Handmade Christmas...

This year I decided to try and make some of our Christmas Gifts. I truly believe that nothing is more special than a gift that someone has taken their time to create. I would have loved to create a handmade gift for each and every one of our loved ones; however, time did not allow. I will make it a goal to start earlier next year so that I can get more accomplished.

For Kena and Kate, I created these darling hat and scarf sets. I thought up the pattern myself, and I am really happy with how they turned out.


For Karla, I also handmade a hat and scarf set. I was so excited to find the perfect yarn. I knew that it would look so pretty on Karla.


I hope that these gifts will keep Kena, Kate, and Karla warm through the Winter. We love you!

Christmas with the Valentini's

In the afternoon, we headed to my parent's house to celebrate Christmas. My parent's always plan such a fun day. We have snacks and open presents almost as soon as we get there, then we have dinner and play games the rest of the night.


Elizabeth was so excited about all of the gifts. She was a big helper and handed out each of the gifts. I love that Elizabeth gets so much joy out of giving things to others and out of seeing them happy. I hope that Elizabeth will continue to be so giving.


As usual, my parents and family totally spoiled us. Elizabeth got some really fun presents. She received more Tag Junior Books, a suitcase for when she has sleepovers, some clothes, a VTech laptop, a couple of blu-rays, a set of Disney books, and her favorite, an umbrella!


Everyone received great gifts. We are all so blessed. I love the holidays because the focus is on giving and on making others happy. I love finding the perfect gift and watching faces light up!

This year, we got my uncle an iTunes gift card and the game Last Word.


My dad seemed excited about the Planet Earth DVD that we got for him.


My mom received many nice gifts too. We got her a memory card for her phone and Matt loaded it with hundreds of family photos from the past few years. She also received a heated neck wrap, which will hopefully help her relax after a long day at work.


Matt and I were spoiled as well. We received so many great things. Matt received mostly blu-rays and books. Meme got Matt a 2-year subscription to Popular Photography Magazine, while my parents got Matt a huge box of Truffles and a fun Star Wars toy for his desk at work.


I received a new purse, some knitting books, the Season 5 DVD of the Office, and the Harmony Wood circular knitting needle set from KnitPicks, as well as a whole bunch of knitting accessories and extra tips for my metal knitting needle set.


Thank you Mom, Dad, Uncle Bill and Meme. Our Christmas was amazing and we are so happy to be able to spend the afternoon and evening with you. We are blessed to have each of you in our lives!

Christmas with the Freebairn's

After our Christmas morning at home, we headed to Karla and Kelly's for Christmas Breakfast and gifts. Karla always makes a yummy breakfast. We usually have french toast, eggs, bacon, sausage, and sticky buns....just to name a few things.

As usual, Karla and Kelly absolutely spoiled us! The kids had so much fun opening all of their gifts. They are all at such fun ages. They get really excited about everything.


Elizabeth received so many wonderful things. Some of her favorites were her Tag Junior Books, her Backyardigan stuffed animals, her doodle pad, and her Snow White Tea Set.


After she opened her tea set, she set up all of the Backyardian stuffed animals and had a little tea party. It was so cute to see her spoon-feeding each of the characters.


It is always so fun to spend the morning with Adam's family. Kena, Kate, and Jack are absolutely adorable. They make Christmas so much more enjoyable.

I don't know about you, but I think that Adam was a little too excited about the iTunes gift cards that we gave him.


We gave Kate a Tag Junior for her birthday, so Karla and Kelly decided to get her some more Tag Junior Books for Christmas.


Kate and Kena looked so cute in their hat and scarf set that we gave them. Hopefully it will keep them nice and warm this Winter.


Kena received some really great things too! She got a Tag Reading System with a couple of books, some cute clothes, and some fun jewelry.


Jack loves Buzz Lightyear, so many of his gifts this year centered around Buzz. It was so cute to see his face light up when he would see Buzz. He LOVED his Buzz Lightyear action figure. It lights up and talks...what could be better!


He walked around with Buzz all morning. He immediately went over to Grandpa to show off his new toy. I think he would have been happy if this was all received all day!


I have to say that Jack looks adorable in his BYU hat. Too bad it is a BYU hat!


The kids weren't the only ones that were spoiled. Matt and I made out like bandits too! I received a bunch of knitting books, a sling bag for the laptop, and some Harmony Wood knitting needles, among other things. Matt received some video games, some blu-rays, and a Rapid Strap for his camera.

Thank you Karla, Kelly, Adam, Tifani, Kena, Kate, and Jack...for a fun morning and some wonderful memories! We are truly blessed to be able to call each of you family.

Christmas Morning

Christmas is Here! I have been looking forward to Christmas so much this year because Elizabeth is at such a fun age...and it is finally here! We woke up around 8:00am to have our gift exchange. Elizabeth was so excited and could not wait to go downstairs to see what was waiting for her under the tree.


