Christmas Re-cap

Well the kids got spoiled again this year (as always) and loved every minute of it. I just wish it all didn't pass by so fast!

Christmas Eve the kids got their traditional jammies and of course loved them. Because I'm a good mom and totally know my kids! ;) Gwynie loves penguins (we called her 'Pen-gwyn' when she was little haha) so her jammies were penguins with a little seal friend! Brady got some skull and cross bones fleece jammie pants so he was diggin them! And of course a blue thermal shirt to go with em!

The kids also got a movie and the new Super Mario Brothers game for the Wii. All four of us played their new game before bed and it was a blast! Holy crap we laughed soooooo hard and had so much fun just playing and hanging out together! ;) Man I just LOVE these kids to pieces!!

Cookies and chocolate milk for Santa and carrots for the reindeer. Brady made it a point that Santa HAD TO HAVE chocolate milk this year. Thanks B! ;)

Christmas morning was a blur we just had a blast and I loved seeing the kids faces light up as they got everything they asked for and more. *sigh* I love these guys!

Gwynie with her vanity from Santa! She got little make-ups (from Claires), more jewelery and perfumes in her stocking. I found a hot pink blow dryer and straightner so she was in heaven with all her girly stuff Christmas morning!

Brady with his new tv and dvd player from Santa!

I just love this picture! My Mom and Dad got Jake and Brady some remote control Monster Trucks. Like the REAL ones that are super heavy duty! They were high fiving! :)

Christmas morning we went to Dustin and Erica's and did Christmas with his parents there, too. After that we packed up and headed up to Idaho to visit my grandparents and my Aunts family that made the trip from Colorado Springs. Coming home Sunday afternoon...everyone was worn out and exhausted!

A Puppy Surprise!

Jake had been wanting another dog to be a "friend/brother" to our lab/retriever mix Brecken for the last few months. We'd tried it with another dog last summer (who was almost a year old), but they did not get along at all so we had to give the new dog away. We knew we'd have to get a puppy that would know Brecken was the Alpha Dog, in charge and the boss. I of course didn't want another dog, but I could see Jake's point in Brecken having a friend to run around the backyard with when we were at work and the kids were at school.

This is Brecken (this pic was actually taken in December!) - or Breck, Breckie, Brecko-Recko, or Brekker Brekker One-Nine (you know braker braker one nine), or any of the other nicknames we call him.

So Christmas Eve...Both Jake and I were working a half a day and I get a text from him saying to check my email and look at a link he sent me. It was for a puppy who was also a lab/retriever mix and was 7 weeks old. After talking me into it (and promising that I'd never have to clean up after it) I relented and agreed to get this puppy for the kids for a Christmas Eve present. So Jake left work to get the puppy and after an hour or so I left work and went home to clean up and get ready to surprise the kids. Jake brought the puppy home before he picked the kids up from daycare.

So when they came home we had the kids sit on the couch with their eyes covered and I very quitely placed the puppy between them. Needless to say the kids love him and Brecken and he are really good friends!

Meet Bridger! or Bridge, Bridgie, and Bridger-Ridger (see I have this name rhyming complex I think!)

The cat is not quite sure about him, but now that I'm writing this a month later they play like crazy!

Is this sweet or what?! Brady put his blankie on him after he just crashed after playing with us. One minute he was awake and the next he plopped on the floor and took a nap. Too cute!! ;)

Just to show that the dogs really do get along, here they are "playing"! Brecken let Bridger "play" at first, but now he tackles him and they rough house a lot!

Family Christmas Party

I wasn't feeling very well so I didn't take that many pictures, but here are two pics of all the great grandkids at the annual Phillips Family Christmas Party at Grandma Lee's.

L-R: Gwynie, Sydney, Hannah, Bailey, Brady, Trinity, Abby, Ashlynn

Syd, Han, Bay and Abs are our neices, Dustin and Erica's girls. Trin and Ashlynn are Jake's cousins girls. Yep, Brady is the ONLY boy! Also, can you believe Bailey, Brady and Trinity are the same age??!! Brady was born in January, Bailey in March and Trinity in May...and Trin is the tallest (as tall as Gwynie is actually)! Stevie is a big guy so its totally understandable, but man Brady is so small, haha!

Happy Thanksgiving!

This year we spent Thanksgiving day out in Grantsville with Jake's parents and his brother Dustin's family.

All the grandkids

And now one with Grandma and Grandpa!

These are some "tough" Phillips kids!

Random Happenings

I have a few things I'll be back dating, but right now I wanted to just put up a few random things from our evening tonight. Its just that regular old stuff, but I love those little glimpses into everyday life so I thought I'd share!

First off is our kitten Roxy. (Named so because she looked like my old cat Moxy that died two years ago...sad story.) Anyway, Roxy was for the kids, but she has become my kitty ironically. The one person who didn't want any more cats...and who does she go to?! Every night she cuddles on my lap and its no exception if I'm vegging on the couch with my laptop . Well tonight she was being mischevious. (And the brat cat thinks I am a tree or something and is always scaling up my legs...currently she is on my shoulder...Arggg pirate cat!)

