2011 Memories

(A post by Jessi, at Mom's request…. Click on the title above the pictures to go to the posts about each particular adventure.)

TICK TOCK by Joanna Fuchs
I'm writing this in a state of shock,
Watching the clock - tick tock, tick tock,
Advancing, approaching, relentlessly,
A brand new year; Oh, can it be?

The calendar says the same thing, too;
Time races, vanishes for me; Boo hoo!
No, wait! If time flies, I'm having fun!
A year of fun! It's gone! It's done!

I now embrace the blur of time,
Because it simply means that I'm
Too busy with pleasure, joy, delight
To mourn the passing days' swift flight.

So I'm wishing you fast, happy days,
Pleasuring you in myriad ways,
Filled with happiness and cheer,
Oh happy, happy bright new year!

How did 2011 fly by so quickly?
Our Favorite Annual Adventures
Bogus Family Ski Day (March)

Eagle Fun Days (June)


Schools Out Party (June)

Family Backpacking Trip (August)
Rainbow Lake: part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5, part 6, part 7

Playing in the leaves (November)

Tree Hunt (November)


Special Family Events
Hallie’s Baptism (May)

Katie and Christopher Williams Open House in Hermiston (June) part 1, part 2

Rachel Kathleen (July)

Rachel’s blessing (September)

Lincoln James (September)

Lincoln’s blessing (October)

Celebrating Holidays

Easter (April)

Mothers and Fathers Day (May / June)

Labor Day (September)

Halloween (October)

Thanksgiving (November)

Christmas (December)

Adventures
Bogus Basin (February)

Cascade (October)

Las Vegas (October) part 1, part 2, part 3


Crafty Projects
Halloween Costumes (September)

Halloween Picture Board (October)

Growing and Learning
Sir Thomas Turkey (November)

Oma's Preschool (2010/2011 and 2011/2012)

Every Day Magic
Trying to be like Opa (March)

A New Swing for the Back Yard (March)


Being Cool (August)


Sleep Overs! (September)

Teaching Primary (November)

Being a Family (November)

Trying to be like Opa (November)

Embrace the blur of time! Oh HAPPY, HAPPY BRIGHT NEW YEAR!

Christmas Weekend 2011

By Jessi:  Mom said she didn't have many pictures from Christmas... So I'm sharing (which means that Lincoln is going to be very predominant!).  Merry Christmas!

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2011 - CHRISTMAS EVE
Santa's helpers: Opa, Lincoln and McKayla

Oma, Lincoln and Bree

Ellie and Lincoln - Ellie promised me to teach Lincoln how to talk, because she is very good at it.

Christmas Eve program and cousin gift exchange - Hannah and McKayla sing "I'm gettin' nuthin for Christmas"  Then we were supposed to have a dramatic interpretation of "Twas the Night Before Christmas," but Santa and the reindeer all escaped outside to play and in the end, only "Pa" and "Ma" were available while Oma read the poem.

Ellie watching Hallie open her cousin present.  Gifts were opened in alphabetical order (almost - Zoe got to open hers when we got to "F" because her name is Zoe Fiona!)

Hannah showing off her socks from Emma.

Zoe coloring her present from Aspen.

And then we had visitors -  Opa and Uncle Gord

Uncle Gord and Lincoln (wearing mittens because his little nails are sharp!)

Lincoln and Aunt Gaylynne

Bree and Oma-Great coloring, Lincoln and Aunt Gaylynne

Deven and Lincoln

The Nativity Story: McKayla (Mary) and Lincoln (Baby Jesus) and Uncle James (Shepherd?)

Carter (Joseph) and Ellie (Angel) - why would Joseph have a stuffed bear?  I didn't get a picture of Mary riding the donkey (Bree), and I'm sad about that it was very funny to see McKayla trying to "ride" Bree without hurting her!

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2011 - MERRY CHRISTMAS
Christmas was a Sunday this year and we had early church so Santa left the stockings in the kitchen as fair game during breakfast.  In order to give families more time to spend together, only Sacrament Meeting was held.  It is wonderful to sing Christmas Hymns together on the Sabbath Day. The closing song was played on the organ and Oma had happy tears in her eyes!

