...and brought a much anticipated train set!
We have been enjoying our holiday, taking it easy, playing with trains and eating great food. We will continue to enjoy the holidays until after the New Year! Hope you all are having a great time also.
Jace has taken to sleeping on the floor. He never wants to sleep in his bed anymore. Crazy kid. He has also decided that he wants to go on a mission like Uncle Devin and Daddy and wants us to sing the missionary songs to him. Hope he keeps that enthusiasm for the next 18 years.
I love the snow! I love how beautiful it is. I love playing in it. I love snowboarding on it. I love driving in it. I love watching it snow with a cup of hot chocolate.
This morning I set out to do a little Christmas shopping (without Jace!) and after about an hour it started to snow big beautiful snowflakes. So I finished up with the things nearby and headed home. After a little struggle getting up our hill (I had to get out and give the car a little push) I made it home just in time to throw on some snow clothes to play outside with Jace.
We had a great time throwing snowballs, riding on the sled, making snow angels and building a snowman. 
(Jace's very first snow man. I put the hat on the snow man and Jace says "mom, he needs some gloves. oh! he doesn't have arms. he needs some arms for his gloves.")
p.s. Jared hates the snow (except when he is snowboarding). And good luck to all who are trying to go places for Christmas. Hope you all get to your families by Christmas. I'm glad we are staying right here in the basement.
p.p.s. When I got home from shopping Jace says "mom, i was very good for hunter. you bring me presents?" Don't tell Jared but I let him open one of his Christmas presents (snow gloves and a hat) so he could play in the snow without being cold. Maybe we will wrap them back up before Jared gets home from work!
(**Jared's wonderful cousin, Amber, took these pictures of me and Jace together. Thanks Amber!!**)
My little sister got married on Saturday! It was a cold day but a beautiful wedding. I hope it was everything she wanted. Now they are off enjoying the sun in Hawaii.
Now that the wedding is over we are ready to enjoy the holidays. Christmas, come soon!
Jared and I went on a date Friday night. Date nights are so great and a vital part of a great relationship. It's amazing how much a few hours out of the house without a toddler can rejuvenate you and your relationship. I think that this will be on the top of my New Year resolution list: date night every week.
p.s. We went and saw Australia which was a beautiful movie and well worth watching.
...is a phone that works!
At least we are staying within our minutes since it is difficult to make calls without a screen. Hopefully Santa gets the memo.
This little guy is tired of waiting for Christmas. Every morning he asks if it is Christmas and if Santa came with his train. Only 7 more days, Jace.
My mom picked these up for us and we love them!
Jace was up at 5:00 in the morning the day after we got the chalkboard to draw. And he asks everyone that comes over if they want to see and draw on his chalkboard. My favorite part is that he is explaining his pictures to us. On the easel he drew himself at the temple and he drew some train-boats. I love watching his imagination begin to develop.
All aboard!! (read in Tom Hanks' voice for more affect)
Last night we bundled up Jace in his pajama's, drove through a very snowy canyon and boarded the much anticipated Polar Express! 
We ate chocolate chip cookies, drank hot chocolate and read the Polar Express on our way to the North Pole.
Buddy and Jingle (the elves) told jokes and sang Christmas carols. The conductor punched our "genuine tickets to ride."
Mrs. Clause brought us her secret recipe for christmas cookies.
(jace is telling Mrs. Clause that he wants a train for Christmas)
And Santa gave out the "first gift of Christmas" (which is a bell from his sleigh).
Jace made sure he told the elves, Mrs. Clause and Santa that he wanted a train. When we got the North Pole, Santa was outside waving to the children and Jace exclaimed, "I love Christmas!"
As for the bell, Jace actually lost it (it just fell on the floor) so we thought we would wrap it up and give it to him on Christmas with a note from Santa. This morning when he got up he told me that there was a hole in his pocket. He has also informed us that Santa is the King of the North Pole but he is the King of the Polar Express!
This morning Jace and I are snowed in. The city doesn't plow our road (which is a hill) or our driveway (which is a hill) so we are stuck at the top until somebody gets out their four wheeler.
