Christmas Stockings at Grandpa and Grandma's House

Luke and Daddy

Uncle Matt and Reese

Aunt Jen and Casey

Jacob and Grandpa

Chase and Diane

Twas' The Night Before Christmas

Luke sprinkles a little "magic reindeer food" so Santa knows just where to stop!

New jammies for Christmas...too bad you can't see the jammies. Oh well, the kids are cute!

And a story before bed...I love these moments!

My Little Chipmunk

We started our Christmas Eve morning by taking the kids to see Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakuel. Luke couldn't wait to take his picture with Alvin and Simon! For some reason the older three passed on the opportunity...

All I Want For Christmas...

All season long we've promised Luke we would take him to talk with Santa. Before we knew it, it was just three days before Christmas and Luke still hadn't stopped by to sit on Santa's lap yet! Luckily, the line wasn't long and Luke got to tell Santa just what he was hoping for...and mommy got this super cute picture!

The Mission Inn Lights

We took a family outing just before Christmas to see the lights at the Mission Inn. We always love doing this, the decorations are so festive! They definitely put us in the Christmas spirit!

Back Row: Mariah, Cameron, Michael, Ethan Chase and Casey

Front Row: Luke, Jacob, Dylan and Reese

Family Christmas Traditions...Switched up!

For some time now one of our Christmas traditions has been to go to dinner at the Mission Inn in Riverside for a very nice family Christmas dinner. But this year we decided to change it up a bit! Instead of going to dinner as a family, we chose to make dinner for some local families! These families have children who have some health challenges and are here in town receiving care at Loma Linda hospital. It was a fun twist on our tradition. We got the kids involved and everyone helped out. I think we've found a NEW Christmas tradition!

Casey, Reese and Chase were our official cookie taste testers!

Cameron, Mariah and Ethan all helped cut out, bake and decorate the Christmas cookies for the families!

Dylan, Jake and Michael wrapped the boxes to be packed for each family!

We all went together to deliver the enchilada dinners to the families. What a blessing it was to meet them! They are all so brave despite the unknowns that lie ahead for their children. It was a great reminder to thank the Lord for the healthy children we have and teach them to have compassion for those who need encouragement.

Mariah Turns 10

Emily, Mariah, Juree, Cami, Samantha, Abbie, Alexis, Diane and Mom

Mariah had her 10th birthday just before Christmas! She decided on ice skating with friends to celebrate. We all had such a fun time. Happy birthday sweet girl...it seems just like yesterday we were bringing you home in a stocking!

Winter Wonder Slam Tour

On Saturday night we saw Relient K and Tobymac! Tobymac is a favorite at our house (mostly me and Luke). His show was AMAZING... like always! We had so much fun rocking the night away. There were 150 friends from church who all went together. We took up an entire section on our own! Good times!

A Living Nativity

The guard wouldn't let us in until Jacob told him why we were all there.

This was the very last scene in the walk...

Luke got to feed this camel his treat!

Mariah and her friend Samantha

Luke and his friend Chase

On Friday evening we went with friends to see a living nativity! We all really enjoyed it. The sets and costumes were so great and the acting was very good too. The kids got to see an alpaca (who spit on some of the girls in our group) sheep, goats, donkeys, a horse and Luke even got to feed a Camel! I love these Christmas time activities. They are memories I hope they carry with them for the rest of their lives.

Angel Breakfast

Luke and Daddy

Luke and Camden

(I wasn't able to flip the picture, but had to include it...so cute!)

Luke and Macie

Luke and an Angel

Luke and Jackson

Every year our church host's an Angel Breakfast for kids 3-5 years old. Luke has enjoyed this event every year and couldn't wait for it to come around again this December! He loves the "kid friendly" breakfast that is served and the singing angels that visit. Each year the kids are given an ornament to remember the special day. This year he had lots of friends who were able to join him and that makes it even more fun!

Thanksgiving

Our Thanksgiving was full of fun and a little relaxation too! We gathered around the table with all of our loved ones and found a great deal to be thankful for this year. What a blessing it is to have each other in our lives. Dinner was very good as usual, my mom seems to have these holiday dinners down. She makes it seem effortless, yet I know she was up at the crack of dawn preparing. After dinner we watched Elf to ring in the Christmas season right...(hahaha)! The older boys played several rounds of Spoons and the little guys and girls took their always anticipated ride in the ranger with grandpa! We hope your family had a special day spending time with those you love too. Happy Thanksgiving!

Jacob Turns 12

My Jacob turned 12 years old last week! I can't believe it. Where has the time gone? He celebrated his special day by playing laser tag with friends, a little cake and ice cream and dinner at Wabi Sabi. I hope the next 12 years don't go by just a fast!

The Dream Center

We spent our day in LA at the Dream Center. We went into the surrounding neighborhoods and invited families in need to come down and get a free turkey dinner. The center gave out close to 1800 turkey dinners this morning! What a blessing it was to be a part of this! It was an incredible experience. Dylan, Mario and I agree that we can't wait to go back again.

Go Eagles!

The soccer season has come to an end. Mario and Mariah are sad to see it go. It was full of exciting (and close) games! The Eagles went undefeated all season long. They had such a fun time! Mario loves coaching and Mariah was blessed to meet some really great girls on her team. We can't wait for next season!