December

This cutie just keeps staying cute.  She doesn't sleep great at night and that's a tough thing but we love her anyways.  It's been the most strange thing.  She was the best sleeper ever until about four months of age and then kind of went down hill from there.  Some nights she does great but some nights she wants to eat all night.  I know she'll get better so I don't worry too much about it.

 My parents came up one evening and we went to dinner and went to see the lights down town.  It was such a fun night.  Dinner was yummy and the lights were amazing.

 Lily's expression in this picture kills me.  She loved every minute.

 The little windows are so fun to look in.  We made sure not to miss one.

 Bryan had a work party up at the ski resort.  We debated whether we should go or not because work parties tend to be painful, but I felt like we should probably make some effort and go.  It was painful and awkward but the food was really good and the ambiance was amazing.

 The chandeliers at the resort are so beautiful.  Now I need to go bone up on making good conversation with people I don't know.  Oh well, it was fun spending the night with Bryan.  We always have a good time together and he always make me laugh.  I feel very blessed for that.

 Bryan was on call one Sunday so we went to Evanston for the day.  The girls loved seeing the deer right outside the window.

 We just got PUMMELED with snow in December.  This particular morning there had to be over 2 feet.  We don't have a snow blower so Bryan went out with his shovel.  Some dear saints in our ward saw him and came over with their snowblowers to help out.  It was so incredibly kind.

 It was beautiful but sure a lot of work.  I am certain we shoveled three times in one day.  HOURS of shoveling.  It was great exercise that's for sure.

 Look at the mailbox!

 I shoveled for over an hour and was encrusted with ice and snow when I was done.  It was crazy.

 The girls LOVED it.  It wasn't freezing so the snow was just perfect for playing in.  It was extra fun around Christmas time to have such perfect snow.  Last year we had so little that we more than made up for it.

 More and...

 more.  There were some beautiful moments with the snow though.  I never minded too much when I had to shovel when the view was this stunning.

 Have you ever seen a cuter scrunchy nosed smile in your life?  Oh I kiss these cheeks all day long.

 Julia played Junior Jazz this year for the first time.  It was definitely a learning experience.  I played one season as a girl and was TERRIBLE.  Like the only shot I attempted was at the opponent's basket (which I have now learned is not all that uncommon).  I was SO relieved when Julia made a basket in her first game.  She definitely improved as she went a long and the team improved so much as the season progressed.

 We made gingerbread houses with the Activity Day girls.

 Julia had a choir concert that was amazing!  The choir director did such a great job and I am so thankful that her school provides a school choir.

 We decided for Christmas rather than have Grandma buy the girls presents we wanted to have a fun evening with her.  We decided to do Boondocks and it was the best night.  Jason and his kids came with us and we stayed for hours and had the best time.  I am SO glad we came up with this idea.  My kids get so many presents for Christmas I really wanted them to have these memories.

 Cute cousins.  It was endless games of laser tag and the XD theatre.

 Grandma still got them a few little gifts and brought sugar cookies to decorate.  She really is the best of the best.  We could not adore her more.

 We love the little ice cream shop during Christmas time and try to get over there at least once.  It is decorated so cute.

 MORE SNOW!!

 I, very much against the children's will, made them come out for pictures this night because the sky was just so amazing.

 Bryan spent a very long time, until he was beyond exhaustion, building the girls a snow tunnel.  They thought it was the best putting on the flashlight and digging with him.  Dads don't come better than Bryan.

 We got lucky that all my other siblings were hosting their other families and that meant my parents came to our house for Christmas Eve.  It was such a fun night with delicious crab chowder and fancy drinks.

 We of course had to have a nativity and did the best we could with the few props we had.  The girls also played their Christmas songs on the piano.

 We then had everyone open their pajamas and Nana brought blankets she had made for all of the girls.

 It was such a fun night.  The girls pajamas came with American Girl doll matching pajamas but Audrey doesn't have one.  She was REALLY praying Santa would come through and bring her one in the morning.  We were so happy to have my parents join us.  It was a magical night.

 Santa came through and showed up at the Palmer home.

 These are some pretty dang excited girls.

 She hunted through the presents and opened the new American Girl doll very first.  And she was shocked that Santa somehow found one that wasn't in the catalog and looked just like her!  Her excitement was beyond excitement.  I honestly don't think Santa has ever made a girl so happy.

 Now all three girls have dolls with matching pajamas!

 Lily loves the Little Mermaid so much.  This dress up was just what she needed.

 The girls also got matching outfits with their dolls.  They sure looked cute.

 After Christmas we had a white elephant party with our med school friends.  We love getting together with them.  They are such dear friends and I can't believe how many kids we have now!

 We got some games for Christmas and Bryan decided to involve Grace.

 I promised the girls I would take a picture before these gems found their way to the garbage.

 Carli had her baby right before Christmas so my mom was with her on New Year's Eve so my dad came up and spent the evening with us.  We had the most delicious nachos, played games, watched Jurassic World, ate marshmallow popcorn and watched the girls go run around the house in the snow.  It was actually a really fun night.  The next morning we went out to breakfast with Papa.

 New Years Day we headed to Utah County and made a quick stop at Carli's to see her new baby.  It's pretty lame that this is the only picture I took.  We absolutely adore little Gloria and Carli is doing so great.

 We then headed to the Palmers for clam chowder and games.  Once again this is the only picture I got.  I had a tired baby and a sick Lily climbing on me the whole time.  Poor Lily had an ear infection we later found out.  But thankfully we had a great time with the Palmers and overall it was such a fantastic Christmas and New Years.  As I reflect on the past year I have so very much to be grateful for.