D.C. Work Trip

I took a last minute work trip to D.C. and maybe flew out a day early to "get out of dodge" (as my mom would say) and visited my brother, Dan, and his family in Virginia. I was horrible with taking pictures. The first night I was able to attend my nephew's football banquet. He cleaned up with the awards--proud to hear what a hard worker and leader he is on and off the field. I also think I had the cutest date in the room that night-my other nephew. I caught up with everyone again (except Logan) the following night where I was treated to a fancy dinner and asked if I was pregnant by my sister-in-law--haha! There was a little misunderstanding about the "Congratulations!" written on a dessert dish by our waiter. :)

I love receiving kisses via FaceTime from this handsome devil.

One of my favorite temples, the Washington D.C. temple, is under renovation for a few years. 

I'm currently serving in Young Women's and play "Name that Temple" with the Laurels whenever I travel. It's been a hit with them and it gives me good motivation to "always have the temple in my sights" even when traveling. 

Live Nativity 2018

Our family was invited to participate in a live Nativity in our neighborhood. It was short and sweet, but really brought the Spirit of Christ into the Christmas season for our family. It was a good reminder for me that not everything needs to be super planned out or lengthy in order to invite the spirit. We were grateful for the invitation and the spirit we felt that night.

Deck the Halls 2018

We decided to get out all of the Christmas decorations, turn up the Christmas tunes and set up Christmas the weekend after Thanksgiving. The kids were very much into the magic of Christmas.

The kids each took turns with the Santa hats.

I splurged on some bubble lights. I blame nostalgia. The kids loved them almost as much as I did.

Thanksgiving 2018

We made it back from our Mexico vacation just in time to prep and celebrate Thanksgiving Day. It was a low-key year and we kept the festivities with our immediate family. I tried to scale some of the food back, but we still ended up with lots of leftovers! I don't have many pics from the day, probably due to the fact that 3/5 of us stayed in our pajamas the entire day. Emma rebounded quickly and helped me in the kitchen, Bryan smoked the turkey and Luke and Myles had fun sledding in the front yard.

The next day, we took the kids to see Ralph Breaks the Internet. It was a hit with everyone.

Puerto Vallarta: Day 8

Sadly, our last day arrived and it was time to head home. My final "no-see-ums" bite count was at 108. Those little things are of the devil and miserable. It's now three months later and I still have a few bites lingering. What we thought was motion sickness with Emma the night before turned out to be another round of the pukes. Poor girl! Last time we flew home from Mexico she was sick and it was a repeat this time. Her response to this rotten luck? "Well mom, I guess it's Mexico's way of trying to get me to stay!" --Emma

Snap chat filters are always a hit when trying to kill some time.

I'm grateful that Bryan is so adventurous and a great planner. I love having these experiences with our family and now wonderful memories. 

Puerto Vallarta: Day 7

Per the boys' request, we did beach time in the morning. Myles LOVED the beach and ocean. I loved watching his genuine happiness with playing in the ocean. The waves were very mild this day and he loved being pulled back and forth with the waves. That smile of his just melts me.

 Took a break at the pool and kids' club. The person who did the face painting was really good!

 In the afternoon, we tried our luck with deep sea fishing. I popped my dramamine before jumping in the boat and did just fine. There were a few though that were feeling somewhat nauseous. We didn't have too much action, but at the end managed to reel in a fish for all but one of the kids. I was convinced when Bryan was helping Emma reel in her fish that he was going to be "Man Overboard" when he lost his footing, but he caught his balance and proved me wrong. Too bad. :) I think we saw a bunch of Manta Rays. We all "ooh'd and ahhh'd" watching them jump out of the water and belly splash back in.