow pet for so long.

Yeah, a piece of paper - oh it's a golf pass!!

Yeah, the AquaDoodle!!

All asleep in Dylan's room.

Santa came to our house.

I was up at 6 am on Christmas morning just waiting and waiting and waiting. At 8 am I went downstairs to see if the kids were alive or not. Dylan was pretty much awake. Brax was out. Nati started waking up and I asked if she wanted to get up or go back to sleep and she said she wanted to go back to sleep. So, I came back upstairs to wait. I only had to wait a few minutes until the kids realized what day it was and came running. They got everything they wanted. I think that Dylan was a little disappointed that he didn't get a cell phone, but he got a golf pass so I hope that made up for it. Braxton got a load of Lego's and Natalie got her favorite Aqua Doodle among other things. We, for the first time in years, got to just relax at our house for the morning and then went to Jason's parents to have lunch with the whole family. It was a fabulous day and we all feel so blessed to have eachother and for the love of our Savior. We hope you all had a wonderful Christmas as well.

It's the most wonderful time of the year...

Braxton spent 2 days coloring this picture for them. He was so excited to give it to Grandma. And she loved it!!
Natalie got the Tangled doll but I think we should have gotten it for Grandpa. He had lots of fun with it.

His smile can't get much bigger!

I thought this was a great idea - not so sure after cleaning it all up off the counter.

She loves her Dora Memory game.

"1, 2, 3, 4, Mom I'm rich!"

"Wow!! I love you Grandma."

Braxton & Nati with Grandma Beth.

Jason & Braxton playing a little game of Christmas Checkers.

Our Christmas Eve was wonderful!! I honestly think I was more excited than the kids were. We spent the day just chilling out - finishing our Sub for Santa & getting gifts together to take to Grandma's houses. We first went to Grandma Beth's for a visit that was supposed to be short but didn't end up being short. My mom claimed Christmas Eve this year which put Grandma in a hissy but I have to agree with my Mom - it's her turn. So we went to wish Grandma a Merry Christmas then the plan was to go eat dinner at Moms. Grandma had a turkey, roast, dressing, chips and drinks ready to go. We snacked on a few things, opened gifts with her and then went to my parents house. It was just my little family with them but it was great. We got to have Christmas Eve in their new room. The kids got their full attention and it was magical. When we were trying to get the kids ready to head home we told Nati that Santa was on his way and she freaked out. She looked out all of Grandma's windows and made the boys hurry up. This year has been so fun with her. We put them all to bed in Dylan's room and when I checked on them 30 minutes later they were all out. The next day.......

1800 hours of service

The article in The Daily Herald. Such a handsome kid on the front page!! I might be a little biased.

Go Hobble Creek Hawks!! During the month of December the entire school had a goal to give 1000 hours of service. Each grade, from kindergarten to sixth, made and put together a specific item to donate to UVRMC's Pediatric Unit. Being on the student council gave Dylan & I the opportunity to deliver the boxes and boxes of items. They ranged from blankets to cards, and parent kits to Mr. Potato Head kits. There were literally 2 car loads of things. It was amazing to say the least. We all met at the school early Saturday morning to take it all over to the hospital. We weren't able to actually hand deliver it to patients but we gave it to the nurses there. As a parent, I love that Dylan and Braxton got to do this. And to top it off the goal of 1000 hours was put to shame by the actual amount of hours of service - 1800!!

The student council gathered around the boxes.

Starting to unload it all.

A new talent

This is Dylan and his piano teacher. You might be thinking that she is about his age and you would be right. Jessica is a Beehive in our ward and needed to do a value project. For those that don't speak "Young Women" language, each girl, in order to receive her YW Medallion has to complete 8 ten hour projects. Jessica chose to teach Dylan to play the piano as one of her projects. He has been going once a week since summer. She just completed her ten hours and wanted to show off her work by having a solo recital. So we had the grandparents over to hear Dylan play some Christmas songs. Jessica played a couple as well and they also played a duet. Dylan did so great and I am so proud of him. Jessica is a fabulous teacher and we appreciate all of her hard work to teach him the basics.

Carter Christmas Party

Almost all of the Carter grandkids. Look closely. Yes, Natalie is missing. She decided at that precise moment to throw a huge, ugly, 4 year old little girl fit because she couldn't sit on Santa's lap.
We love Santa!!

Nati and Santa. Before the fit throwing.

Braxton changing his mind yet again.

The annual Carter Family Christmas Party was once again full of fun for us. We look forward to it every year. Food, family and fun!! We ate, visited with Santa and played Bingo. It was a great night. Jason was missing again but the kids managed to have a blast and make some great memories. We love this time of year so that we can be with family and friends. Thanks to Grandma and Grandpa Carter.

A Christmas Miracle

As all who live in Springville know - we finally got the "Storm of the Decade" yesterday and today. We even had our first Snow Day!! And, as most of you know, Jason has been gone 90% of waking hours. These two things combined were a little overwhelming to me. We woke up to snow in the morning and even after the kids were all in school it was still snowing. After an afternoon of doing the absolute necessities I was dreading the thought of snow removal. To top it off, Jason didn't have any appointments which meant that he could actually be home with us for a night. He hasn't had time to put the plow on the 4 wheeler yet either. So, as I was getting geared up to go out and start shoveling to help shave some time off of Jason's work to be done, I looked out the window and saw the best sight ever - the Mousser clan shoveling my walks and driveway. Within about 10 minutes along came Cameron with the bobcat and took care of the front of the house in about 2 minutes. I had to come inside to cry, after helping of course. I really, REALLY wanted a night with my little family together and the snow put a bit of a damper on that.... but only for a minute. I know it might not have been a big deal to them, but to me it was HUGE!!! It was a Christmas Miracle!

a clean drive way.
and time left to make a snowman!!

