'Tis the season to be jolly...fa-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la!

I have always loved the holiday season.  It means family and friends getting together to celebrate.  It's a time to relax and enjoy life at a slower pace, thanks to a nice two week Christmas vacation!  It's a time to look back at the year past and reflect on the happenings over the past year.  This year I am especially grateful for good health and many miracles that have happened to those I love.  Here's to many more miracles and a new year filled with love, laughter, health, healing and more blessings!  Ok, now I'll stop being sappy and post LOTS of pics of the fun we've had over the past month and a half! 

We had a BLAST going to Sacramento to enjoy a ride on the Polar Express at the Railroad Museum...Truly a great holiday tradition in the making.   My teacher friend was able to hook us up with some sweet First Class tickets, sitting in the lounge car (which by the way, was the car that President Roosevelt used to give speeches from).  We were able to skip to the front of the line (always a plus for a toddler's mom), were given hot chocolate and cookies as soon as we sat down, and enjoyed a performance of the book Polar Express, complete with the dancers to the Hot Chocolate song and the Hobo, who by the way played the part PERFECTLY!  At the end of the line, The North Pole, we saw Santa and his elves!  Dalton wasn't over the moon excited but we caught him in awe of things a few times. 

Old Town Sacramento...perfect winter evening!  Clear and cold.

 Dinner that night?  Fresh made mini doughnuts on the way to the train!  Only the crumbs remained...

 Waiting for the train to arrive...I think I was just as excited as Dalton.

All aboard!

 YES!  Cookies! 

"Hot, Hot, Hot, Hot Chocolate!!!"

 Watching the Hot Chocolate Tap Dancers...

 One happy family!

Check out the concentration!  We have a techie in the making! Here's to passing the time on the train up to The North Pole...

 I see The North Pole!

 I loved the reflections in these two pictures!

 Ah, yes!  The North Pole!

Santa Clause!!!

 "What do you mean you don't think I'm the REAL Santa Clause?!?!" the infamous Hobo teased.

 It must be Christmas, because Santa even got on the train to give us the first Christmas present...one of the reindeer bells!  (By the way, seriously the nicest sounding Xmas bell I've heard!)

Dalton on the other hand was too shy to say hi to Santa and decided it was safer to ignore him...despite my attempts!

All in all it was a FANTASTIC evening!

Before we knew it, Christmas was here!  And what an awesome Christmas it was!  Having my parents, sister, bro-in-law and niece here was THE BEST! 

The Christmas loot

Santa brought Dalton a super cool Christmas Geotrax train, complete with lights and music!  As soon as Dalton saw it he started playing with it and left us to open stockings and presents in peace.  He could have cared less about anything but the train.

They just adore each other:)

Candace, Derek, and Rocky dog came to enjoy the morning with us, which we loved!

 Check out that cute face!

Finally he took a break from the train to chill with Daddy.

 This year, we got Kellyn a sewing machine, which she had mentioned she'd love to have! Yep, she was surprised!

 All smiles!

This year we decided it'd be fun for everyone to get new PJs on Christmas Eve...Dad's couldn't have been more fitting for him!  He actually wore them all morning, which is a miracle if you know my dad!  Nice hair Dad!

Every year we pick names for Christmas, guess who got who here...too funny!  (If you didn't guess, my dad had Annika).

 Dalton finally noticed his bike from Grammy, Poppi and Auntie Nana!  He was so excited to get a balance bike!  Look at his expression:)

 "Auntie can you help me get on it?"

 Sweet!!!

 After racing around the house, he took a break to read a book with Kellyn.  He LOVES her SO much!

Alas, BREAKFAST TIME!!!

 Enjoying the family conversations

 and participating too! 

 Like Poppi like Grandson...Two peas in a pod!

Family photo time!

 Oh, I just LOVE this kiddo!  She is so much fun!

 Time to PLAY!  PLAY! PLAY! 

The next day we headed over to my cousin Marlene's to see the rest of the family.  My two favorite kids in the whole wide world!

 The four cousins: Kyle, Kellyn, Trevor and Dalton 

What a great day! So special that we were able to all be together. 

I can't remember what Kellyn was reacting to, but I am sure it was a classic Poppi comment

AND after all that fun it was time to relax!

MAY IT BE THE BEST YEAR YET! HAPPY 2012!

