New Years Eve and a million photos

Sorry beware so many pictures on this post. But they are all so hilarious and typical that I have to have them preserved for the eternities...in my blog book.

Last year at new years Cortney programed his camera to take a sequence of 10 photos to record what we were doing at midnight. It turned out funny so this year we did the same.

For the Eve of New Years we didn't have much going on...Joey was sick and everyone else seemed to still be out of town. Cali and I decided we would still get together even if it was just the 4 of us. We sat around sans makeup in pj's and ate fried foods and sipped hot cocoa, along with some gourmet popcorn that was given as a gift to Joey. We played some games and had a pretty fun time. My favorite though was the photo capture of the new year.

We just sat around until we heard the camera clicking and then we would jump in the frame.
the first time the camera went off we were not quite ready. I love Joey getting up in the back round...oh and notice it is like 10 minutes to midnight (yes we did our happy new years 10 minutes early)...we were ready to get the show on the road and go home. Joey was so tired.

Cali hears the clicking and tries to jump in...

Along with some cheesy faces and poses (we can't help this stuff it must be genetic)

Then here I come...and we start the crazy chicken dance elbows. Dad would be proud.
Then Cortney comes in. I love it when he does stuff like this...(it isn't so much in his genetics...but it has rubbed off on him somehow over the past 10 years)
Let me tell you about the puff paint shirt Cortney is wearing. He found it earlier that day at Savers...it is a total grandma shirt...he says it is his "celebration" shirt. Any which way it is awesome...and I think he wore it for 3 days straight.
This time we tried starting in front of the camera. Cali being some sort of gangster.

Look at me leap. Amazing. And of course Cali never breaks out of character.

Okay last try...this time we will be ready when it goes off.

or maybe not...but here is Joey trying to push Cali into the picture

haha

Oh man...I can't believe I am posting these crazy face pictures. Oh well...this is my life...it really isn't glamorous.

Heaven knows what Cortney is doing here with his hands. Karate moves of some sort. And lastly a nice group picture.


HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Ashton

While on our Christmas break Cortney took the kids up to Ashton. My kids absolutly love their cousins that live up there and Oliver had been begging to go up. Cortney being the awesome uncle that his is thought it would be a great idea to snowboard off of the roof. (what a good example) hahaa

Looks like fun right?? Well the kids thought it was cool. I am glad I wasn't there because I would have been worried he would ruin their roof or something like that.

I thought Rob's face in this was hilarious...he isn't crazy about the whole sledding thing.

I love this picture of Carson. It just shows you how cool these boys are. (and they play so good with my boys, which shows you just how nice they are) I love the red boots.

Carson and Kelton...makes me think of my siblings and how good of friends we have always been. Does that make sense?

This boy Cooper is absolutely gorgeous. There were probably 100 awesome pictures of him to choose from for this post. What a good baby. He is always smiling the hugest smile. He should seriously be a little baby model.

And the last sledding picture you'll see on here for a while (sorry so many but what else do you do in rexburg in the winter??). I just love the team work in this picture. Plus you can just tell that Oliver has the biggest smile on his face. I love that.

While Cortney had the kids in Ashton, Nicole and I went to Idaho Falls for a little shopping. Once we were there I realized shopping is funny when you don't have any money to spend. But it was so awesome to get out of the house and away from the boys (no offense) and have a little girl time. I had been holed up all week with the boys and I felt giddy going out without them. Nicole and I had a delicious dinner at Johnny Carino's and then walked around the mall. It was a great afternoon.

I think that about wraps up my Christmas break in Idaho. It was so fun, although different then our usual holidays up there. Everyone lives so far away now that we didn't really see much of anyone. Tyler and Nicole were great hosts and we appreciate everything they did for us, Thanks guys! (I think they randomly read my blog every once in a while...but for now I am pretending that they have the internet and will read this).

why

I can't seem to get anything done. I don't know why but I just find myself lazing the days away accomplishing absolutely nothing. Somebody help me (not really but you know...imagine me saying it in a funny voice).

Other things of note:

Yesterday at Walmart we saw one of Cortney's old loves. I love seeing old girlfriends of his. It was funny because he introduced me and I instantly knew who she was....I had heard about her. Luckily I had make up on (seriously there is like a 10 percent chance that you will catch me with makeup). I kept asking him if he was embarrassed, scattered, nervous, and such...all things I would be and have been upon bumping into any exes or even people that knew them. hahaa. He didn't have much to say about how he felt, which is so Cortney.

On New Years Eve I was walking down Cali's front cement steps and we were talking about how icy her steps were. I said "this is a law suit waiting to haaaaaaappppeeeeeennnnn....." as I biffed it mid sentence and went flying into the air and landed with all of my weight on my ribcage on her bottom step. I am meaner than all get out when I get hurt I always want people to get away from me and leave me alone. But once I assesed the situation and got my head focused I found that I hadn't broken anything. PRAISES BE. Seriously we have recieved so many odd blessings since Cortney has been unemployed. Cali and Cort both thought I broke an arm. I don't know how I didn't. The next morning every muscle in my upper half hurt soooooo bad. I can still barely move my arms. But I will take that over a broken rib or arm with no insurance any day.

