Christmas 2010

We have had a wonderful Christmas Holiday. I personally am glad to see this year end. It has been difficult at times-especially the whole job opportunities drama that consumed the last 6 months. I have had to remind myself how lucky we are to have options in our life. I am grateful for Shane and his hard work on behalf of our family. The years he went to school and we struggled (usually not having much a Christmas) are not that far removed from my memory. I remember one particularly dear Christmas that we barely had money to get Davin and Mady anything, using the money Shane's grandparents gave to us to buy theirs. I knew there would be nothing for us that year and yet he surprised me with this little necklace that had two little stars representing the kids birthstones. He included a card that said he "gave his blood, sweat and tears, literally" in order to get this. He then told me that he had gone and donated plasma to get the cash to buy it. It was fun to surprise the kids with a few things they weren't expecting (like the Mustang for the little kids and ski lessons for the older two) but I wonder if all that was removed, if they would still feel the same. We are on a path of simplicity for the New Year. Trying to rid our life of all the extra "things" that bog us down. Whether that is me over committing myself, or too many good "activities" for the kids or even just too much time on all of our electronics, it is time to let a few things go. Time- that is what I crave most. Time with my family. Happy Holidays.

Thanksgiving and the start of Christmas

We were able to spend Thanksgiving with the families before we headed to St. George to watch Mady play in a soccer tournament. They won one, tied one, lost one- it was unseasonably cold so we weren't able to recreate that much, but it was a fun trip. We came back early due to a big storm- which you can see in the picture where we are getting our tree.

Halloween

The two little kids had a hard time picking out costumes this year. I was excited when Harry decided to be Mario, it was an easy costume and fitting considering how much he has gotten into video games. His buddy Max decided to be Yoshi and they were a fitting pair. Shane's company always has a big Halloween celebration so it was pretty fun when his department decided to do Mario Kart. Harry thought it was great to have a Big Mario around. I just wish I could have got him to wear it trick or treating.

Madelynn's 14th Birthday!

Mady celebrated her 14th birthday in October. We only let the kids have friend parties every other year and though we gave Mady the option to have a party she chose to just have a night in with her two good friends. She loves 8th grade and is doing so well. We are very proud of her accomplishments.

1st Day of School

More pictures of San Jose

Sunny San Jose! (Actually is was not as hot as Utah was, it was beautiful!)

Shane's company, Adobe, has its headquarters in San Jose. They invited us to come out (on their dime) to visit San Jose and "check it out". This was the start of a very long six months as we continued to "check places out" as career opportunities came our way. It was an emotional trip for me- this was the first time I had been faced with the reality that we may move away from Utah. So while we had a great time with the kids- the trip holds a lot of other emotions for me. (Also, Shane worked most days and then ended up flying home early- a day before us - so it was a different trip all around) I will never say it wasn't a good experience and a great opportunity for me to be more open minded about new experiences. Here is some pictures of all of our fun! We went to Monterrey Bay and to an amazing aquarium. We loved San Francisco and the Oakland Temple. We also spent hours at the pool. The weather there was in the high 70's while Utah was roasting in the 100's.