Merry Christmas!

Twas the week before Christmas and all through our house

we had to divide and conquer to make it to all of our kids' concerts and recitals.

Korinne playing a duet with her piano teacher.

Britton and Jenna played a Christmas duet for their piano recital later that same night.

Britton's orchestra concert was at the same time as Jenna's ballroom dancing concert taking place at another high school a few miles away.  Grandpa P and I went to Britton's concert and Adam and Grandma P, Korinne and Jameson went to Jenna's dance concert.

The kids didn't have school on Friday and then all of the sudden it was Christmas Eve. Time flies when it's near Christmas.  This year both of my brothers and their families were in town for Christmas.  We made sure we showed up in style for the gathering at my parent's house on Christmas Eve.

The kids got to hang out with cousins they don't get to see very often.  Jenna had them all doing fun improv exercises she got from her drama club at school and they loved every minute of it.

Korinne, Thomas, Jenna,Will, Jessica, June and Jameson.

The food was so good that I think we all "ate too much."

The cousins acted out the nativity after we returned from watching a fun Christmas light show put to music at a neighbors house.

After dinner and the festivities we went home and the kids opened up their Christmas Even present.

Surprise! It's pajamas.

For some reason my older kids think they need to stay up late and play games on Christmas Eve. Santa is not a fan of this plan.

Christmas morning arrived plenty early thanks to some excited children.

Grandma and Grandpa came over to watch the kids open gifts.

It's always fun to get a bunch of one dollar bills in your stocking.

Korinne was happy that Santa brought her the motorized scooter she asked for.

Jenna could not have been more thrilled that she finally got a phone.

Britton loved his new Garmin running watch.

This picture says it all. Thomas the Train sky jump track was #1 on Jameson's list this year.

Adam is such a good sport when it comes to putting toys together. Yes, the train really does jump over 2 feet and land back on the track every. single. time. Jameson could not be more in love with this toy.

For everyone that loves a white Christmas mother nature came through in a big way this year. It snowed all day long and our totals on the bench were very impressive.  Less impressive was the fact that we didn't have any snowplows come through our circle for over 48 hours after the storm which made getting going and coming quite difficult.  

Adam attempting to clear a path for us to be able to attend Sacrament meeting on Christmas afternoon.

Christmas 2016 is in the books and it was a good one. We'll see you next year!

Away in a Manger

The kids are always excited for our annual Jerusalem supper during the month of December. We usually try to have it on the first Monday night in December for FHE, but this year it got bumped back a few times.

I think Jameson was more interested in the burning candles than the simple meal of pita bread, salmon, grapes, oranges and cheese but he enjoyed the experience nonetheless. The grape juice is always a big hit since it is pretty much the only day all year that we have grape juice in the house.

Adam, Britton and Jenna went down to Temple Square on Tuesday night with the youth of the ward to see the Christmas lights.  A few of the sister missionaries serving at Temple Square were quite surprised to see such a big group from one ward. 

Of course they loved stopping at In-N-Out Burger on the way home for some dinner.

Korinne graduated from the NOVA program at the school.  I really like the program put on by the Sheriff's office for 5th graders in the district since it pretty much teaches the kids all of the standards we already believe in, but goes a step further in helping them see real world consequences of bad behavior and low standards. Any reinforcement in this area is a good thing. Here is Korinne shaking the hand of the Sheriff after getting her diploma.

On Friday night we had both a cello recital for Britton and the Ward Christmas Party so we left after Britton's two cello pieces and arrived a little late to the party.

Britton and his teacher Erin playing a duet. His cello skills are really coming along.

The ward party was at a unique location in a very large barn about 20 minutes from our ward boundaries.  The committee did it so they could do a live nativity, but it also meant eating our dinner next to a variety of different animals in their stalls.  It isn't often you see a camel like this one in our neck of the woods. And when I say "not often" I really mean "never".

The hay bales were stacked up to provide stadium seating for the event.

Mary, Joseph and the baby Jesus were played by a couple in the ward who had a baby just a few weeks ago.  The baby was perfect the entire time and didn't make a peep while laying in the manger.

The shepherds and wise men kneeling in front of the baby Jesus.

The angels.

 Some of the animals used in the nativity.

It was definitely a cool and unique experience, but I did discover that I suffer from a bit of hay fever. Who knew? I guess I haven't been on a farm enough to discover this before.

