Merry Christmas Cont.

Every Christmas Eve we have the Richards family party. This year Jacki was Mary and Wes was the Donkey. Jacki said that she got to be Mary because she was the first one. Wes had a hard time staying with the Nativity group. He kept going over to Grandma to get some ice cream roll. We got to see a lot of that side of the family, which was great. It's a little strange now that my cousins and I are all grown up, but its great to have a lot of additions and see each others kids grow up.
This picture was take at the ward party. There was a big turnout. We were busy visiting, and didn't get a seat in time to start, but the Malans were leaving and gave us their seats. The Putnams did a great job organizing it all. Ty took this picture of a group of us singing. My phone rang in the middle of the song, but thankfully it was on vibrate and nobody knew except for me. I thought for sure Marnee who was next to me had heard it, but I'm sooo glad she didn't and so glad I didn't laugh. I really liked the song and the Nativity we watched. There was a nice Christmas program at Church. I loved the primary kids songs- picture a Christmas and Can I hold the baby. I left that meeting feeling like Christmas was really here (even without snow....it came.)

We had a few Santas in our life this year. I'm saving for a car, plus I have a hard time spending a lot of money on toys. Ty's Aunt Janet brought up this like new rocking horse from her grandkids who were getting rid of it. The next door neighbors gave us the horse and trailer set that their son hadn't ever opened. Grandma Paula went to Layton to pick up a Dora House we had found on ksl used. Then she shopped for the accessories, and Steve helped her clean it up. My neighbor Amanda sold me her pet shops for cheap, which was super kind. They are a lot of fun. Ty and I played with them while we set them up. We are very grateful for all of Santas helpers. It made Christmas mean a lot to see all the people that cared about us.

Every Christmas Ty's mom is a hostess for their stake Creche (google helped me spell that). So, we headed over during her shift. There were hundreds of nativities from all over the world, and we got a list of nativities to find when we got there. Jacki found a lot of them and had a good time. We were looking for one that was on a tie and she couldn't find it even though it was right in front of her. I showed her, and she said, "If that was a snake it could have bitten me." I guess she does listen. We had to keep the kids from touching the displays and am glad they didn't brake anything. There was a room with activities. The kids colored and put together puzzles while I visited with my dear friend Amy who happened to be there with her kids. Then, there was a room that you could dress up and take a picture. The kids were funny. Jacki didn't want to be an angel but consented when I promised her she could be something else after we took the picture. Wes gave us a cheeser smiled and held still long enough to take the picture. Tommi doesn't look like he's having a good time, but the doll baby that was in the cradle was really sad, so I'm glad he let us take the picture, and I'm glad the manger didn't collapse.

Merry Christmas!!

We started out the Christmas season at the Tree Jubilee in Ogden. It was like a mini festival of trees and just the right size for our little kids. Wes tried to touch every tree, especially the ones with treats and stuffed animals. We stood in line to see Santa and Mrs Clause. It was long but went fast and was inside, so it was the best experience I've had waiting for Santa.

Toasted cd

It's a challenge teaching kids to put everything away where it goes. (I have my own organizational issues...especially with paper.) But, I've realized the importance of it in more ways than one. The other night Ty was making toast to go with dinner. It started smelling like burnt metal, so we pulled the bottom off and looked in. There was a melted CD Rom. I think it goes to my scanner. I had taken it out of my laptop to listen to Dave Ramsey and left it on the counter. Wes found it and put it in the toaster. So I had a lot of emotions. I'm not sure which I should feel- angry at myself, angry at Wes, grateful that he put it away. It isn't funny, but it kind of was. There is never a dull moment....especially with Wes around. After that, there was tension in the house. I asked everyone how we could dissolve it, and Wes turned off the light. That made everyone laugh. He is the family clown.

Best Friend

Jacki was telling me about someone that was her best friend. Then she told me about several more people that are her best friends. It turns out she has a lot of best friends.

I don't have any video, but yesterday the boys were both singing. It was really cute. I want to remember times like that because Jacki just punched Wes and he just spilled oil on the floor then put his had in my cereal bowl to wipe out the remnants, so I need to remind myself of all the great moments.

Momma's Boy

I didn't realize that Tommy was a momma's boy, until I walked away. Today my mom was holding him and he saw me. When I walked away, he started to cry. Later, he was on the lov esac, and he was happy until he saw me walk by and thought I was leaving him.

Mother

Jacki calls me "mother." It sounds formal, so I told her to call me mom. She called me mom once, and now it's back to mother. It could be worse, so I won't complain.

Wes has started saying more than uh huh and un uh. Yesterday he repeated, "Ya, mom," after Jacki said it.

Cabin

We went up to Bear Lake over conference and saw all the beautiful colors of the canyon. The only bad news of the trip is that Jacki threw up, which she usually does when she goes through Logan canyon. The good news is that she threw up in a sack for the first time instead of all over everything else.