As a single adult, I don't get the opportunity to join in on a real family home evening as often as I would like to. However, when I was home for Christmas, my amazing cousin, Rebecca, invited our family to join them for a super fun Family Home Evening. Teresa and Dave and their girls were also invited to join in on the fun! We started with a delicious meal of chicken enchiladas, pork tacos, rice, beans and homemade ice cream. It was divine! We then went into the family room and enjoyed a great little lesson that Brigham had prepared. We also played a fun game together. We had a blast and enjoyed lots of laughs, too. It was also just really good to catch up with each other. It has been a really long time since I last saw Rebecca and Rusty and their awesome kids, Kyla, Brigham, April, Ammon and Riggs. They just moved to Utah from Arizona this past summer. So, it was so nice to be reunited with them. Their kids are great...they totally crack me up! Especially little Riggs who is now a year and a half. It was such a neat evening. The Spirit in their home was so special and the love that abides there was felt by all of us. My sister, Kim, who passed away almost 15 years ago was very close with Rebecca. So, it was neat to feel her presence a little closer this evening, too. Thanks, Rebecca, for a fabulous night and for giving me the opportunity to enjoy Family Home Evening the real way! :)

New Babies...

Me and Andrea with Alex

Tanner (above) is the cute big brother to Paris (below)

I had to fit the new babies into my crazy busy Utah schedule. Dre and Rus welcomed beautiful Paris Kelly Careme Waite into the world on October 10, 2009. Tanner is the proud big brother to this sweet little baby girl. Andrea and Dave welcomed handsome little Alexander Logan Scott into this world in early December. He is the youngest brother to Maggie, Abby, Ethan and Garrett. It was fun to see these sweet little spirits and to feel of the love that they just naturally bring with them. These two little ones are incredibly lucky to have such amazing parents!!! I loved meeting them! :)

Ghetto Gal Reunion

Every Christmas, the Ghetto Gals all come back together again for a time to catch up, laugh, and share the warmth of our friendship with one another. There have been lots of great things that have happened this year for the Ghetto Gal crew. Katie had her adorable twins at the beginning of 2009, Tara and Dave were married in June and Jamie and Chris were married in August. I love these girls and am so grateful for the friendships that we have shared over the years. It still amazes me that it all began from serving together in the Relief Society Presidency in the University of Utah 15th Ward back in 2003-2004 and then living together in the Ghetto Palace. Over the years, we have shared lots of great things together and have also helped to strengthen each other through the difficult times, too. This year we went to Cafe Rio. It was way fun to catch up and to just be together. Everyone lives in Utah except for Tara, who lives in Boise, and me....I have to say that I am a bit jealous! I miss my friends!!! (I am not going to mention here that I got food poisoning at Cafe Rio...shh...)

Fun Pictures of Christmas

A Christmas Celebration

Each year, my mom does a big Christmas dinner with all of Vance's family and those of our family that are around for the holidays. This year, she waited to do the dinner until Christmas Eve so that I could be in on all the fun. We had a delicious meal with all the yummy stuff... potatoes, green bean elegance, homemade rolls, prime rib, ham, homemade peppermint ice cream with chocolate sauce, etc. We then had a special Christmas program where we read from the scriptures and sang some songs that helped to remind us of the reason for the season, our Savior Jesus Christ. The grandkids then had a hey day opening up all of their fun presents. It was so fun to see the smiles and to hear the laughter of these special little children. I love Christmas...and I especially love it with children! Then on Christmas day, Vance, Mom, Scott and I drove up to Cache Valley where we got to see all of the grandkids on Christmas day. We made a stop at Jeff and Brittany's, Teresa and Dave's, and also at Gus and Cindy's in Idaho. The kids were having the time of their lives. Santa Claus was very good to all of them...I am sure glad that they all ended up on the "Nice" list this year! :) One of the things that made this holiday so special was just being able to spend it with my family. Mom and Vance have been married for six years now. It has been an amazing blessing to join our family with Vance's family. I absolutely love all of Vance's children and grandchildren. I am so grateful to have them as part of our family. Plus, I am so lucky to be an aunt to some of the most amazing kids around! This was a great Christmas for us all! I love you guys!!!

Go Aggies!!!

Mom and I cheering on the Aggies with our little cheerleader, McKenzie

Vance and Scott enjoying the Aggies!

A fun tradition that we have is to go up to Utah State and cheer on their basketball team during the holiday season. Mom, Scott, Vance and I went to the Utah State vs. Weber State basketball game. The Aggies were victorious as they won by 12 points! "Utah State, Aggies All the Way! Go Aggies! Go Aggies! Hey, hey hey! " I have to admit that with having Vance in our family, the Aggie spirit has rubbed off on me. Jeff, Vance's son, was also at the game with his cute little girl, McKenzie. She is a huge fan of the Aggies and is an awesome cheerleader...she even has a cute little cheer uniform. Kenzie got a cheerleader doll for Christmas. This doll is amazing! It does at least four different cheers. Watch out Aggies, you have got one awesome cheerleader that will blow you away! Go Kenzie...and Go AGGIES!!! :)

Friends Forever

During the Christmas break, I had the opportunity of visiting Utah. I left on Monday, December 21st and returned early on Wednesday, December 30th. It was a quick trip full of fun family and friends.

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to see all of my friends like I would have liked to. (Sorry about that...don't worry...I am coming back in the summer and we will reunite then). I did get to see Amy Easton-Flake and Erica Jones High and her cute kids. It has been forever since we were all together last...in fact, I think that the last time was for Amy's wedding and she has been married for three years now! Amy and her husband, Merrill, are living back in Boston, MA as Amy is working on her doctorate from Brandeis University. It was way fun to catch up with both Amy and Erica. The exciting news that we received is that Amy is going to be having a baby! Yahoo! These girls are both amazing and there is no doubt in my mind that Amy will be an awesome mom...just like Erica! I definitely am grateful for these two "Forever Friends!"