Christmas Family Photos

We took another batch of Wheeler family photos in my mom's living room the week of Christmas.

I'm especially fond of this one. Poor Ella looks like she is having a nervous break down or something. 

Molly and Kourtney are 6 months apart.  Molly looks so huge next to her.  She was trying to give her kisses. 

Then Kourney was.

I just love my family! 

Christmas Festivities

We had another super fun Christmas celebration.  We started Christmas Eve by going to my parents house to open pajamas from my mom and dad and gifts from to and from my siblings.  It got the kids excited.

We headed to the Braithwaites for Christmas Eve dinner and fun with the family.

Alissa and Jordon playing with grandma's matching game.

Our favorite thing about Christmas Eve is piling into the living room to sing Christmas Carols.  Normally grandpa David plays the piano, but this year Kara did. 

Uncle Devin loves to get the kids all riled up for Santa to get there by jingling bells outside and yelling HO HO to make the kids think he's near.  He tells Ella all sorts of stories about making sure the reindeer have food and home made signs so they know where to land, etc. etc..  It's fun, until we get home and have to play it all out. :)  Every year the reindeer eat those oranges though so they must like them.

Christmas morning Ella's said her alarm went off so she was up by 7am.  She patiently layed in my bed until 8 when we woke everybody else up. 

Alissa got a Rapunzel doll and matching dress, sleeping beauty doll, a couple play doh sets, puzzles, disney figures.

Ella got a Barbie Jet and keyboard, some games, DVDs.

Molly got a little pink rocking horse, doll, and other toys.

This year we sent $5 to school with Ella to buy things from their "Santa's Workshop".  I'm so glad we did.  She thoughtfully selected something for each of us and was SO excited to give us our gifts.  Dustin got a pack of basketball cards because he likes basketball.  I got a ring.  Alissa got a flashlight that says #1 sister because Ella didn't want her to be scared of the dark and Molly got a little slinky style bracelet.  It really was so sweet and totally worth the $5 for her to have the "giving" spirit.

I'm super excited about my gift from Dustin.  He got me 2 photography lessons!  Hopefully I can learn how to use this awesome camera I'm obsessed with.

We have 1pm church which made the day broken up really nice.  We got to take our time and Molly and dad even squeezed in a nap before church.  I really wish Christmas was on Sunday every year because it made us refocus to go to sacrament and listen to the scriptures and hear the Christmas songs.

After church we went to my parents where the girls acted out the Christmas story.  Obviously Molly was VERY tired!

They were super cute!  One day we just might have a boy to add to this mix of girls. 

2 Grandma and Grandpas spoiled us again.  Each set of sisters got a doll house and the set of princess barbies.  Alissa got some dress ups and Ella got some walkie talkies.

We are so blessed.  So grateful to live close to family.  So grateful to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ.  So grateful for his life and example to us.  So grateful!

Snow Angels & Stuff

We are so happy Ella and our dad get to be home with us for the next 10 days!  Ella and I made our little list of fun things we want to do while they are home.

We started on Thursday by making snow angels and I pulled the kids around on the sled.  We are happy to have some snow for Christmas and wouldn't be sad if we got a bunch more tomorrow.

I love these snow angels!!

Please excuse the snotty noses, we were having too much fun to run in and grab a kleenex.

My sister Heidi watched the kids for us last week while Dustin and I went to the temple.  They made me this beautiful handprint tree while I was gone.  I love it and will pull it out every Christmas!

Ella came home with this super cute Santa poem. Her handwriting is getting so nice.

Alissa did some Christmas shopping with me last week and we came upon Santa at Sam's Club.  He had no wait and it was only $.19 to print a picture.  She had no hesitations to sit on his lap just sat there licking her lips cause she felt a little nervous once she got there.  It was pretty darn cute.

We have delivered 24 neighbor gifts this year and mailed about 20 Christmas cards!

I was able to find 2 families in need of Secret Santa this Christmas and round up my family and extended family as a big service project.  Everybody chose an item off our list and bring it to me when they bought it.  We had a big wrapping party and got all the gifts wrapped.  We let the kids be involved in the wrapping too so they could soak in as much of the goodness as possible.  It has been a super wonderful experience for my immediate family.  As we have been delivering gifts and looking at Christmas lights I have had ample opportunity to talk to Ella about the true meaning of Christmas.  We talked about how this is exactly what Jesus would want for his birthday - Showing love and kindness to others.

As we sat next to the lit tree tonight reading our Christmas story Ella curled up in my lap and said, "I love you Mom.  I already have the best Christmas present and I didn't unwrap it.  It's you, Alissa, Molly and Dad."  Does Christmas get much better than that?  I couldn't ask for more.

A Good Example

I know Heavenly Father used some stradegy when he sent Ella first.  I think that for a bunch of different reasons, but one of which is that she is such a great helper to me and such a great example to her little sisters.

Yesterday we came home from 1:00 church and as always we were all sleepy.  We all grabbed a snack and  I quickly made a lasagna to put in the oven.  As it was cooking I went and laid down on the bed.  Ella came in and said, "Dad, I have something to tell you can you come out here?"  Dustin followed her out and she plotted with him how they would get the table all set and ready so I didn't have to do any of it since I made dinner. 

I knew what they were doing so I took full advantage and didn't get up until Ella came and led me with my eyes closed into the kitchen for the grand suprise.

Such thoughtful things like this are not uncommon for this little girl.  I am so grateful I have her to help me teach her younger sisters how to be kind and do service for others.  She is such a blessing to our family.

