We had our usual traditional Christmas with the Marker side on December 23-24th. On the way up, we stopped to visit Great Grandpa Marker, who had never met Bonnie and he kids even sang him a couple Christmas songs.
This was kind of a special year because the entire family was there. 22 grandchildren, 12 children, and 2 overwhelmed grandparents.
We had a sort of Marker family Olympics which everyone enjoyed. It included events like Mattress surfing, straw table golf, snowman bowling, lampshade fishing, juggling, "This is a Fork", and Jacks. We had the reading of the Christmas story, and lots of Christmas music.
We spent Christmas Eve at our house. I usually fix a big Christmas dinner on this night and we all thought it would be fun to invite Grandpa and Grandma Sorensen to spend the night and enjoy Christmas morning with us. The kids helped me plan the menu so we had grilled chicken, mashed potatoes, home made rolls (which Grandma made), macaroni and cheese, orange tapioca jello salad, green salad, stuffing, California blend veggies and yams with eggnog and pop. I made napkin holders this year and we finally broke down and bought a special Christmas dinnerware set and then the final touch and the kids favorite part, candle light. It was very nice!
We told the children they could come wake us up at 7am so they were there on the dot ready to get everything going. It was a fun morning!
Khora gave us the best reaction when she opened this tea set. She was hugging it asnd squealing and running around. It was just what she wanted!
We drove to Fayette on Christmas night and spent a couple days there. Dennis ended up working most of the next week so we came home a little earlier than we usually do with plans to go back and be with the rest of the family for New Years Eve, but Bonnie got RSV. Luckily she didn't have it very bad and got over it well enough to make it to my niece's blessing on January 2. Whew!! What a whirlwind month it has been! Now maybe I can take a breath.
This was kind of a special year because the entire family was there. 22 grandchildren, 12 children, and 2 overwhelmed grandparents.
We had a sort of Marker family Olympics which everyone enjoyed. It included events like Mattress surfing, straw table golf, snowman bowling, lampshade fishing, juggling, "This is a Fork", and Jacks. We had the reading of the Christmas story, and lots of Christmas music.
Khora gave us the best reaction when she opened this tea set. She was hugging it asnd squealing and running around. It was just what she wanted!
We drove to Fayette on Christmas night and spent a couple days there. Dennis ended up working most of the next week so we came home a little earlier than we usually do with plans to go back and be with the rest of the family for New Years Eve, but Bonnie got RSV. Luckily she didn't have it very bad and got over it well enough to make it to my niece's blessing on January 2. Whew!! What a whirlwind month it has been! Now maybe I can take a breath.
Happy Birthday to Master Isaac. When he was born we got a card from a sweet neighbor with this title on it and I really liked the ring to it so I occasionally use it. Isaac had his first ever birthday party this year. It was really stress free for me because being . . well, Isaac, he planned the whole thing himself. Sledding at the "blue park" then back to our house for hot cocoa and rice crispy treats. He invited a few friends and his brother and sisters. We all had a lot of fun. He also had a couple games planned, like leapfrog stools and Mario-cart championships. He had a great time. Love that kid!! This year he requested a new fishing pole, the DVD "Despicable Me" and to take the Hunter safety class this month.
At the beginning of the week we experienced a fabulous snow storm. Before it came the kids thought that we wouldn't have any snow for Christmas, but this one guaranteed a white Christmas for us. It reminded me of the snow storms that we used to get when I was younger.
Dennis got a call early that morning from our neighbor who couldn't get out her front door because their big willow tree had split off from all the weight of the snow and fell against the front door. A lot of people had a snow day so there was lots of help removing the tree as well as working on the sidewalks and drive ways. Dennis and the boys made really fun maze in the front yard for snow ball wars. Teddy was kind of stuck walking up against the house because it was so deep. It was funny watching he bound through the snow a couple times before he gave up.
I still haven't posted anything this month about Bonnie, but since this is her first Christmas I thought that this picture would suffice. She's getting up on her hands and knees now, not moving anywhere, but just enough to get everyone really excited. She really likes food pieces instead of the mooshy stuff, which she constantly gagged on and made this face like I just put the most horrid stuff in her mouth. Her favorites are yams, pears, rice, green beans, and grandmas rolls.
We went to see the lights on Temple Square with my brother and his cute family a week ago. We had dinner and then rode the trax downtown. The kids really enjoyed the train ride. I loved walking around and showing them the temple and the nativity there. The older children really like the miniature model that shows the inside of the Salt Lake temple. We've never seen that before. My favorite place is the "pink wave delight" a beautiful section of lights. It was so bitterly cold though that we walked around temple square pretty fast. By the time we were done we had tired and cold babies and everyone was ready to head home. Kind of a fun tradition.
