More like 12 things from the Seamons' December...
12...+6... COUSINS!! It was all about the Seamons' cousins this year! Kyla and John had a great time playing with cousins. John is usually one to stay close to mom when there is a crowd but this trip he would disappear into the basement with all the cousins for hours at a time. He would resurface occasionally for more fruit snacks and chips, that was his diet for the entire time we were at grandma's.
11... laps in the garage. Kyla got a "princess bike with training wheels" from Santa this year. She was very very happy about it! Dad and Grandpa pulled the cars out of the garage so she could ride it. Johnny got a skate board and was cruising in there too.
10... o'clock bedtime. Since leaving for Utah 2 weeks ago we have been going to bed later and later, with the climax of midnight on New Years Eve! Ky and John both took naps that day but we were still surprised when neither one of them fell asleep. We were at a friend's house playing games and watching movies, I was probably the most likely to fall asleep out of all of us. But we have to get back to reality fast, church starts tomorrow at 8 am. We went from 3 pm to 8 am, what a switch! They are telling us the construction will be done in a few weeks and we will go to 9 am, can't wait!
9... hours of driving. We had great weather for our drive to Utah and our drive home. It snowed the day before we left and the day after we got home, we missed both storms!! Our friends who drove to Idaho were not so lucky... they hit both storms.
On the way home we caravaned with Steve's sister who was headed to in-laws in Phoenix. The drive went really fast thanks to the fun of walkie talkies!
8... a lot of food!! We ATE a lot of really good food. Last Christmas my oven was broken and all the "baking" I did was rice crispy treats. This year we had a working oven and I was in the baking mood so we had lots of goodies, some new ones too. I'm happy to say they all turned out, except the attempt at toffee... I'm not there with the candy making yet.
We even went to Logan for cheese curd and Pizza Plus bread sticks. We were in Logan for something else but I have to admit I would drive the half hour for the bread sticks...
7... Christmas cards. I love Christmas cards, getting them and sending them. However, I am horrible about sending them consistently. Some years are better than others. This was one of the not as good years, I sent 7. I always send them to grandmas and grandpas and this year that was it...
So MERRY CHRISTMAS to everyone else and keep your fingers crossed for more cards next year!
(THANKS for all the cards and letters, we love to hear how our friends are doing!)
6... boxes of cookies. Steve's parents found the Loft House cookie outlet and after all the festivities they still had a few left over... 6 boxes. Since they were headed to the MTC we got to take care of those leftovers. Steve packed them on top to prevent smashing, good thinking. Then two miles into the trip home (at 4 am) he had to slam on the brakes to avoid a deer and we had a cookie explosion! Cookies went flying everywhere, from the back to the dash board! We are still cleaning up sprinkles...
5... stockings filled with treats. When Kyla emptied her stocking she said "That crazy Santa, he gave me enough treats to make me sick!"
I have been plagued by stockings for years now. I really want matching ones but also really like the 2 that Steve and I have, so I keep trying to match them and have had horrible luck. I finally found ones I liked for Kyla and John last year that match mine and Steve's then I was thrown off again this year with trying to find one for Leo. I found some that worked and bought 2. No announcement, I just don't want to go through all that again and if we do end up needing another one I have a matching one ready!! Yes I am obsessive compulsive about some things.
4... days in Utah! We were actually thinking about staying home for Christmas this year for the first time but Steve's parents left on their mission on the 28th of December and we wanted to spend some more time with them before they left. We are all glad we went. We had a lot of fun playing with family and had a great Christmas!
It is a special thing to send parents on a mission, we have done it twice now and no it is not easier the second time! But yes it is just as great! We love our missionary grandparents!
3... wonderful kids! I have amazing kids! Steve says, "we have the best kids!" all the time and it is so true. Kyla, John and Leo keep us laughing at the funny things they do and amazed at how incredibly smart they are. Kyla was talking to Steve and told him "In Flagstaff we call them friends and in Utah we call them cousins. Don't you know anything, Dad?!" She is a crack up! Johnny has a dance move right now that is hilarious, I keep trying to get it recorded but I have to sneak up on him, he won't do it on cue. He puts both hands in the air and dances around in a circle. He also busts that move in celebration, I love it! Leo is our super happy boy, it doesn't take much to get a smile and giggle out of him! We usually find ourselves laughing right along with him. He is a great traveler! On the drive I kept asking Kyla if he was asleep because he was so quiet. AND he takes a binky and a bottle! He can sit up now too. We are so very happy to have him in our family!!
2... cell phones washed, dried and pressed... Before I tell this story I have to say two things. I have never washed anything "important" before and I never check pockets. With that said, I washed Steve's cell phone the day we got home from Utah. I was taking the wash out and kept hearing something banging around, when I got to the bottom I discovered Steve's phone... I couldn't believe it! We opened it up to dry and hoped that by some miracle it would still work. Steve pulled out an old phone to use during the wait. Two days later the phone was still not working but everything was ok because we had the old one and are up for a new phone in a couple more months. Then I was doing a mid week laundry batch of random things like the pants Steve wore to change the oil in... a couple minutes after starting the washer Steve asked if I'd seen his phone, wallet and keys.. AHHH!!! They were all in the washer!! I really couldn't believe it!! The truck keys don't have electronics to ruin and credit cards dry, so the wallet and keys were ok. BUT the back up phone was also in there! We went two days without a cell phone while it dried. Good news is the phone is working. Bad news is I did NOT get fired from my position as head laundress...
1... IUD removed. I had surgery the 18th to remove my "displaced IUD." It is weird to me that this is common enough that they have an insurance code for the procedure... Anyway, the surgery went well, they found it right away and got it out no problem. Right after surgery, when I was still heavily under the influence of drugs I asked to have the IUD. So now what do I do with it?! I think it will go in Leo's baby book... :)!! I still don't know why Leo had to come when he did and why it took kicking out the IUD to get him here but I do know it is Heavenly Father's plan and I am so very happy he is here now and as healthy as can be!!
We hope you all had a wonderful Holiday season. We are grateful to be so richly blessed and include our friends and family when we count our blessings!
