Super Post-Christmas Post

Christmas happened last month, in case you hadn't heard. I'll give my blog the highlights... you know, for posterity. Or for two years from now, when I can't remember what the heck I did.

First of all, we put our Christmas decorations up early, which for us means before December 20th. But seriously, it was right after Thanksgiving this year. Yay team Hixon!

I tried to start a tradition for us when we got married. I wanted to add a special ornament to our stash each Christmas- something that would represent the year. Dan doesn't care about this idea. So, I feel kind of lame every time I try to obtain a new ornament. It is like buying myself nice jewelry: it just feels wrong. I haven't been consistant. We don't even have one for the year Gwen was born.

Above is a shot of an ornament Dan and I bought in Vegas in 2008. Also pictured is a little something Sue Brown (Mom's friend) made me in 1985.

And this is one of my special ornaments that broke this year. Asher blames Gwen. I wasn't in the room at the time. It was a gift from Suzie Couch. She gave it to me after we wrapped the first play I ever did at the Circle Bar B in 2004. I'm thinking that next year I will just have a "destroy my special ornaments" party and call that tradition a failure.

Well, all except the ornament below. I think it works nicely as a star for my nativity. Plus, it was a gift from a wonderful student of mine when I taught Junior High.

During the month of December we also went to a few parties.

-Our church party was Grinch/Whoville themed. It was awesome! And they had a hair contest, so there were a lot of wholicious hairstyles walking around. They even had an actual Grinch! Asher was quite scared of him.

-The white elephant gift exchange/game night at the Stewarts. It was a blast!

-RS progressive dinner... just for the ladies. I set a table with my china.

-White Elephant/game night party at Amy's house. There were a ton of people there, so the game of Telestrations we played was hilarious and off the hook.

-I sang (and accompanied myself on piano) at a young single adult party. I performed Silent Night. I was disappointed with my performance, but it wasn't terrible.

Another thing that occurred in December was a fun little visit right before Christmas. My sister-in-law Heather came into town to hang out with me for a couple days. She also wanted to learn how to sew. And no offense to anyone else I have taught, but she was my best student ever. She picked things up really quickly, and was motivated, direct, and self-sufficient. And she is super fun to talk to and be with. We are kindred spirits in a few ways.

Christmas came on a Sunday this year, which was really nice. Because before opening gifts, we got to go to church. That is how it should be done every year. Anyway, we were pretty low key on the gifts this year. We tried to keep to the old "Something you want, something you need, something to wear, something to read" theme. I think it is a fantastic plan. We might try it every year. The kids loved their presents from Santa, which were pirates and Blackbeard's ship for Asher and a "dancer mouse" for Gwen (Angelina Ballerina). And they were really excited that the reindeer ate the special food we left for them on the curb on Christmas Eve.

The day after Christmas we drove to Utah to stay with my parents for about a week. I felt like I hadn't seen my family in a long time, so it was really nice. It would have been even better if the Wrenns and my brother and his wife were there, but that was not to be. As it was, we had a super fun time with my parents, my Grandma (who is living with my parents until she can buy a house there), the Bourgeouses and my sister Tracy. We played some fun games and talked and enjoyed each other.

Here is a shot of the sisters. I'm wearing a blanket.

My Grandma treated Tracy and I to lunch and a pedicure one day. I just love my Grandma. Another day my mom and Kristy and Tracy and I went shopping at a cool discount decorator's fabric store. We went a few other crafty places as well.

There is something about Utah that is just enchanting. Dan thinks so too. We don't think we want to really live there still, but it is so fun to visit. Provo, Springville, and Mapleton are fun and quaint and pretty in the wintertime. We love all the old buildings and the nice people.

I didn't really get Dan anything for Christmas, so we went gun shopping while we were in Utah. He didn't actually end up buying a gun at this store, but I had to take a picture because that Elk was threatening to come back to life the entire time we were there.

Dan bought a gun when he went up North for a day to "work" with his friend and colleague Ron Adair. They probably worked a little bit, but they also drove around and shot stuff.

