Our Very Merry Christmas

We had a great Christmas! One of my very favorites. We were all together and healthy (Janie and I weren't in the hospital recovering from the trauma of childbirth-which was so nice!) We started our holiday festivities by baking sugar cookies. It was a really fun to see Sami get excited about the cookie cutters. But Grandma Olsen knew that Sami was missing something...an apron! So she made Sami an apron that matches mine (that she made for me for Mother's Day). She loves it.
And now Sami and I are twinners! And Janie gets one next year, so we'll all be matching while we bake away.We all got nice presents that we really like. Jonathan upgraded me in Photoshop, which I really, really wanted.
Jonathan's funny faces just crack me up. But I'm glad he likes his presents.
Sami got more Elmo dvds, and she was so excited to watch it that we broke our rule of "no tv first thing in the morning." And I had to get the girls matching outfits. I think it is so fun to dress up my girlies. We had an awesome Christmas, and we hope you did too!

Happy Birthday, Sweet Janie Banie!

Dear Janie,

Happy Birthday Sweetie! You were, hands down, the best Christmas present we've ever received, or that we'll ever receive! You are truly a gift to our family, and we have been thankful every day this past year that we get to be your parents. You are such a sweet angel. Thank you for coming to our family.

We love you,

Mom and Dad

Reunion

Yesterday afternoon we got to see Becca again. It was so good to see her again! The last time she saw Sami, we lived in Missouri, and she came for Sami's sealing and blessing. Yesterday she had a two hour layover in Phoenix on her way home for Christmas, so we were sad that we only got to see her for a short while, but we were so grateful for the opportunity. Not only did she come, but also her sister and brother-in-law and their kiddos. We hadn't seen Heather and Ben for two years, so we got to meet Becca's niece and nephew and they got to meet Janie. It was a very joyful, albeit short, reunion.

Sami was a little put out about all the photos being taken. But don't let the face fool you, she had a good time.

Becca brought presents for Sami and Janie.

When we said goodbye (so they could get on another five hour flight-how miserable!!), we weren't sad because we get to go to Becca's wedding in May! We are so happy for her and Preston. Sami gets to be her flower girl. We are so grateful that Becca and her family are such good friends, we love them all!

My Dad and Grandma

I've been meaning to blog about my dad and Grandma's visit for the past couple of days, but we've been super busy potty training Sami. And I can say that we have success in that area! Sami is pretty much potty trained and we are thrilled! It's like we get a raise. Now I only have to buy diapers for one, Yee-haw!!

But back to my family's visit. It was so nice to have them here. It was kind of weird to see how much my Grandma had aged (she doesn't read this blog, so I can say that). She used to always go, go, go and wasn't afraid of anything. Now she is tired and most things scare her. She hates getting old, and I don't blame her. I am glad she made the trek to see us but she said she wouldn't be back for awhile because traveling is too hard for her now. But I'm so glad that she came now. I'm so glad that she got to play with my girlies and that I got to visit with her and learn more about her amazing life.

But my dad was full of energy and loved playing with his grand babies and they loved it too. So did I. I got lots of mommy breaks :). My mom and dad are talking about moving down here and I hope they do! It would be a dream come true to live by them.
He also tried to teach Sami how to ride her new trike, a gift from Suzanne and Colby. The trike is still a little big for Sami girl, but she loved her Grandpa pushing her around.

One of our favorite things to do with my Grandma was play Rock Band. She wanted to master it while she was here, and she did really well. She would get so nervous about missing the notes, but I thought it was amazing to see her determination. I love these rockers!

The Birthday Bash

On Saturday we had a birthday party for all the Olsen girls who have December birthdays: Janie, Sami, and Tami (J's sister). I had a lot of fun planning it. I made banners on Photoshop.
Then I made a treat topper and filled the bags with kisses. This was the party favor/thank you for coming gift. Last year I was so pregnant and didn't have the energy to do extras, so it was fun to do it this year.


And as you can imagine, I had lots of help from little hands.

The best part was just being with family. My dad and grandma were here visiting (which I will blog about later) and then most of Jonathan's family was here. I just love being around family. Which is why I am struggling with all of Jonathan's residency choices. I want him to have a good education experience but I don't want to move away from our friends and family that we love so much here. But, back to the birthday party :).

