December 2013 - Christmas Piano Recital, Family time, Christmas, Frontrunner, Temple Square Lights

Are you comfy?  Hope so, cuz this is a long post!  Maybe that's why I've put it off for 4 months!

In December I held a piano recital for my students.  Here's Ethan playing in his first recital.  We played "I Hope They Call Me On A Mission" and "Away in a Manger" both as duets.  I was so proud of him for getting up in front of all those people.


Here's a group shot.  I had just started teaching again- just in my neighborhood- after taking a long "maternity leave" after having Aubrey.  In February I started teaching in Alpine again to some students I have taught in the past, so now I have 12 students.


 The boys went with Bryan out to play by the lake.  We've had some crazy icicles this winter.  They saw a lot of bald eagles too in the next picture in the middle tree.
 

We put together this cute manger scene that Bryan's Aunt Lisa had in the Friend magazine for December.  She's a great artist and always has things in the Friend magazine.

I couldn't help but laugh at this note Austin wrote expressing his feelings.  "The Austin is sad".  How could I take him seriously?

 My twin sister and her family came to visit for Christmas.  Here Aubrey is checking her out, maybe a tad confused.

My brave nephew putting his pet snake around his neck.  Ewww!

Tara, Jamie, and I.  Love my sisters!

Ethan loves his cousins Bailey and Gavin and was so excited to have them here in Utah for Christmas.

A baby and a bunny.

For Christmas Eve we went to Bryan's parents and we also spent the night.  It's so magical, I think, to be at your grandparents and with family for Christmas Eve/Christmas.  I was surprised at first the boys wanted to spend Christmas at our boring townhome, but then they realized it would be a lot funner to be at Nana and Grandpa's.  Barbara always has the table decorated so beautifully!

Their home is so cozy and clean.

 New pajamas from Grandpa and Nana for Christmas.



 The boys always have fun counting down the days until Christmas with the Lego Advent Calendar.

The boys wrote Santa a note and couldn't wait for Santa to come.

The room me, Bryan, and Aubrey stayed in.  

I'll let the pictures do the talking.  Lots of toys and lots of fun building and putting them together.


Enjoying traditional Aebleskivers.  So yummy!













Granddad and Grandmother Dalton.  So glad they came to Utah to spend Christmas with us.







These pictures didn't turn out too well on my iphone, but we went up to my parent's to visit with cousins on the 28th.



 haha- I had to put this one in, sorry Mom!  We were looking through old pictures from when we lived in Venezuela and there's a picture where Jenny (my cousin) did a hair salon and did all of our hair crazy.  Then at the end we just put our hair over our face with glasses...  I better attach the other picture so you can see them side by side........

We finally made it on the frontrunner to go see the Temple Square lights, but not until after Christmas.  We had a lot of sickness going around in December.  Here the boys are enjoying a movie on the ride and a yummy packed dinner from Nana.





Peter and Jessica.  What a cute couple!







For New Years we got together with my family.  I love Gina's expression in response to Jamie's justification of a word choice in Taboo. haha

 Cousins, popcorn, and a movie....what more could you ask for?

Aubrey cuddling with Grandpa Jorgensen (my dad).


Time for fireworks, with the help of Danny my brother-in-law of course.



Happy New Year!  Goodbye 2013....Hello 2014.  I remember New Year's 1999 when it seemed so crazy that it was going to be 2-0-0-0 and now it's 14 years later, ah!

Bryan did an image for the January 2014 Ensign back in August, so it was fun seeing the issue come out in print at the end of December.  Austin is in the back running and screaming, and Aubrey is the baby crying in my friend Ingrid's arms.  The rest of the kids are Ingrid's.  She had just had a baby, but Bryan wanted the baby to be more interactive, so we used Aubrey, and the story needed one more kid, so we added Austin.  Check out Bryan's behind-the-scenes video for this image here.




"Memory is a child walking along a seashore. You never can tell what small pebble it will pick up and store away among its treasured things." ~Pierce Harris
 
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