Christmas 2008

Our Christmas was good this year, we played it rather low key and really enjoyed the extra time and sanity it brought. I procrastinated and did not start to purchase gifts until December 15 or so, but I did have a list of lots of good ideas and it all worked out fine.

Christmas Eve was spent like every other year of my life, at my Grandparents house (that's a good thing). It's always a spread of Mexican food, this year I brought some chicken nuggets and fish sticks for the kids. We always do some kind of nativity program, this year my sister Kris did a great job, but instead of the kids dressing up and acting out the parts because some one forgot to bring the costumes, she used a small nativity set to illustrate the point. Then the Grandparents took turns sharing stories of Christmas' past. My Mom's Mom, Dorene Ford, joined us this year and she joined right in. We finished up just in time to have a visit from Santa, he brought each of the great-grandkids some thing special. After he left we rounded out the evening with a version of the white elephant game.The kids were eager to get to bed so Santa would come and he did! Adam and Carson got bikes and Brady was left a ball that lights up and plays music. I didn't get the kids too much this year, just 3 or 4 gifts each, but they didn't seem to mind a bit. I had this inner guilt because there was so much more I could have done for them, but they really didn't notice and were so happy with what they were given. After getting cleaned up we headed to my parents house to eat a great breakfast and open more gifts. Santa also made a stop at their house leaving the grandkids a play house outside! We ate and ate some more, visited Dave's parents, ate and then went home to rest a bit. We ended to evening at my brother's house playing Rock Band. The kids loved it and were really good at it, especially Adam on vocials! It turned out to be a wonderful holiday with lots of laughter and family togetherness. Thank you to every one who helped make our Christmas special, the gifts were wonderful and the goodies even better. We love you.

The reception

Once again I helped to plan and decorate my brother's reception. Her colors were black, white and red (my fav). It took no time at all to decorate because we had so much willing help. Thank you to all those who helped out! A HUGE thanks goes out to my amazing bro-in-law, Gary, who built the bridge that goes between the columns. To be honest he also built all the tops and bases to the columns, but that was a while back. This time I knew what I wanted and showed him a picture of it and he went to work, he is truly gifted when it comes to woodworking.

The bakcdrop

The backdrop

The table centerpieces

The room

Adam and Amy

Another busy weekend

December is always the busiest month in our house and this year has been no exception. This past weekend we loaded up the car and headed to Mesa for my brother's wedding, but not before Carson's preschool nativity program and Adam's class Family Heritage Fair. Amy (my new sis-in-law) went through the temple on Thursday night and then they were married on Friday afternoon. Thankfully her mother had planned to have sitters for us at the church house across the street from the temple and it was such a big help. We walked around the temple grounds Thursday night and looked at all the amazing lights. Inside the visitors center there is a huge statue of Christ and through out the night a special message about Christ can be heard over the speakers. Carson called it the "talking Jesus". We stayed and listened to the message and while leaving I asked the boys how they felt, Adam said he had a warm feeling inside of him, he thought it might be the Spirit of God. Carson said he "could feel Jesus in his stomach". I guess that could be the same as a "burning in the bossom". It is comforting to know that my kids can feel the Spirit and can recoginize it.

The wedding was beautiful, and they were given some great advice. It is always so wonderful to see a couple start off their life in such a special and important way. The weather in Mesa couldn't have been better. We made a quick stop by Dave's sister Heather's house and then headed home. Here are a few pictures from the temple.

Here are the kids helping Aunt Amy carry her dress.



The happy couple...Tanner and Amy Larson.


Carson played the part of Joseph in the nativity program.

Happy Birthday Carson

Our sweet middle son Carson turned 5 years old today. He has the quirkiest personality of anyone I have ever met. I was due on Christmas day (and so was my sister), he decided to come a little early all by himself (thank goodness). He came out of my belly sucking on the doctor's finger and he still sucks his thumb, he had lots of crazy hair at birth and he still has LOTS of crazy hair, as a baby he had the longest tongue I had ever seen and he still has an extremely long tongue, Gene Simmons comes to mind (he can touch his nose with his tongue). Carson's full name is Carson Kent Wright, it wasn't until after we named him that my brother pointed out that if you say it really fast is says, "Carson Can't Write", thanks Tanner! When we blessed him the member of the bishopric conducting announced that, "Carson Kent Larson will be blessed today", Larson is my maiden name.

A lot of things can change in 5 years, but our love for him is still the same. Being due so close to Christmas gave me a greater appreciation for Mary, Christ's mother. I remember being overwhelmed with love and admiration for her and that feeling remains today. Carson has made Christmas that much more special at our house. Happy Birthday Carson!!!

This is the earliest digital pictures I have of Carson. I didn't have time to scan his "baby" pictures.

Carson wanted a "monster truck" cake, so I improvised, don't laugh. He put the candles on.

10 years

Yesterday Dave and I celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary. We were married in the Mesa, AZ temple on December 11, 1998. We went to Tucson a few weeks ago to "celebrate" so last night we spent an evening home with the kids decorating the Christmas tree. I realized how long we have been married when Adam took out an ornament that had a picture of the Mesa temple and under the picture it said, "Arizona Temple". Adam said, "Mom this is not the only AZ temple!" I replied, "It was when we got married."

