more Christmas fun

A Christmas tradition.....

SUGAR COOKIES!!!!

Dad was in charge of the frosting....lots of colors, some cream cheese, some regular.

The rest of us got busy rolling, cutting out and baking.

Family pictures for the Christmas card

I feel very blessed!!!!!

Love this one of my children!!

Happy Birthday Dec. 12, 2011

Ben insists that whoever is having a birthday gets treated to a "lights off, jump out and yell happy birthday to you" kind of surprise. So that's what I got! Do I look sufficiently surprised?!
My family is awesome and they treated me to a delicious dinner and dessert and lots of presents. What a lucky girl I am!!!

Christmas Parade Dec. 10, 2011

Haley had the opportunity to march in the NOR Christmas Parade. Her school, Earl Warren Junior High, was awarded first place in the band category!!

Haley really enjoys playing the flute!

Oh Christmas Tree

The children were anxious to get out the Christmas decorations as soon as Thanksgiving was over, so for the first time ever we put up our tree in November. (Haley and Hannah spent the morning doing make-overs, which explains how they look).

I love the house when the decorations are all put in place. When I look at our family room tree I am filled with so many joyful memories. The handmade ornaments from the children are very sweet!

My mom made a stocking for myself and each of my siblings when we were born. She has since made a stocking for Russ and each of my children.
Over the years I have collected pieces for my Christmas village that we set up on the piano. I love it at night when it is all lit up.
I have a collection of nativities that I display throughout my house. Hannah took pictures of these two. It is nice to have this constant reminder of the reason why we celebrate Christmas.

The Judd Family

Back in the summer of 2011 we took this Judd family picture.

I am so thankful that I married into this wonderful family!!

The Cousins are coming!!!!! November 2011

Thanksgiving is one of our favorite holidays of the year!

It's a time for big family get togethers. We love hosting the "Sullivan's" for a fun filled weekend extravaganza.

Aunt Bridget drove from Utah with Jayce, Cameron, Marcus and Mikelle. Oh, we can't forget their dog, Moki. Tyler and Allison drove from Utah. Grandma and Grandpa Sullivan drove in from San Francisco and Uncle Brian drove up from Reseda.

Thanksgiving morning we headed over to the park to work up an appetite. We played ultimate frisbee, volleyball and a little rugby. There are some serious athletes in this bunch!

Uncle Brian helped lead his team to victory...

Cousin Jayce showed us his rugby skills.....
Oh yeah Ben.....what a nice catch!!
Girls just want to have fun.....
Moki was loving his time at the park!




It was so warm at the park that the children wanted to come home and jump in the pool......
The water was so cold, but they had fun anyway!
We couldn't keep Moki out of the water.
While the children played outside, mom, Bridget and I worked inside to get the food finished up.
Now that's what I call a feast!!!!

Grandma and Grandpa Judd joined us for the day.
After dinner we played games......
"Just dance" was a big hit!!
Ben serenaded us with some disney music.
Emily brought out her new game "Quelf" and the cousins had a blast playing it together.

Jayce shared his ukulele skills with us while we had a big "Pass the Pigs" tournament. Everyone put in a dollar to play. When you lost a round you were eliminated. It was intense!!!!

But we had so much fun.

At one point we needed a magnifying glass to determine if the pigs were touching or not......it was determined that they were NOT touching. It came down to Hannah and Grandma Sullivan as the finalists......
and the winner was Grandma Sullivan!!!!!!!

Also this weekend we were treated to a show......

Hannah worked hard for a month before Thanksgiving writing and planning the big show. There were posters, invitations, tickets, seating assignments, props, and costumes.

The show was called, "Want to be Famous".

Hannah, Haley, Marcus and Mikelle were the stars.
Marcus did a great job as the emcee

Look at that audience, they were thrilled to get their very own bag of treats to enjoy during the show!!





Are these four Hollywood bound, or what?!

Overall, we had a fabulous time this weekend. We also enjoyed going to the Condors hockey teddy bear toss game. It was so nice to spend time together!!! Can't wait till next year!