One night Dan and I left the kids at my parent's house and Dan and I went out for a date. Tracy recommended a fun place to eat at Riverwoods called La Jolla Groves. I loved that they didn't serve alcohol and it was still posh and classy. This is a shot of the inside. (We would have frozen outside.) If you looked up, the branches of the fake lemon trees showed a fake night sky with fake stars shining. I actually thought it looked very magical, even though I'm using the word "fake" over and over again. It was the good kind of fake. Plus the food was all good for you organic type stuff and it tasted AMAZING. Even Dan liked it.

PS "Riverwood" was a little shopping center, and it was covered with lights. While walking around there, we ran into some friends of ours from Santa Barbara, the Amundsens. That was random and very fun. Rachel is pregnant with number 4, and she was carrying around her own barf bucket.

After that, we drove to a movie theater to see Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol. It was pretty good. And we hadn't been on a date in so long, it felt like our anniversary. And it almost was, so I guess that counts. Anyway, even though it was just dinner and a movie, it felt like more because we were in a new place having fun experiences.

One last thing. Kristy, my mom, my kids and I all went for a little walk just five minutes from my mom's house. It is where she goes walking when the weather is nicer. It is amazing how the ground can be dry at my mom's house and snowy at the trail.

The kids had a fun time in the snow. We saw LOTS of cougar tracks. We threw some snowballs into a stream. Gwen had a smile on her face the whole time. Asher got cold near the end, and needed me to carry him.

So that was December. There was so much going on I didn't have time to blog. But now we are back in the swing of things... hooray!

TEN YEARS.

Yesterday was our tenth wedding anniversary.

Tenth.

Dan and I have been married TEN years.

It doesn't seem like it has been that many years.

And yet, sometimes it seems like it has been longer.

We don't just love each other. We like each other.

We enjoy talking to each other.

We like doing things together. We like hanging out.

Last night we went to the temple, and then we got In n Out.

Not exactly a big way to celebrate, but that is how we roll. Some years we go all out, some years we don't.

I feel like we already celebrated in Utah anyway. More on that later.

Dan is the best. He appreciates me for who I am. He laughs with me, loves me, and does the dishes. He is a fantastic father and a good role model. He supports me in my interests and believes in me. He is smart, crazy talented at many things, and he can live with me when I am at my worst. I love him. He loves me.

I am one lucky girl.

Once there was a Snowman

When Asher was born

I could hardly wait for the day

that I would be able to hang his art on my fridge.

Thank you Ms. Kerri and Ms. Renae

for helping my wildest dreams come true.

(See how it is puffy? I think it's shaving cream and glue.)

Gwen, Thanksgiving, and Asher listens!

Gwen turned two on November 19th. We still had some sickness in our house, so we didn't have a big party. As it was, she enjoyed opening her four gifts (Mrs. Potato Head, 2 books, and a baby doll- plus a card from G&G Hixon) and wearing a tutu all day. She also enjoyed stuffing cake into her mouth, as pictured. We enjoyed having Mom and Dad Hixon there, as well as cousin Ericson.

Gwen is a very sweet child. She has her moments, of course. She yells like a demon monster when she thinks she is being ignored, and she freaks out when her brother gets too close to her sometimes. But she is also a singing, dancing, hugging, communicative, happy little girl. She likes all things girly and sweet. She loves books and she loves playing. She loves the park, and she is finally brave enough to go down the little slides by herself.

On to Thanksgiving...

I want to document this because Dan and I seriously had a hole in our minds where last Thanksgiving should have been. I looked to my blog to fill in the gap. NOTHING. Seriously, how did that happen? Anyhow, our memories were jogged as soon as someone reminded us that it took place at the Stecks house. Right.

So this year it was at Stephen and Rachel's. We (I) made stuffing and an apple pie. The stuffing ended up a little soggy, but it had a good flavor... and the pie was delicious. My pie is not pictured in the spread, but let it be written. I made one.

The food was delicious, the company was awesome, and Jake and Hannah fed Gwen so that I didn't have to. She would have been good with a booster seat, but we are lame and didn't bring one. Three things that I loved were the personalized letters we got at our place setting from a member of the S&R Hixon family (mine was from Jake, and it was so sweet), the cork "thankful" tree that you can sorta see in the above picture (More than one of their children is thankful for the show "Lost"), and the chalkboard featuring a scripture on gratitude (it looked like they changed the scripture at least a few times this month).