Angels we have Heard on High

Last Sunday night I asked Dustin if he thought we could call the neighbors and have everybody go outside lining the streets of our neighborhood to hold hands and sing "Fahoo fores dahoo dores. Welcome Christmas, Come our way."  (From the Grinch who stole Christmas)  He thought I was nuts but agreed to my 2nd best idea of inviting some friends to jump on the back of a trailer and sing as we drive down the neighborhood.  So I sent out an email and to his suprise we ended up with 8 families to sing with.

We had a great time!

We had the Hansens, Pettingills, Laytons, Paynes, Sorensens, Browns, Taylors & US!  My good parents were our drivers/babysitters and let us use their truck and trailer.  We appreciated them so much and wouldn't have been able to do it without them.

Even Mr. Grinch himself had a little swelling going on in that heart that was 2 sizes too small. :)  See that smile.

Alissa and Molly stayed in the car with grandma and grandpa most of the time to stay warm.  By the time we got back to the house about 10 other kids had climbed through the back window of the truck and were having a grand ol' time with grandma and grandpa. :)

Mike was the runner and rang doorbells for us so we could have somebody to sing to.

When we got back to my house we had hot chocolate and doughnuts thanks to good friends who provided them. What a great night!

Tis the season to be jolly, fa la la la la la la la la.

Gray

In case I ever wonder, it was when I turned 28 that my hair turned gray.  Is that crazy or what?  Time to color those crazy things.

A new perspective..

Last Sunday, December 4th our phone rang with news of Greg's death.  We were in shock.  Greg is only 26 years old.  He is the husband of Dustin's niece Julie and the father of 3 beautiful kids and 1 on the way.  He was the coach of the basketball team at Pocatello High school.  He had been working so hard to get through school to achieve this goal and had just recently achieved it. 

Greg had a headache and back ache throughout the past week.  The doctors thought he had a sinus infection and on Sunday he decided to stay home from church to rest.  When Julie came home from teaching Relief Society she found him unconscious.  He never awoke.

All week long I have had such a heavy heart and cannot help but put myself in the shoes of Julie.  She has been through so much in her life and now will be enduring a trial beyond comprehension for me.  Every day I look forward to the homecoming of my husband.  To help me feed the kids, to talk about the day, to do whatever.. just be with him.  I daily seek his approval and advice, I daily seek his love and compassion.  I cannot for a second imagine living without him.  As I thought about what I could do for Julie to help bear the burden I realize there is nothing that could compare to the life of my husband.  I don't want money, I don't want a vacation, I don't want the perfect house or perfect job... without having him by my side.

I hope and pray the Lord will help bear the burden of Greg's loss for her and the rest of the family.  I know that will be the only way to find solace.  I hope that I can remember my feelings this week and keep the perspective that we never know our day when the Lord will call us home.  I hope I can remember that there are many things that aren't worth being upset over.  People are way more important that any THING.  I am grateful that Julie and Greg can be an eternal family and that Dustin and I can be an eternal family with our sweet girls.  I will try to better live up to my temple covenants, to treat my family with more love and give time and energy to serving my Maker.

In loving memory of Greg Glenn.

Please pray for Julie and her little family.  Also, if you are interested in helping her family, you can make a donation at Wells Fargo or Pocatello Teachers Credit Union. 

Way too much fun!

I'll be honest, I've been pretty bummed for winter to come.  I love being able to send the kids outside to play and watch them run around and not worrying about them watching way too much TV because there is so much to do outside.  So I made a winter bucket list.. we'll see how it goes, but so far it's lifted my spirits.

Here are some of the things we have been doing.  The kids wrote a letter to Santa.  Well, Ella wrote 2 letters from Santa one for Alissa and one for herself.  Alissa's says Dear Santa, I want a toy giraffe.  If you ask Alissa what she wants for Christmas she says a baby doll and a white kitty.  I think that is because those are a few of her favorite toys she plays with.

Ella's says Dear Santa, I want a baby brother.  When she first told me this I said, "Well that would I mean I would have to have him."  She said, "NO!  Just leave the window open and the pelican can bring it."  If only it were that easy I'd give her a baby brother for Christmas...maybe.  Anyway, I guess she asked my mom if she would have him and suggested to me that maybe Mrs. Claus would have him so we could have a boy.  When we went to tithing settlement the Bishop asked if there was anything else she wanted and she said, "nope." 

The girls have had fun dressing up and playing outside in the tiny bit of snow we have.

I pulled them around the yard a few days ago.  They thought it was pretty cool.

Then I filled up a few bottles with water and food coloring and let them draw in the snow.  We did this a few years back with squirt bottles and colored our snow man.  It's always a hit with the kids.

Our good daddy took us for a little ride around our neighbor hood and out in the field behind the neighborhood.  We even got to walk on a train track.  The kids thought it was pretty neat and I was happy to be hanging out with the kids AND my cute hubby.

Before church the other day we took our own family photo.  The girls were all dressed in their festive dresses and their hair was curled.  I had to have a picture.  I love them so much!!

Believe it or not this was the first picture and everybody was looking.  I love it! :)

Gingerbread (Graham Cracker) Houses

Monday night we were lucky enough to have Family Home Evening with our friends, the Hansens.  We enjoyed a little Christmas lesson and then some serious candy house making.

Ella tasted her first cinnamon bear and didn't like it too much.

Molly loved every bit of everything there.

Alissa was pretty excited as well.

As always Dustin gets pretty serious about the construction of his

gingerbread house.  He and Mike started to compete a little.

We are grateful for good friends!!