December

Wow! December was a whirlwind of Christmas activities, all while trying to enjoy a new baby. It was crazy, but I will try to share a few pictures so that although I can't remember much of it, there is some sort of proof that this December did actually happen.

There were all the school Christmas programs.  Mariah made the cutest little red-nosed reindeer I've ever seen when her class performed a reindeer song at the December awards meeting.

Then she switched for "cute" to "beautiful" for the Kindergarten Christmas program.

Mylie got to perform all her favorite songs from FROZEN in her Christmas program. So cute!

And Connor got to rap "Ice, Ice, Baby" in his Christmas program. Why? Their music teacher does an amazing job of incorporating all the kids' ideas into their play each year, with the 5th graders all having a costume and an individual part. It was a super fun show, and he did a great job!

Speaking of Connor being super cool, he finally got his mullet to perfection. And then we cut it the end of the month. But we were sure to get some great pictures first.

With the older kids all busy with school and activities, Brady and Lewis got to spend a lot of time getting to know each other. I think they're going to be pretty good buddies. Oh, and Brady got a haircut.

Mylie, Mariah, and their cousins Hannah and Sarah were finally able to take the money they had been earning to the D.I. to buy clothes to donate to an orphanage in Bulgaria.  They call themselves the G.C.C. (Girls Care Club) and they worked really hard on this project. I was so proud of them, and the checkout ladies even teared up a bit as they scanned over 30 pairs of pants, several jackets and 6 pairs of shoes. Their aunt Haley is going to hand-deliver their purchases to the orphanage when she goes to pick up her son, hopefully soon.

Santa came to our house--ya, right to our house! The kids were super surprised! Lewis even got to sit on his lap. And this picture shows Brady's feeling about Santa so perfectly.

Mylie turned 9. Halfway to 18 already! What? Pathetic that this is the only photo we took. I think we got some video, though.

 We did lots of fun crafty stuff. I didn't take pictures of it all, but I did capture a couple favorites. One day we had cousins over for some sugar cookie painting. The kids loved it, even Brady stayed focused on it for a long time.

 We also were able to go to Cokeville the week after Christmas for a gingerbread house party.  It is a tradition in my family to do real gingerbread houses, and my Grannie was visiting from Alaska, so we just had to do them this year! My sister, Tami, and her kids came, as well as a couple of my cousins with their kids. We had such a good time! The kids all loved it, but so did I. This is one craft that I always enjoy. I can't quite figure out why I don't ever want to try cake decorating, but I LOVE to do gingerbread houses.

Each time Brady would put a piece of candy on, he would say, "Woo-hoo! I did it!"

My Masterpiece

Oh, how I love this lady!  She is so amazing! I am glad that I was able to see her several times during her visit. She even made it over to my house TWICE! Love this picture of her and Lewis.

Christmas Eve, we went to Cokeville for my Grandma Teichert's Christmas party. Each kid performed a talent, and my grandma, who is 95 years old, even played a song on the piano. The kids all dressed Christmas-y for the occasion, even Lewis.

And finally, December wouldn't be complete without our annual trip to SLC for some family fun!  This year, we went to a new place, the Classic Fun Center. We had an AMAZING time there, and will probably go again.

And then, of course, dinner at Tucanos. Brady loves meat and was so excited when the first meat server came around and gave him some meat on his plate. When he saw the next server coming, he yelled out, "More meat!" just as excitedly as a kid could yell it. I thought they should hire him to do an ad for them.  We sure love Tucanos.

November

The beginning of November was all about volleyball. Our team took 2nd at both Regionals and State this year.  We had a fabulous team and such a great year. I LOVED coaching these girls and was sad to see it end.

At state tournament, the girls put together a baby shower for me. Now, nobody needs a baby shower for their 5th baby, but it was lots of fun!

One of my favorite things about this group of seniors was the way they showed so much gratitude for the coaches. Most kids--even really good kids--don't often think to thank people. These girls did, and it felt so nice to feel appreciated for all the time I have invested in them.

Mariah had her birthday--the big 6! She is such a sweet girl and I love her to pieces!

We sold our red van (so sad, I loved that van) and bought a much newer van with far fewer miles. I met my goal of paying cash for it, which felt so satisfying.  Now hopefully it will last us a long time--long enough for me to have the cash ready next time we need a new one.

Connor and Mylie participated in the "Turkey Trot," a one-mile run at their school. This is how Connor felt about it.

Mylie was a little happier, although she tasted that bloody throat feeling for the first time ever.  She took 4th for 3rd grade girls and ran her mile in 8:27.  She won a pie for her efforts.

And of course, the BIG NEWS of November, was Lewis joining our family! I already recorded all the details of his birth in another post, but here are some pics of his first couple weeks of life.  He is so loved.

 So TINY 

 One Week Old

Bad, blurry photo, but I love this cute onesie.

When Lewis was just two days old, we went to a Micheli Reunion at a gigantic, super fun house by Bear Lake. I took lots of video, but somehow only one picture?!? We are planning to go back there for New Year's Eve next year, so I will take more pics then (hopefully).

And finally, we spent Thanksgiving in Cokeville, where Michelle was kind enough to take a picture of these four cuties! So fun to have so many cousins so close in age, and trying to take a pic of all four of them was great entertainment! Lewis missed it all in his coma-like sleep.

Pumpkin Patch and Halloween

There was a local family that did a pumpkin patch this year. Connor was too old and cool to go, but the rest of us visited one beautiful day and had a great time!

Mylie and I were gone to regional volleyball on Halloween, but between Tony and I, we were still able to get pics of the kids in their costumes. And although we weren't all together on Halloween, we still celebrated a little with a special spooky dinner and pumpkin carving one night.

September

September, of course, was filled with volleyball--LOTS of volleyball! Mylie came with me everywhere--every practice, every game and tournament. She is falling in love with this game and loves for me to practice with her. We spent a lot of time passing back and forth. Our record is 198 passes in a row without the ball dropping.  She also loves working on her jump serve and 4-step approach.

Connor had a birthday! Eleven years old--so hard to believe.  Connor also spent a lot of time playing football. He played running back and linebacker and loved it!

We harvested the garden and had a wonderful harvest. We got lots of corn, which was surprising because we had a hard frost the first weekend in September. I was sure that all the corn was lost, but a couple days later, I went out and decided to peel back the husk on one ear. Surprise! The corn was fully mature and there was a LOT of it. It was delicious!

Mariah lost her first tooth and was pretty excited about that.  She also decided that going to school was pretty great. Although she gets tired sometimes, she loves Kindergarten and her teacher, Mrs. Argyle.

Tony and Brady ranched. Brady truly believes that he works on the ranch and everything he does is just as important as what Dad is doing. It is so neat that they get to do this together.