Dear Santa...

Dylan mailed a letter to Santa this year.  The boys made lists for Santa and the family a few weeks before Christmas.  About a week before Christmas I saw Dylan sealing a letter up for Santa, that included his list.  A few days later, this came back in the mail.  Pretty cool, I'd say.

Christmas 2011 (in pictures...mostly)

What a fun Christmas we all had!  I found some matching pajamas for the whole family, which I thought would be fun.  Unfortunately, they were a bit too hot for Jayden and he woke up sweating with a fever starting around 5 am.  We held off doing the presents till 7 am, but he still didn't feel great. Other than feeling kind of crappy till he took a nap after all the present opening, he felt great (I'm so sorry, Jayden!) the rest of the day.

The boys were all a little disappointed they never had a chance to talk to Santa in person, and held out hope he may stop to make a visit even on Christmas Eve.  Sadly, that didn't happen, but he sure delivered for them!  They all got at least one thing off their lists.  Dylan got a NCAA football for the Wii (notice the unsure face as he tries to decide if it is the "Wii college football game" he asked for) and Lego Hero Factory. Jayden got a flying shark and beyblades.  Ethan got a tractor and a Hot Wheels Wall track ("Just what a wanted!").  Santa took good care of Austin and Lauren, too.  I love Austin's excited expression in the picture.  And I love (there is some sarcasim here) the chocolate on Lauren's doll that must have come from a loving 2 year old brother's mouth or hands as she opened it.  And yes, she really did open it - or at least half of it.  I've never had one so little actually open presents. I think even our one-year olds have needed some help.  Unfortunately I can now say that we have had a present under the tree unwrapped before Christmas.  No, it wasn't the curious two year old, it was the 7 month old.  She learned to scoot a week before Christmas and a few days later was found with a half unwrapped present under the tree.  I was glad it was just a box of clothes, so nothing was spoiled! 

After eating some cereal and fruit mixed with the chocolate that was eaten, we played and played until it was time to get ready for church (except for Jayden, who slept).  Church was nice - a good reminder of what the day is all about.  After church there was a bit more playing and some naps for babies, then off to visit the grandparents.  We made a quick stop to the Gibsons; we had spent Christmas Eve morning together for breakfast and a Christ Centered Christmas gift exchange that was so fun and so spiritual.  I think it is a new favorite Christmas tradition for all of the Gibson family.  Then we headed to the Kirks.  We had so much fun visiting, eating, opening presents, and talking with Uncle Ben who is serving a mission in the Dominican Republic. 

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Letter

December 4, 2011

Dear Family and Friends,

What a great year it has been for our family! It seems like it has gone by much too fast. Here is a rundown of what we’ve been up to.

The biggest news for our family would have to be the fact that we welcomed a baby girl into our home. Lauren was born May 4, and has become the princess of the family, thanks to her dad and her brothers. She is growing quickly, although she is a bit petite (5-10 percentile). She is a good natured and easy going girl. She loves her brothers and just smiles at all the attention (hugs, kisses, tickles, etc.) that she gets from them.

Austin just turned two in September and has become quite the character. He loves to be the center of attention and will do all sorts of things to try to get a good laugh from the family. He isn’t our biggest talker, but that is starting to change rapidly. He is very kind and looks out for each member of the family in his own way. This is often in the form of giving anything he finds that he thinks belongs to us, or that we might need, such as a phone, binky, toy, or glasses. He loves to wear anything “special” like hats, sunglasses, slippers, costumes, or mom and dad’s shoes. He has developed quite a love for music and you’ll often catch him humming tunes like the Alphabet song, I Am a Child of God or his own little creation.

Ethan is four and a half, and is a fun part of our family. He has a friendly personality and loves to be around other people. He will always go out of his way to say “hello” when he spots someone he knows. He is constantly asking to call friends to come play or see if he can go over and play. If that fails, you will usually catch him tagging along with Jayden. He is also the family tease…you know when he’s up to something because of his sly little smile. He is in preschool this year, and loves every second of it, to the extent that he’s disappointed on any non-school days. He is a cheerful boy that you can’t help but love.

Jayden will be seven at the end of December. He is a quiet helper. When he sees a need, he will often quietly fill it. It may be helping Austin get something he needs, singing a song to Lauren to help her stop crying, or giving up his spot next to Mom or Dad. He has developed a love of playing the piano and has started lessons this year. He’s also quite the athlete; soccer is his passion. He loves to break away and take the ball down for a goal, or chase down an opponent and stop them from scoring. Jayden loves to spend time with friends and will regularly bounce from house to house through the neighborhood all afternoon (calling home at each stop to let mom know where he is). He is very obedient and sweet with everyone in the family, which is a blessing to his mom and dad.

Dylan is eight, and has had a fabulous year. He was baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in April. He has also started playing the piano this year. Dylan is a sports enthusiast, and has had fun playing baseball and flag football. He is also an avid BYU football fan. Dylan and Jayden were lucky to go to two BYU football games. He is such a big fan that he would even turn his radio on to listen to late games, even though he was supposed to be going to bed. He is still doing karate, and has almost earned his third belt advancement this year (his green belt). He’s very creative and loves to read late into the night (or any other spare moment).

