Christmas 2024

Another holiday season has come and gone. We had a good one this year! It was the first year that all three kiddos were in the inner circle, meaning they all know the real story behind Santa Claus and Elvis the Elf. I have to admit, I loved not having to worry about finding Santa gifts that would supersede all other gifts. The pressure was off. We were able to watch movies and not worry about any mention of Santa not being real. We put Elvis in funny places. We stayed up late on Christmas Eve and slept in on Christmas morning. I have a ton of pictures to load, so I will let them do the talking about our holidays...

My babies. Christmas 2024

Tommy captured a cute mother/son moment. Matty gave me a bear hug while we were decorating the Christmas tree. Look how much taller he is than me!

We hosted the Young Life middle school Christmas party at our house on 12/7. There were about 30 middle schoolers here for 90 minutes. I am glad it was not more than 90 minutes!

.After the Young Life party, Tommy and I headed over to Scott & Mary Vickers' annual Ugly Sweater Party. They do such a nice job with it - complete with a photo booth and bartender.

The next Friday, we enjoyed a fun night out with the Crumpackers, Condiottys and Colbys.

The next night, we hosted a "Holiday Hang" with several friends. Tommy and I cooked ham horseradish mashed potatoes, brussels and our guests brought appetizers and salads. I was busy in the bar making mistletoe margaritas. It was a fun night!

The wives

The husbands

One evening, we took the kids to Frosty Barrel to grab some hot chocolate and then drive around to look at Christmas lights. There was a holiday light contest in our city, so we wanted to look at the different homes and place our votes. When we walked into Frosty Barrel, we were greeted by Buddy the Elf, Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus. Turns out they were there just on a whim to spread some Christmas cheer. It was really cute. I asked for a picture and will consider this the 2024 Santa Picture.

I also squeezed in a night out with the "Bus Stop Moms." All of our kids are out of elementary school now, so we do not see each other as often. 

Someone had fun moving the Elf

The Friday and Saturday before Christmas were Taylor's Nutcracker performances, and boy did she shine! She was cast as Ribbon Candy this year, which is a solo. This is her first solo ever. I was nervous for her - worried that she would trip on her ribbon - but she nailed every performance. I am so proud of her!

Family pic after the show

Taylor's dance buddies - Mansi, Josie, Lily, Siri and Hailey

Lynelle is Taylor's dance instructor and we love her! She is such a positive light in Taylor's life!

Dinner with my boys at Aji after the Nutcracker

Christmas Eve service at BelPres

Christmas morning - the kids slept in, so Tommy and I had time to drink our coffee and take it all in.

Annual picture on the stairs on Christmas morning before we let the kids come downstairs

Family FaceTime with SMAC, R&B, and Mimi & Baba

We flew to Arizona on 12/26 to spend some time with Mimi, Baba, Ryan and Brandi. Poor Mimi and Baba were not feeling well - they were hit hard with a viral infection/pneumonia. We made the best of it, but we did not get as much time with them as we'd hoped.

Emily and her girls were also in the Phoenix area visiting her family, so we got to see a lot of them!

A zoomed-out picture of our gift exchange

My sweet daddy - we game him Bombas slippers, as he does not do much but sleep and shuffle around.

Mimi gave the kids blankets with their names on them.

Christmas Dinner

The next day, we went to Pop Golf and met up with Emily, Avery, Isabel, Sally and Emily's brother and his family. It was such a special way to catch up with all of them.

My BFF

My BFF and our 16-year olds - how did we get so lucky?

Miniature golf

On 12/29, we hiked Camelback Mountain. Emily, Avery, Isabel and Sally (who is 73) hiked it with us. When I say we hiked, I really should say that we bouldered. The hike required a lot of climbing, and I am so very impressed that Sally was able to do it. 

These five had a blast!

I brought some lime-a-ritas in my backpack, so we had a toast at the top!

Our crew

In true Emily fashion, she posed for her "Insta shoot." We were mocking our girls, who were very concerned with their pictures at the top of Camelback.

Brayden was a little too comfortable scampering over these rocks. This picture says everything - Brayden is over on top of another boulder while Sally is trying to climb down.

On our last day, Tommy and I got my dad outside for a walk. He enjoyed getting some fresh air. It still breaks my heart to see him now in a wheelchair.

We went out for a fun Mexican dinner with Mimi, Baba, Ryan and Brandi before we flew back to Seattle.

My favorite people!

My mom is the best caretaker - she pushes him around on the seat of his walker.

Back in Seattle - Matty got together with some friends on NYE. Another mom sent me this picture.

While Taylor and Matty were with other friends, Tommy, Brayden and I celebrated NYE with the Pihas and Parks. It was the last day of Hanukkah, so we enjoyed lighting the candles with the Pihas.

Happy 2025!