1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate?
Definitely hot chocolate, but not too hot because I hate burning my tongue.
2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree?
The big stuff, unwrapped in separate piles alongside our stocking (usually on the couch or chair).
3. Colored lights on tree/house or white?
All white and bright for me.
4. Do you hang mistletoe?
I haven't ever thought of hanging it in our house...maybe I will go pick some up tomorrow.
5. When do you put up your decorations?
Right after Thanksgiving is over so we can enjoy it as long as possible.
6. What is your favorite holiday dish?
The whole traditional meal - ham, potatoes, jello, etc. So looking forward to a delicious Christmas dinner.
7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child?
Hmmm, so many to choose from. I will have to get back to you on this one.
8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa?
I am pretty sure it was the Christmas right before my Dad died when I was eight. I remember asking him on Christmas afternoon if Santa was real. He asked me if I really wanted to know and I said yes so he told me while I sat in his lap. I think I had a pretty good idea already because I don't remember being upset about it.
9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve?
Growing up we opened pj's and I am pretty sure that Jared opened an ornament. Still haven't decided what we are going to do yet.
10. How do you decorate your Christmas Tree?
I like my tree decorations to match and to have a theme. This year we didn't actually put much on because I didn't want to use the old ornaments and I didn't want to buy new ones so it is lights, candy canes and cinnamon applesauce ornaments that Jace helped make. I guess our theme this year is homemade becuase one of our activities this month is to make a popcorn garland. At the festival of trees this year was a tree that was decorated with ornaments that represented the Savior's birth and I think that I'm going to do that next year. Loved the idea of having the biggest Christmas decoration centered on the Savior.
12. Can you ice skate?
For sure. We used to go ice skating in the field all the time growing up.
13. Do you remember your favorite gift?
I can't think of one off the top of my head. I always am spoiled with great gifts every year. I do remember one Christmas that someone did a Secret Santa for our family. I don't think I had ever seen so many toys in one spot. That was great for us as little kids.
14. What's the most important thing about the Holidays for you?
Definitely spending quality time with family making memories to cherish throughout the years.
15. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert?
Right now it is pumpkin roll (but that could change at any given moment).
16. What is your favorite holiday tradition?
I think my favorite holiday tradition is going to be one that Jared and I are starting. Every year we are going to go to a Christmas something (concert, play, etc.), just us, no kids. This year we went to the Forgotten Carols together.
17. What tops your tree?
Sadly, we don't have a tree topper. It's on the list for the amazing after Christmas clearance sales.
18. Which do you prefer giving or receiving?
Giving! I love to find that perfect gift that I know the person will love. And how fun is it to be "santa", I'm totally loving it!
19. What is your favorite Christmas Song?
That's a hard one, probably O Holy Night and The Christmas Song.
20. Do you feel Christmas is too commercialized?
Only if you let it be.
I tag...
Ginger, Malynda, Shelly, Alexis, Tae, Aubrey and everyone else that reads my blog
Ok, so it's like 17 days until Christmas now but I just finished our advent/countdown calendar. Better late than never right?
I got the idea from this blog. Each box has a Christmas activity in it like read a Christmas story, make Christmas cookies, take a drive to see the lights, etc.
We got a package in the mail with presents for Jace and an unexpected present for me and Jared. It took a lot of self-restraint (and I mean a lot because Jared wasn't home when I opened it) not to open the present, see what it was and then re-wrap so Jared wouldn't know I peeked. And Jared just told me about another present that we are getting from his work that I am going to love but he won't tell me what it is. I feel an anxiety attack coming on.
I hate waiting. But I will be strong this year and I won't peek and I will try to set a good example for Jace who by the way has not tried to open any of the presents under the tree. He looks at them and carries them around but doesn't open them because it's not Christmas yet. Maybe I can learn from his patience and self-control.
Hope you are having a very merry Christmas season!
Tonight I was tucking Jace in bed and notice something stuck to the wall. As I was trying to scrape it off with my finger Jace says "don't get it mom!" So I ask him why not and he replies "It's a booger. I put it there."
