On the road again

We enjoyed a fabulous trip to Washington, thanks to all for a wonderful time!   The girls were so excited about an airplane flight, but I'll admit I was a little nervous to fly with two kids by myself.

Waiting to board...

 Coloring and other fun activities on the flight

Lots of snacks kept this one happy!

Playing games and watching shows kept this one happy!  She was thrilled to have her own headphones, and kept wanting to take a nap with them on (she thinks they are noise-cancelling ones like Nick's)

Once there we enjoyed playing, spending time with our families and just being away from the cold!

Have you ever had one of these come out of the oven?!

Rub a dub dub, 3 girlies in the tub.

It was wonderful to go to the Seattle Temple with my mom.

Seattle Aquarium.  Eleanor was eager to touch everything in the water.

Scuba diver and an eel

Camille was a little more timid about touching any sea creatures.

Ring of life--the jellies!

Cam is also a little nervous about the giant octopus behind her.  I don't blame her, those things are kind of creepy!

Giving an octopus kiss

Our very own little jelly

At a children's museum

Camille fell asleep in the car and actually transferred to the cart in Costco and slept for another 30 min.  That NEVER happened when she was a baby, what's up with that??

On the flight back they both were good girls, and zonked out just as we started our descent so they got a good 10 min nap in.  Of course! :)

Back home, trying out her first bun!

Camille and Jenna dressed up nonstop.  I'm so glad they are such good friends!

The sleep contortionist.

I see Seattle

I don't know what I loved more about the past 2 weeks, seeing some of my wonderful family or missing out on the negative temps in milwaukee.  Ok I did love seeing my family more, but the weather was a close second.  I sure love Seattle.  Growing up 20 min away gave me the opportunity for a lot of great experiences there. 

Whenever I fly or drive into western Washington, I feel at home as soon as I start to see evergreen trees.  I honestly feel like I can breathe better and I just feel more at ease.  It wasn't until I was married before I realized that 'Christmas in the Northwest' isn't a Christmas song played everywhere.  Such a cheesy song, but I love it! 

As a kid, on our way to visit my grandma we could see some sky scrapers in Seattle in the distance at a certain hill through the trees.  When we drove by, the kids would have a contest to see who could spot it first.  We said, 'I see Seattle!'  I think we mostly loves playing it because it was fun to say.  Ah nostalgia. 

More on our trip later, but a pic of Elle thoroughly enjoying an ice cream cone for now! :)

Sisters

Having a sister is like having a best friend you can't get rid of. You know whatever you do, they'll still be there. - Amy Li 


I have 3 brothers--one older, two younger.  I always wanted a sister and begged my mom for one, but it wasn't meant to be.  I wanted the late night talks, best friend that's always there, clothes swapping, sisterly advice on dating, baking together.....sigh.  But you know what?  I found all of those things in my mother and I'm so grateful to be so close with her.  Ok we really don't share clothes but she is my best friend. :)  I want my girls to be close with me, but I also hope they can also be close with one another.  I don't expect them to never fight (oh they sure can do that!) but *for now* they truly love spending time together. 

Camille helping feed Elle her yogurt

Playing in the water on a cold morning.  I saw this idea online.  We cleaned out the sinks, filled them with warm water and put towels on the floor for those inevitable splashes.  They were done after all of about 5 minutes, but they had a great time while it lasted. :)

Yes there was some water drinking....oops good thing I cleaned the sink recently!

If they can still be friends on occasion when they are teenagers, I think I'll have it made.  Love these sweet girls!

The stockings were hung

We enjoyed  a wonderfully long Christmas break this year.  I will miss having such long breaks when Nick is working.  We relaxed and watched movies lots, and made a few outings.

Trip to Miller brewery for a tour and to see the lights display with friends.  It was a pretty impressive show. 

We got to go down in the caves that were used to store the beer kegs with tons of ice way back in the day.  The 1800s?  Not sure I was busy taking pictures instead of listening. ;-)

Ugly Christmas sweater!  She loves this thing.

Christmas Eve dinner with the Sanders

Reading the story of Christ's birth with puppets made by Great Grandma Mavis

Ugly Christmas sweaters (minus Cam)!  I think we have one of these pictures every year since Cam was born.  I'll have to see if I can find them.

Christmas pj's!

We had such a lovely Christmas with our little family.  Thank you so much to everyone for their thoughtful gifts, we appreciated them all!!

Stockings filled, gifts out and ready.

Christmas morning!

When Eleanor was born, I didn't think she looked much like Camille.  The older she gets, the more they look alike.  I think they really do in these two pictures!

Soooo excited.  This is what she asked Santa for.  We took her to toysrus and told her she could pick out one thing to ask Santa for.  We made sure she knew that didn't necessarily mean he would bring that, but he needed ideas.  After looking over the entire store, she knew this was it.  A little Olivia figurine with outfits for various adventures.  You may remember she chose to be Olivia for Halloween, so the love continues.

Eleanor received many fun gifts.  Her favorite was and continues to be this baby doll with a little blanket and bottle.  She is not too keen on sharing it yet.

The girls had so much fun playing with this little puppy their grandparents sent.  It barks, wags and walks.  Eleanor was scared at first, but now she will try to get it to come to her and even pets it.

Looking at pictures in a photo album Eleanor and Nick received.

Christmas Eve we left cookies and milk for Santa, and carrots for the reindeer along with a note Camille dictated and then signed.  She has been practicing writing her name for this letter for the past few weeks.  We traced Eleanor's hand on the back. 

Santa wrote a note back to us!

During Eleanor's nap, these two decorated a gingerbread house.  They meticulously decorated every inch of it, complete with a little fondant snowman.

Ready to go sledding!  Camille has been begging to go, but we haven't had much snow for it yet.  Where do we live again?

I feel very blessed, and not because of the gifts we received but because of the hand of the Lord in all our lives, and the knowledge I have of the Plan of Salvation. 

May we always remember our Savior's birth and life, not just during December but all year long!