Christmas 2008

I have to start out by saying that this is my favorite time of year. Mostly because of all the time we get to spend with our families. This year seemed alot more relaxed than usual and it was so nice to slow down and be with one another. It snowed the entire week (Monday - Friday) and put the most beautiful blanket of white on the ground and trees. Saturday we woke up to blue and sunny skies. The kids have had so much fun being able to play out in the couple of feet of snow. I am so thankful we got to go to Snowflake and see the Strattons/Hancocks. It is always one of my favorite things to do and it makes me so sad that we don't get to do it more often. Everytime we leave Brendon and I say that we are going to visit more often. I always enjoy it and I love the kids being able to play with all of their cousins. I love the atmosphere of a big family.......so many good laughs and good times. Both of our brothers were unable to make it up north........I missed them alot and wish they could have joined us. Christmas Eve we spent the afternoon at Grandpa Spuds and Grandma Peggys house. That evening we went to the Hancocks house to see the rest of the family. It was not near enough time and I wished it wouldn't have ended so soon.

Grandma and Grandpa Stratton got Hunter a train. He was so excited! Before they put it together he announced that this was the best Christmas ever!

That evening we got home to find Kandra gave Bampa a new hairdo!
That evening we did our traditional opening of jammies, slippers and ornaments. We snuggled up on the couch and read the Christmas Story out of the bible and the night before Christmas.
Christmas morning: the kids patiently waiting to see all of the presents!

Christmas Morning
My Grandpa Bill came up North to celebrate with us
Santa hid Madi's very last present.....a motorized scooter.
All of us girls got matching life is good jammies!
The newlyweds......Kayla and Aaron
In the afternoon on Christmas day we all headed out to go sledding at White Mountain Country Club. There was a good jump on the hill and the kids had a blasting flying in the air! It was one of the first times our kids went sledding! I couldn't believe how brave they were!

Christmas Night I had the family participate in a talent show. I haven't laughed so hard in a long time. Kayla and Aaron videotaped a skit that was hilarious. I am hoping to find a way to post the video so everyone can see it.
My dad in his pimp daddy hat!
The kids put on a couple of skits and told some jokes.

December 23, 2008

On Monday we traveled up to Pinetop to spend the holiday break at the cabin. We made it through the canyon and hit snow and rain for the remainder of the ride. The wind was blowing so hard it felt like we were in a blizzard. We woke up the next morning to find a TON of snow everywhere! My dad made the first trip out of the cabin and got stuck before he could get out of the neighborhood. The roads were so icy they had to have a big tractor come pull him out.

The snow was so thick that it covered part of the family room windows
During the day we decorated the Christmas tree and played games!
Under that blanket is Kayla........sleeping through all the fun!
Aunt KanKan always up for teaching the kids fun tricks!

At the end of the night we noticed that Maylee (Aaron and Kayla's dog) was going crazy on the patio.......she found two mice and caught one of them. Madison ended up in our bed half of the night because she was afraid they would climb in her bed. It was definitely exciting and a moment we will all remember.

Christmas Caroling

Yesterday we had our annual Christmas caroling night with the LeClaire and Wilfert families. We started this a couple of years ago where we eat dinner together, decorate our cars and golf carts and then Christmas carol for our neighbors and friends. It's an event that our family looks forward to every year.

We made a quick stop at Warner Estates to see Santa!
We got my sister Kandra to join in on the fun with us!!!!!
We finished up Makenzie's dance shows on Saturday and the kids sang in church on Sunday so this night was a great way to unwind and get ready for Christmas! I can't believe that Christmas is only 4 days away!!!!!!! This time of year is so busy but I absolutely love it. We decided in both of our families to not exchange gifts. We have so many blessings and don't "need" or "want" for anything. It was actually a nice change and a huge relief to take the running around trying to find something out of the equation. I'm looking forward to just being with our families and enjoying their company. It took alot of stress out of the holiday season and put the focus on where it belongs.

We leave for Pinetop this morning and I'm really looking forward to playing with the kids and spending time with our families. I can't wait to slow down and not have to run from place to place. I love baking cookies, putting together our annual puzzle, playing cards, sitting by the fire while the snow sits on the trees outside, visits to Snowflake, family dinners where the table is full of people, cooking in the kitchen while we dance to the music, taboo games, naps on the couch and spending days where I can be in my pj's all day. All of these things make me so thankful for the new cabin my parents built. It's absolutely beautiful and it gives us a great place to make memories with our families and friends. I have so many memories of growing up in the mountains and I am so excited my kids are going to experience the same things.

We hope to take the kids skiing over break.......I'm not really looking forward to the skiing part but I'm excited for my kids that they'll get to try it. I'd rather sit in the lodge next to a nice fire and enjoy a good book. However, I'll attempt to brave the cold, freeze my you know what off and try to teach the kids how to ski. I hurt just thinking about it.

I've also planned a family talent show night while we are up in Pinetop. I'll keep you posted on how this little event goes. I have a really funny idea for Brendon and I...........I just have to talk him into it.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!!

The Polar Express

Last night we headed up to Williams, Arizona so the kids could take a ride on the Polar Express.

