December 14, 2012 - Sugar & Spice and Snakes & Snails

One of the greatest blessings that the Christmas season brought to us this year was the arrival of three of our children, with their little families, to share Christmas with us! We were only a little excited about it!!! Jamie and JD came from Delaware with Hailey, age 3, Ethan, age 2 and Abby, 10 months old. It was the first time for Bruce to meet Abby. Kristi and David came from Pittsburgh with Sawyer, who is just three months old, and also meeting his grandpa for the first time. Jolene and Rob came from Delaware with Scarlett, who is 10 months old, and a baby brother in the oven. What a marvelous opportunity to share Abby's, Scarlett's and Sawyer"s first Christmases with them! What a great time we had with all of our visitors!

 

The first adventure that we had together was before Kristi, David, Sawyer or Rob had arrived.  The rest of us went to This is the Place Heritage Park and took a train ride.  It was a FREEZING cold day, and although the train ride was kind of fun, I gotta say that This is the Place is a whole lot more fun during the summer months!  Hailey waited patiently at the train stop.

Sure enough, it stopped for us and let us all on!

She loved looking out the window as we chugged along.

She was also content to sit on grandpa's lap.

 Ethan's always up for an adventure!

 JD was so excited, he could hardly stand it!

(In case you didn't catch that, it was dripping with sarcasm.)

He also kept complaining that, technically, this wasn't a train.

Abby doesn't really care, as long as she's got her binky.

 Scarlett was all smiles and giggles!

Jolie seemed to enjoy the ride.

When it was over, these two adorable girls of mine posed for a picture,

because I asked them to.

For about the millionth time in their lives. 

 Next adventure was a trip downtown.  The trip to Temple Square was on the calendar, so braving the weather, we went out.  That was about the dumbest idea ever!  It about forty below zero and pouring rain.  Okay, so maybe it wasn't forty below zero, but it felt like it!  We had the Square to ourselves.  Duh!  All the people with brains stayed home!  It was freezing outside, so we crossed the street and had dinner in the food court at City Creek Mall, where the kids devoured the chicken nuggets and loved the playground!  Ethan is quite the climber!  Then we went into the Joseph Smith Memorial Building, which is dry and heated, and looked at the lights of Temple Square through the window.  I know that's cheating, but too bad!

"So, Abby, who do you think has the cutest boots,

your mom or my mom?"

Then it's back to the mission home, and a bath, and it's time for bed!

I cannot even tell you how wonderful it is to have little people in my house again!

For more grandbabies, click here:

2012.12.14: Babies and Visitors