Home for the holidays

We had a white Christmas after all! The 3 of us made the long trek home for the holidays....2 days of driving with a fidgety toddler and a stinky dog and one very long night in an equally stinky motel room... but it was worth it a hundred times over!! We had such a wonderful time with our families in Utah. This year was a Richardson year for Christmas so we had a lot of fun times with that side of the family! There was plenty of fun to be had on my side as well though! We stayed with Mom and Dad in Highland and got to spend quality time with Grandma and Grandpa Rice who came down from Canada for the holidays - what a treat! We sure missed Mel and Erin's families though - Christmas just isn't the same when all the family is not there. Eric had to leave after only 6 days due to work (poor guy) but Gabe and I stayed on another 10 days and really lived it up! (We passed on the drive home... a 1 1/2 hour flight is a bit more bearable!!) Here are snapshots of the fun...

Christmas Eve

We had our traditional Christmas Eve evening with my family on the 23rd...Chicken a la King for dinner, Christmas songs and stories galore, reading of the birth of Christ from the Bible, lots of shortbread cookies and homemade candy, and to top it off watching The Christmas Carol (George C. Scott version - a family favorite). I LOVE our family traditions... it was an evening to cherish, like every year! :)

On actual Christmas Eve we went to the Richardson's for dinner and a rockin' party! This is a big family get together that Eric's family traditionally hosts for the entire Evan's extended family. Cheryl makes a delicious dinner then we move out the tables and get to visit with each other, eat tons of goodies, and even open one present! Gabe was beside himself with excitement when he opened a tow truck from Grandpa and Grandma Evans... he was literally bouncing up and down and opening and closing his fists while he was waiting for us to get it out of the box! It was so cute!

Christmas morning... bright and early!

Santa definitely found us in Utah! We all received wonderful gifts on Christmas but the best part was watching Gabe open his... oh my goodness, did that little boy get spoiled! We need more grandchildren on Eric's side of the family! :)

Later on in the day we headed back to the Sterzer's for Mom's famously scrumptious turkey dinner and gift-opening-fun with the family! This Christmas was different than any before since we were literally coming home for Christmas. It made me appreciate family so much more... being able to spend time with those we love is a gift... the best gift I could have ever asked for! Thank you to both our families for providing us with such a warm and loving holiday. We love you bigger than the sky!!

"tastes like chicken"

Gabe makes me laugh every single day but this time he took it to the next level... I was dying laughing! At dinner the other night we had a big green salad and Gabe had speared a fat piece of tomato on his fork. He asked me "what's that, Mommy?" and I told him it was a tomato (even though he knows what a tomato is and has been eating them his whole life!) So he pops it in his mouth and chews industriously while slowly moving his head back and forth like he is really tasting it... then he stops and says in the sweetest voice "it tastes like chicken, Mommy, tastes like chicken." Eric and I were shocked to hear that phrase come out of his mouth because even though it's a common joke to compare things to the taste of chicken, we never have! I have no idea where he came up with that one!

Then just now in the bath tub he was filling his mouth with bath water (bubbles and everything) and swishing it around - I told him (yet again) to spit it out and stop doing that because the bath water will make him sick if he drinks it. He pauses directly after swishing and spitting and says "mmm, tastes like chicken". It cracked me up again!! That little guy has the funniest personality!

Christmas time Seattle style!

This year we get the best of both worlds of Seattle and Salt Lake! During Christmas vacation in Utah we will get to see the beautiful temple square Christmas lights and spend lots of time with the people we love... but we also get to enjoy gorgeous Seattle all done up for the holidays! Streets lined with white-lit trees, an enormous Christmas tree, live holiday music on the corners, a giant sparkling star overhead, santas walking around(although they're often begging for money!), garlands, wreaths... Seattle is decked out for Christmas!! It has been so fun walking around and soaking in all that Christmas spirit! Eric, Gabe and I went downtown last weekend and strolled through the streets packed with people- most carrying packages from all the great shopping around, some just enjoying the ambiance. It was wonderful! All the scene needed was a little snow falling! Oh well, at least it wasn't raining! :)5th Avenue with all the great shopping!

For FHE this week we went to downtown Bellevue with our friends and saw Snowflake Lane... a street decorated with white snowflakes and nutcrackers, complete with a festive show of drummer boys (actually pounding on their drums), snowmen, reindeer, and other Christmas characters... all dancing to music. They even had snow falling! It was so fun!

Baby Logan and Birthday girl Mindy

I finally got to meet my big brother's new baby Logan Matthew...what an adorable baby! He turned 7 weeks old while we were in Utah. I had so much fun cuddling him and kissing him - poor little guy didn't have a moments peace between all of us wanting a turn holding him! He makes the cutest little purring and grunting noises - haha! I love it! But when he wants to be heard, he is LOUD!! :) Matt and Amy are the cutest parents and so fun! They even went country dancing one night when we were there! (You would never in a million years know Amy had a baby 7 weeks ago!) What a cute family they make now with their two little boys!Logan sitting on his cousin...that big bump in the way!! :)

Happy Birthday Mindy!!

I got to take my little sis out to lunch for her birthday - a birthday tradition I have always had with my sisters that I'm really going to miss. Mindy, Jack, and I went to the Blue Lemon in Highland - yum!

Later that night we went bowling to celebrate the big day... it was a blast! I was by far the worst bowler in the whole place. My excuse is that Gabe was my partner! :) Actually he was a team player for both Mommy and Daddy and often bowled better than either of us!

Make a wish!!

what a life!

Gabe had the time of his life while we were in Utah. He had so many people that loved to play with him! Here are some of my little man's adventures....Gabe and his pal Jack. It didn't matter that Jack's not quite a year old... Gabe loved to play with his little cousin. And I loved hearing them giggling with each other as they played - they were so cute together! Uncle Matt was just as wild and crazy as usual....and Gabers loved every minute with him! Here he is getting pulled and spun around on his blankey. Wes and Gabe would lay out the blanket, throw themselves down on it, and beg for a ride from Matt! And of course, big bro would always oblige!Two little cuties reading books in the middle of the floor! It was so fun to see Gabe and Wesley playing together. All these little boys in the family are going to have so much fun over the years! A very tired looking Mommy reading a story to some little munchkins in the morning. Gabe with fellow sports fans Grandpa Don and Uncle Jesse. Is that a Dallas Cowboys jersey he has on?! Eric about died when he saw that! (he is not a fan of the Cowgirls!)Gabe helping Grandma Cheryl frost a cake... well, he helped taste the frosting anyway! And yes, he was having a great time so don't be fooled by the face.


Gabe helping Grandpa S. with the horses - he LOVED being up in the hay loft exploring and kicking the hay down the chutes to those hungry beasts! We thought having him kick the hay down was safer than dropping it down...especially since he would love to watch it fall down and see the horses heads dive in to eat. How exciting!!I should have taken some pics of him feeding the horses apples too. Gabe was usually pretty brave and fed them himself although sometimes they were a bit too hungry and affectionate for Gabe's comfort and he would allow me to do the honors! It has been so fun to have the horses on the property. My Dad is having the time of his life with those animals. It's fun to see!

Playing in the leaves with Aunt Mindy! Now this was just adorable for me to watch. They were so cute together. Mindy really is the best aunt - she truly loves kids and has endless ideas of fun things to do. Here she took Gabe out and raked up a huge pile of leaves for him to jump in. He couldn't wait and kept jumping in before the pile was ready!

Buried alive!!! :)