Tis The Season

I am loving this holiday season! It has been especially fun this year because Brady and Easton really understand what is going on! I have been very on top of shopping and with that stress behind us we have been able to do some fun stuff together as a family. Sadly my camera is having issues so I have no pictures.

We took the boys to the Festival of Trees last weekend. They loved it! When I was little my dance studio used to dance up there but I have not been back since. It was a lot of fun and a great way to get into the Christmas spirit.

We also went to our ward Christmas party which was really fun! My boys have been scared of Santa every year and have cried at the sight of him. This year they have decided he is not scary and we have now seen him 4 times. They walk right up, sit on his lap, tell him they have been good boys, give him their wish list, and ask for a sucker. It is great! I am loving the fact that they are over their fear!

We have also been sick around our house and have spent a lot of time watching Christmas movies. The boys have loved The Santa Clause, Home Alone 2, Rudolph, and pretty much anything on ABC Family. It has been fun to watch them together as a family!

My boys always come up with the strangest requests for Christmas. I am sure you remember from last year the Spider Easton had to have! This year they have not failed me. Brady has asked for a "monster who throws a ball". I am sure most of you have seen the Big Foot in the store. It is actually really funny!
Easton has asked for the "Stinky Garbage Truck". Really? The thing farts and burps...but he does say excuse me. I am pretty sure Santa is granting their wishes much to my dismay!

I hope you are all having a wonderful holiday season! I am trying to start some traditions with Brady and Easton this year that we can do as a family, especially ones that will remind them what Christmas is really about. I am open to ideas. What are some of your favorite Christmas traditions?

SYTYCD!

On November 4 my baby sister Kelsey turned 20! We had a great day! We were able to go to my cousin's wedding in the afternoon and then head to the SYTYCD concert that night.

All my cousins at the wedding!After that we headed to dinner and then up to the show. It was fabulous and so much fun to be with my sister and my parents. These are 5 of my most favorite people in the whole world! Thanks mom and dad for a great night!

Ragnar Las Vegas...better late than never

I am so behind on posting this but I really want to document it so bear with me!

I am so glad my family convinced me to join them in the Ragnar this year. My cousin and uncle started this race 7 years ago with the Wasatch Back and now it has grown all over the U.S. Every year we say we are going to do a team and we never do. This year we did it and I am so proud!

Kelsey and I headed down on Thursday afternoon with my parents. It was a nice drive until we started driving on the race course and I broke down in tears. Anxiety set in and I was a nervous wreck. We met up with the rest of our team and slept on a house boat that night. I don't think any of us got much sleep.

We woke up at 5 a.m. to drive up to the start line. Kelsey was our first runner and she did awesome! The first time we stopped to give her water she came around the corner with a big smile on her face! After she was done she told us how fun it was and that she "loved it"! It calmed my nerves a little.

Ryan gave me good pep talks on my water breaks! All of our first legs were HARD but we all finished with smiles on our faces!

We had enough time to grab a bite to eat and head to the next exchange. Our first big exchange was at Lake Las Vegas...our old stomping grounds. We hung out there and waited for our other van to come in! My parents are the best and of course were there taking pictures and cheering us on the whole time. Geoff and Aleena brought the kids over to hang out and then Geoff hopped in the van with us for the remainder of the race!The girls!The boys!

Our next legs were my favorite because we ran right through our old neighborhood and they were at night! The Hill girls were a little afraid of running in the night but with the help of Geoff and Abbey we made it through our runs! The end of my run was up a hill that leads up to my old house. It is a tough hill and I always used to avoid it when I ran (or walked) in Vegas. Geoff ran it with me and it was so fun to run it together!

When we were all done with our second legs we headed to Geoff and Aleena's house and crashed for about 2.5 hours and then the call came letting us know it was time to head out again. I wanted to throw in the towel and just sleep but we all got up and headed out. We started our last legs at 5:00 in the morning. We all cheered each other on! Ryan was the best cheerleader! When I finished my last leg I cried tears of joy! I told Ryan I had never been so happy in my life and marrying him was a close second! It was the hardest thing I have ever done but I am so glad to say I did it! It was fun to accomplish it with my family, especially my husband!Our team name was "Run Like Hill"Our family!Our team!Kissing our medals (note Ryan's face)My siblings! With my hubby!Til next time?!?!?

2010 Thanksgiving Interviews

I love Brady and Easton's preschool teacher! She is so sweet and does such great things with the kids. She interviews them on a regular basis and writes their answers exactly how they say them. I love getting these sent home and consider them priceless. I thought these were hilarious, especially Bradys.

Easton
-What store would you buy a turkey? "The shopping one."
-How much do you think a turkey would cost? "Dad has our money."
-How would you cook a turkey Easton? My mom will cook it nicely. She likes cookin turkey."
-What is the best thing your mom cooks for you? "Turkey! She stirs it in a pot for 10 days and it's just really yummy and we all love to eat it. And I can't take baths anymore, just showers because I splash all over the floor and get everything wet!"

Brady
-What store do you buy a turkey? "Target."
-How much do you think a turkey would cost? "$2.00."
-How would you cook a turkey? "Cook it in a bowl with 5 marshmallows and 20 Dr. Peppers and you have to stir it up with a mixer and microwaver it for 4 days and then it's cooked."
-What is the best thing your mommy cooks for you? "Eggs. She stirs them a long long time and pours Dr. Pepper in it and cooks it in the pan and when it's done we can eat the eggs and drink the Dr. Pepper!"

What we learned from this is that Easton has a hard time staying focused and has not forgotten that he has been banned from taking baths! And Brady knows we buy everything at Target and I clearly have a serious addiction to Dr. Pepper! Thanks for making me laugh boys!

Happy Thanksgiving

The other night we made THESE turkeys with the kids! They turned out cute and everyone had a great time making them!

BradyEastonLukeHappy Thanksgiving! We hope you all have a wonderful day!

Family Pictures

Family pictures are overrated. Especially with a 1 year old who insists on sitting on the ground. Luke wanted nothing to do with being held by anyone and was not even satisfied when we put him on our laps. He was only happy when we gave in and set him on the cold, hard, rocky ground. This made for a tough photo shoot as we were constantly trying to accomodate his needs and all squat around him. In most of the pictures he looks totally out of place. He also wanted nothing to do with looking at the camera. Oh the joys! Here is a sneak peek into our (un)successful photo shoot! These are obviously not the ones we are using :)I had a serious headache by the end. I told Ryan we needed to try again and he responded with a big NO WAY. There are a few good ones to choose from!

Halloween...

We had a great Halloween this year! I feel like it lasted all week but it was fun! Ryan and I had a party with some friends and we dressed up. It was nice to have a night out!
I am usually not a huge fan of Halloween but this year was really fun! Brady and Easton were so excited to go Trick or Treating and were so cute at each house. Hearing them say "Trick or Treat" and then "thank you" made me smile every time. When we were done we headed back to my parent's house and they loved passing out candy just as much. Lukey came with us for a few minutes and then he went back and hung out with my mom and dad! He looked super cute in this lion costume!I love these little boys! Happy Halloween!