December Rewind {thankfully it's only ONE month instead of the whole year}

December kicked off with Eric's dad receiving a kidney transplant. Both of his parents were in surgery at the same time since his mom was the kidney donor. We were all anxious the whole morning until we received the call that both of them were fine and doing well. Eric was able to spend the night before with them in San Diego and stayed down there for a couple of days to visit them in the hospital. They had to stay in San Diego for 2 1/2 weeks in the event that the kidney was rejected. We were able to visit both Sundays after their release from the hospital. Believe it or not, kidney transplant receipients are only kept in the hospital for4 days. Eric's mom was out in 3! AMAZING! Eric's sister Valerie flew in from Hawaii as a surprise to her dad. I was the lucky winner who got to pick her up from LAX {I actually volunteered}. :)

Yup, that's 16 bottles of medication

Dad has to wear a mask in public or around people he doesn't see on a regular basis

Most of the Jacklin family {minus Adam, Jamie, & Chris}

Mom & Collin totally zonked out

Aunt Sherri was such a trooper to watch four episodes of Scooby Doo, TWICE!

Every Saturday {just about} was filled with Christmas parties. It all started with the ward Christmas party, followed by the Jacklin family party in Orange County, and finished off with the Fitzgerald family party this past weekend. It was wonderful to spend time with extended family and munch on all the yummy food.

Waiting for dinner

Running around the cultural hall with friends

Waiting to see Santa

Scenes from the Jacklin party

{love the face, Eric}

Singing "Jingle Bells"

Wrestling with Uncle[s] Adam & Ryan

Playing dead

Singing the 12 days of Christmas {Eric got 4 French hens}

The boys had a couple run-in's with Old St. Nick and still haven't warmed up to him. They are starting to understand the concept of Christmas and everything associated with it, but they're still a little sketchy about certain things, Santa Claus to be exact. They practiced what they were going to ask for and completely froze when it was their turn to sit on his lap. At the Jacklin family party, Brandon dug his feet into the carpet and REFUSED to budge, all while screaming at the top of his lungs. {I should have had the camera since I was the only one who could see him}. Andrew was a bit braver and stood a foot in front of him and matter-of-factly asked for an Iron Man toy. Maybe they'll be persuaded to sit on Santa's lap next year.

FIRST VISIT

This was a stretch {Drew is barely smiling & Brandon's on the verge of losing it}

then Santa offered them candy canes {bribes NEVER fail}

SECOND VISIT

~Drew~

~Brandon~

This is the boys' [2nd] cousin, Madison - she REALLY hates Santa

Scenes from the Fitzgerald party

The week before Christmas found us in Hollywood at the Pantages Theater to see "WICKED." We got such a great deal on the tickets that Eric thought it would be fun to rent a limo so we didn't have to worry about driving or parking. It was an excellent thought in theory, but in reality our driver almost killed us several times. Despite the anxiety we felt, we still had a great time cruising with our buddies throwing back a few glasses of sparkling cider. We party hard core. {PLEASE TAKE NOTE - our two pregnant friends DID NOT go into labor immediately following our outing}. Of course us girls loved the show {it was the second time I'd seen it} and the men tolerated it with only minimal complaints. Eric said the story was pretty good, but all the songs sucked since they were "girl songs." He also wasn't a fan of the seats - they were too uncomfortable for him. Oh well, at least I got him there.

The limo picked us up in front of our house

Amber, Kierstin, Sterling, Tracy

Dana, Genni, & us

This was our elegant dining option

Since we've had the boys, a tradition has emerged to spend Christmas Eve with my family and Christmas Day with Eric's so we can see everyone.

CHRISTMAS EVE: My mom, sister {Erin}, and her fiance {Kenny} came over for dinner and presents. We made homemade spaghetti sauce for lasagna and pigged out. It was super yummy. We had a short visit with Kenny's parents before they picked up his sister. Opening presents was a riot. The boys finally caught on to the concept and thoroughly enjoyed ripping the paper off their gifts. We had to keep encouraging them to open more presents when they got sidetracked by their favorites. They were DEFINITELY spoiled this year: Iron Man, gliders, remote-controlled quads, Hot Wheels track, Star Wars figurines. It was crazy!

Aunt Erin beat Santa with the Iron Man gifts

Enjoying our spoils

CHRISTMAS DAY: After opening presents with our little family, we headed over to the Jacklin's to be with Eric's family. We ate a late breakfast and had fun lounging about waiting for everyone to arrive. The boys finally got too anxious to wait any longer to open presents. We sat in a big circle and passed out presents to everyone. Of course the boys and their cousin made out in the present department. They got more Hot Wheels {and track}, motorcycles, LeapPads, Mr. Potato Head (Star Wars style) and clothes. My MIL delegated dinner preparations to my SIL, Jamie since she loves to cook. I got to help along with my other SIL, Monica. We had a delicious, traditional spread - ham, mashed potatoes, stuffing, green beans, bacon wrapped asparagus...I'm getting hungry just remembering.

Our tree Christmas morning

Santa brought big-boy bikes {with training wheels}

He didn't even finish all the cookies we left out

Our little superheros {pajama style}

BOYS AND THEIR TOYS

We have felt truly grateful for the opportunity we've had to spend the holiday season with loved ones and celebrate the true meaning of Christmas. The Savior has touched our lives and blessed us beyond measure. Our hope is that you will find peace, health, and happiness in the coming year.