SO MUCH to be thankful for...

This time of year always makes me realize how blessed I am and how truly thankful I am for my family and friends.  I have LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this past week off!!!  Dalton and I had lots of time to be together and took a roadtrip to my parents.  We even had time to catch up with the Locke/Harris fam...the time always FLIES though:(  Dalton and Finn are just too cute together!  Watching them play confirms that the Harris family needs to be back on the WEST COAST!!!!

 Yes, that is BUCKET on Finn's head!! And Dalton completely IGNORING his attempt to be funny,
even after Finn bumped into him.  So they decided to move on to building with blocks.  Dalton is Mr. Meticulous and Finn is Captain Destructo! 

 After a while Mr. Meticulous realized that Captain Destructo's job is WAY MORE FUN so he joined in on the fun!  Monster truck and all!

 Phew!  All this fun was hard work!

 While all the toddler chaos continued I couldn't stop lovin' Penelope...Could she be any cuter!??!?!?!?  (No people, I do NOT want another baby, I happily hug and kiss then hand back:)

 She really is the happiest, chill baby I have seen in a while.

The approaching nap-time ended our visit and we headed to Auntie Niki and Uncle Greg's house.  Thankfully Auntie was able to spend the afternoon with us:).  Dalton decided all this fun called for a drink!  Ok, it's cranberry juice in a shot glass.

 Cheers!

A few days before we celebrated Kellyn's 12th birthday!  It was a movie theater theme and my sister went all out.  I'll need to see if I can get some of the photos to share...The cake was a movie projector reel, the living room/bar was converted into a movie theater and snack bar, complete with goodie baskets for each of the three girls.  It was so cool!  Kellyn and her friends came out to hang out with us after the movie and shared popcorn.  Dalton hadn't really had it before and DEVOURED it!  He sat on the hearth and shared with Kellyn and Poppi.  Check out his little hands resting on his knees.

 "Can I please have more, Kellyn?"

It sure was hard to leave after such a great visit, but we made our way back home a couple days before Thanksgiving to enjoy time with our family by us.  Dalton traveled so well!!!!  But naps in the car are rare and short.  He slept about 40 min that day...he definitely doesn't have "carpolepsy" like Kellyn!

Thanksgiving was spent at Trav's mom's house, with Auntie Shirley, Uncle Dan, Aunt Dianne and Uncle Jimmy.  We loved spending the time with this part of the family and the food was DELICIOUS!  My mother-in-law sure created a tasty spread!  Travis and I planned to take a family photo, BUT Dalton had other ideas and we'll try again soon!  At least we got a couple cute shots before dinner of him.

This is the smile that has helped many in our family this week, especially me.   This week has been a week full of emotions ...  happy and sad.  Our dear Uncle Joe (my great uncle who is more like a grandfather to all of us great-nieces) was admitted to the hospital after having a heart attack mid week.  My family has been spending time with him at the hospital and enjoying our last moments with him.   Despite his health being poor, he still smiled when he saw us all and especially loved seeing Dalton and Kellyn.  He even had his sense of humor and was able to "give us a hard time" about things in his joking way.  Dalton was a real trooper and didn't mind visiting the hospital.  He loved pushing the elevator buttons and walked quietly down the long hallway to Uncle Joe's room with his rolling monkey backpack in tow.  Dalton wasn't afraid of the hospital setting, nor was he startled by the machines in the room.  In fact, the first day there he plopped down on some machine and started to watch a movie on his DVD player.  Uncle Joe loved seeing his great, great nephew and couldn't get over his blonde, curly hair! 

Today our special Uncle Joe passed away at the age of 89.  He has always been very independent, living on his own 'til the end, and was still "as sharp as a tack".  So, when his health started to decline recently we all knew he would NOT just wither away.  With that, he waited to see all his kids this week.  He didn't suffer and for that we are extremely grateful.  Although we are all deeply saddened for our loss, we know that he is in a better place, with our Boompa, Aunt Fran, Nana, Papa, and all the other family members he loved dearly.  We will miss him terribly. 
In honor of Uncle Joe, I will end this post with a picture from our wedding with him...a special photo that has become even more special.  

Among the many things we feel thankful for, we are especially THANKFUL for all the wonderful times and memories we have shared with Uncle Joe.  Rest in peace, Uncle Joe.