December Moments

December is here in full swing, my friends, despite the fact that, here in Phoenix, it is barely cold enough for our heater to kick on once a night.

We may not be traipsing around in any winter wonderlands, but we still know how to celebrate the season. Here are a few of our favorite moments so far:

(okay, so this picture is from last year but it's noteworthy nonetheless.)

Decorating gingerbread houses with our friend Holly:

Sugar cookies with mommy:

(man alive, this rolling pin is a blast!)

Savanna's winter ballet recital:

(the recital, not unlike Savanna, was so cute I could cry.)

Ward Christmas party:

Riding a bike sans training wheels for the first time:

Tickles with Mommy:

Stories with Grandma:

Sitting on "Santa's" lap:

Merry (20 days 'til) Christmas, everyone!

What A Difference A Year Makes

About a year ago, this little nut was wrapping herself up in the vacuum cleaner cord. Now, thank goodness, she's old enough for us to put her to work.

Now if I could just get her to empty the dishwasher...

Thanks-remembering

True to my nature of skipping over holidays that aren't Christmas, once again I let Thanksgiving come and go without so much as a peep. (Or should I say gobble?) In the interest of posterity, (and because I truly am thankful) here are some pictures of my favorite things to be thankful for:

Since these sweet girls are so happy to help, it was natural 

for them to swoop in and give me a hand with the rolls for

 Thanksgiving dinner. At first, Savanna claimed that she could 

only make snakes out of the dough that I was asking her 

to roll into a ball.  After they both got the hang of it, though,
they made the most adorable baby rolls for

 themselves in a mini-muffin pan. 

Yummier than rolls, that's what Alexa is.

Kind Craig set up shop in the playroom 

and kept me company during my last-minute 

cleaning and dessert-making on Thanksgiving Eve. 

I have been trying to focus more lately on recognizing (and taking the time to enjoy!) all of my wonderful blessings, particularly my children, who are the biggest sources of joy (and utter frustration) in my life. As a very welcome answer to much prayer, little moments of joy have been popping up all over the place. I am grateful beyond grateful to say this. Thanks to a tiny focus on my part on trying to be more in the moment with them, they have responded with full heart and I am finding myself blessed exponentially. 

Snuggling up with Savanna has yielded me a "favorite favorite favorite Mommy" status. Singing one or two extra songs with Lex before bedtime has given me some extra moments to soak up all her fleeting, adorable baby-ness. And sharing childhood stories with Julia has allowed me to begin to see the beautiful, caring person that she is turning  out to be. 

Utter, unreserved gratitude. That is what I am feeling every single day. And I couldn't be more thankful for that.

P.S. We Love to Eat

Us Monson girls know a good thing when we see it...
And then we put it in our mouths.

...And Then There Was Halloween

You would think that I would give Halloween a little more attention, seeing as how I like free candy so much. And yet, it has slipped through the cracks once again, leaving all the uneaten Dots and Mike and Ike's in its delicious wake. Since we're in the brief pause between Thanksgiving and Christmas, I'll squeeze in our Halloween fun and try to do better next year. (No promises, folks.)

We'll start with the GCU carnival:

The girls thought this giant slide was great. I concur.

Lex was feeling a little protective of her candy.

Our little rock stars.

Cutie #1

Cutie #2

(messy) Cutie #3

Next was the school carnival:

(Lex loves her Cheetos)

(Mommy loves her Vanna)

She ain't afraid of no cupcake

She liked the animals in the petting zoo about 

as much as she liked the Disney characters.

Craig, having a cow. (As usual.)

(Just kidding.)

The girls and their friends, Ermanie and Kekoa along 

with a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle that we don't happen to know.

Then there was actual Halloween. We went trick or treating with friends and the girls stayed up so late past their bedtime that Julia fell asleep twice at school the next day and took a two-hour nap when she got home. (These girls need their 11 hours, that's for sure.)

"Uh...hey guys...can someone open this 

delicious peanut butter cup for me?"

It took Lex a while to get the hang of trick or treating, 

but she figured it out. They always do.

I just love her royal cuteness.

The whole gang.

This is cute Gentry. He's Alexa's age. I love that he was 

amused by our friend Frank's creepy half-man zombie 

while all of the other kids ran away screaming.

The after-party at Holly's was a happenin' scene.
No wonder Julia was so tired.