This is What Our Valentine's Day Looked Like:

Christian and Andrew's Super Hero Valentines for their friends.

"Thanks for being a SUPER friend!"

Sugar cookies with Grandma H. and Aunt Chan

The boys rolled out the cookies, cut them out, frosted them, and added candy and decorations. 

They LOVED it!

 Jonathon's lovely and AMAZING dinner for us.

Avacodo parmesan chicken, Swedish baked potatoes, and steamed asparagus. YUM!

 And a surprise delivery from my Honey. 

We hope your Valentine's Day was just as SWEET!

Christian Says (The Holiday Edition):

"Mom, something funny happened... I've been really naughty this year, and I still got presents."

Jonathon: "What did you ask Santa for when you saw him at the mall?"
Christian: "Oh Dad, he's not Santa. He's just a regular guy."

As we were driving by the oil refineries on the way to Grandma's...
"There's those dinosaur bone factories."
(We had previously had a discussion about how dinosaurs slowly decayed and eventually some remains turned into oil. Now they will always be the dinosaur bone factories to us.)

When Jonathon tried to sleep in over the holidays...
Christian to Jonathon: "Mom and Andrew are already awake and you are not. That is unacceptable!"

While showing us his hip-hop moves...
"It's really hard to get that spin on your bum."

As all Kindergartners inevitably learn...
"Jingle Bells, Batman smells, Robin Labor Day" (Well, he was pretty close)

And a little something from Andrew....
"Mom, I hurt the elbow on my leg." (His knee!)

Christmas Catch Up...

For our first day of Christmas vacation, we met Jonathon's family in Salt Lake to enjoy the lights on Temple Square. They were beautiful as always. It was a cold night, so we bundled the boys up and let them ride in the double stroller under their blankets. It was a lovely way to start the Christmas celebration. Following the lights, we went back to Provo to spend the whole week with Jonathon's family. It was the first time in several years that we were all together, which made it particularly special.

On Christmas Eve, we acted out the Nativity. The boys got to choose which character they wanted to be. Christian chose to be a shepherd. We found him a stick and a sheep for a prop. Andrew really wanted to be the star. I hadn't originally planned on the star as an option, but he was so excited that we created a costume for him and made it work. He was so happy and smiling so big that our star truly was glowing. Dad H. read from the scriptures while the rest of the family took their places in the Nativity. It was a simple, but beautiful reminder of the reason for Christmas.

Christmas morning was magical for our little boys. We told Christian that he couldn't get up until after 7:00. At exactly 7:01, he shook me and said, "Mom, it's time for Christmas!" I don't know how long he had been watching the clock, but how do you deny a cute little boy who is so excited. We got all the rest of the family up and let the boys open their gift from Santa. Luckily, "he" brought exactly what they wanted. They would have been completely happy with just that one gift. Andrew got a Lightning McQueen and Christian got a remote control car. Our families were so thoughtful and considerate this year. Thank you for all of the lovely presents.

For the rest of the family, "Santa's" presents are something you have to work for. They can only be found if we can solve the family treasure hunt created by Dad H. Each clue is a riddle that leads to a specific place in the house where another clue can be found. At the end is the pile of presents. It is one of my favorite traditions of all time. The riddles were especially awesome this year. Here is one example:

"A boy, a family, a people,
The name is the same.
Find him if you can,
As you play this game."

After pondering over the clue for quite some time, we figured that it must lead to Christian. When we asked him if had the clue, he had no idea what we were talking about. Then we checked his pocket, and sure enough, Dad H. had somehow managed to slip the clue into his pocket. That is just one example of how awesome this treasure hunt was. Jonathon's family has also been so nice and incorporated homemade cinnamon rolls into their Christmas breakfast so I don't miss my family's tradition. It was a lovely Christmas morning for all.

After opening presents, we quickly got ready for church and drove home so that I could sing in our choir for the Christmas Sacrament Meeting program. While a lot of people dislike when Christmas falls on a Sunday, I thought it was a really nice way to bring the focus back on Christ. Later that night we went to Jonathon's grandparents for a Christmas dessert party. Most of the extended family was there, and we enjoyed reconnecting with all of them.

Monday and Tuesday flew by with preparations for the upcoming wedding luncheon that Mom H. was hosting at the house. Amidst all the work, we also had some fun playing games, watching movies, and eating fun meals prepared by various siblings. (Thai Drunken Noodles, Santa Fe Casserole and cornbread, and Crepes were some of the yummy creations) One of the coolest things was a a new slide that Mom H. bought for the house. It fits perfectly on the stairs and was so fun for the little kids (and the big kids too). How cool is that? A slide in the house! Mom H. thinks of everything.

