Well, this Christmas was sure a success! I have not had to entertain the children for one second during this whole break! They have been playing with their presents non-stop.

Some present highlights:

Corben got a Wii Zelda game, a membership to some computer game (I think that must've been his favorite gift, judging from the computer time he has logged this week), an ipod, and a weight set.

Trev got an ipod, a Mindfreak magic set (he begged and begged for it, but he's making Corben learn all the tricks first so he doesn't have to read the instructions), and some weird toys.

Lance got an RC car, some puzzles, a Wii game, and though not an actual gift, his favorite thing out of this Christmas was inheriting Corben's old ipod.

Zack got an RC car (broke the first day) and some spy stuff. He is so hard to buy presents for. As I've said before, he is a 16-year-old trapped in a 6-year-old's body.

Brody and Jace just got a slew of toys and they have been in 7th heaven. They LOVE most any toy and can play for hours, just the two of them. They got a lot of Toy Story stuff, which seems to be a favorite theme currently.

Here are all the grandkids - minus Dallin :( - with Grandpa Greg and Stephanie at our Christmas Eve party.

Kira helped the kids perform the story of Baby Jesus' birth. They were pretty good actors. Allie was exceptional as Mary.

Christmas day we enjoyed a DELICIOUS breakfast hosted by Grandpa Greg and Stephanie, and then a delicious dinner hosted by Grandpa Mike. We also squeezed in a visit to Great-grandma and stole her kitchen to make our salad contribution to dinner. I am so blessed to have all these people in my life who love me and my family so much. I am so thankful and love them all!

Happy 6th birthday, Zacky!

I'm glad that Zack is still not bothered by his Christmas time birthday, because I still feel guilty about it. That sounds ridiculous, but it is my fault that he was born two days before Christmas. My doctor was perfectly willing to induce labor on the 11th, but I was just too busy with everything, and was super concerned about missing my son's PRE-school Christmas program. Looking back, WHAT A MORON! So I was hoping to go past Christmas. He was due on the 17th, and when I went for my check-up on the 23rd, the doctor said he wasn't thriving and he needed to be born right away. We got to the hospital at 7 that night, so I guess I should be grateful for such a short labor so that at least he wasn't born on Christmas Eve!

Zack is like no other kid I've met. He is 6 going on 16, in every way, including sassing. I cannot wait (neither can he) for him to start football in two years. He plays in the yard with his big brothers and their friends and he can totally hold his own. He is so tough! He started riding a 2-wheeler bike at the age of 3. He is doing great in school and is quickly becoming a super reader!

Some of his favorites are: football, wii, computer games, ipod touch games, Justin Beiber, Team Edward (these last two make him sound fruity, I have no idea where it comes from), Criss Angel, Spongebob, candy, having sleepovers in Trev's room, graduating from the gym this summer, playing with friends.

I love Zack and his little smoker's voice. He's definitely the life of the party!

We were able to spend the weekend having a fabulous mini family vacation at Bear Lake. Several months ago Jeremy got ants in his pants about getting a time share. I couldn't have ridiculed him worse for it, but luckily he didn't listen and found some great deals from a couple of people looking to sell. Our family is definitely the type who has to be "forced" to go on vacation. We have spent years coming up with excuses, so I know this will solve the problem. In my opinion, there are few things money is better spent on than a family vacation. The memories and time together are priceless.

We're planning a Disneyland trip in the next few months, so we just wanted to go somewhere close, but where we would still feel like we were "getting away." With Bear Lake being under two hours away, and having an indoor pool, it was the perfect spot for us. The kids had the best time. They are so funny. When we walked into the "hotel" (It was a three bedroom suite with a little kitchen) the little kids ran all over, exclaiming at everything from the "wall bed" to the light in the refrigerator. Very easily amused, my kids. We spent the weekend swimming, watching movies, eating junk food, and playing games. We spent a total of eight hours at the indoor pool. By the time we left, everyone had itchy rashes all over their body.

