Cousins

Jackson had so much fun with his cousins while we were in Payson. He was completely fascinated with his newest cousin Grace (pictured left above). However, his fascination willed him to grab at her little face which meant we had to keep him away. Thus there isn't an abundance of Jackson + Grace pics. She was lots safer on her dad's lap.

 

Jackson and Madelyn (pictured center) were partners in crime. From the first moment they saw each other they wanted to play. They followed each other around and got into everything as a team. It was pretty cute, but equally exhausting at the same time!

 

As the week progressed it got to where Jackson was so excited to see Madi when she came over. He would see her and his face would light up. As soon as Madi was on the floor, he would crawl over to say hello. It was really cute.

 

  

 

Even though Jackson and Madi are the about the same size. They also liked to attack each other. They would grab at eachother's noses and eyes when we weren't looking. It seemed like Stephanie and I were constantly trying to teach other subsequent daughter and son to "be soft."

Both Jackson and Madi wanted to play with little Grace. They also loved Grace's toys. Funny how Jackson wouldn't play with his own version of this toy, but loved Grace's pink one.

 

Jammy picture. Lef to Right: Jackson, Madelyn, and Grace. They all look so cute. Although Jackson's PJs could use an extra snap to cover his diaper. Maybe that's why they were on sale... :)

Yay for cute cousins! Jackson is quite out numbered at the moment with all the girls, but I think he likes it that way.

K9 Reunion

Before Troy and I were married I lived in a building called Kensington on Condo Row in Provo. Apartment 9 was my home. The ward's abbreviation for our apartment was "K9." I lived there for 2 years and nearly the entire 2 years my roommates were Christy Hellewell (now Dalling) and Teri Matsumura.

Teri and Christy came over for a visit while we were in Bountiful and I am so glad that I got to see them! We had so much fun catching up. I was dying to see Christy's cute pregnant belly. (She and Ryan are expecting Miss Dalling on March 13th 2010.) Doesn't she look SO cute? I love it.

Jackson was happy for most of the visit... then he got tired and was pretty angry. This is evidenced in the photos below. I don't know when we'll  be seeing Teri or the Dallings again, but hopefully it will happen sooner rather than later. It's a good thing that usually everyone gets to come home for Christmas. We love you guys!

Christmas Day

Christmas was at my parents' house this year. We arrived after midnight on Christmas Eve. Jackson was extremely tired, but once he saw his Grandma and Grandpa, he was awake and ready to play. Let's just say we didn't get much sleep that night. ;)

After everyone had slept in a little, we did presents. Jackson was uninterested in the paper. He needed a lot of help tearing. He liked his new toys, but at times seemed a little more interested in leftover boxes. Silly baby. We gave him a Fisher Price piano, which he seemed to like for a few minutes. I think he was overwhelmed with all the activity. He LOVED these letter magnets Grandma gave him. He played with them throughout our stay in Bountiful. He'd crawl to the kitchen and you could hear him slapping his hands on the dishwasher. It was pretty cute.

We received some great gifts! I got a Kitchenaid Mixer from my parents which I am SOooo excited about. I hope to be making all sorts of delightful treats soon ;) Troy got a new set of scriptures, some fun new books. Jackson got his forward-facing carseat (thank heaven!) and some really cute toys and clothes. 

 

Ashley wearing her beautiful Snuggie. It was her favorite Christmas gift, and she wore it all day. Amazing how something so hideous can be so cool at the same time. :) Ha!

After presents we had our traditional family breakfast of pancakes, eggs and bacon, which was delicious.

Later Jackson helped Jeremy and Ashley play with their new Beatles Rockband game. You can't beat Beatles songs.He loved the music and wanted to be right in the action. Good thing Ashley was a good sport because I'm pretty sure Jackson kept making her lose. It was funny. I also tried my hand at the microphone, which was great fun. It was even fun when I recieved a 0% score and was almost kicked out of the game. I didn't think I was that bad. Ha! Jackson wanted me to hold him while I sang which meant he also wanted to play with the microphone. He's so curious.

 

For some reason, I forgot to take pictures the rest of the day. The extended Barneck family came over for a Christmas dinner in the afternoon which was fun. My Grandma and Grandpa were excited to see Jackson. Sadly he was unsure of all the strangers and rarely left my lap. Oh well.

In the evening we went to the care center to see my Great Grandma Mabey. We do a small party every year with my mom's cousins and their families. It was so fun to see her. Jackson didn't want her to hold him either, but at least they got to see each other again.

It was a great Christmas. Most of all it was great to be with my family in Bountiful. I've missed them and that wonderful place!

 

 

Christmas Eve

We had Christmas Eve celebrations with the Bushmans this year. We started out in the morning with breakfast at the church. Troy's Aunt and Uncle and cousins came. We had so much fun catching up with everybody and seeing how much all the little kids had grown. Jackson was in love with the walker Grandma Bushman brought to the party. He raced all over the cultural hall.

 

 He wore himself out with all that running. And eventually fell asleep in my arms.

After breakfast and lots of chatting we went back to Troy's parents' house. We had a lot of fun visiting some more. We played some games and watched the babies play with each other. It was especially fun to meet Matt & Suzanne's little girl Grace for the first time. 

 

Uncle Regan teaching Jackson how to wrestle.

Jackson trying to attack the Christmas tree. I think his attempt at looking innocent is pretty amusing.

Later we exchanged gifts. It's always fun to see what everyone picks out. This year we had some especially creative home made items. Troy's mom made all the babies these cute blue beanies. They were adorable and so of course we wanted to line them up for a photo shoot. Two 8 month olds + one 3 month old = absolutely no chance of getting a decent picture. However, the ones we did get are hilarious.

 

 

 

 

Madi (pictured left) ripped her hat off and pulled it apart in less than a minute. Grace (pictured center) was furious because she was so uncomfortable (she can't sit up by herself yet). And Jackson refused to hold still during all the excitement. All three of them have serious red-eye. Despite all the chaos I love these pics. When shown in succession like this they make me laugh out loud. What we should have done is taken a picture of the other side of room which was crowded with people trying to make them look at the cameras. I think the three amigos were overwhelmed.

Eventually we decided to help them out by holding them on our laps.

 

 

Jackson playing with his toy from Grandma & Grandpa Bushman. He loves it! (Side note: Grandma & Grandpa Barneck also bought him this toy. He could have had a full court in our living room, but we decided to return one of them and buy the little guy some clothes-- boring.)

And here is our updated family picture. (Last time Grace was in utero.) The best we could do with a stool, a self timer, and several unenthusiastic family members (Troy being one of them :) It's a little unorganized, but at least everyone's present.

It was such a fun night! Troy and I loved being with everybody again.