Christmas

The next few are some of the very few pictures that were taken on Christmas (and they weren't even taken by me! Obviously.) I was more of an observer of Christmas than a capturer. A stark contrast to the millions of photos I took last year. It was kind of nice to just relax and enjoy! I'll probably regret not having more pictures later;)

But I like these ones that Skyler got of Westin and I. It was so much fun to be a part of the whole Santa experience! And it will only get better as he gets older!

More than anything, Christmas was wonderfully relaxing and lazy. Aside from being with family, that's got to be the best part of the holidays! The last few days I've had to really push myself to get out of the lazy mode and get some housework done.

Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve morning Westin and I snuggled on the couch in front of the tree. 

Afterwards, he was such a good mood. It was almost as if he was full of excitement for Santa! 

Though he has no clue who he is just yet.

The Lights

Earlier this week we took Westin to experience the Layton Lights. 

What a magical world of lights and music!

We know he likes something if he is quiet and content (and boy oh, boy was he quiet and content!)

Thanksgiving 2010

We hosted Thanksgiving at our place for the first time this year. We had Skyler's parents and sister, C'era and her husband, Trevor staying with us for Thanksgiving. It was really nice to spend some time together as the Francis side doesn't get to do that very often.

 Skyler's dad making his famous apple pie

 

 b

Westin couldn't wait for dinner so he decided to try some dog food

 

Baily watching Skyler prepare the Turkey

 

Perfection

 We'll end with Westin enjoying the olives at Thanksgiving dinner

Sittin' with Grandpa

Even though Westin hasn't seen his Grandpa Francis since he was 2 months old, he treated him as if he were his best buddy all along when grandma and grandpa came to visit. He loved to go to grandpa and sit on his lap. I just adore these pictures of Westin with Grandpa.

Skyler's tile work

Skyler doesn't lay tile anymore, but when my mom needed someone to redo the basement bath, I sort of talked Sklyer into doing it. He's pretty awesome at whatever he does and takes pride in his work so I knew he would do an awesome job in the bathroom. (He also layed tile in the Laundry). He worked on it some nights after work and a few Saturdays. It turned out quite beautiful.

A few before pictures after stuff was torn out

The lovely after

Lucked out

I've been thinking today how much I've loved my calling in our "new" ward. In July I was called to teach in Primary. I was called to teach the 11-12 year olds. I had been in primary before about 5 years back, but I was with the Sunbeams. I loved loved loved being with the Sunbeams so much. I didn't think anything could beat it. But I found that this group of kids were pretty awesome too. I guess it's just a different kind of awesome that are Sunbeams. I really lucked out this year with these kids. They are such a great group of kids. There are 4 of them. All of them pretty much always come. They all have totally different personalities. They make me laugh.

(today we laughed when one of the boys blew a bubble with his gum and got gum stuck to his mouth). 

We have so much fun, all while learning of course. They remind me of the innocence of children and how to let loose a little bit and have fun. A few months back, the the last few officially reached the age of 12 and graduated from primary so I no longer needed to be in the Primary room for singing and sharing time after our class-time. I really missed that. I think that there is little better than to listen to kids sing. I look forward to being back in there at the beginning of the year with a new group of kids!

In a meadow far far away..

Back in September, we had our family pictures taken by the wonderful Lindsey Stewart of Green Apple Photography. She is the one I was able to assist over the summer. I loved loved loved working with her. I love her style. She is fantastic at what she does. I knew I wanted her to take our family photos. She did a great job. We love them!

I can't believe how much Westin has changed even in just the last 3 months! Since these were taken his toddler face has continued to take set in, he's started walking, and he's also had a lot more teeth come in since these were taken. I'm working on getting these on the wall before they become obsolete!

One of my favorite film shots