Christmas Morning

BEFORE all the chaos!

They make Pillow pets in the North Pole??....interesting!

Jades was only interested in one thing....CHOCOLATE...a child after my own heart!

Ahhh yes...boots!  THANK you Santa baby!

Who likes chocolate??!!  Raise your hand!

Or...take a nap instead!

Is that a sucker in your hand...YES!!  Seriously, we could have given this candy and he'd be just as excited as Corbin!

Jades:  "How does Corbin work this thing anyway?...."

Where's my diet coke??....What...diet coke's not allowed at 7:43 am??

More games for the DiDj (leapster)...hey it's educational right??!!

Jadesy loved anything sweet and anything that played music

Love this shot of my boys!

"Give me that sugar daddy.....!!"

 

Then...it was over!

This Christmas we may have given Santa our life savings!  :)  Corbin made out like a bandit...and I guess Coby and I did too...if truth be told!  I think I'll have to find a job!  :)  Anyone want to hire a spoiled blogger who aspires to be the Julie of "Julie and Julia"?  I can cook you a dinner??!!  :)  Christmas morning is always so fun.  I wonder who is more excited, Cob and I or the boys.  It's sooooo great to watch their faces beaming with excitement as they open each present.  This year Santa brought Corbin a Didj leapster gaming system with a few games.  Actually, he got sooo much this year.  He must have been good....or something!!  :)  I think the "or something" is mostly right!  Actually he was a pretty good boy most of the year.  Jaden was beaming when we found his stocking loaded with candy.  Seriously....next year we're just going to have Santa stock up on Chocolate instead of presents!  And Santa...is there any way you could find chocolate that doesn't stain??!!  That'ad be GREAT!  I gave Cob all the necessities for skiing including hand and toe warmers to go along with his ski passes to Snobird.  Cob gave me a SWEET set of new pots and pans, makeup and boots!  I am in HEAVEN!  I love all the thought that went into Christmas this year!

Thanks baby for making our Christmas so magical.  Wish more than anything that a chubby little lamb was there too.  I'm sure he was...but wearing his invisibility cloak...(wow do we need to stop watching Harry Potter or what??!!).  I miss him.  Wish he could have played a more active part this morning in all the festivities.  Merry Christmas!

Burton Family Pics / Christmas Eve

Here's the all the Burton fam...at the moment!  **(There may be ONE MORE added soon - NO, NOT BY ME...but Sommer...and I mean an eternal companion)**

And of course...Jack HAD to be in part of the action too!

We're a crazy bunch!

 

Like I said before....a CRAZY bunch!

Definitely daddy's little girls!

 

Or is it mommy's little girls??!!

Ya we're hot...JEALOUS?!!

 

I love this shot of my parents...they are laughing and not pretend smiling!  :)  A trait that I am sure I inherited from BOTH of them!  :)

Here's another little family picture...Jack INCLUDED!

My boys sure do have some great aunts!  Ambie couldn't get enough of them this visit and they definitely couldn't get enough of her! 

"Just a little smoochie smoochie...kissy wissy..."

 

She's gorgeous, what can I say...she looks just like me!!  Haahaaaaa!  Just kidding...maybe it's because she doesn't look like me that she's so pretty!

This Christmas Eve we spent with my family.  Since we hadn't taken pictures in such a long time and it was way too cold and dark, Coby finagled the camera and set up a little studio in the basement.  I think he did a pretty good job!  We took a bunch of shots...obviously (I didn't even put them all on here...)  But we sure had fun taking them.  Then we went upstairs and made personal pizzas.  It was fun!  I love my family and it was such a treat to have everyone there.  I love being with them.  I feel so blessed!

Christmas "Adam" with the Rich's

All the mommys with their angels.  Don't you just love those wings!!!  Jaden was loving his a little too much!  I think he's trying to naw them off!  :)

The Nativity "Cast"

Me, Marse and Little Livvy loo!

