Our time spent in UTAH!!!

Just to warn you, this is going to be long post. :) Who would have guessed that so much could be done in 2 1/2 weeks? And I still left without doing all that I wanted. I guess that means I need to go back soon. :)

One afternoon mom & I went over to Annes & we spent a few hours making cookies & I taught Anne how to make Sophia her bows. Lots of fun!

This years party was a little different. We decided to do a lunch instead of a dinner. The soups were wonderful, but I'm not going to lie, I missed the fanciness of the dinner. It was great to see all of my aunts & cousins! We always quilt winter blankets for the babies that were born that year. This party we did 3. One for Sophia, Cooper & Hailey. This has been a wonderful tradition that I love & am so grateful I was able to be there for it.

We spend every Christmas Eve with the entire Shaw family. This was first year that I have attended where there was a theme. A Cowboy Christmas! The table was decorated real cute with each place setting being a gun holster, the plates were metal pie tins & the glasses were jars. We did come dressed the part, but I never did get a picture of me & Doug. :( We always do a gift exchange & it always is a riot! This year Doug got a heated massage pillow & I got movie tickets & Little Caesar gift certificates. We feel like we came out on top! We spent the night at Doug's parents. We woke up and had breakfast & then got to open presents!

The best part was when we were able to talk to Doug's little brother Danny. He is serving in Brazil on his mission. I miss him & it was good to hear his voice & know that all is going well.

We then headed over to my parents house. It was a quiet Christmas day because Anne & Hyrum were in Las Vegas with her family & Jason & Becki weren't coming until the 26th. We had fun opening our presents. Dad & Laura got remote control cars & it was hilarious watching Laura try & figure it out. :) We had a delicious afternoon feast & then watched one of our new movies.

Becki & Hailey flew out to Utah in the morning of the 26th & Jason drove with the rest of the crew from Colorado Springs. We were so grateful that everyone arrived safely. Hy, Anne & Sophie got back that weekend so Sunday was our 2nd Christmas at the Madsen Home.

It was so much fun watching the kids open their gifts. Sophia was simply over joyed with the wrapping paper! :) One of the funniest gifts of the evening was Hyrums Leg Lamp night-light. Awesome!

The Bells hosted our Friends Holiday Party this year. We had lasagna for dinner & brownies with pink peppermint ice cream for dessert. Yummy! We had a blast catching up with friends & meeting new babies. We had a white elephant exchange & there were some funny gifts & a few really good ones too! We had everyone there this year minus Bob & Emily. They were greatly missed! I'm just glad that I was able to seem them later after they got in town.

We decided to go sledding one day & headed off to Flat Iron Mesa Park. The hill is huge! It was a very sunny day & we loved it!

New Years Eve day was started out by going to JayLynn Photography to get family portraits. It was a lot of fun to get dressed up & smile pretty, but boy is it exhausting! I didn't even have kids to look over, but still! I'll post those pics when I get them. That afternoon my dad rented out the skating area at this events place called NOAHS. It was awesome! I think we will make this a yearly tradition!

We spent New Years Eve at my parents home with family. We had tons of yummy treats to keep our bellies full the whole night! Doug's brother Dave came over & brought his ROCK BAND! It was a hit as always. We made it to midnight only by playing Mafia, Catch Phrase & Loaded Questions. We barely got our sparkling drinks just before the ball dropped! I really think that 2009 is going to be a great year!

The kids were so excited to go to Chuck E Cheese! I'll be honest, I don't think I have ever been before. I must have been a deprived child. :) It was fun to watch their excitement as they played the games & won their tickets! Us adults even got into it.

Well there you have it folks! A little summary or a long one, of our time spent in Utah over the holidays. We had such a wonderful time seeing friends & family! We didn't get to see everyone that we wanted to, but we love you all & wish you a wonderful New Year!