Rock the Halls

After having cousin Abigail around for a few weeks it was time to say goodbye as she and Aunt Tiffany returned to Texas on Tuesday.  Jameson enjoyed playing with Abigail all by himself when Korinne was at school.

On Monday I went with Britton to a closing social/ award ceremony for the XC team. Since this is our rookie year I had absolutely no idea what it was all about or what was going to happen, I just knew that we were supposed to come with our student and dress up and be there at 6 p.m.  We have a pretty strict Monday night policy in our family to try to avoid events as much as possible, so Britton and I had a plan to quietly slip out at 6:30 so we could "make an appearance" but still be home for FHE.  When 6:30 rolled around I knew it would cause a scene to get up and walk out so we waited a few more minutes.  At this point in the meeting they started passing out awards for things like "Male /Female runner of the year" and other such things.  There were over 70 kids on the XC team this year so I was more than a little surprised to hear, "Ok, this next award is the 'Best Work Ethic' award and it goes to Britton C."

Britton with his bobble head trophy.

I guess it was good we stuck around for a few extra minutes! He was one of just a few freshman that received any kind of an award and I personally think being recognized for having a good work ethic is very admirable.  The trophies made me giggle, I've never seen bobble head trophies before.

On Tuesday night Grandma and Grandpa were able to go to Korinne's orchestra concert while Adam and I went to his work Christmas Party in Ogden.  This is Korinne's second year in orchestra and she did a great job.

Earlier that day I was able to go to Korinne's class to hear her present her state report about Texas to her class.  She did a great job putting it all together without a lick of help from anyone.  

Abigail brought a package of Whataburger french fry chips that are very popular in Texas with her when she came for Thanksgiving so Korinne was able to let everyone in her class have a taste of a truly Texan snack. This was definitely a crowd pleaser and Korinne reported that a few days later someone else decided to follow her example and bring food from their state, too.  Even though Abigail has gone home to Texas she and Korinne still talk on facetime a LOT.

Korinne hanging out with Abigail on Facetime.

On Friday Korinne got to "Rock the Halls" at school.  As a school wide reward system the kids get to run through halls that are lined with parents clapping and cheering when they reach a specific reading goal.  It's a simple thing, but the kids love it. There is just something about being able to break the "no running in the hall" rule that makes it even better.😊

Adam with Korinne after "rocking the halls".

Jameson finished up his fist semester of preschool on Friday.  Since it is run by the University he pretty much has an entire month off with the holiday break and the beginning of a new semester for the student teachers. It's weird to think he won't be back to school again until the 2nd week of January. Wouldn't it be nice if we all had that big of a break!

Holidays

On November 22nd we celebrated Korinne's 11th birthday.  She partied all day long starting with an early breakfast before school with Dad.

After school she brought Jenna and her cousins Abigail with her to the mall where she got her ears pierced.

Her face in this picture says it all.  Fortunately she survived and now has pierced ears.

After returning from the mall the whole family and Tiffany and Abigail went to Firehouse for her birthday dinner.

Then it was back to the house for ice cream and presents.

She was thrilled to get some Converse high tops, a gift card to Swig and some gel pens and an adult coloring book.

It was a full day for Korinne.  She is so much fun to have in our family and we are glad she had such a fun birthday.

The next afternoon we were off to Rexburg to start our Thanksgiving festivities.  Heather did such a good job blogging about the holiday I decided to use a good portion of her write up for our blog, too.
"We enjoyed listening to stories about G-ma and G-pa P's recent 21-day cruise where they visited a few countries including Italy, Greece, Cypress, Oman, Egypt, United Arab Emirates, Israel, Suez Canal, Jordan and Sicily.  Still recovering from jet-lag, the 'party' ended earlier than usual so we could get some sleep before heading to Brent & Kathy's place the next morning.

Aaron & Anna peeling potatoes in Kathy's kitchen

Cassidy with mom, Larah L. - snacking

Awkward hug from Aaron to Hilary & Adam (roll-maker)

Hilary, Kristen, Tiffany, Heather - kitchen pose

Quinn & Jameson - crafts/kids playing in the garage

Jenna, Cassidy, Anna, Abigail, Brinley, Oakley - cousins

Shawn, Britton, Jantzen, Aaron - watching football

Anna & Brinley - chow time!

 It always is a tasty feast!  And I'm sure this is Aaron's plate since he makes it look so nice:).

Chocolates for later - mailed a box to Tanner.  He was really happy to receive them!

