Temple with the Family

We went to the St. George temple with the kids when they were here over Christmas Break. We had a wonderful time being all together and doing sealings. The Sealer was wonderful and really made it special for us. Families are Forever!

Christmas Break Fun with the Kids

We spent a fun week with Steve, Danielle, Alexa, Carlton, Lindsey and Andrew. Despite a little snow and colder temps we did lots of activities.
We played four square, went bowling, played laser tag, rode 4-wheelers, went shooting guns, went rock climbing and went through the narrows at Dixie Rock, and played games every night for hours. We also went to the temple one night and did sealings. That was really a great experience to all be together. It was a perfect week with all of our family except Dawson together. Alexa was such a great little girl and kept up with all of the action.

Belated Christmas with the Family

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Christmas morning we awoke with just Andrew, Dan and I here. We slept in until about 9:00. We opened just a few gifts and then went over to Grandma Flakes and had breakfast egg casserole and opened her gifts to us. She gave us a pretty flower calendar, a puzzle, and each a book that we love. We gave her the 100 year celebration of the Tabernacle Choir CD set and some slippers and a book about Tennessee.
We took her back a plate of ham and potatoes and then we went home to wait for our call from Elder Dawson on his mission in San Jose. He called at 6:00 and we were able to Skype with the kids up North and Dawson.
It was so good to see him and hear his voice, "Well..." He had on a Grinch tie that he had traded a member for. He said that he is starting to get tired of Mexican food but still likes it. :)
He said that all is well and that he is enjoying the mission.

Christmas Eve at the Soup Kitchen 2010

This was our fourth annual Christmas Eve serving up lunch at the Soup Kitchen. We invited ward members and families to help with the project. We served ham, potato casseroles, corn, rolls, salad, drinks and desserts. We served over 200 people, about 150 of them were there for a hot meal and the others were our volunteers.
We provided scarfs that we had bought at Old Navy for $1, mittens and socks that were donated by friends, goody bags of oranges, candy and peanuts, and hygiene kits that were donated by another group. We made sure that everyone left with a gift. Brendan Dalley was our Santa and the Parr's organized a sing along of Christmas Carols. The Dalley family organized youth in the ward to sing, play their instruments and sing primary Christmas songs. The kids from the ward played games with the kids that had come for lunch.
It was a beautiful sunny day and because we had so many volunteers a group of people raked and cleaned up the grounds of the Episcopal Church where the Soup Kitchen is held. Dan and Andrew were a part of that. What a wonderful opportunity to remember the Savior at this time of year by providing service to some of his less fortunate children. We will continue to make this service a part of our family Christmas Traditions.

Christmas Party in Logan

We drove up to Logan on December 21, 2010 to have our annual Christmas party with the Datwyler family. Danielle and Lindsey had flown in on the weekend and were spending the week with their in-laws but they were kind enough to let us share them for the evening. We stopped by Jon's house and traded our car for their van so we could all fit on our ride up to Logan. That allowed us to spend 4 extra hours with our kids. It is so hard to have them both living out of state and only able to see them 3 or 4 times a year.
The weather was awful getting up to Provo but cleared out for the trip to Logan. We got there just in time for the 5:00 pm start. We enjoyed a delicious dinner with many fabulous salads. After dinner we had our traditional talent show. Carlton and Lindsey shared "The top 10 tips for living in a big city" and Alexa performed "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes" as representatives for our family talent. There were many other great musical and dance talents shared. Nect we had the traditional Christmas Eve inactment of the Nativity by the Grand kids. Joining them were Andrew and Spencer as Wise Men and Tyson as a shepherd. Katy held Alexa and they made heavenly angels.
A few gifts were opened and shared. Grandma didn't disappoint with fun fleece blankets for the unmarried kids. The married kids got dinner certificates to Olive Garden and the grand kids received new pajamas. Everyone was happy with their gifts.
We played games and enjoyed every minute as usual at Grandmas. We spent the night, had breakfast in the morning then Carlton and Lindsey went out to see Scott's collection of bikes with Dan and Andrew. We drove back to Provo and dropped off the kids. They will visit us for a week after Christmas. We drove back to St. George that evening. A long trip up and back but it really was a nice day with family.

Alexa Visits Santa Claus

Sweet Alexa isn't sure what to think of her visit to see Santa Claus. She looks pretty terrified!

The Jackson's Get Ready for Christmas

Danielle shared some cute pictures of Alexa. They went out Christmas shopping on black Friday and took a picture of her in the Pillow Pet bin. She is not quite sure what to expect.
They also went to the Portland Zoo and saw the lights and rode the train. Alexa really liked it and kept saying "chuga-chuga-choo-choo".

Andrew Goes to Sadies

Andrew was invited by Brooke Hansen (she asked with a 6 pack of Hansen soda) to go to DHHS Sadie's dance. They had a fun time making shirts and playing Fear Factor during the day date. Andrew and Brooke won but they had to swallow a live fish and put their feet in ice for 20 minutes and other disgusting things. They doubled with three other couples and had a great time.
Andrew had a group date with his Priest Quorum the next week and Andrew asked Brooke to go to that as well. They played games and had a fun time. She brought these pictures to him and a yummy treat to thank his for the dates. High School fun!