Merry Christmas!

We began at 7:00 in the morning with stockings. (The kids graciously waited until 7:00 even though they'd been up for a bit at that point.) Thank you, Santa, for the treats in our stockings!

We had a nice breakfast with cinnamon rolls and veggie sausages before opening our presents. The kids were very sweet and kind throughout and my heart just got bigger and bigger with how much I love them.

We changed out of pajamas in time to welcome our family over at 1:00. We felt fortunate to be able to host everyone, minus Floyd and Kathie who are in Hawaii this year. My little house just does an amazing job with everything and we were able to linger at the table and enjoy each other's company before presents. We also played a fun game of "What do you Meme?" during our appetizer course. Charlotte was the consummate game show hostess.

After present, my kids gave a recital with Reed and Charlotte on the piano and Edison on the viola. They had been preparing for a few weeks and it was fun to hear it all come together. Reed even played "Ode to Joy" that was in a new piano book he received in the morning. He learned the piece during the day and played it for us that evening. So proud of him!

We woke up the day after Christmas to be blanketed in a few inches of snow here in Seattle. How beautiful and what fun!

 

Christmas Preparations...

Kirstie and Bonnie came over to help us make lefse in preparation for Christmas. It is the most symbolic Norwegian heritage activity we engage in annually.  Charlotte and Edison are really able to much of the work of it themselves now, which is fun to watch.

Reed got to be a helper that day by playing with cousin Isaac. Everyone loves Isaac - he really is the most cheerful and inquisitive and expressive two-and-a-half year old around.

We spent Christmas Eve morning with my father in his new apartment. It was definitely nice to share the holiday together.

And for lack of something better to do, I gave Edison his first driving lesson the afternoon of Christmas Eve up at the high school. Edison did great. He was a good listener, he took things slow. He stayed in control. Slow and steady - he'll be driving for real before we know it!

We had wanted to ski Stevens on Christmas Eve, but they showed no night operations on their website. So we went to Plan B: Christmas Eve dinner at Olive Garden followed by watching Spiderman 2 in the theater with the best recliners around. It was certainly an unconventional Christmas Eve, but the kids and I had a great time!

 

Park City - Day 5 and Our Return Home

Until next time, Park City…. We will miss your wide open spaces and beautiful vistas. So fun to ski again today with TJ and Adrian. Even hiked up to do a face off Jupiter and found some great powder! Charlotte and I found a small trail through the trees to drop in and do the powder again while the boys skied their own route. Flying out of Salt Lake City was super easy. Hard to believe we skied until noon, had lunch, and were landing in Seattle at 5:00.