SPECIAL THANKS

As 2011 comes to a close, I can't help but be thankful to my mommy for always being around to watch Stella, especially during weddings and photo shoots. Thanks Grammy!

FAMILY PICTURES 2011

Here are some of my favorites from our family pictures this year taken by my dear friend Krisi. I have to say that I think we are one good looking family.

SO THIS IS CHRISTMAS

It has been a few days since the extravaganza that was our Christmas came to an end, and finally I think I am ready to tackle going through the pictures and saying a few words about our day.

Stella was of course totally thrilled that Santa came. She opened each present with equal joy and excitement. She got a dollhouse, books, movies, binoculars, a Princess CD player, Princess baby accessories, and a Princess kitchen. Grammy and Papa stopped by as well to see her open her last few presents. Before he knew it, Brent was being directed to start assembling Stella's Princess kitchen. Stella sat down and kept a close eye on his progress, chiding him if he got distracted at all.

Christmas being on a Sunday is always kind of the pits. (Sorry, but those are my thoughts.) Brent being the good Mormon that he is insisted that, since there were no presents for him under the tree, his gift would be us going to church without any complaints. I murmured under my breath, but got ready for church anyway. The meeting was actually really nice, and I am glad we went. As were were leaving church, Stella announced that she loved the meeting so I guess it wasn't such a bad idea to go.

After church we were off to Grandma and Grandpa Sallay's house. We were most excited to be able to talk to our missionary, Kathy. We opened gifts and then finally our missionary called. Stella was super shy, but talked a little. I think she was kind of sure that Aunt Kathy was actually going to be at the house, so when she only got to talk to her on the phone I think she felt like she got the shaft. After our call, Stella and I had our first dance performance to Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas." We have been working on it for weeks and Stella loved showing off her cool moves. There are no pictures of the dancing since Brent was busy video taping.

By the time we got to my parent's house we were exhausted and shocked to find too many presents under the tree. The girls were so excited. We had some family drama during and following dinner and it feels wrong to just write about Christmas like it was some sparkly day when in fact there were a few family bumps. I don't want to get into it too much, but I do want to say that even though my family is kind of crazy these days, we still love each other and I am grateful to them all for being in my life.

Anyway, we finally got into the pile of gifts and the girls were sufficiently spoiled. Stella got her long awaited Baby Belle doll and lots of other special treats. I am thrilled to announce that I bought Ava her favorite gift this year: a pair of Barbie roller skates. She had to try them out immediately and it wasn't without some hilarious results. We were all showered with gifts, especially Mom with her Gucci blanket from Santa.

Stella and I performed our dance again and then Ava joined us for an encore or two. We had some more acts for our family devotional and then called it a night. It was a very busy and full day.

It was very nice to have all of Monday to just hang around, and Stella was finally able to totally immerse herself in the gluttony that is Christmas. So many presents! It is almost out of hand really. But she loves them all. She is especially fond of the CD player and takes it everywhere. She has dropped it several times and every time I cringe that it is broken for good because her heart will break with it. But not to worry--it is still working and Stella is forever shaking it to Disney's muzak versions of the hits you know and love.

So that was Christmas for us this year, I think it might go down in history as unforgettable. :)