We had a very long, but very good Christmas with both sides of our families. I forgot to take the camera to Cherokee for the Jones Christmas, but suffice it to say that we all came home spoiled. Here are some of my favorite pictures from our holidays, all taken with my new DSLR Canon Rebel T3 camera, which is a learning experience:
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| Jolly Holiday Lights at the Des Moines Waterworks Park, 12/14/12 |
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| The view across the water - beautiful! Jolly Holiday Lights at the Des Moines Waterworks Park, 12/14/12 |
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| all proceeds benefiting the Make-A-Wish Foundation, a cause I have volunteered for many times before. Jolly Holiday Lights at the Des Moines Waterworks Park, 12/14/12 |
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| Weston and his Shanny Jolly Holiday Lights at the Des Moines Waterworks Park, 12/14/12 |
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| Daycare Nativity Program, 12/18/12 |
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| Weston as Joseph tickling Baby Jesus' feet, mid program! Daycare Nativity Program, 12/18/12 |
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| Ornaments on Aunt Linda's beautiful Christmas Tree! Christmas Eve 2012 |
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| Weston's beautiful face - he waited as long as he could for his cousins to arrive! Christmas Eve 2012 |
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| DICE GAME!!! Christmas Eve 2012 |
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| Beautiful Ladies! Christmas Eve 2012 |
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| Mom posing for the camera Christmas Eve 2012 |
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| My niece Paisley looking adorable. Christmas Eve 2012 |
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| See no Evil, Hear no Evil, Speak no Evil Christmas Eve 2012 |
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| "Attack-Thank you-Hug for Aunt Linny from Paisley Christmas Eve 2012 |
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| the beautiful children Christmas Morning 2012 |
As you can see, we had a wonderful holiday. Scott worked ridiculously hard over the holiday week - it's high Liquor season in Iowa, so he was working as many as 15 hours a day. We traveled to Cedar Rapids on Saturday, Dec. 22nd. On Sunday, we all traveled to DeWitt, Iowa for the Dalton Family Christmas. It was a lot of fun seeing the extended family, but Scott had to leave at 4:30 and make the 3 hour drive back to Des Moines all alone, while Shannon, Weston and I went back to CR with the family. We celebrated Christmas Eve at Aunt Linda's, with Weston anxiously waiting for his cousins to arrive. Scott worked all day Christmas Eve and drove back to CR, arriving after midnight - making for a very long day. Christmas Day was spent at our parents' house. It was chaotic and somewhat tense, and just crazy. As all family holidays end up being. Mom wiped the floor with all of us at our family Dice games - and that just drove us all crazy. ;)
I turned 33 years old on the 26th. Ugh - mid-thirties... I wish you would love me more. But we all celebrated with Burgers and such at north end Field House pub, a great Iowa Hawkeyes hangout in Cedar Rapids. It was fun. We ended up back at Mom's for homemade birthday cakes for both Nathan and I (his 30th birthday is Jan. 4th.) Gifts were exchanged, and wonderful! Nathan and his family headed East, while my little group headed West - back to work we went.
This past weekend, we enjoyed our family Christmas with Scott's family. We couldn't travel until Saturday due to additional snow and ice on Friday. But it was a lot of fun. I think the Lumberjack Beanie cap with the attached crocheted beard that I got Scott's great-nephew Dalton, was the most talked-about gift! It was hilarious!
New Years was another low-key event. Scott once again had to work all day, and into the evening on New Years Eve. Shannon and I took Weston to see Rise of the Guardians - which was awesome! He and I then went to an early dinner with our friends, and enjoyed a mini game night at their house. We made it home by 9:00 to ring in the New Year with Scott - twice. Once at 11pm, thinking Weston was going to crash, and again at midnight as I was crawling into bed with a suddenly wide-awake little boy. Today, 1/1/2013 has been more low-key. In fact, if it weren't for the Rose Bowl Parade, the Shrimp Cocktail, and the Welches Sparkling Grape Juice, I'd have thought it was a Sunday. Though I'm so glad that today is Tuesday, and we have have a short work week, with a boring weekend at home. It's nice to have no plans.
I hope that 2013 brings health and happiness to everyone reading this. I hope that it brings you new possibilities.
For my family, I hope that 2013 brings a new baby into our family. I hope that my sister finds someone worthy of her love and partnership. I hope that my brother and his family find peace and a place to settle into a new healthy, happy life. I hope that my mom continues to be cancer-free, and that she and my Dad enjoy their life. I hope that my Uncle David finds good health and healing from 2012, and that he and my Aunt Linda continue to enjoy the life that they have made. I hope that Scott's nephew Jeremy and his wife Charlie welcome a healthy baby in the coming weeks. This pregnancy has been hard on Charlie and I hope that everything from here on out gets easier for them. I wish for health and happiness for both extended sides of our families, those in NW Iowa, and those in Texas, Georgia, and New Jersey.
For my friends, I wish health and happiness. For our friends April and Glen, I wish a successful and wonderful birth of their first baby in the next few weeks. (Can't wait to meet that baby!) For our other friends, I wish babies in their future just as much as I wish for a baby in our family. For all others, I wish health and happiness.
Ok... enough of the novel. I hope 2013 is a great year for us all!
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