New Year's Eve Day

New Year's Eve day we bundled up and hit the slopes...no not to ski or snowboard but to sled. Travis did the most runs with Ayda, who seems rather indifferent about the whole sledding thing. She loves fair rides so it kind of surprises me that she doesn't love sledding. Travis took a mad jump and busted up his knee and hip, he forgets he is old. Be sure to check back later for pictures from tonight.

Christmas in Utah

When we got back to Utah, we opened presents from Gaco and from cousins. Ayda got the cutest tea set from my mom, she loves it. She instantly started serving herself and then gave her papa the tea pot to drink from, he must have looked thirsty. She also got a great puzzle from cousin Arden, there are fish and Ayda loves fish. She also got some really cute board books from my mom, she loves to be read to. We made Christmas dinner, I printed pictures from our trip and Ayda and Travis are down for a Christmas nap. Life is good!

Christmas with Papa's family

Well, it was a quick trip back east to see Travis' parents. We got to the airport really early Saturday because we had heard so much about holiday travel, delays etc...the only problem with being there three hours early is a delay is inevitable...We were scheduled to take off at 6:45 pm, getting us into Chicago by midnight. We didn't leave until after 8 getting us in to Chicago well after midnight. As the pictures show Ayda took a good nap on the plane. And also if you hadn't heard, a long day of travel is hard on one's hair. This is the first Christmas in a long time that all of Travis' siblings have been home. We made an attempt at taking a family picture, Ayda was not in the mood to cooperate.

We did most of the Christmas festivities on the 24th, because Travis and I flew home early Christmas morning. We had a nice family home evening (a Gower tradition), and Ayda opened presents from Travis' family. She got a great looking Strawberry Shortcake laptop from her Mocha and Manka (grandpa and grandma) A couple of great puzzles, a phone that can record her voice. Travis' parents donated to the Nika and Travis need a cruise fund (can't wait for that Jason and Lindsey). It was a good trip, just seemed to have a lot packed into a couple of days.

If you haven't heard Ayda is quite the Betty Crocker, she made cinnamon rolls with her Gaco in Oregon and she frosted some sugar cookies with the best of them in Indiana. Pam helped her and then Ayda took it away...it didn't take long for her to figure out that the frosting is where it is at. She started sucking it off the knife and when we decided that wasn't the safest game she got a spoon. Yeah, she added a little frosting to the cookies but for the most part she ate a bowl of frosting.

After the sugar hit her veins she was off...she danced and played and didn't go to sleep until close to midnight. But when she did go to sleep she crashed hard, she was out before I could turn of the bedroom lights.
Then we were back on the plane heading back toward Salt Lake City. I never considered SLC warm this time of year, but it is in comparrison to Chicago.

Ayda's most prized possession...

In her young life she has taken a liking to little pink blankies. Gaco buys them and Ayda loses them. However, we haven't lost one in a while, she has been able to hold on to her recent blankies... yes more than one. That's right she totes around two little pink blankies. When she wakes up she hands out both blankies then she is ready to get out, if you only take one she points back at her blankie that might have been left behind. So, here is Ayda with what some might consider her most prized possession.

Mirror mirror on the wall

who is the fairest of them all?



It's me...Ayda.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

On Sunday we bundled the girls up (Ayda and Finlee) for a trip to see the Christmas lights at Temple Square. It was too cold for my blood but we still had a really good time. Jason and Lindsey shot a lot better pictures of the Temple and lights than I did. I haven't been to Temple Square to see lights in forever, it was nice. I loved all the nativity scenes from all over the world.

Christmas photo shoot...calling all cute babies!

Before the Christmas dresses the girls both needed their diapers changed and that made for a really cute photo op. Then after the diapers pics came our formal sitting. This was Lindsey's and my attempt at taking pictures. Maybe between the two of us we will get a couple that are decent.

Let it snow!

Ayda had her first real taste at playing in the snow...She loved it. Friday night we were out and about and she was mesmerized by the falling flakes from the sky. On Saturday when I got home from work, we bundled Ayda up in her new snow suit (that is a size to big) put her hat,gloves and crocs on (we couldn't find any snow boots)and off we went. She had a little bit of a hard time walking in all her layers but she loved it. She tasted the snow, threw it, laid in it (fell down). I made a little snow man and she promptly knocked its head off, then I fixed it and she gave the snow man a kiss.

Oregon or BUST!

We just got back from a few wet and soggy days in Oregon. Our oldest niece Avery was getting baptized and we wanted to be there for her special day. While we were out there Oregon had a major storm. It knocked the power out to my mom's house for a couple of hours and, depending on the child, some enjoyed the darkness while others did not. We did, however, round up some candles and flashlights, it was "roughing" it. Ayda got a lesson in piano from her Gaco and had so much fun being mothered by her cousins. Ayda also has gone against the tradition of calling of my mom "grammy", she likes to stand out, to be one of a kind. She called my mom GACO. The trip was so much fun and we can't wait to go back.

Cinnamon rolls with Gaco!

During our trip to Oregon, Ayda and my mom (Grammy to all the other grandkids, Gaco to Ayda) made cinnamon rolls. It was hilarious to watch...Ayda did a lot of taste testing...