Elizabeth was such a big helper. She kept crawling under the tree to get each of the gifts. She loved handing them out to Matt and me. She especially loved all of the gifts from Santa...they were wrapped in Santa wrapping paper.


Elizabeth is one lucky little girl. She sure did get spoiled this year. Matt and I decided that we would get Elizabeth more smaller gifts instead of one or two large gifts. We figured that at this age, she would have more fun having lots of little packages to open.


Elizabeth received some really fun things. Matt and I bought her a Snap n' Style Juliet doll, a Snap n' Style snowboarding outfit, two Leapfrog Tag Junior books, a Mickey Mouse coloring book, a tote box filled with Crayola craft supplies, a Fridge Phonics magnet letter set, and two puzzles. After each gift that Elizabeth opened, she would turn to Matt and me and say "Thank you Mommy, Thank you Daddy!" It made my heart swell to hear her little thoughts of gratitude.

One of her favorite gifts from Santa was the Kung Fu Panda DVD.


She also loved the Princess Learn-to-Write Doodle Pad that Santa brought her.


I think her favorite gift of the entire morning was the Leapfrog Chat & Count Cell Phone that Matt and I gave her. Elizabeth loves to play with our cell phones, so we decided to get her one of her own.


As soon as she opened it, she wanted to show it to Matt. It was so cute to see the two of them playing together. It is one of my favorite memories from this Christmas.


Matt and I were treated very well too! We both got some really nice gifts. I received a Persnickity Knits clutch, a couple of LED book lights, two knit head wraps, a Snuggie blanket, the Hattitude book and a portable Ott light.


Matt was spoiled this year too! He received a few blu-rays, The Real Ghostbusters-Volume 1 DVD, The Big Bang Theory Season 2 DVDs, some Star Wars figurines for his desk, a couple of photography books and a Logitech Harmony Universal Remote.


This morning was amazing. I love spending time with my family. Elizabeth makes Christmas so much fun. I love making her happy and seeing her smile. We are truly blessed to have all that we do! I hope that Elizabeth enjoyed receiving her fun gifts...but more importantly...I hope she learned a little bit about how good it feels to give to others!

Merry Christmas...

We hope that you have a wonderful day filled with love, happiness, and time with family and friends. We are grateful for you and the support that you provide our family each and every day. We pray that you will be watched over and protected by our Heavenly Father. May you find joy and comfort in our Lord and Savior, whom we celebrate this day!

From our home to yours...Merry Christmas!

Christmas Eve at Uncle Bill's

Each Christmas Eve we head over to my Uncle Bill's house for a Trim-a-Tree party, a yummy dinner, and a gift exchange. This is something that I look forward to all year long! I love Christmas Eve.

My uncle next to his newly decorated tree. Traditionally, my uncle places the "Ziggy Star" on the top of the tree.


This year my brother Michael, his girlfriend Kris, and their son Talon were able to come.


Elizabeth anxiously waited for dinner. Uncle Bill served lasagna and garlic bread.


Even Meme came for a little while. She is still recovering from her knee replacement surgery so she headed home after decorating the tree and eating dinner.


My cute Mom and Dad.


Elizabeth loves her cousin Talon. She always wants to hug him, and kiss him, and hold him. I don't think she'll be able to hold him for too much longer...he is almost as big as her!


During dinner, my brother pulled out this ginormous beer. I had to get a photo of him with it. It is the biggest beer that I have ever seen.


After dinner we held the annual gift exchange. Traditionally, we open one gift from each family member on Christmas Eve. Elizabeth could hardly wait!


Matt and I gave Elizabeth a pair of Christmas pajamas and a new baby doll. She was so excited and wanted the baby out of the box as soon as she received it. She is such a cute little mommy. She always kisses and rocks her baby. It is so sweet!


Kris seemed to like the scrap booking supplies that Matt, Elizabeth and I got her. Hopefully, she will be able to use them to create some fun pages.


My dad has gotten into bike riding this year, so we got him a Camelback water bottle to use while he is out riding around.


Talon did a great job of helping his daddy open all of his presents. Michael got some yummy candy and treats.


One of Matt's favorite gifts of the night was a Galactic Hero figurine set that included Yoda.


We got my mom some Mary Kay Eye Make-Up Remover.


I received some great presents too. One of my favorites is a Pattern-a-Day Knitting Calendar.


Uncle Bill was a little surprised to receive fortune cookies as his gift...until he realized that my mom had hidden a Taylor Swift CD inside. My mom is always hiding presents in packages that they do not belong in.


Talon was excited about all of the presents too...he just thought that you were suppose to eat them!


My uncle always hosts such a fun night. Thanks everyone for the fun times and the great gifts. We appreciate each and every one of you. Uncle Bill, Thanks for the wonderful night!