Roseann is carrying on as mother of the home. It has been fun for her to finally buy pink clothes, bows, flowers, little girl shoes, and everything else that comes with a baby girl. Five kids keep her busy, but she wouldn’t have it any other way. Sometimes the dishes aren’t done, and toys, shoes, and other remnants from the kids are scattered around the house, but she has decided there are times that the kids just need to enjoy some time with their mom. Someday the house will be clean all the time, right? She has also been busy being a Cub Scout den mother until just before Lauren was born. Since then she has been serving on the Relief Society Board. She also has had fun helping in the kids’ classrooms working one on one with math and writing. She would love to say that she has also spent some free time scrapbooking, but that wouldn’t be true. She has, however, been able to keep up a family blog. If you don’t have an invite to it, let us know.

Devon is still employed by the LDS Church in their IT division. He is leading the technical team that will replace a majority of computer systems used by the church to manage facilities all over the world. He’s excited for the challenge and new opportunities this project is providing. He has also been working toward earning his commercial pilot license for hot air ballooning, and has loved flying a hot air balloon again. Devon is also serving as a deacon’s quorum advisor and an assistant scoutmaster. That also means he has been enjoying lots of camping, overnighters, and even some backpacking this past year.

We hope you have had a fabulous year also, and would love to hear from you if it’s been a while. Give us a call, send us a note; we would love to hear from you.

Love,

The Gibson Family


P.S. In the picture, Dylan is on the back row. Left to right on the middle row is Austin, Ethan, and Jayden. In front is Lauren (pronounced LAW-ren).

Thats a first

Maybe I'm funny to post this, but I'm going to anyway. 

The other day Devon went and got Lauren up from a nap so we could go somewhere.  She had been dead asleep, and apparently sleeping on her face.  Devon hadn't really looked at her, but when I saw her in his arms, I had to ask what she had been sleeping on.  He said she had her hand under her face.  Well, I guess so!  You can even see where her fingernails and creases of her joints were!

Two Year Old Austin

If your name is Austin, and you are two, what do you do?

- You don't talk a lot, but you sure try.  You say Mommy, Daddy, Dylan, Jayden, Ethan, Lauren, binky, apple, rock, jump, there, Eeyore, cookie, all gone, stinky, eye, ear, owie, dee (for both drink and teeth), e-e (for blankee), I-o-no (for I don't know), uh-huh (for yes), and your own way of saying airplane, open, thank you, more, milk, candy, socks, shoes, and a few more.

- When you "say" you're sorry, you don't say a word, but go rub the top of the person's head.

 -Love to ride in the stroller to go on walks.  If Mom uses a single stroller and puts Lauren in it, you are not happy about that.

- You understand a lot, and are usually very obedient.

 

- Scream when Ethan gets near, especially if you suspect he's going to take whatever it is that you have.

- Love to read books. Also, your new favorite thing to do while reading books is to destroy them by ripping them apart. Drat!

- Have a very sad face when you get in trouble.  Your eyes get big, your lip turns down.  You are sensitive to getting in trouble.

- Overuse the word owie.  It is used for real owies, when you don't like something that happened (like a toy being taken away), and it is also what you call stickers.  This may come from the band aids you get when you get shots (owie).  They do kind of look the same. Also, you have tried to use a glue stick to fix an owie - a great problem solving idea for such a little guy!

- Love music. Recently it is suspected that you are trying to sing either Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, or the ABC song (the tune is there, just not the words)

- Kind of want to sleep in a big boy bed, but not really.  You get in the bed like you're going to go to sleep, but then cry as soon as Mom or Dad leaves the room.

- Suddenly want to do things yourself like pour milk or cereal, or get yourself a drink from the water dispenser in the fridge.  You also have begun to push a chair up to all sorts of places to reach what it is you want, or want to do like turning lights on and off, washing your hands at the sink, or getting something that has been purposely put out of your reach.

- Love to jump in your bed and on the tramp.  When you wake up from a nap, when Mom comes to get you, you are usually jumping up and down.

- Have a huge sweet tooth!  Once you catch sight of candy, or even canned fruit, it is hard to get you to eat anything else.

- Love to help.  One of your new favorite things to help with is the dishes.  You are really good at loading the utensils when they are dirty, and unloading them when they are clean.

- Get eczema behind your ears, and on your cheeks.  When you see Aquaphor, you can't help but want to put some behind your ears.

- Love animals, as long as they don't approach you.  The moment they make their way toward you, it terrifies you. You also make a few animal sounds, like arf, quack, moo, meow, and neigh (sounds like a laugh).

- Love  to be the center of attention.  You will do all sorts of crazy things to get a laugh.  One is to flop forward onto your stomach on the floor.  Very dramatic, and very silly.

The Other Half of the Story

My last blog post was a bit of my ranting about my messy house.  So, here's the other side to that story... spending time with my kids.  I love them, and I love to play with them! Here is a little glimpse of what fun we've been up to:

Going on a fall walk with lots of cousins and Grandma and Grandpa Kirk at Bridal Veil Falls.  It was beautiful.  Our timing to see the leaves in full color was perfect!

Dylan and Tyler had fun playing catch with a football.  We had several close calls of it falling into the river, but somehow it never happened.  Whew!

I love this cute picture of Lauren

What a fun Grandpa we have!

The boys adore their sister

Hanging out together:

I snapped this the other day when Jayden wanted to hold Lauren.  Love it!

Austin is so funny.  He just does random things all the time.  We were sitting at the counter eating a snack when he pulled this face.

Here are two of the cutest BYU fans.

Doesn't he look like he's up to trouble?

Last night we had fun playing with our lightsabers (aka glowsticks).  The boys had fun playing, I had fun playing around with my camera settings: