WISE MEN STILL SEEK HIM

I'm so grateful for this time of year.  I'm equally grateful for the knowledge of just how special it is.  It's not about getting or giving gifts, it's not about winter break, I have to say when I was a kid it was called Christmas break which is what it is and it irritates me that they changed it, anyway, it's not about the lights or any of the other fun stuff we do this time of year.  It's a celebration of our Savior's birth.  I was supposed to give a talk today but church got canceled due to weather, crazy!  Anyway my talk was on focusing on Christ during this season.  I thought we were doing pretty good but there are some things we could do better.  I'm really excited about the FHE I  found to help the family focus together.  In case you are interested it's called O Come All Ye Faithful and it's on LDS.org.   I hope that as we all go into this sometimes crazy holiday season that we all step back and remember the real reason for the season and focus on Christ and putting Christ back in Christmas. Instead of going to church today we are going to stay home and continue to watch BYU channel and rest and think about how blessed we are.  Especially today to be inside and out of the horrendous wind and blowing snow outside!

I LOVE THE HOLIDAYS!!!

I know that I'm a Christmas junkie but it's not the gifts although I do love giving and to be honest, getting is fun too. I love the entire season! Most years there are so many people who are completely engrossed in themselves and what they have to get done that going to the store is even worse than usual but this year people have been different. I see a lot more kind people, more courtesy, more smiles, more merry wishes basically more of what Christmas really means! It makes it so much easier to keep in mind the REAL reason we celebrate. Maybe it's just that I actually have been reading my scriptures DAILY even when I'm too tired. Maybe it's just that I'm closer to the spirit because I actually get on my knees to pray instead in bed where it's warm and soft. Maybe it's because the longer I'm married to my fabulous husband the more I love and appreciate him and enjoy doing things with and for him. I don't know but I do know that I'm happier this year and able to feel the spirit easier and more often and that makes me appreciate the holidays even more. We always decorate the day after Thanksgiving, this year I enjoyed it more. I can't wait until Christmas but I'm enjoying the season more than ever. I'm so grateful for this time of year and for our Savior and his life and mission. I'm thankful for my family and friends and the gospel in my life. It truly is a wonderful life!

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!!!! Our Christmas started early, very early and unfortunately, Levi had a rough night which means I had a rough night and I wasn't ready for it to start, but after Ryan got home this morning from work (he pulled an overnight) we started. As you can see, the paper tearing was enjoyed by all. Levi didn't take long to catch on but AJ was all too happy to help him anyway. Jake and Caleb had a great time also. After the gifts were opened, Ryan went to bed and the boys disappeared upstairs to play with very loud Firetrucks, tractors and police cars and a tunnel that the babes got. Even though the boys didn't get alot of presents this year they all enjoyed the ones they got and apparently the ones their brothers got also. We snacked all day on leftovers from Mary's party last night, as always a good time and great food. Tonight we had our traditional Christmas dinner and then Ryan went back to work. I'm looking forward to Saturday when he will have a day off and a night off. Did I mention that he is amazing!? I'm debating on going out tomorrow for the awesome after Christmas shopping, we could use a couple of things and I read the sales are supposed to be incredible. I'm not eager to take four boys to the stores but I probably will, mostly to get them out of the house so that Ryan can sleep. I bought him ear plugs but I think quiet is still better. I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and remembered to be thankful for the reason we celebrate it, I know we did. Love to all!

CHRISTMAS BREAK

Ok, I know it's not politically correct to call it Christmas Break, it's supposed to be winter break now. I don't care. For me and mine, it will always be Christmas Break. Anyway, the boys are on CHRISTMAS BREAK and we are it's only Tuesday I'm already exhausted and my house is a mess! I can't even remember what we did on Saturday, Sunday is a blur. Yesterday we made cookies all day and I do mean all day. We finished about 3 and quick got ready to go to Mesa to the temple to look at the lights and eat at Matta's, which is Ryan's fav restaurant and a must hit everytime we go to the temple. I know the weather man called for rain but come on it's Arizona and they are hardly ever right, it usually doesn't actually happen. Last night it did, we walked around the temple grounds in the rain. Oh well, it was still pretty and the boys still enjoyed it and I'm still thankful for the rain. Today we went hiking in the white tanks and did the waterfall hike, with all of the rain recently, the waterfall was flowing and there was water in the wash. It was a nice little walk and of course the boys had fun. I like going and getting some exercise while the boys burn off some energy. We stopped at the visitor center this time to let the boys look at all of the snakes. They make my skin crawl and my stomach knot but the boys are fascinated. They had one particular diamondback rattler that as soon as we walked by it's cage, it coiled and poised to strike and was hissing and rattling. The ranger said they don't strike at the glass but then he looked at him and said, "well he sure looks like he is going to this time doesn't he." The boys really liked that. They also have a gila monster and the boys liked that and the scorpions and tarantulas the best. They are definitely all boy but anyone who knows them already knew that. When we got home from that I made still more cookies while the boys watched movies and then tonight we went caroling, at Jake's request. We visited a couple of friends and delivered some of the cookies we made. Now you can see why I am already beat. Mary called and said if it rains tomorrow she is moving her Christmas Eve party over here, that's okay with me but now I have to mop my floor and stuff tonight instead of tomorrow. That's no big, it's going to be fun. Ryan says I'm glutton for punishment but I'm glad the boys are enjoying their CHRISTMAS break. Anyway, I'm not sure how long I can keep this going but I know that after Christmas they'll be busy with their new stuff so I can sit still for a few minutes. It's fun anyway and I'm glad we are making memories they'll enjoy.

Partying

We had our ward Christmas party last night and of course Santa knows what a great time it is every year so he always comes and hangs out with the kids. AJ wouldn't sit on his lap this year but I thought he might this year since we have been talking about it so much this year and he has been saying that he will tell Santa he wants candy for Christmas. He calls Santa "Christmas" for some reason. As you can see from his face in the picture, he wasn't trusting him enough to take his eyes off of him even for the picture. He definitely wasn't going to sit on his lap. Caleb got a santa hat from my mom and was having a blast with that, as you can plainly see. Tonight was our annual Maher Christmas party and this year we did it at our house. Considering that we have a pretty big family and a not so big house, it went pretty well. The food was delicious, the desserts were delightful, the gift exchange was fun (we got Wall-E, sorry Karla), the kids had fun playing upstairs and if the quality of the fun correlates to the noise level, they were having fun. Considering how many kids were here and how loud it was, the mess is, actually, not bad at all. I love Christmas. Not for the gifts although it's fun to give and nice to get. I love Christmas for all of the opportunities we have every day to celebrate the life of our Savior. I am so grateful for his atoning sacrifice. I am thankful for my husband and children. I am thankful for all of my family. I am thankful for wonderful friends. I am thankful for more blessings than I can ever name.

Our Christmas Picture

So... We were asked this year if we were doing a Family picture. I decided that since we didn't do one last year we should probably do one this year. We decided it would be more economical to do it at home. So we did. We had Luke come over and take our picture in our front room. Ryan has no patience and taking family pictures with 4 little boys is no small undertaking. We took many pictures and finally settled on the one I have now placed behind our blog title. I think it turned out pretty well, I only had to crop out one dog and he at least wasn't blocking anyone like Jazzmin was in some of them. Sometimes I think if they put a camera in our walls, we could be a sitcom with all of the off the wall and downright hysterical stuff that these boys do.