**A few things Jace has said this past week that I want to remember.**
For the past little while Jace has been pooping in the bathtub about once a week. I hate cleaning poop out of the bathtub. Everytime he does, we have a talk about how if he tells me that he needs to poop I'll put him on the toilet. But it hasn't seemed to sink in until this week.
Jace: Mommy I need to go poop on the toilet.
Me: Yeah!! I will put you right on.
Jace proceeds to poop in the toilet and then finishes his bath. So I'm thinking maybe this is a good time to talk about using the potty all the time.
Me: You know, you can use the potty all the time not just when you are taking a bath. And then you could wear underwear instead of diapers.
Jace: I like my diapers.
Me: Don't you want to use the potty so mommy doesn't have to change your diaper all the time.
Jace: No.
Me: Well, if you decide you want to use the potty all the time then mommy will reward you with presents the first couple of days every time you use the potty.
Jace: I gonna get presents at Christmas.
I guess he is only 26 months so I won't push it. He seems to have it all figured out and really has no desire to ditch the diaper yet. Oh well.
We listen to Christmas music in the car right now. Jace loves to sing along and will listen very carefully to the words so he can sing them. His favorite is "Santa Clause is Coming to Town." One evening "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Clause" came on. About half way through the song he looks at me and says "mommy, you kissing santa clause?"
Jace and I were watching the video from our family christmas party and Jace says, "I just really don't like Santa Clause."
This year we had our first annual Don W. Tubbs family christmas party!! That's right, annual, which means there are many more to come, so I hope everyone had a good time. Everyone in the family (except 4) showed up for the fiesta. And this is what we did...
Gingerbread houses
Each of the kids got to make their very own gingerbread house. There were some very creative ones including a skyscraper and a house that went through Hurrican Katrina.
Jace was so excited for the gingerbread train that Daddy made him. This week he decided to eat it and said "Mmmm, this is a good train!"
Mmmm...mmmm food!
Sweet pork salads/burritos, pumpkin roll, chocolate cake, cookies, Brazillian lemonade - can't get much better than that.
Jace was enjoying all the desserts his cousins kept giving him.
Hygiene kits
This year instead of exchanging gifts we did a family service project. Each of us provided supplies for Hygiene kits and we all got to put them together at the party.
A suprise visit
From good ol' Santa himself, along with Mrs. Clause. Everyone, and I mean everyone, got a chance to sit on Santa's lap and make a Christmas wish!
Our annual hunt for the perfect Christmas tree!
It was cold but you can't beat hiking around the mountain looking for that perfect tree. And although everyone left us so they could get warm, and although I wasn't thrilled with the tree we picked, I am now in love with our Christmas tree (lights and decorations help a lot). Thanks Jon and Aubrey for hauling it back to Utah for us.
(**Will post a picture of our tree soon. I didn't get one of it on the mountain. I was too cold by that point.**)
Welcome to
Friday afternoon we went bowling at Malad Bowl, retro-style. No computers to take score, no silly animations when you get a strike, and no weights on the balls. But you can't beat $2.00 a person and having the entire bowling alley to yourself.
Jared taking scores for all of us. (When we commented on having to take score by hand my mom wondered how else would we do it.)
We spent Thanksgiving holiday in Malad this year and had a fantastic time. We ate lots of yummy food (my favorite is the left over turkey, stuffing and cranberry sandwiches). We had some great conversations with everyone. We played lots of games. We worked on Lexi's temple quilt. We played a little Bocce ball and a little Wii. We went bowling. We watched the Forgotten Carols in Logan. We went on a Christmas tree hunt. We made a huge mess of my mom's kitchen. We saw almost all of my family. And we started the Christmas season with a party. Couldn't ask for a better vacation. We definitely came home worn out and tired.
Here are a few of my favorite pictures from Thanksgiving. (Wish I would have got one of all the food.)
Jace loves going on walks and checking out grandma's horses. He didn't want to touch just look. I think the horse was pretty interested in him as well.
Jared and Jace enjoying the fresh air in Malad.
Bocce ball!
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