I don't know if it was intentional, but Jeremy made this the most relaxing time I have had since I can remember. He cleaned up after every single meal and was constantly straightening up all our things. I honestly didn't lift a finger. It was heavenly.

It started snowing the day before we left for home, and didn't let up. We drove through the canyon at 20 miles per hour, and still couldn't prevent sliding all over the place. I have never been more terrified in my life. When we were safely home, I asked the kids if they had been scared. They said no, and that they had been too engrossed in the movie they were watching to even notice us sliding all over the place. Thank goodness for the blissful ignorance of children!

The one downside to vacations, and I know I'm not alone in this, but I'm pretty sure I'm the worst: WHY DO I THINK VACATION CALORIES DON'T COUNT??!! Holy cow! Who eats an ENTIRE box of Crunch 'n Munch, BY THEMSELVES?! Not to mention that every meal I brought was a total grease pit.

On that note, I am so grateful for these precious times I get to spend with my wonderful family. I love you all so much!

Jeremy made us stand in the freezing cold in our damp swimsuits so he could get a family picture.

Zack has a mean cannonball.

Pigging.

Way to go, Trev! His team made it all the way and won the mini-bowl championship! He has played a great season and I am very proud of his hard work and dedication. It is impressive to watch what these boys are put through. I don't think I could do it!

It was fun to have Grandpa Cardon, Tami and Nate, Kira and Allie and Kendall come cheer with us. Thanks so much for your support! Trev loves to have people come cheer him on.

I think we are all ready for the season to be over. I've forgotten how life is without it. I hope it will be as relaxing as I'm picturing. :)

We had a bummer football game this morning. It was Corben's first and last game in this season's play-offs. It was pretty disappointing. We can't even look on the bright side and say that at least we'll get our lives back and not have to plan our lives around games and practices because Trev's team won their game, and if we're already planning around one we might as well plan around two! On that note...

Congrats to Trev! His team kicked butt this afternoon and are heading into week two of the play-offs. Trev did such an awesome job. I'm so proud of him!

The most exciting thing happened in Corben's game last week.

Remember this guy?

He and one of his waterboy assistants were sitting on the sidelines innocently fulfilling their waterboy duties. There was a pass play right by them and before they knew it, they had been knocked to the ground and run over by a group of 14-year-old football players. They both got pretty banged up. It was very sad, but luckily we can look back on it and laugh. Initially Lance said he was quitting his waterboy job and he would never play football. He got over that idea pretty quickly though. He was there with the team today and he still plans on being a player next year. Tough guy!

Congratulations to my football guys, both going to the playoffs! It's been a really fun season this year. Trevor's team is undefeated and Jeremy is an assistant coach on Corben's team, so that's been fun for them, and especially for this guy:

Lance has been in seventh heaven being "waterboy" for Corben's team. The coaches and boys are so awesome, they treat him like one of the guys. He is so dedicated. Not only is he at every game, but he goes the required hour and a half early with Jeremy and Corben. He's not making it a career, though. He's decided that next year he definitely wants to be on the field playing.

Corben and Trev have also been very dedicated to the grueling schedule and have really worked hard and done their best out there. I'm so proud of you guys!

My sweet baby has turned 13 and entered junior high. Luckily it went a lot smoother for him than it did for me. I was such a nervous wreck, partly because my junior high experience was less than stellar. But he is such an awesome kid, he will do great. He is liking it so far, especially since Jeremy and I made a deal with him on payment for grades. He will do anything for a buck. Here he is in the process of cleaning every one of my blinds for $50 (TOTALLY worth it):

He's become obsessed with some video game called Zelda, and for months he begged for this weird musical instrument that is played on the game that I'd never heard of. Props to me and Jeremy for finding it on the internet, although in the end Corben did have to help us decide which kind he wanted. The picture of him with his candles cracks me up. All of my kids are somewhat of a pyromaniac, and Corben scrunched up his candles so they would make one big flame. It worked pretty well!

Of all my children, Corben's infancy and toddler years are the ones I remember most. We went through a lot together, and I will always have extra-tender feelings for this guy. He is so sweet and obedient. I can always depend on him. Love you, Corben!