Christmas festivities

Christmas Eve and Christmas morning we spent at home in Boise, just the four of us. This was our first Christmas at home (I know, pathetic)! Christmas Eve we started some of our own traditions. We first watched a short movie on the birth of Christ, then acted out the story with puppets, and lastly, read letters to each other that we had written. That was probably my favorite. Of course, Carson isn't old enough to participate in that activity yet, but we still wrote letters to him. Austin's letters (with our help, of course) were simple, yet sweet. We will treasure those letters every year and I'm sure as the kids get older, they will appreciate this tradition more. Before bed, we left Santa some Oreos, milk, and carrots. Christmas morning started fairly early, although we made them eat breakfast first, knowing they would be too distracted by their toys to eat later. The kids were so excited when they got up to see that Santa had delivered the goods (along with Mom and Dad)! We opened our stocking first, which were stuffed with treats, peanuts, oranges, books, small cars/trucks, mints, and more. Then the real fun came as the kids dug into their presents. The pictures explain it better than words!

Austin got a shiny, new, red bike (from Mom and Dad)!

Carson was pretty stoked about the mini monster truck and M & M's in his stocking-two of his favorite things!

Santa brought Austin a space "ship", although it was supposed to be a space "shuttle". I guess Santa had a hard time finding one! :)

Santa knew just what Carson would like-a race track!

This is Austin's present from Carson, Jet Fire (a transformer)!

Yep, this elephant is nice and chewy!

This is my favorite picture from the morning. Carson opening Austin's present, a car that spins! That kid is obsessed with cars and trucks and anything that "goes"! Love his expression!


In the afternoon, we hastily packed up the car and headed for Logan to spend Christmas dinner with Eric's family and stay for the weekend. We had a nice dinner, set up by Kevin and Kari, at their church (our family is too big now for our houses!). We had a fun time, the kids acted out the nativity scene, and then we all gathered around the tree and opened presents.

Some of the grandkids, ready to eat dinner.

The oldest of the grandkids

Some of the "grown-ups"

The nativity-some of the kids weren't into cooperating for this (Uh, hum, Austin!), but it was still cute. Maecee made a cute star!

Mary and Joseph, with the shepards and wisemen waiting in the wings

Mary and Joseph, with the angel and star behind them.

Carson made a cute shepard, but was not having the head dress and sash.

The kids eagerly waiting to open their gifts from each other.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

We will be heading to UT tomorrow afternoon to spend time with Eric's family over the weekend. Then, after driving home, we will pack up again and leave for CA the next day (yes, we're a little nuts!). Just wanted to wish everyone a Merry Christmas. Hope you all enjoy your holidays with your families and remember that Jesus is the reason for the season! I will update with pictures when I get back in mid-Jan!

Breakfast with Santa

Our ward decided to do a Christmas breakfast this year instead of a dinner. It was fun, especially for the kids who each got a turn with Santa. It was also the first year that neither kid didn't have a fit sitting on Santa's lap. They both just stared in awe at him, it was very sweet! Austin made sure to remind Santa that he wanted a space shuttle and that he had been a good boy this year. My favorite was when he asked Santa, "Did you get my letter yet? I want to make sure you did." So cute!

Griswolds? What Griswolds?!

This house in our neighborhood cracks me up every year. The owners truly out-did themselves though this year by choreographing their lights to music. You tune to a certain radio station and it plays this collaboration of Christmas jingles (mostly Rock), all timed with their lights. Genius, clever, entertaining, and maybe even a little white-trash?! We've gone by a few times, the kids love it and it's always fun.

Christmas craziness

What can I say? I have a love-hate relationship with Dec. It's always the nutiest month of year. In a good and bad way. There's always a million things to do-get and decorate a tree, send out Christmas cards, shop, make and pass out treats to friends and neighbors, and go to a Christmas parties. So, to sum up Dec in three words: stressful yet fun. LUCKILY, we've all stayed pretty healthy. Let's keep that trend going!

On top of all that, Eric's been dealing with tooth aches/pains in which he's getting 2 root canals/crowns and 5 fillings in the next couple of weeks. I've also been busy trying to get out all my fliers for my business (by going door-to-door, very tedious!) and doing a few Twisted Silver holiday shows . We're looking forward to Christmas day though, in which we will spend the morning with JUST OUR FAMILY. Yes, that's a first for us! We think it will be good for the kids to be in their own home, with just our family, with our own traditions, and without too much overstimulation. Not to say Christmas with our families isn't fun and lovely, but we decided that we should stay home from time to time. I'm sure once our children get older, we will want to be home more.

Christmas afternoon, we plan to make the trip to Logan where we will get together with Eric's family and have dinner and exchange gifts. It will be fun and chaotic as always! We will stay through the weekend and drive home Monday, where we will pack up AGAIN and head to CA the following morning. A little insane? Maybe!? But that's how we roll. After all, it isn't called "McEvoy Mayhem" for nothing??!! :)

I'm finally official!!!

