We were invited to a shin-dig in Texas for Christmas this year and we just couldn't pass it up. Thankfully Paul was able to get some time off of work- we were so excited to go and see so much of our family! The day we drove out, our little Corolla was packed to the hilt. Try fitting 4 people, a week's worth of clothes, diapers, food for traveling, A BIKE, and a bunch of other presents. It was crowded.
We stopped and stayed the night in Albuquerque. This is Susie enjoying her free breakfast:
We had a great time hanging out with everyone. These are some of my favorite people to be around. Susie loved spending time with Grandma and Grandpa West. She spent most of the time sitting on Grandpa's lap. We had lots of yummy food to eat all week! As you can see in this next picture, Paul had fun too... maybe a little too much fun.. :)
One of my favorite parts of the trip was on Christmas Eve when we took time to think about the Savior and his birth. Grandma and Grandpa West brought costumes for the grandkids. They all dressed up and Grandpa read us the Christmas story. The spirit was beautiful, it really touched me.
We slept at Jessica's and had a lot of fun later that night setting up the living room with stockings and presents. We watched a few movies and ate candy and put bikes together. Jessica knows how to make things fun and festive. She made a great Christmas breakfast for us, complete with Rudolph plates and cups. So adorable!! I want some.
We were able to be there for Joshua's baptism, too. That was a fun day! The little kids watched the baptism up close then sang "Jesus Wants me for a Sunbeam". We had a fun celebration afterwards with pizza and cake and a nerf gun war in the gym (those Wests know how to party).
We survived the trip home and the next day had some visitors of our own. Mom and Olivia drove down to spend New Years with us. We had some fun little activities planned throughout New Years Eve to celebrate. Susie likes popping balloons. Olivia is such a good aunt. Susanna loved having her and Grandma at our house.
We went to "The Place" for breakfast with my Uncle Todd and Weston who were traveling through. They served us ginormous amounts of food!
I couldn't believe the snow the got that week! It snowed a ton!!
We made lots of treats, decorated a New Years tree, and had a fun time spending time together. Mom and Livy and I got to go on a girls night out. It was a blast! We are so lucky to have so many wonderful relationships and people in our life. It was hard to say goodbye when they left.
Happy 2015!
