Christmas Fun

One of the most favorite times of the year that we look forward to as a family is December. We have created exciting traditions that we look forward to every year. Here are a few of our fun family traditions:
Gumball, who is Santa's elf came to us 5 years ago, by our neighbor. Gumball is handmade, and comes each year to be Santa's helper to ensure the kids are behaving nicely. This year he made his debut in a package and was delivered to us by the North Pole on December 1st. The kids look forward to seeing what Gumball is up to every morning. Tim actually looks forward to the challenge of thinking of something fun and cleaver. Tim goes to the extreme with Gumball. Gumball has been a great tool for making sure the kids go to bed on time and they stay in the beds all night. Mason has struggled with waking up in the middle of the night asking for something. It drives me crazy.  I have used gumball to help in this area. I told Mason Gumball will not be able to fly back if he is awake or gets up in the middle of the night. So far, Mason has been sleeping all the night, which makes me get 8-9 hours of uninterrupted sleep! So, that in itself is worth it!

 Going to a Live Nativity: We went the live nativity in Bluffdale this year. It has become a popular event and we could not believe the crowds of people that attended.  Last year, we were able to walk right through with zero lines. However, this year the line was over 2 1/2 hours long. We waited in line for 2 hours one night and still probably had another hour to go, so we left and came back the next day.  We got there an hour an half before it started and we still ended up waiting 45 min to see the nativity.  This year we had great weather, it was 50 degrees and that made standing in line bearable. I can tell you that standing in line was worth the beautiful message and the Christmas spirit that it brought in seeing such a remarkable story played out in front of our eyes. I love showing my kids what the true meaning of Christmas is, and this live nativity does just that!

Seeing the Christmas Lights: We love driving around the town looking at Christmas lights. This is something I grew up doing with my family. I have such fond memories, of driving around the valley for hours as we listened to Christmas music. My dad looked the thrill of seeking out all the Clark Griswolds' houses. We are now lucky enough to have the internet/facebook that posts all the great houses to drive to,  It makes that much more convenient. We found a house in the Avenues that comes very close to being to the level of the Griswolds. It was amazing to see in person. We also went to Draper Park to see the "Tree of Life." A tree that is lite up all in gold sparkly lights and looks very similar to what the tree of life looks like in the Book of Mormon.  Another tradition that we have always done, ever since Tim and I got married is driving down to Spanish Fork to see the Festival of Lights. It is a well decorated park that you get to drive through while listening to Christmas music. I have yet to find a better drive through Christmas lighted park. It is something we look forward to all year.

The Elves at Gardner Village: Going to see the elves at Gardner Village is always a fun tradition. We usually go with my sister's kids and go on a scavenger hunt looking for all the elves. At the end, we go to the corner bakery for hot chocolate and a sugar cookie!



Making gingerbread houses: Every December, we make our own gingerbread houses out of gram crackers, frosting and lots of candy! This is always a fun tradition for kids.

Downtown: We took the kids to the Grand America hotel this year. I had heard the windows are all decorated for Christmas and they offer a scavenger hunt to locate the ABC's and at the end of the scavenger hunt they gave out a bag of cookies to each of us.  They also had a giant gingerbread house that was unbelievable to see. It was made out of real gingerbread, it took over 1440 hours to make, with 2000 candies/gumballs. We also ran into good ole' St. Nick himself, which the kids loved. They got to take their picture with him without even waiting in line! That was such a special treat!





Zoo Lights: We went and saw the Zoo Lights for family night, which is always a fun thing to do. It has been amazing warm weather, which makes it that much more fun.   We actually last 2 hours outside this year!





Temple Square: It is an absolute must see. We always make it a point to see the beautiful lights around Temple Square.

Christmas Parties: We have our ward Christmas party coming up, which the kids are looking forward to. The theme this year is the "Polar Express." They are mailing out our train tickets, the kids get to wear their pajama's and Santa will be visiting!  We have a few family Christmas parties that we go to every year, and Santa makes a special trip to our Tate family party to see how the kids are doing. This is always a fun tradition that the kids look forward to every year.

Christmas Parties: Every year, my dad' side of the family has a annual Christmas Party. This year we had it at Market Street Grill. We get together with my two cousins, my grandma/papa, my aunt and uncle and Naoma. It's always been a fun tradition even if the kids are wild and crazy like always!

 

Brielle 11 months old and Allie 6 years old

Santa visits: Every year my dad arranges for Santa to come to my parents home for a private Christmas visit. The kids always get so excited to hear the bells ring on the front porch. They gather around him and each take a turn telling Santa what they want for Christmas and what they did this year that earned their spot on the Nice list. It is always so fun to see the kids the kids smile and their eye light up when Santa talks to them.

The kids await their turn to sit on Santa's lap

In years past we have either gone on the polar express train in Heber City or on a Sleigh ride at the Homestead in Midway which were really fun, this year we were not able to fit that into our hectic-busy schedule.
May there be joy and happiness with you and your family this Holiday Season.