Weekly Wrap-up

The kids finally got to have their day in the snow on Monday. This was the first time that McKade actually got to trudge out into it and he was amazed at how much fun it could be, even though he fell down every other minute. The kids all made snowballs and snow angels. We also made a tiny little snowman-which was a little difficult because Nick preferred turning the head into snowballs. We had a lot of fun and of course followed it up with a nice mug of hot chocolate!

Last year our little connoisseur of the arts, Skylar, came up with a plan that we would alternate seeing A Christmas Carol and the Nutcracker every other year. This was the year for the Nutcracker. So, I tried to search around to find a local one that I could take her to. We lucked out and were able to go see a performance at a local high school done by a local dance studio on Tuesday night. The added bonus was that it was free! I decided that it being free, we could attempt to bring Nick along. Ben opted to stay home with McKade. I didn't expect much since it was free but I was amazed at how well the ballet was performed! They had little kids up to adults that really were fantastic dancers. Of course Skylar loved it and Nick was actually mesmerized by it. I told Skylar that we might have to make the free Nutcracker a yearly tradition!


We decided to start a new tradition this year and celebrate St. Nick's Day on December 6th. On Wednesday night we went through all of our toys and picked out enough to fill a big box to give away to someone who may appreciate them. Then the kids left their shoes out overnight so that they could get a visit from "St. Nick" for St. Nick's Day on Thursday. We emphasized that St. Nick's Day was all about giving and since they gave some of their toys away, we would give them some surprises to help celebrate the Christmas season. The next morning near their shoes they were excited to find little stuffed animals, snow globes, coloring books, and a Gingerbread house kit to keep them busy until Christmas comes.
Ben's work party was on Thursday night at the Grand America Hotel in SLC. It's always a little fun to feel a little fancy but I'm glad I don't have to do it every day. Apparently Ben works with a bunch of bachelors because that's who we ended up sitting with. We had a nice night out and the kids enjoyed going to Grandma & Grandpa's house for the evening.
Ben had a camp out on Friday night with the Scouts even though it was the middle of a winter storm. They stayed relatively warm though and had a ton of snow the next morning to go sledding. On Saturday, we trudged through the continuing snowstorm to get our family portraits taken. This is always a great adventure and one that Ben is not too fond of. Thanks babe for suffering through it! We did end up with one successful shot! Now it's time to get those Christmas cards out!!