Christmas letter

I haven't posted for a very long time, I think this is the longest that I have ever gone. We have been super busy the past few weeks, just trying to keep our head above water. But I am officially done with Christmas shopping- wahoo! I hope that I didn't forget anything. I have the presents mostly wrapped also. I have decided this year to not do Christmas cards. I decided that I don't have to do them every year. I still feel a bit guilty about that, especially as I have been recieving some fun cards, oh well it is a little late now.

Last night the kids had their Christmas program at their school. Both Mitch and Savanna did a great job on their songs. I have pictures of them, but for some reason my camera isn't showing them. I will have to have Reid look at it again.

I just wanted to share a few things that have been going on as sort of my family letter for the year. I don't have any recent family pictures, but I am hoping that at Sara's wedding we can get some.

1. Savanna is such a grown up girl. She has been taking piano lessons since September and is really enjoying it. She is excited to play a few Christmas songs at our Christmas Eve program. She loves to perform and to sing. She is a very social little girl. She loves playing with and help take care of her baby sister.

2- Mitchel has turned into my organizer/cleaner. Just this week he has cleaned the basement and organized it/rearranged furniture. It is an unfinished basement, but we have a carpet remnant down there with a bunch of toys and some old furniture. He also cleaned my room today- it was much needed and he did a fantastic job. He has cleaned out drawers in the kitchen and bathroom, and he has reorganized and cleaned his room countless times. He is so awesome! He has also really made a major improvement in his schooling the last few weeks. The extra help he is getting is really making a huge difference. This is a big relief to his Mother!

3- Treyton's speech has made a huge improvement. There are still times when I get frustrated because I can't understand what he is saying, but we are stilll working on it. He still isn't potty trained, but I am thinking after the Holidays to start on this again. He is his Dad and Mom's little shadow. He doesn't like to go outside and play unless we are out with him. He likes to be with his Mom and Dad. His new favorite thing is the PBS show "Calliou". He wants to watch it non-stop. I luckily have several episodes recorded.

4- Carolina is rolling all over the place. She is such a fun little baby in our home. She is starting to get up on her knees and rocking, I'm afraid that the crawling is coming just around the corner. She is still very much a Mommy's girl, she won't eat anything except from me. I have tried to feed her baby food, but she wants nothing of it. We will keep trying. The other night I left her with my Mom so we could go to the Melaleuca Christmas party and she wouldn't even take a bottle- sorry Mom! She still isn't sleeping through the night, but we are working on this.

5-Reid has been working a ton, on top of his job at the site he has been working for his friend Josh doing siding in Bear Lake on his days off. It is nice to have a little extra spending money for Christmas, but we really miss him around here when he is gone. He has also been working on a fun project for the kids for Christmas- we are really excited for them to see it. (I will post pictures of this after Christmas.)

6- I have been really busy trying to keep our household running. I never realized how difficult it would be to throw in a 4th child to the mix. I feel like I can't quite get on top of the housework, which really bothers me, but I have to get over it. Having two kids in school has taken a lot more time than I ever thought, as far as the homework goes. But it has been really fun to see the kids learn and grow in their studies this year. I have been trying to lose weight and am excited that as of today I have lost 20 lbs. I want to lose at least another 20 lbs, and then go from there. I feel really good I have been following weight watchers, and think it is a great program. I can still eat and I don't feel deprived. I am still working at Koala Kids Academy, I love my job there. Some times it is hard to go to work and figure out how to get everyone where they need to be, but I feel very lucky to have my job and I don't think I could ever give it up.

All in all life is good, we are grateful that we are all healthy and that we have each other. We are especially grateful this time of the year for our Savior Jesus Christ, and that we can celebrate his birth and his life. We are so lucky to live close to our family and that we have their help, love and support on a daily basis. We are lucky to be member of the Church of Jesus Christ and we hope that all of you have a wonderful Holiday!