Ever hear of Christmas Adam?  Apparently it's a real thing and not just something the Rich's made up!  Christmas Adam is the Day BEFORE Christmas Eve.  Because Adam did infact come before Eve!  :)  It's only logical that if you celebrate Christmas Eve...why NOT Christmas Adam?!!  :)  Joanne in all her creativity managed to find time to write out a Nativity Script for us all.  The babies were little angels and their wings were so darling!!  Joseph was Corbin, Sammie was Mary and Mason was a Shepard.  It was well written and VERY well performed I must say!  :)  But the Angels STOLE THE SHOW!!  Then we had a HUGE dinner, ate too much and exchanged sibling presents.  It was so fun!  I love his Rich family of mine!

A movie with my Little and my little sister

Ambie is here!!!! YAAAAAAY!  She got here on Tuesday and Corb has literally been counting down the days!  For the past 3 nights before she flew in, Corb would say..."Only 2 days or 1 until Ambie comes?"  It was really cute!

Lanae and I kept up with our little play date this week depite all the craziness.  When we got there Lanae's voice was SHOT!  It was super cute.  (I secretly like when my voice goes out...I call it my "sexy" voice...whatever that means!!  :)  )  I wonder if her voice left with Jared on his trip to Africa for the next 10 days and the fact that my Little was flying solo with all three boys!  :)  I digress....we decided to brave it since the boys were out of school and take them to a  movie.  We went to see the Guardians (the owl movie)....Good thing it was a dollar movie because I couldn't seem to get into it...and I think we were about an hour late!!  :)  So Lanae and I mostly spent our time chasing down our littlest monkeys outside in the lobby.  Which was just fine with me!  Sometimes I think we have play dates just so that WE can have a PLAYDATE with each other!  :)  This is the only shot we got, but Lanae is GREAT about always making sure to capture the event with a quick snap of her trusty camera.  I have to admit is was GREAT having Amber there.  Actually great doesn't do it justice...it was AWESOME having her there! She is always so quick to see a need to help and step up and just do it.  I wish more than anything that she lived here.  Maybe someday!  I'm crossing my fingers and so is Corbi-mac!  :)

Happy Birthday Whit

 

Happy Birthday you cute cute girl!  I love this girl!  We have a ball and I'm so happy that I have the chance to call her my sister!  :)  Love ya girl!  Hope you have a GREAT birthday! 

'twas the night before Christmas..."

 

Jadesy and his little "Night before Christmas" Bear

 

Jaden is in LOVE with this Bear.  This is the 2nd year that Joanne has lent out this bear that tells the Night Before Christmas.  We got it for a week and Jaden NEVER let it out of his sight.  It went with us EVERYWHERE from the grocery store to all of the various Christmas shopping errands I've been running while Corb has been in Kindergarten. He is constantly hugging it and pushing the button on his hand to tell the story.  He loved to go up in his room and sit in his little rocker and rock while the bear read the Night before Christmas.  It was sooo cute.  We had to hide the bear so we could give it back so that he wouldn't be sad.  

He's the most snuggly little baby we've ever had.  I love that he still continues to lay his head on our shoulders and just let us hold him.  Such a tender little mercy I'm sure.  Coby and I love every single minute.  One day he won't do it any more and he'll be big before we know it.  I need to remember this when he's trying with all his might to tug us around by the pant leg or by grabbing our hands to take him somewhere...while we're in the middle of something.  Someday all we'll have are these little memories and so today...I'm soaking them up.  I love this little boy.  He is so full of sweetness.  He tries my patience that's for sure, but when he lays his head on my shoulder the world becomes right again and I don't want it to ever end. 

Decorating Jack's tree

 

Here's our little family...you can't quite see us all because one decided to become invisible!  STINKER!!

Here's Jack's tree

Here's all the helpers

Here's our little Toad...I tell ya, if they aren't missing a sock...it's a GLOVE!

