Christmas Day

As predicted, James was up before 6:00. That was when Grandma and Grandpa planned to arrive to join us for Christmas morning. James patiently waited 20 minutes or so for them to arrive and then we let him discover what Santa had brought. He was very, very pleased.
Kate and Robert woke up about 7:00. Kate was thrilled with her giant stuffed penguin. She's a bit obsessed with penguins right now, so it was quite a penguin-themed Christmas for her. The obsession started more than a year ago and has only grown since then. I'm curious to see just how long it lasts. There was some trauma, though, associated with this particular penguin. Santa brought it to her, but it has a Toys-R-Us tag?!? Uh oh. Apparently, Santa's elves make some toys for Toys-R-Us and they tagged this one for the store even though it was for Santa.
It was a Star Wars-themed Christmas for Robert. He wanted a real light saber - Anakin's light saber. I was unaware there were different colored light sabers until Robert informed me Yoda's light saber was green when we were putting together his Halloween costume on October. We now own at least six light sabers and Robert can tell you which one belongs to whom. Ben/Santa added to the Star Wars extravaganza by shopping on the KSL Classifies Christmas Eve day. A one-time collector was selling his pieces. Three ships and dozens of action figures later, Ben finished his last minute Christmas shopping. Some items have been held in reserve for the Easter Bunny and the next round of birthdays.

Kate's pile.

James' pile.

Robert's pile.

Isaac's pile.
Isaac's stocking was filled with baby food to be consumed in February and a sippy cup that will come to use about the same time. He also got a mobile for his car seat and a chair that hooks onto the table. He was, of course, overwhelmed with excitement while watching his siblings open his gifts.

As the kids were going to sleep on Christmas Even, Kate sent many of her stuffed animals upstairs with Ben. She said they wanted to watch her open her Christmas presents in the morning. Santa set them up to be ready to watch. This girl LOVES animals. I never cared for stuffed animals, but I guess am glad she's happy with the stuffed ones - for now.

Christmas Eve

We spent Christmas Eve at Grandma McAdams' and enjoyed the McAdams' traditional Christmas Eve hamburger dinner. (I brought the veggies - including the tray below!)

Ben played Santa again, something our kids think is hilarious. However, this year, to add to the fun, Kate dressed up as Santa's elf and passed out the candy. She loved her role and played it well! I think she has her own Christmas tradition now.

San Diego - Sea World and Balboa boat parade

We picked up Kate and James from school on Friday, December 16th and drove to the airport (sans Isaac who stayed with Grandma). Perhaps an odd time for a family vacation, but actually quite pleasant and relaxing to get away from the stress of Christmas and focus on time together. I might push to make it a traditional vacation window.

We flew! - which meant Ben couldn't delay our departure due to a few more phone calls or a really important meeting. It also meant we didn't have to spend hours in the car! Also means more cost, including a rental car, but definitely worth it this time around.

Our friend, Dave Wagner, lives in San Diego and offered his place for us to stay in since both he and his roommate (medical students) were headed out-of-town for the holidays. We were able to go to dinner with Dave Friday night and then he left to the airport Saturday morning. It was so nice to have some space and a kitchen and, of course, no hotel expense! Thanks, Dave!

The weather was a bit chilly by San Diego standards and while we had hoped for warmer weather, it was much warmer than Salt Lake City.

We spent Saturday at Sea World and were able to catch all the shows we wanted to see as well as many of the on-going interactive activities. Kate, especially, loved to see all the animals. She loved the penguins (of course!) and the dog show.

James and Kate wanted to get wet, so they went and sat in the splash zone.
The were disappointed when they only got a few sprinkles,
but I thought it was good it worked out that way. Boring old Mom.

Ben, always game for these machines, let each of the kids smash a penny.

We left Sea World on the early side and drove up to Balboa Island to watch the boat parade with my sister and her family. Aside from the traffic, which on a good day is not great and on a parade day is horrendous, we had a great time and enjoyed the lighted boats and great company. Thanks for inviting us, Sherri!

