{December Festivities...

We got a package from the North Pole with our very own Elf!  The boys named him Cooper.  I think he will be returning next year...

Sammy's school program was a hoot.  He totally got into it this year and it made my whole season merry.

 

We've been going to the Baers for a few years now for an annual candy cane making FHE.  The guys have gotten pretty good at rolling the candy.  It's something we look forward to each December.

 

Here are Grandma and Grandpa with all their grandkids decked for the Holidays.  Addie was baptized earlier in the day and we went over to G&G's for a late brunch (coordinated outfits courtesy of Grandma Ann.  Cute huh!)

With Christmas being on a Sunday this year the boys decided to wait until after church to open their gifts from Santa.  We used to do the same thing when I was little.  Mom would hang a sheet until after church.  It made the anticipation of Christmas morning last and last!  So fun.  They did open their stockings (my favorite!) before church.

 

 

{Decking the Halls... and the stake center tables!

Some friends and I were asked to come up with table centerpieces for our Stake Musical Christmas Fireside next week. I made a trip to ARC and the coffee isle of my local supermarket and came up with these super fun starbursts! I had seen something similar done with an old phone book at a local boutique in Colorado Springs and knew it could be adapted to work for our event. I love how they turned out and can't wait to see 24 of these beauties decking the cultural hall for Christmas!

{Christmas Vinyl Par-tay!

Christmas is just around the corner... Yikes! For the last few weeks I've been thinking about, creating for and *anticipating* Christmas. I think I have come up with a few gift ideas almost anyone could benefit from. I hope you can make it!

When: Friday, December 3rd
Time: 7:30 until we finish!
Place: My home

Please feel free to call me with questions or to place an order (761-9084). I would appreciate your orders no later than Wednesday, December 1st (midnight).

Merry Christmas!
Tagan

.Click on the pictures to enlarge the image.

{Hammonds Candy Factory...

Every year we go over to the Baer's to make homemade candy canes. It is truly one of my very favorite Christmas traditions. The day after Christmas we met my family in Denver to tour one of Colorado's oldest (still operating) candy factories. Wow... the difference that equipment (and highly skilled hands) can make! Julie, we've got to take you up there! Perfect swirls, airy centers and they are at least an inch and a half in diameter! It is most definitely a lost art and made for a very fun day. After the factory we went to lunch and shopped around downtown. I love the city at Christmas time!

We could not let this photo op pass us by! When we see anything heart shaped and Miss Loveland Valentine is in the vicinity, a picture must be snapped!

{Christmas morning...

My Christmas decorations are down and I've started my annual 'tear through the house organizational process' (although this is the first year that I've had my vinyl cutter and WOW! more on that later... let's just say "I heart labels!"). So, I'm trying to get the last few posts of 2009 out there so that I can move on to 2010! This year we stayed home for Christmas. It was nice. It was relaxing. The boys slept in until 8:30! We did Christmas at our house, had a nice breakfast, gave the boys Christmas haircuts and then we went over to sANNta's (that's my new nickname for my very generous mother-in-law!). We played games and ate until our stomachs nearly exploded. It was fabulous!

{Christmas Card Ooops...

Merry {late} Christmas

...and...

Seriously. So. Embarrassed.

OK, so this year I had no idea where my brain went to but it was no where near the rest of my body. At a recent birthday lunch for one of my friends my Christmas cards came up as a topic of conversation. Apparently this "birthday friend" gets a note in her mailbox from the post office that she has a package and needs to pick it up. So she goes down and waits in some crazy long Christmas lines to pick up her 'package'. Well, her exciting 'package' was my Christmas card. I totally forgot to put a stamp on it and they made HER pay for it! When I heard this, I thought I would die! How embarrassing?!? Just to defend myself a little I had planned on hand delivering cards around Colorado Springs and had them in a separate pile. Then, knowing myself and that I wouldn't find the time to go and make personal visits, I just put them in the mailbox -without stamps-! So, I sincerely apologize to anyone else that had to head down to the post office during a super busy Christmas season and pay to receive our Christmas card!

I'll be reimbursing those that I inconvenienced! :o)

{The Polar Express...

Grammies, Semi and Tanner came down last weekend to surprise the boys with a ride on the Polar Express!! Our trip was complete with PJ's, hot chocolate, cookies, fun little elves that got the kids all worked up, Santa Claus and brass bell ornaments. It was a night to remember! My boys LOVE the movie and they LOVE trains so it really could not have been a more perfect surprise! They are still talking about it. Thanks Berry's!

{Hawker Holiday Adventures...

It's been awhile since my last post, so this is my attempt to catch you up on the comings and goings of our family over Christmas break!

Thanksgiving came late this year and I was busy making gifts (since September, really. I'll have to post a few pictures of what I was able to finish.) so our house was finally decorated about mid December. Christmas decorations are my favorite!

We went over to the Baer's for year 2 of homemade candy cane making... it's becoming one of my very favorite Christmas traditions.

I am one of the room mom's for Jackson's kindergarten class and this is one of the take homes that each child got in their goodie bag. I actually like the look of lifesavers better, but because we were making so many of them we opted for plain old Breath Savers (much more cost effective!). Here are the directions.

Christmas morning was a hoot. Sam was up at the crack of dawn and we couldn't contain him upstairs, so he went down and ripped into the goodies that Santa brought for him. Jackson finally rolled out of bed around 9:00 (it must have been a late night for him!) He was a little upset that Santa didn't bring him a real penguin, but appreciated the note Santa left behind telling why he didn't bring him a real penguin!

Christmas afternoon we met up with the Meiner's and the Atkinson's to spread a little Christmas cheer to some elderly people at a local nursing home. It was a riot! I'm grateful that hearing is one of the first senses to go because honestly we sounded pretty bad. It was sweet to talk with a few of them afterwards and hear their stories.

The day after Christmas we met my family in Keystone for a little snowy adventure (none of us really ski, so we were there for the shopping and tubing runs!). We found a killer sledding hill (litterally, killer. As we were pulling into the parking lot we saw a man break his collar bone at the very least). We got all of our gear on and braved the slopes. It was bitter cold and Sammy was not at all enjoying himself so after about 5 minutes he was back in the car with Aunt Kenz (thanks!). Todd figured out how to launch off of his tube and land on his feet, which totally scared me to death since our last encounter with tubes ended in back surgery! All in all it was probably my favorite Christmas memory... (check out the bottom right picture! Todd was at least 5 feet in the air!)

This was fun... we found a chocolate display in Keystone. Everything here is CHOCOLATE! It was a work of art! The tree alone is over 500 pounds of pure white chocolate.

My family came down to the Springs for New Year's. New Year's Eve was a total bust with most everyone in bed by 10:00 so New Year's day we woke up early and went to Sertich Ice Arena for a little family ice skating. That night we stayed up until well past midnight playing games, go figure!

{Christmas morning...

Jackson checking out the reindeer food in the morning... they were hungry!

Rudolph lost a pearl off of his collar when he was eating his food.

We had such a great Christmas... It was relaxing and very enjoyable. Jackson was a total crack up. He is an excitable kid as it is, but when you add Santa to the mix it's beyond uncontrollable!