I LOVE this picture of Jades and Poppy

Every year about a week before Christmas both sides of our family (whoever can come) come out to the cemetery and decorate Jack's little tree.  It was pretty cold...like usual so we don't tend to stay too long.  We decorate quickly and then sing a Christmas song.  This year I wanted to opt out of singing "Silent Night".  It used to be one of my favorites, but I just can't bare the part that says, "...infant so tender and mild....sleep in heavenly peace...sleep in heavenly peace."  I know the song is definitely NOT talking about our Jack, but the song really touches my heart and then the water works start and then I can't turn them off.  And in this weather I'm afraid the tears would freeze right to my face!  

Every time we go to the cemetery (a place NO PARENT should EVER have to visit at Christmas time) I always look for a little grave near Jack's.  She was a little girl who lived almost to the day as long as Jack.  I often wonder why she's there, was there an accident, was she sick for a long time?  Sometimes I like to think that Jack knows her and when they "wake" up they'll find each other and fall in love.  I know....I'm living in a dream world!  :)  I'm a loon, what can I say?!  Sometimes it's just nice to dream I guess...anything is better than the reality that he's only with us in spirit!  And "in spirit" just doesn't fit bill when it's Christmas and you want all three of your little boys to open their presents and see the excitement on the faces of ALL THREE LITTLE BOYS.  Someday I'll have that...just not today. And in the words of my sweet Mother in law..."Everything will be okay in a few years."  All I want to know is....how long is a few years?!  :)

Breakfast with Santa

Sitting on Santa

Santa:  "Have you been naughty or nice?"

Corbin: "Uhhhhh.....well, you see...."

 

All the little kidlings

Joanne and her sisters each host a Breakfast with Santa every year.  It's super fun!  So much thought goes into planning it.  Even the Santa looked real...I mean....  The REAL Santa sure did "look" his part...rosey cheeks and all!  And the kids LOVED every single second of it.  Thanks for keeping things so magical Momma Jo!  We love you and your sisters for all the time and effort that was put into making this a go!

Picking out Jack's little tree

It's a tradition in the Rich family to go over to Cumming's Christmas tree lot and pick out a Christmas tree.  It's becoming our little family's tradition to pick our a special little tree for our special little Angel.  They have a huge bin of peanuts and everyone throws peanuts at each other as we're trying to find the perfect tree.  I don't think we're supposed to do that...but it sure is fun!  One of these days I'm going get those crazy brothers of Coby's!  :)  If you ever need to get a tree, I'd highly recommend Cumming's.   

Dinner before at Hire's with most of the Rich's.

Me and my sweet sweet boy giving me a little love!

When we were trying to pick out our little tree I asked the man in charge how much the little trees were.  He originally quoted me $25.  I didn't think that price was too bad so I asked him to hold the tree until I could find Coby.  When Cobe came over to see it, the man must have heard us talking about it being a tree for Jack's grave.  The man sweetly approached us and made sure we knew that the price was no longer $25, but for us it was $12.50.  My heart melted at the kindness of this man.  He didn't have to give us a deal and we were happy to pay the original price, but this man saw a chance to serve and he quickly acted on it.  That's one of the reasons I love Christmas time so much.  For a little over a month, people seem to be a little more kind, a little more patient and much more generous.  The thought no longer is for one's self, but becomes more that for someone else.  I do wish that the Christmas season was longer...not for the chaos that comes with it, or the 5 extra pounds I worked for 2 months getting off, or even the countless number of parties, but I love this time of year because it gives us all a chance to show others what Christmas is really about.  A chance for others to show kindness that they may not ordinarily have shown.  May we all take the time to remember what this Christmas season is all about.  May we all remember that Christmas is about CHRIST and finding joy therein. 

Fake it!

I Like the picture of Jack (above) because it couldn't be a more fake smile.  Something I'm certain he's inherited from me.  Amy...I'm sure you are nodding your head right now!  :)  (She's always telling me to smile my "real" smile!  :) 

They say..."fake it til you make it".  This season I've been doing A LOT of that!  There is only a handful of close friends with that I'll even let on that I'm having a rough time.  It's Christmas, the time to be with one's family, what am I expecting?!! Happiness??  Please!   It's just hard to come to the realization that life does in fact move on.  People move on.  You are no longer on their minds anymore and if you are they are no longer telling you.  And that's okay.  My grandparents gave me a beautiful picture that reads, "Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Some stay for awhile and leave footprints on our hearts, and we are never the same."  I've come to realize that the Lord in His infinite wisdom places people in our lives sometimes only briefly.   

