David and Kris's Blog

Monday, December 31, 2012

Christmas Day 2012

Christmas morning was filled with gifts, Christmas brunch at the Ringers, and visiting the kids and their families. When the sun went down and the old folks were in bed, things got crazy! That's what happens when you leave your camera unattended with youngsters who have stayed up way too late and imbibed a lot of bubbly.

The boys checking out the stockings

He's a lumberjack and he's OK

Kris's amethyst pendant

A Hobbitish map and a new axe

Brunch at the Ringers

Greg, Jeff, and Joyce

Jams were the order of the day

Beck and Auntie Em at the Colvers

The Taylors enjoying their new fireplace

This could be the start of something great

It's getting better all the time

Fun with fruit

Beard accessories

More to come, but that's all for now.

OXO

Wednesday, December 26, 2012

Christmas Eve 2012

Christmas Eve, the family gathered for dinner, an unplanned and unexpected fun-with-napkins event, nativity, talent show, and a viewing of my 2012 DVD. The aunts and uncles opened their gifts to each other before heading home. Before bed, in keeping with long-standing tradition, Grammy read The Polar Express and The Story of Christmas. The Youngs opened their new PJs, the boys went to bed, and Santa arrived without a hitch.

The boys were very pleased with a

Christmas-Eve snow storm

The 3rd-generation table (someone

doesn't like to sit at a "kids' table")

Roast beef, Yorkshire pudding, rotkohl, sprouts,

spuds, stuffing, gravy, and cranberry salad

North-west corner of the table

The south-west corner

The south-east corner

Gavin likes Maren's bikini

This is something they used to do with the Boynton cousins

A large doobie

A kilt

Nativity scene (you probably didn't know that

one wise man gave an iPhone)

The whole cast

Piano solo

A vocal duet

A father-son collaboration

A vocal solo

A piano solo

Auntie Katy shares some poetry

Beckham busts a move

Bing bong bing bong...

The Christmas pudding

The second generation opens gifts

Grammy reads some stories

Christmas jams

Good times with more to follow, but that's all for now.

OXO

Christmas 2012: The Youngs Arrive

December 22 the Youngs arrived from Arizona via Las Vegas. The fun and games began almost immediately. The next day was filled with shopping and last-minute errands before we settled in to make final preparations for Christmas and its eve.

Three boys in transit

A lovely winter sunset to kick off the festivities

The cousins in a most serious game of Life

The beginning of endless rounds of Pit, Canasta,

and every sort of fun

Beckham working on one of the many treats that

arrived at the door during this season

More will follow.

OXO

D.

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas

December has been filled with concerts and preparations that give a boost to the feeling of Christmas. We put up a tree the week after Thanksgiving. I really don't like stringing lights on the tree and, thankfully, this year Kris helped tons! Last week Max's choir had a concert at Centennial Middle School that was followed a few minutes later by Madeline's concert at Timpview High School. So we dashed from one school to the other just in time to catch it all. They were both great! Yesterday evening we celebrated Madeline's 17th birthday with her favorite grasshopper ice cream pie. Tonight was the choir concert at Wasatch School. Lizzie sang with the 3rd-Grade Choir and Oliver sang with the Concert Choir. It was a highlight of the season, as always. Mother Nature has kicked in with some spectacular light shows and snow storms that are stunning.