FHE

These are a few of my favorite things!

Chowing down.

Carter, Walker and Paxton kids.

Learning how to be soft.

"Mom, please can I have one!"

Tempting, but no!!!

We have such great neighbors and friends that invited us over for a fun family night. Michelle made a super tasty dinner and Kelly & I took over some other fun things to eat.. a.k.a. - really fattening yummy food. The older kids that have taken piano each played a Christmas song and then they reenacted the nativity story. We have a bunch of really talented kids between the 3 families. Dylan just started taking piano a few months ago and did a great job playing. But the climax of the night was the new puppies. There are 11 total so we just sat, talked and snuggled the cute puppies. Some children (Nati) need a lesson on the difference between snuggles and strangling though. We had a great time, once again minus Jason, and appreciate our good friends and all that they do for us.

Strangers in the Night....

If my thinking is correct, which these days you never know, taking a single picture takes maybe 5 seconds. I guess a little more if you want a decent one. That's about how much I have seen Jason lately. Ok - not quite that bad but pretty close. He is working I don't even know how many hours a week right now. He is selling insurance with his 2 brothers and dad. He started in October and won't finish until the end of December. He goes to work at BYU during the day and most days goes straight from there to appointments until usually around 9 every night. You might not think that's too bad, but even when he is home he is faxing or calling to make more appointments or doing endless paperwork so the actual time we get to see him is so minimal right now. I am so grateful for the sacrifice he is making to provide for us and I cannot wait until he is done. At least, for now, I have this picture of us and a dream of life getting back to normal soon!!

Gingerbread Houses

Brax & I coming up with a plan.
Look at the roof - BLC with BYU under it :)
Our wonderful house!
My 3 little elves!

Break out the candy, icing and gingerbread houses!! The Carter's had the annual "kids are supposed to decorate but end up downstairs playing so the parents get to decorate gingerbread houses". My kids actually did pretty well this year. Cameron and Kate host with a great dinner. Then the fun of decorating begins. Natalie was quite the sassy thing with demanding her own bag of frosting and candy while the rest of us watched. She got frustrated soon enough and headed down to play with the other kids. Braxton finished it up with his personal touch on the roof - BYU & BLC. He's quite the showoff. It was a fun night with the family. Thanks to Cam and Kate for making it another fun tradition!!

Tis the season for old friends

Every year I get to see some of my old high school friends for a Christmas party. Those that are still close, that is. This year we met at California Pizza Kitchen for lunch and did a quick gift exchange. I've said it before and I'll say it again - I love these ladies!! And I love the ones that couldn't be there. We missed them so much. It's always so fun to hear about their lives, kids, jobs, stressful things (which makes me feel so much better about my stressful things). Merry Christmas to my friends!

The start of the season

This picture doesn't do this house justice. It's just at the top of the hill from our house. They spend weeks decorating it and I love driving by it at night.
Naughty or Nice??
"Santa, I want a doll and playdough and Barbie's. Santa, I want Lego's and a new airsoft gun."
All of the Carter grandkids.
Mighty big for that little train car.
Oh, the excitement.
Christmas tree ornaments 2010.
Making that final choice.

It was that time of year when we get to go to the mall, get ornaments, ride the train and see Santa. First off was the ornaments. Natalie had hers picked out within minutes. The boys on the other hand took their time but finally ended up with some great ones. The boys got motorcycles - perfect for this year. Natalie got Jesse from Toy Story. Then Grandma bought tickets for the kids to ride the train. They were all excited except Dylan. He rode it but was feeling a little old to do it. He was a good sport & I told him he didn't have to again if he didn't want to. We'll see what next year brings. We ate a quick dinner and got to make the requests with the man himself - Santa. Once again Dylan was feeling a little too old so I just made him stand in for a picture. Nati told Santa she wants a doll and Braxton told him he wants Lego's. It was a fun night with the family. It's a tradition that the kids love & each year as they all get older it makes me a little sadder that the Santa excitement comes to an end. But for now we will enjoy the excitement of the kids believing in Santa.

Young Women In Excellence

treats for the girls.

the cute construction cupcakes. I made little signs for each one. It started out as a good idea but after about 2 hours I was done!

Boxes filled with fun stuff
wish this one would have turned out better.

The foyer

We were able to show off our wonderful girls a couple of weeks ago at Young Women In Excellence. They have worked so hard all year and we are so proud of them. Our theme was "Young Women Hard at Work". We decorated everything with construction stuff. From the construction cones (thanks to Danny) lining the hall and the Jake's Brookside sign to work benches and ladders for display tables. It was amazing. We had all of the leaders and some of the girls in orange vests also. Each girl got up and told about one project that they did and they did so great. I felt like a proud mom. Our YW President came up with a fabulous gift for each girl. She got brown boxes and filled them with a red pencil, the YW theme card, work gloves, a ruler, chocolate tools, & For the Strength of Youth booklet. It was a great night for great girls!!