(This is Gwen getting love from Hannah and Grandma.)

Lastly, I was shocked by something Asher said today.

He really seems like he is never listening. Sometimes he asks "What you said?" and I have to repeat myself at least three times before he actually tries to listen to the answer. So today I told Gwen to be patient about something, and Asher turned to her and said, "Yeah Gwen. Don't you remember about patience from Family Night? You have to wait and wait with a smile on your face." I was astounded. I hardly remember that lesson, and I really doubted he was understanding it, but it must have gotten into that brain of his somehow.

Now if he could just show her patience by example... that would be something.

new website love

I'm slightly addicted to Pinterest, but that is not the website I am going to talk about. I discovered this new fun website through Pinterest though, so it should get a mention.

I love Disneyland. I love Pixar. I love Disney movies. I also love fashion. So of course I would love Disneybound. I love the idea of putting together an outfit based on a character, a movie, or even a section of Disneyland. And the way this girl does it is so understated and clever. And cute! Here are some favorites:

Based on a classic princess...

...a classic character...

...and sometimes there are more than one outfit for the same character.

Sometimes there are couples costumes! I think you could wear something like this for family pictures and nobody would ever know where your inspiration came from.

Anyway, it's awesome.

Oh! And there are Harry Potter inspired outfits as well.

If I can get myself to think this way about my clothes, I might not hate getting dressed every day.

The luckiest girl

Yesterday was Dan's birthday.

First of all, I would like to ask... How lucky am I??

Look at how handsome Dan is. This picture was taken probably a year after we got married, and he still looks exactly like this. No wrinkles, no weight gain, no hair loss. He has some grays, but I think they are cute. You really only notice them when you are cutting his hair anyway. And not many people other than me and his mother have had that privilege.

Not only is Dan handsome, he is smart, funny, spiritual, a great dad, a fantastic photographer, and as I sit here and type about how great he is... he is doing the dishes.

We went out to Oreganos last night while Dan's sister Amy watched our kids. The food was exquisite. And we got dessert because their pazookies are the best dessert I have ever had from any restaurant ever. It was so fun to just sit and converse with him, even if the heat lamps were broken and it was super cold outside.

Dan usually makes my birthdays special. I try to reciprocate in my own way, but it is kind of hard because a) he doesn't like people to have to fuss over him and b) anything that would make him really happy would require a financial meeting between he and I, therefore eliminating the element of surprise. I had the kids make him cards, and I got him the Steve Jobs book. I got him a few articles of clothing and an itunes gift card.

And I made him this shirt.

It is kind of like Asher's shirt, but more apocalyptic and Flight of the Conchords-y. I think he liked it. I laughed as I made it.

Anyway, I love my husband. I always think about how I don't deserve him. I have definitely changed in the looks department, and I have gotten more crazy with kids. But somehow he still thinks I'm awesome. Thank goodness for love being blind, eh?

This was Halloween

It was an enjoyable Halloween for all.

I enjoyed staying home to hand out candy while Dan enjoyed escorting our children up and down neighboring streets.

The kids enjoyed walking around in their costumes and getting free candy.

I am told that Gwen walked the entire time by herself, and she had a smile on her face although nobody knew who she was supposed to be. Maybe the pigtales threw them off. But believe me, if we would have taken them out at that point, her hair would have been crazy.

And Alice does not have crazy hair.

Anyway, Dan said that people knew that she was cute, and that is enough.

On the other hand, everyone knew who Asher was. Captain Jack Sparrow is notorious. When Asher settled on this costume, it was my dream come true.

Look at him getting into it.

All I made for his costume was his wig. I crocheted different kinds of black yarn that I had stashed in my craft closet, added a few beads, and then sewed them to the top of some pantyhose. Voila. Jack's hair.

And I finally did "finish" Averey's costume. If I wanted to invest any more time in it, it could have looked better, but honestly I was dying on this one. It was so detailed, and things kept going wrong. The fabric was too stretchy and kept getting all out of whack, the model magic dried funky and cracked, and then the resin wouldn't dry... nightmare. Anyway, this is how it turned out. If I ever make another costume like this, I now know how I will go about it.

Oh, and she was wearing my humongous petticoat just for the picture. But honestly it might look better without it.

Just FYI.