Wednesday was a crazy day. Jonathon's cousin, Keenan, got married and Mom H. volunteered to host the wedding luncheon at her house. This was not a casual luncheon. It was a fancy, elegant meal for what ended up being 95 adults and 25 kids. Each guest had the option of three different amazing meals: ham and steamed rice, cream cheese chicken with rice pilaf, and a chicken salad croissant with sweet potato chips. The luncheon was complete with servers, menus, waitresses and all the touches to make it special. I was put in charge of cooking and serving one of the meals. We actually set up a "kitchen" in the bedroom so that we could cook and serve out of sight of the guests. There were 2 large roasting ovens, 4 crockpots, and 4 rice cookers. It was a little bit stressful and chaotic, but everything worked out well in the end. The food was delicious and everyone seemed to really appreciate the effort that everyone went to. Here are some pictures of the tables... beautiful!

After all the work on Wednesday, everyone needed some down time. We played some board games, enjoyed Mario Kart on the Wii, and watched Harry Potter 7.2. All in all, it was a lovely and memorable Christmas vacation. We are so grateful for a wonderful family and chance to celebrate the birth of our Savior.

Decking the Halls

Our Christmas Preparations (in Pictures):

Assembling the new Christmas train from Grandma C.

Our yearly Gingerbread house... the boys were having a little too much fun with the leftover icing.

The Christmas tree

Thanksgiving Turkey Trot

In the hopes of starting more healthy family traditions, I organized the first ever C. Family Thanksgiving Turkey Trot. It was a 2 mile run/walk on Thanksgiving morning. Jonathon and I marked out the course (on my parents quiet, country street), set up a water and food station, and had race bibs for everyone. It was such a fun way to get the family all together and get some great exercise before "overindulging" in Thanksgiving dinner. 

The weather was perfect! It was overcast, but the temperatures were mild and great for running. To add some fun and encouragement, we each put our own "slogan/reason for participating" on our race bibs. Some were funny and others were serious. It was a nice way to spend the morning. Hopefully, it will become a yearly tradition!

The Race Bibs

At the starting line...

 My Dad set up a hayride for the little kids to ride on while we ran/walked. Every time we would run by them, they would cheer. Andrew and Christian talked about the hayride for days.

 Daniel, Claire, and Hannah getting ready to run

 Cousins: Ben, Leah, and Granite

 Mom and Hannah crossing the finish line 

 Jonathon and Sarah finishing strong.... 

I haven't really been training since July, so I was really worried that I wouldn't be able to finish my own race. Luckily, my great husband encouraged me to keep going, and I was able to run the whole thing!

Aunt Diane, Aunt Teresa, and Christian finishing 

Our family after the race!

Count Your Blessings... (A Thanksgiving Review)

1. Two Wonderful Boys and a Great Husband

Christian and Andrew do everything together. I love that they are best friends and hope they always will be. Here they are roasting hotdogs (and later marshmallows) in my parents new fire pit. They were pretty much angels the entire trip. Jonathon was such a great help taking care of the boys so I could join in on several games. I definitely got a keeper. I love my little family!

2. Good Food and a Warm Home

My Mom and Dad hosted about 34 members of the O. Family for Thanksgiving dinner. My mom was on her game and pulled it off without breaking a sweat. She is AMAZING at organizing and putting together huge family gatherings. She has had a lot of practice and always seems to have it all together. She even had a dessert table that was set up from when we arrived until we left 4 days later. That would account for the 5 pounds we all gained!

3. Healthy Bodies that Allow Us to Run, Play, and Be Active--

Shortly after we arrived, we got the whole family together to play an ultra-competitive game of volleyball. We also got to go swimming at Uncle Mike's amazing new pool. On Thanksgiving, we ran a 2 mile Turkey Trot (separate post) and then the boys played football and did some trap shooting during the afternoon. It is such a blessing to have healthy bodies that allow us to do the things that we want to. Even though we are always working on being healthier, I am so grateful for what we have right now. I love Christian's "tough" pose below. He was just trying to be one of the boys. 

4. A Family That We Love to Be With 

One of my favorite things about my family is that we love to be together. Anytime there was a spare moment, we were chatting (often long into the night) or getting another game together. We played multiple games of Rook, Boggle, Scattergories and Bananagrams (AKA Words with Friends). My parents deserve much of the credit for our family unity, and I am so grateful for them and their efforts to make family time special. I can't wait until we can all be together again. (We missed you Joe and Kym!) Until next time...

PIE PARTY!: A Great Start to the Holidays

One of my awesome aunts hosts a Pie Party after Thanksgiving every year. Everyone just brings all of their leftover pies and we eat until they are all gone. It is such a fun idea that we decided we wanted to throw one this year. We are spending Thanksgiving in Idaho, so we decided to have the Pie Party before Thanksgiving with Jonathon's family and the O. family.