San Diego - USS Midway and cousins

On Sunday, we attended Sacrament Meeting with my friend, Diane. It was their Christmas program and we enjoyed it very much. Then we met up with my sister again at the USS Midway, followed by a delicious Indian dinner. There was a shopping area near the restaurant and that is where the cute picture above was taken.

San Diego - Legoland

I had high hopes for Legoland. I had hears only glowing reports. The kids did love it and there were parts I liked too. However, it didn't seem as though they were prepared for the crowd because the lines were quite long it didn't seem that all the available ride capacity was being put to use. Also, most rides required an adult to be with the kids. Ben and I were short an adult for our kids and my sister, who came with her two kids, but not Sam (her husband), was also short an adult. Quite frustrating! Anyway, it was all still worth it and since we have bounce-back tickets, I bet we go again before the end of March. (Most likely we'll return without Ben, while the legislature is in session and he's MIA anyhow and the winter weather in SLC becomes unbearable. Maybe if we skip a couple days of school we will even hit the park on a slow day???)

Lots of Star Wars fans on this trip,
so this creation and other SW-themed exhibits were hits!

She was so excited to find a penguin made entirely of Legos!

Also a big Harry Potter fan.

San Diego - beach

Despite the cool weather, Kate really, really wanted to go to the beach to collect shells. I know she expected to find large, intact shells and tried to warn her that we probably would only find small ones if there were any at all. Our friend Diane suggested the tide pools at La Jolla beach, so I looked up when low tide was and we planned the outing around that. Robert was thrilled with dozens of tiny shells and we even found two complete sand dollars. Kate was disappointed, but still loved the beach.
I thought it was too cold to get in the water, so we didn't really come prepared to swim. I should have known better. Shoes and clothes were completed immersed for about an hour. The kids loved the waves - especially Robert who was experimenting with the ocean waves really for the first time.

Ben and I watched the kids from the dry sand. We enjoyed ourselves as well.

The Nunley's Christmas House

We have driven by this house at least a dozen times in the past month. Thank goodness it's only one street away and doesn't add too much time to our drive home. The kids LOVE to see "Carley's house". The owner, our neighbor, hangs out each evening wearing a Santa hat and passing out candy canes to all the kids in the cars driving by to take in the view. And what a sight it is. I can appreciate the passion and obsession, but I'm glad it's not at my house and not on my electric bill each December!

Ben's public birthday party

Good thing Ben's got a campaign staff with time and energy to plan a birthday party for him. The extent of our family celebration was a candle in a muffin that Ben made the morning of his birthday and an off-key, but enthusiastic rendition of Happy Birthday. Despite my lack of appropriately commemorating Ben's birthday, I do love and admire the guy. Happy Birthday, Ben!

The campaign party was a fun celebration and well-attended by supporters, delegates and family.

Festival of the Trees

We looked at trees for all of about 15 minutes. Mom joined us after a day of volunteering at the event herself. It's a good think she had already had a chance to look around. The trees just didn't hold the kids' interest. They did, however, patiently wait in line to visit Santa and let him know what they are hoping for for Christmas. Kate wants a giant stuffed penguin. James wants Legos. Robert wants a real light saber. Isaac had no requests.

There was also a little kids activity area. Robert used his allotted tickets for the chance to hang out in a giant bubble for three dips in the soap solution. James and Kate did one of these at a children's museum in Monterrey. I think it's pretty cool. Kate and James used their tickets for candy.

A walk around Bountiful Pond

We took advantage of family in town, a sunny day, and some time off to enjoy some fresh air and an enjoyable walk around Bountiful Pond the day after Thanksgiving. An hour or so of leisurely meandering provided the perfect opportunity for quality time and spontaneous conversation with nieces, nephews and siblings. Getting most of the group to pose for the picture above was quite an ordeal. Definitely worth the effort, though. I love it!

Robert had an unfortunate slip into the freezing water.
Thanks Grandpa for carrying him for the remainder of the walk!

The outing began with feeding the duck some old bread from Grandma's house.
Always a fun activity for kids!