 I've decided that instead of sitting here realizing what I'm left without, maybe I had better start thinking of what I do have and how truly blessed I really am.  I know who those negative feelings are coming from and and I'm NOT going to let him win.  I don't have to be sad.  I don't have to become reclusive and stay away from my family because I'm in such a mood that I don't want to take out my frustrations on them.  I know it's okay to miss Jack and crying is definitely allowed, but sometimes I get the impression that a certain miserable someone wants me to get pretty low into the depths of sorrow and finds happiness in it.  And I'm not going to give in to him.  I may not be happy all the time, but I try to be and I try even harder to fake it.  Because after all, maybe if I fake it long enough things will be good. 

I love this picture of Jades and I.  It's a genuine smile on both our ends.  We are happy!  Lately Jaden and I have really started to bond.  I am really falling in love with this little boy.  He's getting so fun and cute and I am eating up every single second of it.  I love that he lets me bite his the sides of his little jawbone and throws his head back for more.  His giggle is so contagious! I love that he growls when he gets frustrated...and frustrated he gets.  I love that he loves to push the little musical leapster on the fridge and dances around in a circle with a HUGE grin on his cute little face.  He's so helpful too!  Always wanting to throw away his diapers!  That's definitely a treat!  He discovered the handle on the toilet and LOVES pushing the handle down.  If he notices something that needs to be thrown away, like Jack, he just bends down, picks it up and heads straight for the garbage can....maybe that's where my watch went??!!  And have you ever met a kid who LOVES chocolate more than anything??!!  If he could live on the stuff he would I assure you!  This kid is really a mini-Tif.  The day before Coby and I left for D.C., Jades and I had the BEST DAY EVER!  We shopped and shopped and worked out and despite the fact that he only got a 20 minute nap and I had YW (always at the same time he goes to bed) he was such a little trooper.  I found myself smiling and happy all day.  The whole world felt right again. He made my whole day and at the end of the day after we had put him to bed, I went to sleep missing him.  Aching to play with him just a little longer.  A feeling I haven't felt in a long time....almost 2 years ago in fact.  I am going to try harder to be the mom I was on Tuesday.  I had more patience and a lot more happiness in my heart than I've felt in a long while....

Ward Christmas Party

Me and my little toad

Corb doing what he loves best....CRAFTS!!!

We have such a GREAT ward.  It will be a sad sad day when we finally decide to move.  NOT any time soon...so no worries!  But if only there was a way to pick and choose who was going to be in your next ward!  OH the joys!  :)  We've sure made some great friends in this ward though.

Jaden giving us a hint!!  TIME TO GO!!

Washington D.C.

Me touching a piece of the moon at the Space Museum in D.C.

Coby was so sweet to take me on a little business trip to D.C.....One of my FAVORITE cities!  There is always sooo much to see and NEVER enough time to see it all in.  My mom was sweet to take the little monkeys while we were gone.  I was able to listen to my book, "The hunger games." I didn't like it at first because it didn't make a whole lot of sense...then I realized that my Ipod was on SHUFFLE!  NICE...so I fixed it and LOVED the book.  Coby only had a few lectures to give, so we were able to spend a lot of time together.  It was definitely appreciated!  I love spending every minute with him!  

My favorite museum this year was the Space Museum.  We were able to stand in on this GREAT lady giving a tour about each of the planes.  VERY interesting!  All I could think about was my Grandpa Burton and how he would be IN AWE.  I bet he knows about as much as she did about each plane.  He was a pilot in WWII and well...I think he pretty much knows everything!  :)  Coby and I decided that THAT should be the job for my Grandpa.  It would definitely be a time filler!  :)

I can't believe that we only got like two pictures...but it's okay next time we'll take more.  So great to be with Coby and know that our kidlings were doing just great in good old Salt Lake City.  Thanks mom!  We LOVE you!  And so do our little monkeys!