Here she looks totally innocent right.....?

Then she got curious, and kept peeking her little face and paws around the side....unfortunately every time I got the camera out she would move, but I have a little of it! Here is the one that shows her kinda peekin around the corner. It was seriously soooo funny she was being such a spaz!

I think right here she was curious about my phone...I had gotten an email or text and it vibrated so she was like what?! and was going to pounce! ;)

After dinner I made Strawberry Smoothies, and then the kids seemed to disappear. They were being REALLY quiet so I was a little worried I'd find some mass destruction in their rooms. This is what I found instead when I came upstairs...

The kids were playing together on a video game! I don't know why, but for some reason this just cracked me up and melted my heart at the same time. It was just so fun to see this...them being so quiet and concentrating, but giggling to each other, sharing tips and playing so well. I seriously have the best kids a girl could ask for!

Then I had to take a few pictures of Brady's Diorama he made in school. He was SO proud to show us this and tell us all the seasons. The funniest part...for Spring he made a boat with Jake on the wakeboard (like when we were at Bear Lake in July) and for Summer he made fire crackers!! Too cute!! He said he was going to make a snowboarder for winter but ran out of time at school. Talk about creative!

Winter...snow on the ground and no leaves on the tree




Spring...wakeboarding (well maybe in Florida!) ;)


Summer....firecrackers going off!

Fall...leaves on the ground and one hanging on the tree

And not to be left out...our 80 pound lap dog! Brecken turned 2 this year and is the dumbest smart dog I know. He is incredibly smart but can act so damn dumb sometimes! When he was a puppy I would hold him in my lap and rub his belly...well 2 years later he is still so spoiled and "sits" in Jakes lap to get a belly rub. Its a nightly ritual...crazy spoiled "kids" we have! ;)

Well that was just a little recap of what our night was like tonight. Of course there were dishes and homework to be done and all that *cough* fun stuff, but otherwise just a typical night here at the Phillips Homestead. lol homestead...haha

Lagoon...its what fun is!

Yay Lagoon! For my work party we went to Lagoon (like we did last year) and the kids had a blast. Brady was finally tall enough (exactly 46 inches) to ride all the big kid rides. We rode pretty much everything in that park, and some multiple times. It was so fun taking the kids on Colossus (the coaster with the double loops) and hearing them freak out at first, but then loving it after and begging to ride it again. I know I haven't laughed as hard as I did that day in awhile. But being with my family, having a perfect gorgeous sunny day, and a whole day to ride coasters...now that was perfect.

I realized at lunch time a very ODD coincidence....the kids were wearing the same colored shirts they wore last year! Different shirts, but still...I didn't plan it that way, but how funny! So I thought it would be fun to show some pics from last year as well just for fun!

2008

2009

2008

2009

(bad lighting...not as good as last year, haha BUT look how much they've grown!!)

The rest of 2009 pics below!

The story on this one...that is the kids little car getting SPRAYED with water, hahahaha!

One word....PRICELESS!

Brady wanted us to win him a Husky soooo bad and we did. Then we had to win Gwynie a Baby Patrick (from SpongeBob) and we did. $24 later they both had stuffed animals. ;)

Orange Blossom Crafts

Hey everyone!

Just wanted to take a minute to tell you about something fantastic! Cause you know I'm always looking out for you all! ;)

My super fab Mom and sis Laci started an Etsy shop called Orange Blossom Crafts. Right now they have some three piece jewelery sets (necklace, bracelet and earrings), but are looking to add more crafty stuffs later.

Some of my favorite three piece sets are:

- Of the Earth

- Morgana

- Just Beachy

And you can't go wrong with the Wish Upon a Starfish necklace, or the super fun (and totally wallet friendly at $10 bucks!) Go Fish! earrings!

How cool are these?! I love buying things that are handmade instead of just cheap-o things you know were made in China. Being the lucky person I am to have such fabby family members, I have a three piece set (in purple and black of course!) that I've had tons of compliments on. So, if you've been looking to spice up your wardrobe and add a few fun accessories in, well I've solved that little problem for you! Now the hard part will be deciding what to get, right?! ;)

U of U Football Game

Along with the first day of school, Fall approaching, and the beginning of September comes FOOTBALL SEASON!! :) We are such a sports minded family that we love this time of year! To start the season off right, we got to go to a U of U Football game, their opener! We have a few friends that Tailgate so we had dinner and hung out before the game. The Utes won 35 to 17 against the Utah State Aggies. It was a great game!

Brady wanted to make a goal post...hehe

This is Brady with Brian Johnson. We got a picture of them together last year (when Jake and Brady had sideline passes), and then during the summer Jake got Brady's jersey signed by him. So how perfect to get a picture of them together with Brady wearing the signed jersey! (Of course he was told he had to stay super clean because it will be framed here shortly!)