Dave is the same wonderful man I married 10 years ago. We met each other through a guy I was dating at the time, they were friends. My then boyfriend decided to move out of town and asked Dave if he would keep an eye on me, and that is exactly what he did. My Dad told me he knew Dave really liked me because when Dave would come over to the house he would spend time talking to my Dad, but as soon as I would walk in to the room Dave had a really hard time talking at all (he stutters). I am so thankful for him and I love him so much. Here are a few pictures of us then with lots more hair and less weight, oh well, we're happy!

The famous truck, many of you will remember it!

While we were dating, look how skinny I was!

The Polar Express

This past weekend our family went on another magical adventure; for the past 3 years we have gone to Williams in northern AZ and taken a magical trip on the Polar Express. I know it sounds a little corny to say it is magical, but it really is. In Williams there is the Grand Canyon Railroad depot and every December the Polar Express comes to life when the train departs for a journey through the dark and quiet wilderness for a special visit to the "North Pole." Everyone wears their pj's and we are served cookies and hot chocolate and then the book "The Polar Express" is read. By the time we are finished we have gone through a magical tunnel that transports us to the North Pole. We look out the window and we all see Santa and his elf, Bernard, waving to us. The train stops and Santa gets on and then we depart for home. On the way back to the train depot Santa makes his way through the train cars and greets each child and gives them a bell and reminds them to always believe! As the train pulled back into the depot we looked out the window and saw that the snow was just beginning to fall. The boys were sooo excited. We stayed at the hotel on the property so when we got back to the room we opened the curtains and watched the snow fall. They put up lights all over the buildings and trees, it is really beautiful and Christmasy. It always gets us in the holiday mood.

Flagstaff is only 20 minutes from Williams so we stayed there one night. The next morning we went to the mall and the kids got to see and talk to Santa. Then we went to the Aquaplex and went swimming for a little while. The waters was a little cold but the boys had lots of fun, we will go back for sure!! It is all inside and has 2 water slides and a lazy river and a shallow area for the kids to play.

FHE

It's Monday night and that means Family Home Evening at my house. I want to share a great site for FHE lesson ideas. They are simple and easy to do for young kids as well as teens. Enjoy...

http://www.ldssplash.com/fhe_ideas.htm

More wedding pictures

I do like to dabble a bit in decorating. I have helped with lots of weddings and receptions and I love the creative side of it. I always have great helpers that make my vision come to life. I'd like to thank once again my "crew": Kris, Amanda, Amy, the other Amy and my Mom, oh and also my brother Tanner who made a wonderful new backdrop for me. Together we do a pretty darn good job. Josylyn (the bride) picked the colors and the general theme and we just ran with it. The only major problem was when a near by green house didn't come through with the flowers we had ordered, she had to order them last minute from the florist. It all came together nicely. Here are a few pictures of the wedding/reception decor at my youngest brother's wedding.

Seth and Josylyn 2008

FULL Weekend

Wow, I am exhausted!! We had a very full holiday weekend, full of thankfulness, full bellies and full of activities. It all kicked off with family. Dave's family all gathered Wed. night for dinner courtesy of Aunt Heather. The next morning the Wright brothers cooked a BIG dutch oven breakfast despite the rain, it was wonderful. We then headed to Grandmother Ford's house for Thanksgiving dinner. She learned from last years mistake and had lots of different kinds of pies for everyone. Everything was so good!

Friday was full also...first thing we took family pictures, 25 of us. Then lunch at El Charro, yum O! After that we went home and packed up the trailer full of wedding stuff. My youngest brother Seth got married on Saturday and it was my job to decorate the church. I'll post more about this later. Rehearsal was that evening and my little Carson was a ring bearer.

Saturday morning we loaded up once again and headed to the church. We were only there until about noon thanks to all the help we had. The wedding went off with out a hitch and my new sister-in-law was so beautiful. I'm glad it's over, but my other brother will be getting married in 3 weeks and we get to do it all over again, YEAH!

That was our weekend and we are so thankful that we all got naps today. Back to normal tomorrow.

Date Night

Yesterday Dave and I decided to make a quick trip to Tucson to spend some time together. Our 10 year wedding anniversary is just around the corner and we really wanted to do something special, but because of a nursing baby, my 2 brother's weddings and Christmas we just can't make it happen right now. So in lieu of a trip to Hawaii or a romantic weekend getaway we opted for an evening in Tucson with the baby.

