It Was a White Christmas

2,000 miles later we are back again. For Christmas we were able to visit our family in Utah. We left at 3:30 AM Christmas Eve and drove more or less straight through to West Jordan. Kaleb did so well and slept through quite a lot of the drive.
We stopped in St. George to see Grandma and Grandpa Stevens...Kaleb got to meet his Great-Grandparent Stevens for the first time. They fed us some clam chowder soup and then we got on our way again. (I can't believe there was even snow in St. George!)

Christmas Eve we had a roast beef dinner at Jake's family house in West Jordan, Grandma and Grandpa McEntire came from Clinton (Ogden area) to enjoy dinner with us.
We ate and left for a second roast beef dinner at my sister Emily's house. Kaleb got to hang out with his cousins...I personally thought they kind of were picking on him...nah, it's all cousin love right?

















A first for me...we spent the night at the Stevens to enjoy Christmas morning with the family. I have always done Christmas morning with my family, with everyone there. I really missed having our traditional Christmas Eve with mom and dad and all us kids, then everyone finding a bed, couch, or bit of floor to wait for Santa to come. I am so grateful to my mom and dad for their example and sacrifice as they serve a mission in France. I am grateful for my brothers and sisters that we still make it a point to get together as often as possible, I am so grateful we are so close as a family. It was a lot quieter having Christmas morning with the Stevens...although the chaos of all the kids is what made it so fun.
Later Christmas afternoon we went to Grandma and Grandpas Mc's for way too many finger foods and junk.
It was so snowy...probably 9-10" Christmas day. I took Kaleb outside and he buried his head in my shoulder and didn't seem to like it one bit. I love the snow, just wish it wasn't cold!

We really missed Hailey and Cameron on Christmas but were glad they could be there on Skype. I am so grateful to them and their love and support and look forward to when we get to see Hailey at the wedding, and hopefully Cameron soon. We are so excited for Cameron to join the military and for their first baby due in July. 2009 is going to be an awesome year for them!

Uncle Daniel gave Kaleb this awesome bobble penguin...
What do you think about my stylin' shooting vest? I want to get into shooting sporting clays. Hopefully I can get the shotgun soon - thanks for the vest Jake!
Kaleb slept through a lot of the present opening (Hailey woke us all up a bit earlier than we intended)
We saved one present for him to suck off the paper...

















Kaleb wasn't so sure about the newest edition to the Stevens family, a black lab named Tucker.

Grandma Stevens got Kaleb this adorable suit for church. Okay, technically it's for Daniel and Hannah's wedding...doesn't he look like a little man?

One of the days we got to go to Bountiful and visit with Grandma Gubler for a bit.

New Years Eve we were back at Emily and Johny's house for another party. I didn't think we would last the whole time. Especially since Kaleb was having an ultimate meltdown. He's not used to lots of people. The unfortunate part of us living further away is that Kaleb doesn't get to be with the chaotic family crowd very often. He calmed down in the bathtub and Jake eventually got him to fall asleep. And we ended up not getting back to the Stevens until 1am.
We enjoyed hanging out and playing games...
Two of my nephews Brendan and Athyn (tell me that isn't the best face?)
Doesn't Jake look like he is so excited to be here?
January 1st I celebrated my birthday. Later in the day we went to Grandma and Grandpa Mc's to watch the traditional football games - congrats to USC for their win!
January 2nd we celebrated our 5 year anniversary. Wish we could have done something grand but it was fun enough just hanging out with Jake by ourselves. Thank you Mom and Raygan for hanging out with Kaleb (I'm sure it was a sacrifice for you, huh?) We went to eat at Tres Hombres and then got some Nielsen's frozen custard.
It's hard to believe all that has happened in the past five years. I am so grateful for Jake and for his love. You have helped me be a better person. I'm so excited for this new journey we are on with the addition of Kaleb in our family. You are such a wonderful Dad, and husband. I wish I had the words to express how much I love you.
I love how you can always make me laugh.
I love that you always make me feel good about myself (no wonder I can be so stuck up, because I know I am the best!)
I love how hard you work and have worked to create a better life for us.
I love how patient you are.
I love your constant support.
- Your devotion to our family and marriage
- Your humbleness
- Your generosity
- Your calming spirit
- Your helpfulness
- For being my best friend and confidant!
I love that you love the gospel more than anything else, and how knowledgeable you are about any subject!
I love that I get to be with you for eternity.

We left Saturday January 3rd and stopped in St. George again for a Stevens party with all 6 of grandma and grandpa Stevens kids and their prodigy.
4 Generation of Stevens


We had a lot of fun but are glad to be back home. Not sure if we're ready to get back into the everyday of life. But, I guess we can't party all the time. Thank you to everyone who put up with us!

On a final note. You know it was a good toy invention when Jake and his siblings loved it, and it's still around for Kaleb to discover how funny it is. It's an electronic make up your own story book - this is his favorite sentence...although it's just the laughter voice that got to him every time.