Ward Family Christmas Party

It has become a Ward Family tradition to have a White Elephant exchange party every year before Christmas and it's great fun. It's just one more reason that I am thankful to be back in Utah! The kids had a blast and it is always fun to get together and laugh as family. The fantastic food that was there was definitely an added bonus!

Temple Square

I love looking at the lights on temple square and sharing the beautiful spirit that I feel there with my children and my husband. It is such a beautiful place at Christmas time, but I need to make sure and take my kids there more than just at Christmas, when we can enjoy all that there is to enjoy without thousands of people there. It is still worth it to go each Christmas, it is a fantastic tradition that I love.

Grandma Dori turns 80!

It's not every day your Grandma turns 80. After our night in Ogden we went to celebrate my Grandma turning 80 years old. Grandma Dori is a lot of fun, very crazy and eccentric, but we love her. Yes, that is money she is throwing!

Ogden!

In December Doug had a business trip to.....Ogden Utah. I found it funny that he was only an hour and a half (less when I drive) away from us. We dropped him off on Sunday night and decided to hang out for a while. We had dinner and watched a movie, then I drove home with the kids.
We came back and stayed with him on Friday night before going home. We went out to dinner and then back to the hotel where we swam and had a great night.
Being a Diamond member, Doug got upgraded to a Suite with a Jacuzzi in the room. The kids had a ball with it Friday night and I enjoyed it in the morning. Perhaps the most memorable part of this little overnight adventure was the fact that the kids slept in the closet! That's right, the closet. Being a lovely suite, there was a whole room for us and a different room for the kids, but there was also a walk in closet that Faith, Gavin, and Brayden decided would make a good fort. While they enjoyed their fort, Landon had the whole bed to himself in the kids room. HA! He did flips until he fell asleep!

2 months old!

School Christmas Parties

I have always loved helping out at my kid's school. However, with two little ones and having to work I don't have a whole lot of time to be there helping. I do try to make sure I can go on any field trips they have and I love to attend and help with their parties. This year Gavin's teacher changed his party date so I could go see him make a fantastic grahm cracker house and still got to help Faith's class the next day. I have never been asked to help at Brayden's parties, but I always like to pop in and say hi to him and see how it's going! It's fun seeing them with their friend's at school, spending extra time with them and getting to know their teachers.

Candy Houses

One of my favorite Christmas time traditions is the making of candy houses. I love that Brayden, Gavin, and Faith come up with their own ideas and make their own houses. They have so much fun making them and showing them off. I love to see how proud they are of their creations, and each one has all sorts of extra features to explain. Gavin made kit kat stairs up to his little deck and Faith loves her gumdrop shingles. Brayden made a diving board on his roof and canons out of kisses to protect his house. I love them all! Obviously I still love making a house myself! I don't think I will ever grow out of it!