Happy Rockin' New Year!

We had such a fun time at the Brimhalls' New Year's Eve dance party last year, that we decided to throw one of our own! Bryan really gets all the credit for how awesome it was - he did most of the planning and work on the lights, music, and games. He had a sound system, spinning colored lights and two disco balls rigged up on the dance floor in our dining room and there was lots of yummy food in the kitchen. We had a few families from the ward come, along with the Andersons, of course. It turned out really fun! I think we are going to make this a yearly tradition!

Happy 2011 Everyone!

Christmas Fun With the Andersons

Our Christmas time with Bryan's family was short, but action-packed! We headed first to Bryan's hometown, Delta. There we stayed a night and then enjoyed a day outdoors tubing and four-wheeling at the sand...er...snow dunes. We built a campfire to keep warm and roast hotdogs and marshmallows for lunch. Andrew was very good on the four-wheelers and was able to ride them all by himself! Logan also had a great time. While taking him for a ride, I asked him if he liked four-wheelers. He shouted, "They're the BEST!!!"

Aunt Chris and Logan being pulled on a tube by...

...Daddy on a four-wheeler!

Andrew and Aunt Deb

Andrew, Bryan, Grandma (Nancy) Anderson, and Grandpa (Carl) Anderson
Hannah and Grandma

From the cold and snow, we headed to the sunny, blue skies in St. George. We all enjoyed a dip in the heated pool and the hot tub, but only the bravest of souls (Andrew and Logan) dared to venture into the icy cold kiddie pool! Thanks so much for the great condo, Uncle Kelly!

Logan and Grandpa Anderson

Logan taking a flying leap to Aunt Chris

Chris, Paiton, Grandma, Andrew, Logan, and Grandpa

Hannah loved splashing in the pool!

We even took a little day trip down to Las Vegas and found some good (and some kooky) deals at the Swap Meet. Back at the condo, we had a fun homemade "Cafe Rio" dinner and even our old friends Kevin and Laura and their kids were able to stop by. Aunt Chris ended the night with a Christmas pinata for the kids before we had to jump in the car and head North to take Bryan to the airport.

Look at this handsome fella!

Thank you, Andersons, for a wonderful time! We will miss you!

Fun with Cousins

Sadly, our Utah trip is quickly coming to a close. We have had so much fun spending time with family and old friends that we haven't seen in a long time.

The last time I remember our kids playing with their cousins, Jaden, Ashlyn, and Cadence, was at Logan's first birthday in 2006 before we moved to Ohio. When I saw them again this time, I was so amazed at how much they have grown! Our kids are very similar in ages, so they really had a blast together! We were able to spend a morning together at the Treehouse Museum in Ogden, then breakfast and church together on Sunday, and enjoyed their company at Danielle and Spencer's wedding reception too. Before we left, we also stopped at The Pie for yummy pizza and visited Uncle Kelly's family together.

Firefighters Ashlyn, Logan, and Andrew at the Treehouse Museum

Andrew and Jaden building an archway

Jaden showing his piano skills to Uncle David/BryanAshlyn and Andrew dancing at the reception

It was so good to see you, Russ, Angela, Jaden, Ashlyn, and Cadence! Thanks for all the fun!

We have TWO cars!!!

This post is LONG overdue, but I want to say a HUGE thank you to Mom and Dad Anderson for our new car! Well, it's new to us! When they came out to Ohio for Hannah's blessing, they cancelled their plane tickets and DROVE all the way from Utah to give us their Buick! They are such incredibly thoughtful, giving people!

For the last three years, we have had just one car - our Pontiac Montana minivan. This wasn't much of a problem when we lived in Salt Lake, when Bryan could walk or ride his bike to school, but here in Cleveland, it has been much more of a challenge. If I ever needed the car for a doctor's appointment, shopping, or any other activity requiring a car, I had to wake the kids around 5:30am, load them in the van, drive Bryan to work, drive back home, and then hope and pray that the kids would go back to bed (yeah right!). Then we would pick him up in the evening after work (sometimes very late!). You can imagine I didn't like do that very often. So we were usually confined to home, the school playground across the street, or the library, if the weather was good. Cleveland winters are hard enough to bear without being trapped at home!

Now Bryan takes the Buick to work, and I have the van WHENEVER I WANT! We get to go out to the pool 2-3 times per week, shopping, free movie Thursdays, new and exciting playgrounds, or other outings, even on a whim! It's so wonderful! We are very grateful!

Thanks so much, Mom and Dad! Our new car is such a blessing!

P.S. Speaking of cars and blessings...

The air conditioning on our van hasn't worked for a long time! We've endured two hot, sweaty Cleveland summers without it! We just figured it would be too expensive to fix. Well, remember Bryan's car accident back in April? We took the van to the shop to be repaired, and when it came back, the air conditioning miraculously worked! Good as new! No kidding! Now we are cruising along, cool as cucumbers!