I have wanted to try to make pumpkin cheesecake for a long time, so I decided that cheesecake is similar enough to pie that it would fit in well. We ended up with two huge cheesecakes.... one with chocolate shortbread crust and one with regular shortbread crust. They turned out BEAUTIFUL!  I preferred the regular shortbread, but both were good. Cheesecake is a little tricky, but Alton Brown's (from the Food Network) youtube video and water-bath suggestion helped it bake perfectly with no cracking. We also did a special gluten-free coconut cream pie for Jonathon's mom. I have never tasted coconut cream before, but it was delicious. Jonathon and I ate the leftover pie-filling straight from the bowl.

 Recipes here and here

Our guests brought 4 other delicious pies (banana cream, key lime, apple, and a regular coconut cream). It was delicious and a lot of fun. Bring on Thanksgiving!

The Spread. YUMMY!

One "ANGRY" Halloween!

For the third year in a row I decided to make our family Halloween costumes. This means I am either a very cool mom or a very crazy one. At this point I am leaning towards crazy! If you have been following our family at all, you know that my children are obsessed with the game Angry Birds. Months ago, Christian and Andrew decided that no other Halloween costume would do. Unfortunately, the costumes available to buy were kind of awkward and expensive.

I mean, seriously, these are a whopping $30-$50 each! I knew I would have to take matters into my own hands. We bought some extra-large shirts, iron-on transfers, stuffing (to add the roundness factor), and headbands. After a few hours of work, VOILA... 4 cute Angry Bird costumes (okay at least semi-cute), and for only $24 total!

Andrew all stuffed and ready to go to his Play-school Party!

The Angry Bird Family at our Ward Halloween Party

(Ignore the fact that I look SUPER wide... I was trying to achieve the triangular shape with the stuffing. YIKES!)

The boys were positively giddy. They wanted to wear their costumes every day. They especially loved running into their dad pretending to play the game. They were coming at him constantly from every angle, so we finally had to make a rule that they couldn't attack dad, even if he was a green pig.

The costumes were a big hit at the party with the younger crowd. We got some crazy looks from people who had no idea what we were, but either way, it made our kid's Halloween memorable. That was all I cared about.

This year, we also went to Christian's school carnival where they got to dress up, play games, and eat dinner. Here they are waiting in line to play "Pin the Wart on the Witch."

On Saturday, we carved pumpkins that we grew in our own garden! Andrew was a trooper and dug right in. Christian sat and complained the whole time about how yucky it was. These pictures say it all:

In the end, they all turned out pretty cute.

(Top Step: Dad-- ;-), 2nd: Andrew-- Happy Pumpkin, 3rd: Mom--Angry Bird, Bottom: Christian--Scary Pumpkin)

Happy Halloween!

Holiday Catchup... Ending 2010 on a Very High Note

What an amazing Christmas/New Year's we had! I am still on a high from all of the wonderful times we shared with our families and loved ones. It was truly one of those holidays that I will look back on for the rest of my life with pure happiness. I am sure that this post won't do it justice, but for memories sake, I will try to record a few of the things that made it so great.

The Night Before the Night Before

This family tradition started because Crista was born on Christmas Eve. Mom H. wanted her to have her own special day, so all the traditional Christmas Eve activities got moved to the 23rd. This year we were able to have our party at Grandpa and Grandma H.'s new house. We had a lovely dinner and then had to find our presents by solving clues from a treasure hunt. It is one of my very favorite traditions of Jonathon's family. I was so happy that they decided to do it. We were spoiled by Jonathon's family and now have everything needed to go camping (Jonathon's dream for the last 6 years).

Christmas Eve

We left in the morning on Christmas Eve to go visit my family in Idaho. The 4 1/2 hour drive went smoothly, and we arrived in time for the first of many parties. That night, we had our traditional Christmas Eve party and talent show with my cousins. We sang songs, read from the scriptures, and quoted poetry. This year I wrote a poem and Christian memorized and quoted it. I want to include it here for posterity's sake. I wrote it especially for my two little boys to help them always remember that although Christ was born many years ago, they can still believe and follow him through faith today.

If I Had Been a Shepherd Boy

If I had been a shepherd boy,

    Those many years ago,

I would have seen the brand new star

    And felt its special glow.

If I had been a shepherd boy,

    I would have heard the angels sing,

And felt their glory as they said,

    “Hosanna to the King!”

If I had been a shepherd boy,

    I would have gone to see the Christ,

And believed that he would be the one

    To someday pay the price.

I am not a shepherd boy,

    2000 years too late,

But I can still believe the babe

    Who grew so powerful and great.

I can be just like the star,

    Leading others to the Lord,

Shining light and telling all

    That truth has been restored.

I am not a shepherd boy,

    But I can be just like the angels’ song,

Rejoicing in the Christ child’s life,

    And asking all to come along.

I am just a little boy

    Who feels the Savior’s love,

But that’s what Christmas really is,

    The perfect present from above.

Sarah 2010

(Christian did great quoting it, by the way!)