Christmas Morning

It snowed and snowed and snowed all Christmas Eve night (does that even make sense??).  We woke up to at least a foot of new snow and what do you know...we were snowed in.  It was interesting missing the whole Boice family breakfast (they all missed it mind you) but we had a wonderful cozy morning.  

Oli and Rob waiting to come up and open the presents...and dottie too of course.  

They were pretty excited to see all of the presents.  (ohh rob has CRAZY hair)

Fearing that we couldn't make it to the brunch Nicole and I hurried and put a batch of cinnamon rolls on to raise and she pulled out the egg casserole she was supposed to take up to the breakfast.  We also had homemade hot cocoa with fresh whipped cream.  Man the breakfast was so yummy.  It certainly made it feel like a perfect Christmas...especially with all of the new snow. 

Rob is OBSESSED with slinky's.  Oliver got him a 6 pack of mini slinky's at the dollar store. All he wanted for Christmas was slinky's and a gum ball machine.   I drove all over town looking for that dinky little gum ball machine.  The gum balls were honestly gone in an hour. 

Nicole recording the morning unwrapping.  They were so generous to us.  They got me a deep FAT fryer.  We fried so many things while we were there.  Nicole knows I've wanted one forever but would never buy one.  It was awesome.  They also got me some hair stuff and make up and an itunes gift card.  Wow.  I have never had so much to open.  For Cort they got him a knife and a Sportsman's warehouse gift card.  They got the kids some moonsand and a fur real pet, kung fu panda,  and a pogo ball (oh yeah a walker mower's slinky for ROB).  

Tyler opening one of his many new DVD's.  We had a blast watching all of the new movies they got. 

Just what Oliver wanted.  Ohh I love LEGOS!

These two pictures crack me up...Oliver's first present he opened from Santa was a pair of camo pants.  He wanted these camo pants soooo bad and asked for them every day.  But when he opened them he thought that was all from Santa.  So in the first picture he is saying quietly to me..."I think Santa forgot one thing...Legos".  to which I responded "don't worry there are still more presents from santa."  

Then this is the look I got...

Phewwwwww.

Nicole excited about something she got from Sephora. 

The boys checking things out. 

Everything in their stockings was just perfect.

I was so excited about this gift for Oli...and you can tell he is too.  I went to a used video game store and got Lego starwars II the original trilogy.  They don't make them any more for the xbox so I was so happy when I found it.  Then only problem....arghhhh....the store put the wrong game in the box.  Great...thanks Game Crazy.  

The kung fu panda sword.  Possibly a bad choice for Robbie but it was half off and he wanted it so bad.  Cali says he can have it until someone needs stitches.  

No pictures of Cort.  So sad.  But we really did have a great great day.  We just spent the whole day snowed in so we played and watched movies and ate.  I am going to list what the boys got because my parents always listed for us and I always loved remembering.  

Oliver

2 video games Shrek 2 and Lego Star Wars II (If I can find it again...until then I have to hear him cry about it almost every second of the day)

A remote control truck (this never worked so we took it back today)

Agents lego set

Camo pants

Miner small lego set

Webkinz

Rob

Play doh table

Marble track

Remote control car (the wheel fell off 15 minutes after we opened it...it too went back today)

Kung fu panda sword

gum ball machine 

We also got so many great things from grandmas and grandpas.  Rob absolutely loved opening presents and that was really all he cared about.  It was a great day. 

Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve we had a delish dinner at Grandma Alice's house. It is always a good time over there and everyone was there except Katrina and Griffin. We really missed them. Grandma always has the house decorated impeccably and it really feels like Christmas there.
Kelton, Carson, and Carter (man that is a lot of C names) These boys are so cute and so good with my kids. Here they are at the kids table.
Oliver ready to eat.



Little Bodin snuggling his mommy.

We had a nativity and it is always cute and really makes me remember my younger years with my cousins. Rob was supposed to be the only Shepard but he refused to come out and just sat next to me with a scowl the whole time. He liked that the shepard got a fighting stick but didn't want to have to go where he was told. hahaa

He can make the meanest faces ever.

Carter was Joseph...he had to be married to his sister. He kept telling me he wasn't going to kiss her.

Cortney and I got a couple of pictures together.



Hahaa Cheesy...but cute.

The kids got a call from Santa there (tradition) and they were so excited to get home and get to sleep. Once we were at Tyler and Nicole's we spread out some reindeer food so Santa would be sure to find us and headed in to open our Christmas pj's (tradition). I was worried that Rob was going to freak when he opened the present and it was just "dumb" pijamas. I kept telling him all night that the present was going to be pj's. He was still dissapointed. (the best picture of these is in my banner so if you are reading this in reader you'll have to go to my blog to see it...you can clearly see Rob's dissapoinment). After we forced the pijama's on him we snapped a couple of pictures. Notice Oli is trying to pose all nice and perfect for every shot.

This is as good as it gets. Dottie jumped into the picture and I love love love how Rob casually has his leg crossed. Funny boy.

Christmas Eve night was a long one. The adults played personaliTEASE (hillarious) until around midnight and then we went to bed. Rob woke up freaking out that his legs hurt and cried for a long time. But after that they slept pretty good....until 8:30 a.m. when I couldn't wait any longer and I had to jingle some Christmas bells to wake them up. Tomorrow I will post Chirstmas day.