Piano Recital

Andrew and Jared had their Christmas Piano Recital at the Eccles Art Center again this year.  It's my favorite place to watch them play.  The building is beautiful at Christmas time and I love the full size Steinway they get to play on!  Both of them were a little disappointed that they made a few mistakes but it takes a lot of courage to get up and play in front of a room full of people.  Watching them play in their recitals is pay off for all the days it is so hard to get them to practice!  They have come so far in a year and a half and I have to remind myself on the days when practicing ends in tears that it is all worth it!

Here they are with their teacher Sharyl Tucker.

6 Months Old

Skyler was 6th months old in December!  He's changing so quickly now.  After deciding he need more calories and giving him a couple bottles a day with extra concentrated formula he finally started to really grow.  The doctor came in to his check up and said he was finally back on the charts.  A whopping 3rd percentile!  He's still a little guy but we were thrilled that he had grown to 14 lbs 7 oz and 25 1/2 inches.  He's so interactive and fun now.  He's almost sitting on his own.  He's enjoying trying out new foods, (well some of them - not peas and beans!)  He usually sleeps all night and people are always asking me, "does he always smile like that?  Yes, he does!  He's such a sweetheart!  I wish I had a secret to keep him from growing up!

California and Thanksgiving

After the morning at Zion we were off to California to my parents house.  We took Skyler to the beach for the first time but it was a cold, windy beach day!  We didn't last long.

Jason and Moises stayed a little longer and explored the pier and downtown Huntington Beach.

With so many things to choose from to do in Southern California we asked Moises what he would like to do the most.  He picked Universal Studios because he loves to watch movies.

The Jurrasic Park ride scared Kaitlyn to death and Jared isn't too fond of roller coasters thanks to inheriting my motion sickness.  It was a fun day though and Moises really enjoyed the Studio Tour.

Moises got to experience an American Thanksgiving with my family.  I think he found the food somewhat unusual but enjoyed learning about our traditions.

The day after Thanksgiving, Jason, Andrew, Moises, my dad and I went to the Newport Beach Temple to do baptisms.  It was my first time going to the temple with Andrew and it was a great experience.

All too soon (for us) the month was over and it was time for Moises to go home.  I'm sure he was more than ready to go home and see his family who he really missed.  Our kids were so sad to see him go but we enjoy talking to him on Skype and are already looking forward to the next time we will see him.

A Beautiful but Cold Day at Zion

Our next stop was Zion National Park.  After telling the kids multiple times it would be colder there and they really should put on long pants they froze in the chilly morning!  It was a beautiful late fall day though and although we didn't have much time we enjoyed a drive through the canyon and a few short walks.

I love Jared with his winter coat and shorts.  Maybe next time he'll listen when we say to dress warm!

This made for a long road trip.  Skyler isn't too fond of the car but did pretty well, considering..

Our visitor from Brazil: Salt Lake and Moab

Jason first met Moises when he was serving a mission for our church in Sao Paulo Brazil over 18 years ago.  Jason had the privilege of teaching and baptizing Moises.  Over the years they lost touch with each other but we were thrilled a couple years ago to find Moises again and meet his family through Skype.  Last year Moises and his wife were wonderful hosts for us when we were in Brazil.  We were thrilled to find out that Moises was coming to Utah to take English classes.  We enjoyed having him in our home most of the month of November and showing him around our part of the world.

 One of many trips to Temple Square in Salt Lake City.  Jason, Andrew, Jared and Moises enjoyed the Sunday morning Tabernacle Choir performance of Music and the Spoken Word.

After the performance we all met at Melanie's for her baby Sapphire's blessing.  Isn't she adorable?

Another trip to temple square.

It was so fun when we woke up one morning to a beautiful snow storm.  Moises had never seen snow before and had a great time playing in the snow with the kids.

We wanted to show Moises our favorite places in Utah so we went to Arches National Park.

We stopped for a view at Dead Horse Point and literally had our lunch blown away!