Christmas

My word, I haven't blogged about what we've been up to in a very, very long time. December was filled with madness! Enjoyable madness, but madness nonetheless. I worked a ton, Josh worked a ton, he finished finals, my family came up twice, we celebrated birthdays, had Christmas parties, babysat, didn't start Christmas shopping until three days before Christmas, and my parents bought a cabin in Sundance. Pretty much all of our free time was spent at the cabin, preparing it for my family's arrival. We had electricians and plumbers out, installed new tv's, stocked it with goods of all sorts, did a deep clean, installed window treatments, put up Christmas lights (and ran them all the way down the longest driveway in the world. It looked AMAZING.). We only ran into one major glitch along the way. Our pipes froze! They still aren't thawed but the fifth and final plumber set us up with a temporary solution that gave us running water through Christmas.

Wowza! Christmas came and went very quickly for us this year. It was insanely busy, but extremely fun. We were able to enjoy time with both of our families, eat delicious food, make memories, and celebrate the birth of our Savior. It was perfect.

The day my family arrived in town we celebrated Luke's birthday. Luke is a martial arts guru and loves anything and everything that has to do with it. We decided to gift him with a fabric poster of Bruce Lee (whom he LOVES) and a ninja star. I have never given a more thrilling gift, and have never seen someone so enthused about a gift in my life. That ninja star was a hit. He never put it down unless he was throwing it at something.

We went to a tree lot the first night as well to pick out something lovely to trim. We came home with the most perfect, lopsided, quirky tree. I loved it.

They didn't have a bathroom, so the peepee dance it was.

Lindsay the retarded one armed elf.

Our perfect little Dr. Seuss tree.

My parents gingerbread house looking cabin.

The next morning Patrick went outside in his boxers to shovel snow. This is what happened from there:

Yes, it's true, my husband is a bully. Actually, we all thoroughly enjoyed watching this in action. It was quite hilarious and I probably would have done the same thing if I was big enough.

My dad loves knives. He has quite the collection. He gives the boys a new one every year as stocking stuffers (they are all obsessed as well). We all decided to pitch in and give him an extra fancy one for his birthday. I guess it is the same knife that our troops use on terrorists. Scary. Needless to say, he was happy and all the other boys in my family were jealous.

The boys enjoyed night time sledding down the hill outside of our house, and down our super, super long driveway.

Mari and I watched from the porch freezing our bums off.

That night, my parents gave us all Ugg house shoes to keep at the cabin. Oh how I love Uggs.

They also gave each of us a custom puzzle, for long days spent at the cabin, or to keep us entertained when we get snowed in.

We got to work immediately.

On Christmas Eve we spent the day doing some last minute shopping, watched The Elf, had a delicious dinner, and played Fact or Crap. It was the perfect family night.

Santa came and brought some fantastic goods with him. We ended up with everything from toothbrushes and mini salt and pepper shakers, to designer purses and new cameras. It was fantastic.

We each made my parents an ornament for their first cabin tree. Luke, of course, put Bruce Lee on his.

Me and Linds in our matching Snuggies.

On my families last night in town, we went out on a snowshoeing adventure at night. It was beautiful, and calm. Despite the 3 degree weather, we all stayed quite warm. I can't wait to do it again.

We had lunch with the Carver's, which is always fun and entertaining.

Christmas night was spent at Josh's parents house. We exchanged gifts, played with babies, and enjoyed wonderful food.

It was a perfect Christmas.

Please Help!

If you live in Utah, you have probably heard the tragic story of John Jones. He was a husband, father, and medical student. His life ended November 25, after an accident while caving. He was only 26 years old and left behind a baby girl and his pregnant wife. These types of stories scare me and break my heart. John was younger than Josh and Emily is my age. I can not imagine going through the trial she has been faced with.

This is John and his sweet wife, Emily.

My SIL Mari contacted me about an online charity auction that was being held for Emily Jones and her baby girl. Hundreds of people donated items for auction. One hundred percent of the money raised during the auction went to the Jones family, to help Emily with her new life as a single mom. I was lucky enough to be able to donate some hats from Pearl and Pauper. I was so excited to hear that all of my hats sold, and one of them for $100!

I have been contacted by some people through the auction, asking where they can find my hats. I no longer have a website, but I added some of my top sellers to my Etsy shop, where they can be purchased. The auction has ended but I feel like more can be done to help this family. I will donate half of the money that I get from hat sales from now until the end of the year to Emily and her baby girl. If you would like to order a hat, please do so through Etsy, or contact me by email at courtneyspiker@msn.com. If you order the hats by December 20, I will make sure they are shipped to you by Christmas so you may use them as gifts. If you aren't interested in a hat, but still want to help the Jones family out, please visit the John Jones Memorial site.