Then a quick photo of the kids in their Sunday best. Lincoln, Carter, McKayla, Ellie and Bree.

And a Davis family photo: Ellie, Kim, McKayla, Bree, Deven and Carter

Oma and Lincoln

Lincoln in his Christmas Pajamas

Playing speed scrabble - how many points for "Lincoln"

10:30 p.m. Why are you awake Lincoln?  To play with my Daddy of course!

MONDAY - DECEMBER 26, 2011
Bree, Lincoln and Carter playing on the couch - do you spot "Fluffy" next to the other arm of the couch?  Bree spent a lot of time losing and looking for her Fluffy.

Deven and Oma babysat Lincoln so that Jessi and James could go to a movie date.  Lincoln fell asleep standing on Oma's lap.

TUESDAY DECEMBER 27, 2011
Nerf wars!  Deven, McKayla and Carter each got a nerf dart gun for Christmas.  This is Deven in a duel with Carter.

Trying on home-made hats. Aunt Jessi made hats for the Davis kids' this Christmas.  (Just after this photo was taken, the kid tower collapsed and Ellie and Bree tangled up a bit.  Ellie was slow to recover, but I think she'll enjoy having the purple sun hat in her dress-ups.)

Hoping your Christmas was wonderful and filled with the people you love!

Tradition - with variation - December 21

[gasp] We changed the date of our sleep over. Tradition has it on the night of the 23rd. But Kurt's family is leaving for IF and will be gone. And thanks to Kristen's lobbying in the past for doing it - a) so the kids aren't so tired from sleepover/Christmas eve/Christmas all in a row and b) so they can sleep under their own tree for a tradition at their own house. So tradition become a variable. I loved every minute of it.
We are so busy during the cousin sleep-over that I don't get around to taking photo's - until the highlight of the evening, when they open their pajamas. We play games, the kids run and run. They slid on Opa's ice rink. We made individual pizza's- with toppings of their individual choice. We delivered neighbor gifts - the kids actually sounded great this year. " Jingle bells" and "We wish you a Merry Christmas" with gusto. Then we piled into the van to go to the church gym to play when "what to our wondering eyes did apear..." there were cars and other people in the church (Could be because it's a Wednesday night and not every ward canceled YM/YW like our ward did) So we came back home and played some more.
We played a game with the PJ opening. They all know it's PJ's so which one belongs to who?
We had tags with clues like-
Blue eyes - oldest boy in family - goes to grade school - has only sisters - last name is not Simpson - brown hair *Carter*
So if you had a tag with the clue "blue eyes" and you had brown eyes, you would trade the pkg with someone who had blue eyes. Some kids had their package right away- others had to get down to the last clue. How many blue eyed- blond preschoolers do we have?

Zoe Ellie Stella Bree Christy in their matching monkey pj's.
Hannah Hallie and McKayla
Carter and Tyler
Jake and Tucker - they don't match because it's hard to match young men with size 4 little boys.
I always take photo's of the kids sleeping. Even when they are pretending. We let the older ones play downstairs while the little ones settled down. Amazing we found floor space for all.
This is what it is really like taking pictures. Jake couldn't stop rough-housing with Tucker. Love it.

And Carter gave his pillow to Hallie, then went into his own bed for a good night's sleep.
Next morning the rough housing started all over again. Tucker is such a good sport. We had poffertje's and cereal and everyone played in their pj's till parents came to take them home.PS. We really missed Emma and Aspen. Fortunately Aunt Jessi had a party for them on the 20th. They made gingerbread houses and got to open their PJ's then. Also Lincoln and Rachel had to miss out on the overnight stay. You have to be potty trained to join this party. They got PJ's too, I just didn't get a picture.

Zoe's birthday

Zoe is 5 and wanted to have her family party at Jabbers (as last year) - difference this year, she is one year older -got her ears pierced and is growing up (silly dad- kids grow up too fast one day at a time) High light for Zoe- she got her ears pierced. Maybe that's why dad is pulling a face- or maybe it's because he has to go back to work after the party.
The kids had a great time. Playing - playing - playing.
I gave my camera to Hannah and McK and this was the best photo they got (the battery went dead). I love it because it shows how happy they are.