It's Christmas!!

We had a wonderful trip to Oregon for Christmas break!  Robby got done with school on Thursday and then Friday afternoon we headed up to Salt Lake.  Calin did great during the first leg of the trip.  Then we got up really early on Saturday morning to continue on our journey to La Grande.  Luckily the weather was great for us and we did not have any rain or snow the whole way there! Calin hung in there until the last couple hours of the trip.  Once we got past Boise we could tell he had had it in the car!  He was not screaming or crying, just a little whiny and needed constant attention to keep him happy...books, songs, toys, etc.  It's a good thing Robby was back there with him since I don't do well reading or looking down a lot while riding in the car.  Especially around all those curves once in Oregon! It was a LONG drive but great once we got there!!

 Calin even practiced his driving skills while we were stopped in Burley! 

It was wonderful to get to LaGrande and let Calin be out of his car seat and play!  Everyone was so excited to see him and he got lots of love and attention!  We had a lot of fun Saturday afternoon and Sunday just enjoying family, going to church, and yummy meals cooked by my mom!! 

Calin enjoying the chair Grandma and Grandpa got for him! He loved sitting up at the counter and table with everyone like a big boy!

On Saturday afternoon and evening it started snowing.  We were SO GLAD it waited until after we had gotten there!  My mom found our old "snow suit" and got that out for Calin to use.  It was a good thing too since we don't have clothes like that living in St. George!  We got Calin all bundled up and took him out to sled and explore the snow.  I was of course the paranoid mother worrying about the snow in his face and him being too cold, but he seemed perfectly fine.  He was not too overly excited, but just enjoyed being pulled around.  A lot of the time he looked like he was so comfy he just might fall asleep!

All bundled up to go outside! 

First pull around the yard with Grandpa! 

Snow in the face...

Everyone came out to watch and be entertained! 

Having a good time in the snow! 

Yea for snow on Christmas Eve!! :)

Poor Calin was even subject to a ride with Mia.  We torture our poor dog!  Calin didn't seem too troubled by it, but Mia did not seem too pleased and was looking for any chance to jump off!

Warming up with Aunt Becca after the sledding excursion in their matching snow outfits.

Christmas Eve night we spent with our neighbors the Harris'.  We have spent Christmas Eve with them for as long as I can remember and we all love this tradition.  We always have a delicious dinner, then games/activities, read the Christmas story in Luke, and then end with more food; snacks and dessert.  It is always lots of fun.  This year we made gingerbread houses and played holiday charades.  I love spending Christmas eve with family and friends! It was a great night!

Robby and I's Nativity gingerbread house.  We won "best in show"! 

Calin enjoying playing with the leather couch on Grandpa's lap and partiers in the background.

Calin with Grandma, Elizabeth Harris and Jan Harris (our party hostess). 

Calin relaxing with Aunt Becca and Jeff Harris. 

Calin got hungry and tired so we took him home to listen to our final chapter of Cinnamon bear, open his Christmas Eve pajamas, and snapped a few cute pictures before putting him to bed so Santa could come!










Even though he had no idea what was going on, Robby and I sure did have a lot of fun doing the Christmas thing with our little family! We look forward to lots more fun Christmas'!











Calin woke up bright and early Christmas morning to discover what Santa had brought him.  We are pretty sure he loved it! ;)

Investigating his new toy! 

This is so cool!  

Our little family Christmas morning.

My sister, mom and I in our new polka dot pajama pants.

Calin was very interested in all the new toys he got, but like a true 6 month old definitely loved the paper the most! 

Christmas afternoon we went out to the Elgin Opera House to see the local production of "White Christmas".  It was fun to get out and do something with everyone there. Even Calin got to go and was amazing and slept through the WHOLE play! That was nice because we all got to enjoy the show!   Most of us were surprised it was as good as it was with the low expectations we had going in.  It was a fun way to spend the afternoon! 

The rest of our trip we just enjoyed playing with new toys, hanging with aunts, uncles, and grandma and grandpa!  Here are a few other things Calin did/enjoyed! 

  

Chilling with Erich at the table in his new chair.  He liked to be there and bang his toys on the table.

Hanging out with Uncle Josef and Grandpa aka "Papa Dan".

Loved having baths in Grandma and Grandpa's tub. 

Went on a walk to the park to enjoy being outside and had his first experience with a swing. 

Hanging with Grandma at the park.

Swinging with everyone! 

Playing with all his new toys!

Sitting at the table playing games with Harris'.

Another view of games.

We really enjoyed our stay in Oregon and were sad to see it come to an end!  The drive back went well.  We did not have any problems with weather which was so great!  It's always hard to know when traveling in the winter!  We got to Salt Lake Friday afternoon and went to the mall to exchange some Christmas gifts.  It was CRAZY there!  I couldn't believe how busy it was.  Then we went to Aunt Becca's to feed Calin and let Calin kick and play for a while.  That night we stayed at My Uncle Max and Aunt Karen's house.  It was nice to rest for a little bit and have a bed to sleep in.  We also were able to have my college friend Cyle and his wife Athena and their boy Kingston stop by for a little bit.  They live out East and we had not seen them since before we both got married (they have the same anniversary as Robby and I).  I was excited to meet Athena and for Calin and Kingston to have a chance to meet too.  Kingston was born two weeks before Calin.  It was so fun to visit with them even just for a short little bit!  Thanks for coming to see us! 

Classic Calin (mouth open) and Classic Kingston (tongue out)

Calin really liked Cyle and Athena and rolled right over to them!

Our two little families!

Then we finally made it back to St. George on Saturday and enjoyed being out of the car!  It was a great Christmas and we are glad we got to spend it with family and for my family to get time with Calin!  Calin has adjusted right back into being at home and is getting to be such a great sitter!