I finally have an official website for my personal training business (seperate from my blog). For the past few weeks I have been working with a guy in our ward on creating a website, fliers/mailers, and business cards. It's been a lot of work-getting pictures taken, writing all the content, meetings with the web designer and strategist, etc. I'm stoked its finally up, although we are still working on changing some photos out and editing some content. Check it out and let me know what you think!!!

http://www.dynamicfitnesspro.com/

Grateful in 2009

I can't even believe 2009 is coming to an end soon. It's been another tough but good year for us, and we keep truckin' along! This time of year always makes me ponder on what I'm most grateful for in my life, big and small things. Here's just a few I couldn't imagine life without!

1. Eric. What a wondeful husband he is and father to our children. He really has so many great qualities that I admire and is such a good example in our home. I'm also grateful for the Priesthood he holds. I love that he adores me and treats me like a queen. What can I say? I'm one lucky lady.

2. Our two beautiful boys. They both bring so much joy and laughter (but don't get me wrong, it's not all roses every minute!) into our family. I also love how different, yet similar they are. I love how they are both happy, mild-tempered, social, and easy-going. Austin has an energy level that I have yet to find in another kid, yet he is also extremely bright, strong-willed (a good thing most of the time), curious, and with a sense of humor like nothing else. Carson is a little more laid-back, gentle, giggly, observant, and has this sweet temperment and personality that even strangers notice about him right away. They are two HUGE blessings in our lives.

3. The gospel. I really can't imagine where I would be or what I would doing without it. The knowledge we have is everything, and the cornerstone of our family and our goals. I love the peace it gives me each day, but especially when we're going through tough times.

4. Our health and safety. I think we often take this for granted, but Heavenly Father has blessed us with this constantly throughout our lives. We are ALL healthy. No broken bones, no serious illness or injuries (or even much mild illness for that matter), etc. And I always feel like there are angels around us protecting us from harm and accident (esp while driving with kids and distractions!).

5. Laughter. Did you know that kids laugh more than 300 times a day, and adults only 15 times a day? I'm convinced that we should let our kids help us laugh more often, then we wouldn't take life so seriously. I'm grateful that OUR kids make us laugh everyday by the things they do or say, or even sometimes at our expense!

6. Being a mom. It's truly a priviledge to raise children. And a huge responsibility that sometimes overwhelms me (esp in the world we live in now), but nonetheless, I feel blessed that the Lord trusted me with two of his precious children and spirits.

7. Our families, especially our parents. Eric and I look around us at some of our friends' relationships with their parents and think, "Wow, how did we get so lucky?" We have TWO great sets of parents and one late-parent, that we have to lean onto, look up to, and have in our lives. There are BOUNTIFUL blessings that have come from our Heavenly Father via our parents. They are also GREAT grandparents too- a bonus!

8. My talents. I have always had a pretty clear picture of what talents the Lord has blessed me with (and what talents I don't have! :), and thankfully, some of those I use in helping educate others on how to change their health and lifestyle for the better. There are so many great rewards from doing what I love, but mostly the satisfaction of seeing people happier with themselves is what is worth it.

9. Sunshine. I'm glad I live in an area of the country (or world) that is sunnier more than overcast. Because I grew up in the CA sunshine, I NEED that in my life. It brightens my day!

10. The ability to exercise and be fit. In our nation, too many people lack this ability, and I hold this very close to me. I love how regular exercise makes me feel strong and empowered. I'm also grateful to have a fit and healthy heart, and to be able to move without pain. Good cholesterol, good blood pressure, and strong bones and muscles are all things that are important to me. I'm also grateful that exercise is such a great de-stressor, which is always needed in my life! And the energy I get from it is what helps me keep up with our two VERY ACTIVE boys!

11. The beauty of the Earth. I love that we live in a place where the air is clean, the mountains are closeby, and we're able to enjoy the beauty of this world our Heavenly Father has created for us. I'm also grateful that I've been able to travel and see lots of beautiful and interesting places!

12. Our temporal needs met. Even though we sometimes struggle to get by, somehow, it always works out and we get by. We have a roof over our head, food on our table, and beds to sleep on. There isn't much else that you need.

13. My calling. I was so bummed a couple of months ago when I got called out of Young Womens and put in Primary. Mostly because I loved my girls and felt as though I was in my comfort zone with them (probably because I've spent the past 6 years in Young Womens), but being with the 10-11 yr olds has been very gratifying and rewarding in itself. Those kids have taught me A LOT.

14. Friends. Eric and I have been blessed with GOOD friends throughout our lives. Even though I'm grateful for all the friends we've made, I'm most grateful for the friends that I grew up with because those years were the most important in making an impression and I know WITHOUT A DOUBT that much of who I am today has a lot to do with those long-time friends and their examples.

15. Lastly, I'm grateful for the LOVE I feel in my life. The love of my husband and children, the love of my parents and siblings (and Eric's family), the love of our ward, but mostly for the love of the Savior. He is always with us, sometimes carrying us during the hard times, but I feel His love surround me daily in everything around me. The blessings above are how He manifests that LOVE and what would we do without it?!