The Burns family joined in the fun!

The kids posing in front of the train........all were very excited to see Santa Claus!

After the train ride, we went on a horse carriage ride through the icy streets of Williams!

We were freezing!!!!!!!!!!!

After the carriage ride we warmed up by the fire and enjoyed some hot chocolate!

Our adventure was a great way to begin our Christmas break!

On Thursday, December 11 Madison performed in her school choir performance. She had a solo part and was very nervous. She did great and we were very proud of her. Above she's pictured with a couple of her best buddies: Lexi, Mattie and Chloe.

Over the weekend Makenzie had her first 4 out of 7 dance recitals for the Spirit of Christmas. They perform at the Chandler Center for the Arts. She was such a trooper all weekend......she woke up Friday night not feeling very good and by Sunday she was in urgent care and we found out she had strep throat. She powered through each dance and kept a smile on her face. She performs in five dances this year and there was no way she was going to miss one.

One of her best friends, Sydney, dances with her
Grandma and Grandpa Stratton came to watch Makenzie on Sunday

A huge update!!!!!!

Life in the Stratton household has hit full swing holiday and wedding mode. It has been so long since I've updated our blog that this post is going to be very long. My computer crashed and it has taken us almost two weeks to get everything back and running again. Here's what has been happening in our Stratton world lately.........

The weekend before Thanksgiving we finished up Madison's fall soccer league. She was finally able to play a full game on her last game and her leg seems to be doing alot better. Brendon coached with two family friends and they did such a great job. I was so proud of Brendon's commitment and patience with 11 "almost teen" girls.

On Saturday, November 22 we attended a wedding for our good family friends. Laura Robertson married Brian Smith. They have dated over 10 years and it was such a special day to see them get married. We adore their family and were so thankful we were able to be part of their day. Kandra and Kayla were part of the bridal party and had such a great time attending all of their fun events. I wish I had better pictures to post of the new couple.

The groom, Brian, with his brother

The bride, Laura, and her father, Robby Robertson. She looked absolutely beautiful!
The day after the wedding I drove up north to help my parents move into their new cabin. Our whole family was to be celebrating Thanksgiving up there and we had an entire eight bedroom place to get ready. We worked our tails off on Monday until I received a phone call from Brendon about 8:30pm telling me that Makenzie had swallowed a charm from her necklace. It was stuck in her throat so they had to give her an iv, put her under and have a surgeon remove it. Normally when they put someone under they want them to have an empty stomach. Because Makenzie had eaten dinner (before she ate her necklace) they had to admit her into the hospital for the night for observation. I left Pinetop around 10pm and drove home to meet Makenzie at the hospital at 1am. It was the longest, saddest, scariest drive I have ever made. I was so worried about my baby but in the end so thankful everything turned out the way it did. I was so proud of her for being so brave. Her throat was in pain and her iv hurt her arm so we didn't get much sleep that night. HOwever, she managed to keep a smile on her face. At one point while trying to give her a drink, she was laying in bed and asked if she should sit up. I told her to lay still and pressed a button on her bed so the bed would raise to a sitting position. She smiled as the bed moved like it was a Disneyland ride and said, "technology these days". Makenzie was released from the hospital at 10 am, we picked up my aunt and Hunter around 11:30 and headed back up north so we could continue our Thanksgiving celebration.

On Thanksgiving day it snowed! It was absolutely beautiful. It was the first time my youngest nephews ever saw snow. They were so cute watching the snow out the window with Hunter.

19 of us made it to the cabin to celebrate Thanksgiving Day

The kids loved playing pin the feather on the turkey.

On Sunday after Thanksgiving we did a Stratton first and went to a tree lot to pick a real tree.

We took a trip to the mall to see Santa. That's all Hunter could talk about that day. It was torture waiting until the evening to see him because Hunter kept asking all day when were we going. The girls weren't very excited about going and I kept telling them to support their brother because he was excited! We waited in line for 15 minutes, made it to santa and he jumped in my arms and wouldn't even look at the jolly ol' guy.

On Friday, December 5 we celebrated the wedding of my sister Kayla to her fiance, Aaron Lowery. It was a fun filled day with family and friends. Madison and Makenzie were the flower girls and Hunter and my nephew Collin were ring bearers. My sister looked absolutely beautiful. I was so proud of her. Aaron is a great addition to our family and I'm so glad he's a part of it. I don't have alot of pictures so I'll post more later.

My mom got the bridal party, my aunt and her best friend, Jody,

matching robes for us to wear while we got ready.

All the girls!!!!

The groom running to hide in the garage so the bride couldn't see him.

Robby was in charge of this manuever.

My brother and his family! The wedding was such a special day. Kayla and Aaron got married in the church that my grandparents, parents, brother and myself got married in. I enjoyed being able to share the memories and stories with my kids. It was over 13 years ago that Brendon and I got married at that church and my sisters were flower girls at the same age Madison and Makenzie were flower girls in this wedding. It seems like just yesterday that Kayla walked down that aisle as a 10 year old flower girl and yesterday she was a beautiful, radiant bride.

Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Lowery!