Brenden's 10th Birthday

Brenden turned 10 years old on Sunday, January 10th. I can't believe that he is 10 years old. He is such a great kid and has grown up so much in the last little while. He got a new orange ipod for his birthday and some other fun gifts. We celebrated at Grandma Anderson's house and then came home and all of my family came over for cake. I think that he had a great day. He is a very special boy with so many great qualities. He is a wonderful son and an awesome brother. We all love him so much and are so glad that he is part of our family!!

Happy Birthday, Brenden!!!

Christmas Morning 2009

Christmas morning was really fun at our house this year. I think I get as excited as the kids do. I honestly cannot sleep on Christmas Eve. It is so exciting to see the kids open their presents and be so excited. I love it. It is definitely one of my favorite days of the year. It just goes by so quickly. All of the anticipation and then it is over so fast.

Here is Josie with all that she got for Christmas. She got an American Doll and some new heely's and lots of other fun stuff. She was so cute and excited about it all.

Taylor got a ping pong table. Here it is in our unfinished basement. Santa left him a treasure hunt so that he could find it. It was lots of fun. He also got some other gifts too. He was definitely a happy boy on Christmas morning.

Brenden was also very happy on Christmas. He got some new Wii games, some basketball shoes, nerf guns and other fun gifts.

Kate was definitely the funnest of all. She loved opening presents and was so excited about everything that she got. She got a new dollhouse, a baby alive, a white board and some other fun things. She was so cute.

My mom takes turns sleeping at the grandkids houses on Christmas Eve and this year it was our turn to have her at our house. The kids were so excited to have her with us. It was fun to have her there to watch them open their presents. Too bad we won't be able to have her again for 3 more years.

After we opened all of ourr presents we went to Sharla's new house for Christmas breakfast. It was really fun. The kids got to open more presents and we had some great food. Here are all of us on Sharla's stairs.

This Christmas was really fun. We did alot of family things and that is definitely what Christmas is all about. Our family tried really hard this year to remember the true meaning of Christmas and not just focus on the presents. We talked every night about our Savior, Jesus Christ, and what He has done for all of us. We talked about how we could be more like Him. I think the kids really did try harder this year. It was a great holiday and I hope that everyone else had a great Christmas!!

Brenden's Piano Recital

Brenden had his Christmas piano recital. He played "Silent Night" and did an awesome job. We really enjoyed listening to him and the other students play. Grandma Linda and Grandpa and Grandma Anderson came to his recital.

Douglas Family Christmas Party

One of our annual traditions at Christmastime is to have a party with all of the Douglas family. We always have it the Sunday before Christmas and everyone always looks forward to it and enjoys it alot. This year we had it at my house. My Grandma Douglas was able to come, even though she hasn't been feeling well. It is a tradition that we have had since I was a little girl. It wouldn't be Christmas without it. This year we took some pictures of all of the great grandkids with my Grandma.

I set up a special "princess" table for Kate and Savannah. They loved it and were so excited.

We always have a visit from Santa and this year was no different. The kids love to sit on his lap and tell him what they want for Christmas. Here are all of the kids with Santa this year.

Josie was so funny and excited for Christmas this year. She loved every minute of it. Santa asked her if she had been good and you could tell that she didn't want to lie. She just kept saying "I don't know." It was really funny. She is a good girl, but has been pretty hard lately. I just liked the fact that she didn't want to lie. It was hilarious. It was like she knew that Santa would know.

Kate couldn't have been cuter with Santa. She wasn't scared at all and jumped right up on his lap. She told him what she wanted and just looked at him in such a cute way. Christmas is definitely for the little ones.

Brenden and Taylor sat on Santa's lap and told him what they wanted. They are getting so big. It is crazy that they are so old.