Steve & Kristen family group shot

Jeff, Jake, Logan, Dustin - brothers

Brent and Kathy had every member of their family in attendance so they took some family pictures.

 I can only recall one other year where all four of my Lewis cousins were together for Thanksgiving.  We enjoyed catching up with those we don't see very often.

Plenty of talking/eating all day

For the first time in over a decade (or two), we didn't go bowling!  Apparently, there is a new owner of the bowling alley and he doesn't open up on Thanksgiving Day (imagine that?).  Instead, Dad took Tiffany, Hilary, Mom and me on a family history tour down memory lane and through town.  I had seen some of these places before but not all at the same time so it was really helpful to put timeframes into context better.  Hilary recorded some of the information on her phone (thank goodness) but I can recall a little bit of the history.

Parley Preston Price's homestead

We drove by the Wapello elementary school (no pic) but the original school Dad attended is no longer standing.  The land where it stood is now part of the baseball field.  He also showed us the nearby LDS church where he could go for Primary classes once a week with most of the other children from school.  Years ago, primary was held after school and not on Sundays.  When Dad's family moved from Wapello and into town (Blackfoot) around age 8 (3rd grade), he no longer attended primary on a regular basis.  Dad recalled occasionally riding a pony to school along the railroad tracks that run along the old Yellowstone Highway.  Other children did the same.  They would hitch up their animals to posts near the school.  Most days, Dad would take a bus to school but had to walk quite a distance down a dirt road (once lined with trees) from his grandpa's homestead.  He recalled just how bitter cold the winter mornings were while waiting for the bus to come. Dad would walk the lane along with his cousins who lived in the nicer, larger home on the property (pictured).  The chicken coop on the land was turned into a house where Bill & June (my grandparents) lived and raised Steve & Kathy until moving into town.  The larger home was 'given' to Bill's older brother, Preston (went by Duber) then sold by Pa (Parley Preston Price) and Duber moved his family to Mackay.  These two brothers (Bill & Duber) had an interesting relationship and partnered in several business situations though Bill didn't come out ahead from them (unlike Duber).  Regardless, Bill was a loyal brother and seemed to 'forgive' Duber time and again.  Someday we'll get the real stories...

Home on Archer Street in town

Leaving the farm and moving to town was a big change for Dad's family.  This white house has been added on to a few times but from the angled front door, that square represents the original house my Dad lived in from age 8 until 12 when he moved to University Ave

.

Not far from where my Dad lived on Archer, my Mom grew up in this house on Ash Street.  Her Dad (Bob Kerr) made several additions to the home and always seemed to have a project in the works.  This was a lovely home in its day and unique due to Bob's ambition and Aloha's vision.  They raised their own five children (Steve, Kristen, Greg, Kathy, Jackie) in this home until building a larger home on Airport Road across town.  My mother was in the 8th grade when she moved into the custom-built brown home on Airport Road and lived there until she went away to college at BYU (Provo).

This church building has also been added on to but the stain-glass windows seen from the road are part of the original building.  Interesting to note is the fact that my parents were actually in the same ward for several years but never met each other because my Dad's family was not active in church.  Thanks to a diligent home teacher, my Dad was baptized (in the old tabernacle) at the age of 10.  Mom knew nothing about his baptism though they would have been in primary together had Dad attended.  Their paths did not cross again until high school.

After the family history tour, we returned to Brent & Kathy's for the traditional pinatas.  Kids lined up from youngest to oldest to take their swings.  It took the younger kids a few rounds before finally breaking their piñata open.  The line-up for the older kids was a different experience.  Fourth in the line-up, Jantzen never did get a chance to swing. That piñata burst open quickly!

After pie and chocolates, a few Black Friday shoppers headed out.  The P clan eventually made their way back to our house where they spent the night.  The following morning, the older cousins attempted to perform baptisms at the temple but changed plans and went to breakfast since there was a 3-hour wait.  Cousins played, we power-walked the neighborhood a few times, I foot-zoned, we all ate another round of Thanksgiving yumminess then everybody headed out Friday afternoon.  The roads were clear and the sun was shining!  Always fun when family comes to town."

Elsie, Jenna, Jameson, Korinne, Abigail

Thanks for the guest entry, Heather.  I was started to get behind.  The weather couldn't have been better and the kids were even able to play outside. We got home on Saturday morning and have been trying to get into the Christmas swing of things ever since.  The holidays are a busy time of year when you have multiple kids that are involved in all sorts of things so we look forward to some crazy nights in the month of December.