For Dave's birthday I gave him a gift cert for go-cart racing at a track in Tucson. We began the date by doing this. I have made a giant mistake...Dave is addicted! He loved it and has talked about it nonstop. Next we went to dinner at Texas Roadhouse, we had never been, we highly recommend it, it was GOOD!!! Then we stopped by the mall, I needed to find something for Dave to wear for family pictures. I finished up shopping and Dave suggested walking around the mall a bit more; strange for him, but I went along happily. The next thing I know we are standing in a jewelry store, I thought we were going to look at something, but Dave handed the lady a receipt and she brought him a beautiful 3 diamond anniversary band. He had gotten it a few weeks ago and sent it back to get resized. What a wonderful surprise! I had mentioned to him a while back that "someday" I'd love to have one, and he just couldn't wait until our actual anniversary to give it to me. I do have a wonderful husband. We headed home after that. I know it's not as romantic as some might imagine but just spending time together is what really matters to me. I love you Dave! Here are some pictures of his new passion...

Milestones

Brady has reached some important milestones; he now rolls over and can sit up (a little bit). He is almost 6 months, and while he may be a little slow at reaching these milestones, we don't care. He is what I like to call, fat and happy, not too worried about going anywhere fast, just content. Here he is sitting up, not too sure how happy he is about it.

Busy Family

The Wrights have been on the go and I just have not made time to post any thing new. So I am making up for lost time today...

Carson finished up his soccer season last Saturday. He decided to go out with a bang! First he tackled the coach's kid, during a break I told him that you don't win games by being mean to the other players, you win games by scoring goals. He looked me in the eye and said, "No sir, you win by taking out the other players!" I bit my tongue hard so I wouldn't laugh and tried to set him straight. The next thing I know he has knocked down another player and then jumped on his back and is yelling, "Giddie up horsey!" I promise he is not a monster, I don't know what happened to him. Luckily we know the other coach and he just laughed it off. Carson was so excited to get his trophy after the game! He took it everywhere he went for the next week, yes even to bed with him.

After the game we all went to breakfast with Grandpa, Grandma, Uncle Gary and Uncle Forest. The pretty girl in the picture is Forest's GIRLFRIEND!!! Can you believe it? She is so great and we are all encouraging him to make her a permanent part of our family.
Then on Vetern's Day we decied to make a quick trip to Tucson. I needed to get the boys clothes for our upcoming family pictures and we wanted to meet our Tucson cousins at the zoo. Dave took off work and came along, yeah!! After the zoo we crammed ourselves into the tiny zoo train and took a trip around the ajoining park. It was a beautiful day and the kids had so much fun.

Save The Date

So... I have this neighbor that owns a vinyl lettering machine and she has offered to do some stuff for me. There has been lots of interest from family and friends, they all want stuff done too, so I begged her to come over on Tuesday Nov. 18, she is bringing her machine and will be taking orders. Her prices are really great and she can do almost anything you want. It can go on windows, mirrors, cars, walls, wood and more.

My sister is also going to be bringing her Gold Canyon candle samples so you can smell and smell and then order all your favorite holiday candles.

You are all invited to come and eat some yummy food and enjoy some good company. Of course some of you live out of town and can't join us, but if you are interested in ordering something let me know. Christmas is coming and these both make great gifts. Email me with questions... wrightfamily@aznex.net

Carving Pumpkins

Here are my boys carving pumpkins last night. Carson didn't like the "guts" much. Adam did his all by himself and they turned out great. Thank you Dave for taking charge so I didn't have to do it.

Hi Ho Halloween Fun

We've been celebrating Halloween a little early at our house this year. Our friend Misty threw a fantastic party at Aunt Amanda's house last week. The kids had so much fun and there was lots of great food. She really put a lot of work in to it and it showed. My boys were so excited to dress up...Adam is a knight, Carson a dinosaur and Brady a duck.

David vs Goliath

In our house the little brother is always picking on the older brother and on Friday he finally left his mark. I guess Carson didn't appreciate how Adam asked for his scooter back so he pick up a rock and threw it at him, oh no sorry, not a rock an oval stone. Adam's eye was already hugely swollen by the time he made it to my bedroom where I was. It has now turned some lovely colors! Brothers!

It's Autumn Time

This is the song we learned last week in preschool and it's so fitting because this weekend autumn arrived in Safford, AZ. It's never a gradual thing, one day it is in the 90's and the next a storm blows through and the temp drops 30 degrees. It always happens the second weekend in October. I have lived here all my life and I can count on county fair weekend for the weather to turn cold. I use the term cold loosely because on my cousin's blog today I saw it was 27 degrees in Eagle River Alaska. I am the first to admit that I am hot blooded through and through. I love it when the sun actually bakes your skin. Wonderful!

Dave's family came this past weekend and we went to the Graham County fair Friday night. The kids rode some rides, we ate dinner, looked at the animals, walked through the exhibit buildings, and watched the freaks that inevitably come out during fair weekend, I don't know where they hide the rest of the year.

Saturday morning we chose to go to the pumpkin patch even though it was raining. We lucked out and missed the rain, but were left with the mud. We bravely navigated an 18 acre corn maze, went on a hay ride out to the pumpkin patch and found 3 of the most perfect pumpkins, and and took some great pictures (the real reason I go every year). We ate kettle corn, yum, and the kids enjoyed playing in the corn kernels. Dave's sister Heather came with us, she has 5 little ones. We
ended the day eating in Willcox, AZ at Carters. They have the best root-beer and hamburgers!