The Colquitt Clan: January 2009

Sorry all....complete picture overload! But you all know how I love pictures!

We were able to stop by and see my Nana again. She just happened to be at the front door doing some people watching! She is so funny. She wants to keep Olivia there with her! Not sure how all the other residents would feel about that! I am so grateful for all of my wonderful grandparents. We have all been very close throughout my life. They are all such amazing people and I am grateful that my kids have had a chance to get to know them.

My Grandma happens to be in the room across from my Nana right now. She is recovering from an illness and has hopes to go back home very soon. The one thing that I noticed about my grandma was her extremely soft hands. Those are hands that I could hold forever! I love you Grandma!

Gabe loved driving on the tractor with Papa...there was never a shortage of snow to be plowed this trip!

The kids (minus Kyle...he was able to spend a few days with his great friend William in Lehi) and I went to Jamee's while the boys went rabbit hunting. We had a great time hanging out, chatting, battling two boys who for some reason can't stand each other. The eating, giggling, screaming, fighting and playing was a lot of fun! The girls thought it would be fun to put on my makeup. Thanks Jamee for letting us hang!

Later that afternoon we went to Nana and Papa's house. The kids did a fun craft with Nana. They all painted jewelry boxes. They turned out really cute. Halle decided to make hers for her teacher Ms. Cox. (Halle was so excited to give it to her and she loved it!) Thanks Nana for painting with the kids....unfortunately, it is not something I like to do at home!! (TOO MESSY!) We had a fun time!

We were fortunate enough to have a day to spend with friends. Our day started out with the Johnson's. We met up at the Kangaroo Zoo in North Salt Lake. It was a lot of fun. The kids had a great time on the slides and playing the Black Light Golf. (Really weird too...I was wearing a black shirt in the golf area and it was completely see through in the black light!) Halle and Savannah had so much fun together. It was like we were never gone! I wish that we could be closer so that they could hang out. We then went to the El Matador for some tasty mexican food. We had a great time catching up...even though our time was short, it was very memorable. We love and miss the Johnson's very much!

After lunch with the Johnson's, we headed over to the Wray's for dinner and chatting. The boys made sushi that looked really nice (even though I despise the smell of fish!) We ordered pizza for those of us that don't eat sushi. We played a bit of MadGab (and giggled as we listened to the kids playing!) Gabe and Bryson played great together. Kyle and Peyton played a bit of Guitar Hero and the girls...well, I am not sure what they did! Joslyn decided to join a dip contest at the local market and I went up with her to help her enter and she won!! It was a super tasty dip. Thanks Wray's! We miss and love you all so very much!

The day before we left, we decided to take the FrontRunner (UTA Train) down to the Gateway to go out to lunch with my dad and go to Build-A-Bear with the kids. Gabe was unsure about the train, but once we started going he loved it! Kyle and Justin went to the back of the train car. Apparently, we are not cool enough to sit with! All in all it was fun. Thanks Mimi for the great idea! We went to Applebee's with everyone...it was just a bit crazy! But it was Papa Curt's last opportunity to see the girls before we left for Texas. Thanks Dad for coming down.

Build-A-Bear.....What was I thinking?? Just kidding :) Once everyone picked out what they wanted it was easier! There were way to many options to choose from. I think that the kids had a great time. The girls picked out special ones so that they could be twins. They even picked one out for Claire who wasn't there. They loved picking out clothes, bathing them, naming them. I love the picture where they are all kissing the heart before they put it into their stuffed animal. They had to make a promise to their animal that they would take care of them for a lifetime. It was really cute...they were all so into it!

On the train home the girls got off with Jenny and Scott picked them up to go to their house for New Year's Eve. They had so much fun!! Thanks guys for having them. They miss your kids so much.

We then took the loooonnnnnnnggggg drive home the next morning. Gabe complained of ear pain for a while and then started screaming hysterically. And for him, we thought it must be pretty bad. He is not usually like that. So we decided we had to go to the Moab Hospital (wow...what a dive!) They were so nice there. We were in and out really quick. Turns out that the ear infection was not cured with the anti-biotic the week before. They decided to just give him some numbing drops and send us on our way. That kind of solved the problem. A few times in the middle of the night he would break out screaming at the top of his lungs. The kids did great though. Steve pretty much drove the whole way. It was too hard for me to keep my eyes open! Twenty-four hours later we were home!

We had a wonderful trip. We are all so grateful for our families and for their willingness to open their homes to all of us! We had a wonderful time hanging out and reminiscing. We are also grateful for the friends we were able to see and are sorry for the friends we didn't get too. We love you all so very much. Thank you all for being a part of our lives. We are truly blessed. Happy New Year to you all!

We had lots of fun opening up presents on Christmas morning. The girls got Nintendo DS's and Kyle got a camera that also does video. Steve got an EOTech scope for his gun (thanks for your help Mike & Sara!) He was super surprised about it. I got Mighty Putty (which I was so excited about. I have since tried it and I can totally say it works awesome!), a WillowTree Figurine and a few other things. It was a great morning! My mom got a fun surprise in her stocking too ;) Have you tried them out yet mom?? xoxo

After opening up gifts at Mimi's and Papa's we travelled down an extremely snowy canyon to Nana and Papa's house. We had a great time eating crepes (thanks Papa!), opening gifts and reading the Christmas story out of the New Testament. The girls got matching shirts that were really cute! They also got fun collectibles. Thanks for the great gifts and for the wonderful memories! We love you :)

We then headed back up to Mimi & Papa's for Christmas dinner with the rest of the family (minus the Jeppson Clan. We sure missed you guys!) It was very chaotic but the food and the company were good. That is all that matters! The presents were great too :) The older kids got a stack of $1 bills that have never been circulated. Really cool! And with my loot, I purchased a new bench for the porch! Thanks Mimi & Papa for an amazing Christmas!

Papa decided to try an old family tradition that consisted of filling up a tub with sawdust and throwing in lots and lots of coins. It was extremely messy but the kids had a fun time collecting all of the loot. My parents will be cleaning up sawdust for months to come! Maybe next year you can try the money jar, Papa!! Thanks again. It was great spending the holidays with all of the family! We love you very much.

The final chapter will come soon!!