This is two of the three birthday girls:

One of the main highlights was the bubble maker. They loved it and I love that I don't have to actually blow the bubbles. They came out in one big stream. Beautiful little toy invention.

Then we played Elefun. Another big hit.

But my personal favorite was "pin the crown on the princess." Sami did a great job.

So did Aunt Tami. I loved that the adults even played this game.

And Brandi was the best. I'm pretty sure she cheated though...
Because this is where her crown ended up. (This is our engagement pic, by the way.)

After dinner it was time to open presents. In my mind, I pictured Sami and Janie opening each present with a squeal of delight and then going on to the next, after a wonderful "thank you" to the giver. But that's not what happened. What really happened is Sami opened one present, then wanted to play with it, and I had to drag her back to open another one and she started crying because she left behind the toy that she wanted to play with. Then Janie didn't understand what was going on and just want to chew on the ribbon (I did actually expect that, so I don't know why I spend time wrapping her presents. I should have just brought them out in a box). But the girls were blessed with so many beautiful gifts and I love that they have been busy all day with their new toys!

This is a picture of Sami trying to eat chips instead of opening presents. Notice how I am about to grab her and to help her open her presents. Yeah, it ended with her crying in my lap. But she loved all the presents once they were opened.

Then it was time for cake. I made cupcakes and cheesecake.

Sami knew just what to do.
And she loved it!

Janie was excited about the candle.

But cautious about the cake.

But both loved the cake and their party.

We love all the Olsen December girls! Happy Birthday Sami, Janie, and Tami! And thanks to all of you, our friends and family, for loving us and supporting us. We love you too!!

Happy Birthday Sweet Sami Girl!

Dear Samantha,

Today you are two years old. We can't believe how fast you have grown! We love you so much! One of the happiest days of our lives was when you were born. You have taught us so many things. You have taught us forgiveness, because you forgive so freely and never hold a grudge. You have taught us joy, because you find joy in the smallest things. You have taught us patience, because even though you are a very good girl, we still have lots of opportunities to be patient. And you were the first to teach us that we love being parents. It really is as great as we thought it would be! Thank you for coming to our family. We will love you forever!!
Love,
Mom and Dad

Our Thanksgiving Weekend

Whew! What a fun, busy weekend we've had! On Thursday morning, Jonathan ran the Turkey Trot 10k. It was a beautiful morning, and we were all there at the finish line cheering him on. I remembered my camera, but the battery was dead. But Jonathan did great. Later that afternoon, we went to Jonathan's mom's house for a beautiful and delicious Thanksgiving meal. Isn't' the table setting pretty?!

I didn't get a picture of the whole family, and I really wish I would have. But all of Jonathan's siblings were there except Gregg, who stayed in Utah. The girls had a blast playing with their cousins and the adults chatted and watched the kiddos. And again, the meal was fabulous.

Then Friday morning, I had to get out and do a bit of shopping for Jonathan. I didn't enjoy the shopping mayhem, so I was out for a few hours and then came home. Later that evening, our friends Colby, Suzanne and Julia came over for dinner and Suzanne and I made their family Christmas card on photoshop. It was really fun. And before we knew it, it was Saturday morning. Once again, we got up early. Jonathan left at 6 am to go to Arizona City. It is his brother's birthday and Jeremy wanted to go on a hike for his b-day. So Jeremy, Jonathan, and sister Tami all went hiking. I love this picture of them. I am so glad that Jonathan is friends with his family.After the hike, the girls and I rode with Grandma Trish to Arizona City for a lunch/party for Jeremy. The girls LOVED playing with their cousins, for the second time in three days!

This is Elizabeth. Isn't she a doll?! And she's as sweet as she looks. She is a year older than Sami, and they are really starting to play like good friends.
And this is Andrew. He's 18 months, and the only boy among all the girlies this weekend, poor little guy :). Cutie pie.

Here's Elizabeth and Sami sharing some cousinly love.

The kids were putting on this shape sorter and calling it a hat. Very creative. And even cuter.

I think you already know how I feel about these two :). They hold my heart. But there's one missing...

Oh, there she is. Yes, I love my little family.

I am so grateful for a holiday where we get a reminder about how blessed we are, and we should be grateful. The Lord has really showed me lately how truly blessed I am. I wish I never complained. But I do. So I'm working on "living in thanksgiving daily (Alma 34:38)." I am so grateful for my wonderful family, and my truly blessed life.