Fun on the Farm

The boys always love going to Idaho because they get to see and do new things on the farm. This year we decided to take a few pictures out by the haystack. The three little cousins sure were cute together.

Jadyn, Christian, Andrew

Mom and Boys

Grandpa also took the boys out to feed cows. Even though it was freezing cold, Christian and Andrew loved going with him.

Grandpa and boys

Volleyball

My family and some of my cousins are crazy about volleyball. Every time we get together, we have a huge tournament. There are enough of us to make two full teams with plenty to spare. This year we went to the stake center and played for 4 hours straight. We had tons of fun! I could hardly walk the next day, and had a bruise the size of a golfball on my arm, but I would do it again in a heartbeat. Here is the whole group:

Pie Party and Family Breakfast

These two events got started a few years ago, and we enjoy them so much that we continue them every year. Uncle Roger's family hosts a pie party for all of the extended family on Christmas night, and then my family hosts a breakfast later in the week. This year there were about 80 people in attendance to both events. The houses were full of brothers, sisters, cousins, parents, grandparents, but most of all friends. I made my way through the crowds and got to talk to almost everyone there. During one conversation, my Uncle Joe mentioned how unique it is to have a family where everyone loves each other so much and truly enjoys spending time together. There is no need for forced conversations or awkward greetings because the love that is felt is pure. I agreed with him whole-heartedly and have been thinking about this ever since. What a blessing to have a family who loves and supports each other.

Just one of many big group shots... I couldn't squeeze all of us into one picture. 

This is what the "C" family does best: talk and eat!

Mighty Fishermen

My brother Joe, is an avid fisherman. He loves it more than almost anything. He now lives in Texas and has a difficult time finding good fishing, so he was excited to come home and try his luck. Their first adventure was a bust because both Joe and Jonathon came home empty-handed. Joe was practically begging someone to go with him again, so Jonathon agreed to get up at 5 A.M. in 10 degree weather to go fishing. It was well worth the effort because 7 hours later they came home with some monster trout (19 inches) and some good stories.

2 of Jonathon's 5 fish

Daniel's Homecoming

By far, the highlight of the whole trip was the mission homecoming of my brother, Daniel. He served a two year mission in Riverside, California (Spanish speaking), and arrived home on Dec. 28th. Our family hadn't been all together for the last 7 years because one of my brothers was always on a mission or we were "stuck" in NY. It was a long time to wait, but what an amazing time it was. 

The last two weeks of Daniel's mission was a really unique experience. My second brother, Matt, served a Spanish speaking mission 2 years ago, and wanted to go pick up Daniel when he was done. When the mission President caught wind of the idea, he asked if Matt would like to spend the last two weeks as Daniel's companion. He couldn't pass up the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and flew down to Riverside after his finals were over. For the last 10 days, he was set-apart as a missionary and he and Daniel served together. On Christmas, they both called home and we got to talk to them. They were loving every second together and really bonded through the experience. Daniel had a very successful mission and during the last few days, was able to go visit all of his converts to encourage them to continue to live the gospel. These are a few lines from his last letter that really touched me:

"Well this time and this calling is officially ending, and it brings to mind a lot of reflection, a lot of experiences, and a lot of happiness. The memories abound in a plethora of spiritual events and funny run-ins: from walking the halls (and the cafeteria) of the MTC, to hitting the streets of Moreno Valley with my trainer, to the refiner's fire of Corona, to the spiritual harvest in Perris, to sanctification in Riverside. And now I happily go to my grave here in Perris. It is interesting to me: before the mission, everyone said as I was leaving, that I was "dying". I feel like more than anything else, it was a new birth."

What a privilege it is to be around a recently returned missionary who has the light of the gospel so strong around them. My brothers really grew and changed on their missions and I am ever grateful for the gospel and the opportunities it provides.

Elder Matthew and Elder Daniel returning home to a crowd of around 80 adoring relatives and friends. We made quite the scene in the airport!

Other Activities (oops... no pictures)
-pedicures with the girls
-after Christmas shopping (you have to love 75% off sales!)
-lots of games... mostly Settlers of Catan
-family pictures (the three little kids made this an adventure in itself)
-Meeting up with hometown friends Maria and Becky Ann
-A HUGE New Year's Eve Party with the Bournes, Tophams, and Deardens complete with a Ping Pong Tournament (Vaughn won), Rook Tournament (Matt and Katie won), and a round of TDQ's (trivia won by Jonathon)


I honestly don't know how this Christmas season could have been more perfect. I have learned to love and appreciate my siblings and parents so much more as we have gotten older. It felt like heaven to be able to sit and talk all together as a family again. After so many years apart, I have learned to treasure these experiences more because I know how fleeting and far apart they may be. 2010 was a wonderful year and ended on an especially high note. Hopefully, 2011 will be just as kind to our family.