It's that time of year...

We are sending out our first family Christmas card. We don't have most of our friends addresses, but we would love to send you a card. So, if you'd like a Christmas card please leave your address in our comment box (I have my comment moderator on and won't make any of them public) or email your address to me at courtneyspiker@msn.com.

Week of Thanks

We spent Thanksgiving week basking in the glorious weather Southern California provides this time of year. It was a fantastic week filled with family, food, and holiday cheer.

The three days before our trip we were able to watch our nephew, Seth. What a little munchkin he is.

Our first night at my parents was perfect. We enjoyed a delicious meal and got to play with GORGEOUS cousins, Caroline and Saundra. I desperately want Saundra's hair (she's half black, that lucky girl, and has the best of both worlds. It is long, soft, and sooo curly...exactly what I want) and Caroline's eyes and eyelashes.

Would you look at that face? I don't think they come any cuter than this.

Thursday morning the boys played in the Turkey Bowl. They had been talking about it for weeks and I'm glad Josh got to play. Very few things make him as happy as playing football.

My morning hours were spent with my best friend, Ash, and baby Reese. I was ecstatic to finally meet sweet Reesey. She is so super tiny and I love her so much.

(P.S. I LOVE this picture of Lindsay and Curtis. It is hilarious, especially if you know them. It just fits.)

My first time holding my sweet little Reesey Pumpkin Pie.

Look at that beautiful smile!

Grandma Judy hosted Thanksgiving dinner this year. The entire night was filled with laughter, good food (seriously, she makes the best stuffing in the entire world!), and great company.

Lindsay and Luke still using sippy cups, after all these years.

My mom and cute Aunt Pam,

The bird,

The official roll makers,

and the beauty queens.

We took post-feast naps,

and discovered that Lindsay and Chris have an enormous amount of chin meat. I'm not just talking a little grab but like a chicken breast worth of padding on the tip of their chin. It is truly amazing.

My dad took care of the dishes as he always does, and I was his official dryer as I always am. It was a lovely evening.

Thanksgiving night turned into game night at the Spiker home. It all started in my dad's car but that is one of those- you had to be there- stories. Basically he called random people on speaker and we had to guess who we were talking to as quickly as possible. Because of my dad, it was hilarious. When we arrived home the official games began.

Friday evening we enjoyed a second Thanksgiving at Grandma Rita's house. Again, the food was tasty and good conversation was had.

The boys took care of the dishes.

We played a few games of 'GOBBLE' (BINGO).

Joshua looked extremely handsome, what else is new?

Me and my sweet Grandma Rita. I love her.

After Thanksgiving dinner #2, we headed home to decorate my parents house for Christmas. Chris and Mari made delicious hot cocoa and home made whipped cream.

We got the house decked out and everything looked beautiful. I LOVE setting up for Christmas.

Saturday morning, the boys headed out for an adrenalin rush and went to Magic Mountain. The girls enjoyed manicures. After, we headed to Santa Monica for family pictures with the fabulous Judy Hailey. We then enjoyed a beautiful sunset, devoured drinks, appetizers, and dinner at the ultra posh Penthouse at the Huntley (in honor of my genius older brother Chris passing the CA bar), and stood in awe of the performers in Cirque du Soleil.

Mares and Linds

Since I know Curtis won't be seeing this I am allowed to say that some day I hope he and my sister have a baby. They are no where near that point in their lives, or their relationship but I can still dream. I think that would be the most stunning child in the world. Wouldn't you agree?

FYI, I love where my parents live. It is pleasing to all senses and I wish we could be their neighbors. Who wouldn't want this as their back yard?

Top 10 memories from this week:

10. One of the boys poking a dart into Lindsay's butt and her not being able to get it out.
9. The contortionists at Cirque du Soleil
8. Going to the best yoga class I have ever taken.
7. Lindsay and Taylor doing something obscene with their rolls that made for a good laugh and a good picture
6. My dad shoving an entire roll of bubble tape in his mouth, while we played bingo
5. Laughing so hard I thought for sure someone was going to pee their pants, all week long
4. Jabba faces
3. Josh eating 4 pieces of ant covered beef jerky-and then realizing it
2. Meeting and holding Reese for the first time
1. Spending time with the best family in the world

The End.