Christmas Day 2007!

This year we spent Christmas morning with Steve's parents. His oldest brother Judd and his family came Christmas Eve from Tucson to have Christmas morning with us too. Our oldest nephew, Cannon (9 yrs. old)and I were up at 6am chomping at the bit together... we were a little anxious to rip into those presents. However, the ripping didn't start until 8:30! It's a tradition in the Curtis family to line up in the hallway, youngest to oldest and walk in together. Since Chandler was the youngest, we got to be the leaders of the line... it was great! It seems that everyone enjoyed all of their presents. Kate sure loved her new Barbie dress-up and Princess play cell phone.

Afterwards, we all got ready in our new Christmas clothes and headed over to Steve's other brother Ryan's house to have gingerbread waffles. It was a fun Christmas morning with so much family!

Later that afternoon, we went back to my parents house to have Christmas #2 and enjoy a nice Christmas dinner. WE LOVED IT!!!

Christmas Eve 2007!

We have had a fun week! The Monday before Christmas, my family(Stevens) has a tradition of pigging out on a Mexican fiesta. This year it happened to fall on Christmas Eve. My mom made her famous green chili burros, while we all chipped in making tacos, tamales, enchiladas, guacamole, 7 layer bean dip & spicy nacho dip. For dessert we had fried ice cream! Afterwards, we played games and laughed until our sides hurt.

I'm sorry to say I forgot to take pictures of the beautiful spread. I was too busy stuffing my face. However, here are the kids enjoying their time with their aunties in their new Christmas pajamas.

Nativity Scene

The Curtis grand kids(14 of them) perform the Nativity scene on Christmas Eve every year. Some are out of town this Christmas and others won't be here on Christmas Eve. So we did what we could tonight. This year Chandler was honored to play Baby Jesus. He looked so cute swaddled in towel, laying in a laundry basket. Kate refused to put on her angel costume and join in on the fun. Instead she sat on the sidelines and ate a cupcake. Afterwards we sang Christmas carols and had dessert. What a fun tradition we have to look forward to every year.

Temple Square

On Sunday, we bundled up the kids and went to Temple Square to enjoy the beautiful temple lights. It really felt like Christmas with the snow on the ground, the feel of the crisp, "cool" air and the Sister missionaries caroling in the background. Before leaving, we stopped off at the Visitor Center to enjoy the Christus and thaw out for awhile. What a fun tradition we have started in our new surroundings.

Miss Mullet

Steve has given Kate a bath every night(except when he's been out of town) since she came home from the hospital. They have a special "tubby time" together! He lets her play in there 29 more minutes than I do(she's lucky if she's in there for one min. with me). Recently we've been noticing she looks like a drowned rat. But forget the drowned rat, who can get past that mullet she is sporting? She loves to play with it and twirl it around her little fingers. She doesn't even care that it is always in her face... she's too busy drinking the bath water! It's a good thing her hair is curly to hide such a stringy mess or else Aunt Lacey, snip snip.

All dressed up and somewhere to go!

Steve and I went to his black tie/ formal Christmas work party and had a ball! It was held at the Grand America Hotel in SLC. Lets just say Omniture went all out for the holidays. We had jumbo shrimp, tamales, egg rolls and cheese w/ crackers for appetizers. Along with all the drinks you could hold. After an hour of mingling, they opened the exquisite ballroom to find over 100 tables prepared for kings and queens. Steve ranted and raved over his steak and lobster, while my mouth watered with the steak and halibut. Lets not forget the desserts because there were 5 to choose from... along with freshly foamed hot chocolate. We enjoyed a nice program, games, a live band, dancing and conversations. Some lucky winners went home with 52 inch plasma flat screens, American Express gift cards, Ipod, X-boxes and one grand prize of $20,000! Yes, you are reading this correctly! That lucky skunk!

It was fun to get all dressed up, meet Steve's co-workers and boss and enjoy an exciting night out with Steve. I cannot wait for next year.

Thanks Natalie and Josh for watching the kids!

Chan Chan the Ladies Man!

This handsome little boy is 4 months old today & is a big hit with the ladies at church. Mostly with the women that are 50+. When they start talking to him, he gives them his ear to ear grin and their hearts just melt? We have had several baby-sitting offers for this smiley guy. Maybe one day we will take them up on it.
Chandler has been a joy to have in our home. There is not a minute that goes by that this boy is not receiving kisses from someone. He has discovered his toes, how to roll over, his sweet little laugh and a pestering big sister.
One of my favorite times of the day is when I get to rock him to sleep. This precious boy even laughs in his sleep. Just when you think he's out... he lets out a chuckle. I know he's just saying, I love you mama, you're the best!

Festival of Trees

This week the kids and I went to the Festival of Trees with the Macfarlane cousins. It had over 700 decorated trees, along with wreaths and amazing gingerbread houses. Each tree is a tribute to someone who has beat the odds or lost a battle of some disease. All of the proceeds go to the Primary Children's Medical Center.
It was so beautiful... we can't wait to go back next year! Here are a few of Kate's favorites.