Gardner Village at Christmas

Yesterday we went with the Miskins and Kecks to Gardner Village. I hadn't been there at Christmas time, and I wanted to see the elves and get some pictures of Ashlyn around them. Well, I was out of luck, because Ashlyn did NOT love the elves. In fact, they completely terrified her. I can't really blame her, I mean, one of the elves looked just like gollum from Lord of the Rings. Freaky! The other kids were great sports (I think Tiffany got tons of shots of Kyle grinning away while sitting right next to elves).

It wasn't very crowded and that's probably because it was so cold. Natalya was kind enough to lend Ashlyn her hat and mittens. Isn't the hat cute? Ashlyn really seemed to like it too, so I need to get her one of her own.

I did make one purchase (although I vowed to myself that I would not spend money) and it was a home decor item. Well, turns out, it won't even work in my house. I have nowhere to put it! Isn't that pathetic?

All in all, it was a fun afternoon adventure and we're still big fans of Gardner Village!

I Wanna Be Like You

Ashlyn was sporting Brad's glasses and hat Saturday night. She just loves to do anything that her dad does!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Bryon, Michael, and Lorie were all able to join us for Thanksgiving Day festivities. We spent the morning across the street at the church playing all sorts of ball. I was reminded once again why I do not play sports.

At 2:00 Grandma Buttle came over with Turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, broccoli, and apple crisp. We added to it our jello, rolls, stuffing, and carrots, and promptly dug in. Grandma's turkey was exceptionally moist and she claims that it is because she cooks it upside down! That way all the juices sink into the breast meat and it doesn't get dried out. After dinner we enjoyed a delicious apple crisp with ice cream. Yummy!

Later on in the day we were hanging out in the basement. Here is Michael registering for classes at the computer.


We turned on some music and everyone started dancing. Ashlyn is dancing with her dad.


Ashlyn and Bryon are watching Brad's crazy moves.


Brad does not want his picture taken.


Brad dances some more.


Ashlyn dances some more.


For the most part, we have just enjoyed relaxing and hanging out together. Holidays are the best!

The Places She'll Sit

Tonight we have Bryon, Lorie, and Michael spending the night with us and we are all watching "We are Marshall" together. Well, I guess not all of us - Ashlyn is actually reading a book while sitting on Daddy's head . . . and Daddy's face. Isn't Daddy such a good sport?

Bonneville Shoreline Trail

Lorie is in Utah for her Thanksgiving break, so we decided to go on a day hike up to the Y. We were at the foot of the trail when we looked to the south and saw another, much more level trail and decided to take it instead. It was our first time on the Bonneville Shoreline Trail, but we really enjoyed the scenic walk with great views of Provo. Ashlyn fell asleep about 5 minutes into it and slept almost the whole time. She just isn't feeling that great lately. I think these pictures of her and Lorie are just precious.

The Places She'll Sleep

It must have been an exhausting morning yesterday, because by lunch time Ashlyn was already asleep!

Family Pictures

We went to Portrait Innovations this morning to have our family picture taken for Christmas cards. The photographer ended up taking quite a few shots of Ashlyn and not as many as we would have liked of the family. We ended up buying only one pose (like we initially intended), but came home and took some of our own. I mean, if we are going to spend all this effort dressing up in coordinating outfits, we might as well make it worth our while.






I think I like the lighting of the outdoor pictures better than the indoor ones.