Cream coloured ponies and crisp apple streudles.. .

So this year my family was going to do service projects for each other instead of presents but I should have known how that would go down. No one in my family can resist buying presents. Which I have to admit ends up being pretty fun anyways, except that I stick to the rules and feel like a meanie. I say all this only to explain why our gift for my parents was a Christmas Program. We actually planned it for months and it was neat that they had a few songs they had written themselves planned. It was no small feat getting a cello, ukulele, music, the written program, and 4 fresh memories, to Edmonton among millions of other things. Plus, in my nauseous state, the simplest tasks are too difficult to bare- take having a shower for example, it's so exhausting that it requires a long nap afterwards to recover. Baba had to watch from work on Skype but Grammy, Mark and Jared were there. We were missing Eli's fam and Mariah. 

Grammy bawled throughout. She was lamenting the thought of them getting older which I of course get waves of sadness for daily. Mark said he saw me about to cry during one part and that may be true but he could have easily too if he had been alone. 

There were so many cute moments. This is Jane helping Scarlet bow after her memorization:

Counsel with the Lord in all thy doings, and he will direct thee for good; yea, when thou liest down at night lie down unto the Lord, that he may watch over you in your sleep; and when thou risest in the morning let thy heart be full of thanks unto God; and if ye do these things, ye shall be lifted up at the last day (Alma 37:37).

Jacob's memorization blew my mind. He recited a poem that we barely had learned once. He said it totally alone, from beginning to end, flawlessly. I could not. believe. it.

This is the big bow at the end.

After the performance Grammy gave them all the CUTEST toques on planet earth. Literally. 

Jared brought me down to his room so I could wrap gifts for him. The next thing I knew, he was pulling gifts out of every nook and cranny- under the bed, in the closet, from drawers... He loves to get the nieces and nephews toys.

I had to post this picture because Scarlet LOVES her bear from Uncle J. It made for a great car pillow on the way home too.

Ezra's first Christmas.

Food in Jars. Can't wait to study this book, as soon as I like food again.

We went to Fairmont Hot Springs for a week at Christmas to snowboard so we got the three older kids snowboards this year. 

I was worried Scarlet would feel left out of the snowboarding but she was happy as a clam with her yellow lace parasol and teal tutu.