Christmas Eve 2010

A party just wouldn't be a party without a little Minute-to-win-it Christmas style! We had a jolley old time laughing at the chaos and stupidity of it all. Even the kids get into it...

Santa stopped by to hand out the pajamas. There were a TON of kids and after about the 13th name being called little miss Caymbree began to worry that all my threats of her being on the naughty list may in fact be true! Finally, her name was called. She could barely contain her relief.

Dinner. Games. Santa. Pajamas and now.....da da da dum.....It's picture time!




And then we hop in the car and make the 1hr and 40 minute drive back home to Riverton. It's late and cold but oh so worth it. After all, Christmas just wouldn't be Christmas if you can't share it with family.

SNOW DAY!

The timing was perfect. It just so happened that a giant snow storm hit the day before Troy and the girls both had school and work off. I swear the girls practically slept in their snow clothes they were so excited. First thing in the morning they hit the snow! After shoveling us out they headed to the park. FOUR hours later I wondered if they had turned into ice.

Traditions

I LOVE Christmas! I love the twinkling Christmas lights, the sounds and smells, and most of all the traditions!

Each year we usually do the store bought gingerbread house kit. This year I found a cute little kit that gave you enough supplies to do FIVE houses. How perfect is that! Um...apparently I didn't look at the fine print. Each house was about 1 inch high and 1 inch wide. Not exactly what I was expecting but the kids didn't seem to care.

We also started a new tradition this year after the idea was given to me in Relief Society lesson. Early in the month we had a FHE lesson talking about who's birthday we were about to celebrate. We also talked about how interesting it is that for Christ's birthday WE are the one's that receive presents. The only way that would make sense is that if we started a new rule that on your birthday EVERYBODY else gets gifts except for you. After all, that's what we do for His birthday. The kids didn't like that idea. So we came up with a solution. This year we would each give Christ a gift. I wrapped up a box and made a tag

{ To: Our Savior. Love, The Hodges}

Each of us then wrote on a piece of paper our gift. Things like "be nice to my sisters." "Not argue with my mom" "Take time to appreciate the season"....
The plan was (but let's face it. I forgot). Anyway, the idea is that on Christmas day after the kids have opened all their presents and experience the joy and excitement of receiving their gifts you then open up THE gift and have everybody read their gift to Christ. You can talk about how they felt when they opened up their presents and explain how Christ must feel when he received ours.

It was a wonderful idea and I can't wait to carry this tradition on with our family as we put Christ at the center of the season.

The month of December is the ONE time of the year that I actually can't wait to get the mail. I LOVE LOVE LOVE getting Christmas cards and seeing all of your cute families grow each year. Thanks to this cute Santa (a present from a friend) we now keep and store each and every card. One of our favorite things is to pull out all the pictures and see the changes in each family from year to year. So fun! So thanks for the cards. We love them!

Another favorite Christmas tradition is our yummy Christmas morning breakfast...sausage egg casserole and breakfast cake! Oh so good and oh so many memories.

And quite possibly my favorite tradition is our Live and Learn books that we do with my dad's side of the family. Every November each family member turns in a scrapbook page detailing the lessons they have learned that year. We then color copy every one's page and on Christmas Eve each family is presented with a copy of the Family Live and Learn. It is priceless! What an amazing family history and perfect way to reflect on the year.

Winter Wonderland

Thanksgiving weekend provided the perfect opportunity for fun in the SNOW! The kids where in heaven and didn't mind the cold at all! (I however enjoyed the view from inside the cozy house).

The pond froze over creating the perfect ice rink. Unfortunately, none of us have ice skates. Time to invest!

And no snow day would be complete without a nice cup of hot chocolate to go with it!

Shop till you Drop

A lot goes into Black Friday shopping. Prepare. Plan. Prepare some more (lots of diet coke and sugar). Then ATTACK...ATTACK...ATTACK!!! The crew heading out the door at 10:40pm. I still can't believe my mom backed out this year. First time ever!!! She missed out on a rip roaring good time. And just to give you a little idea we left around 11 and didn't make it home until 8am. Walmart sale started at midnight. Next stop. Kohls. 3am. Hmmm....2 1/2 hours to kill. Decided to go somewhere for late late night dinner/early breakfast and failed miserably. After driving from one end of the town to the other trying to find a 24 hour restaurant and finding NOTHING we ended up at a truck stop on the west side of town. Hot chocolate and stale donuts would have to do. As an added bonus we could have even had a free shower!

We laughed until our guts hurt as we desperately tried to keep our eyes open. Finally, it was time. Time to put on the game face!

We would describe this year as the luck of all lucks! The shopping fairies were with us! Too much to get into all the details but a small recap {the lady at Walmart price matching all of our stuff to Target while the group right next to us was out right DENIED a Target price match! Deciding not to wait in 12 degree weather in the Kohls line and just see what was left once people get in the doors ONLY to discover the Bed Bath and Beyond (right next door) offered EVERYTHING we needed and would price match the item AND give us an additional 30% off!! Holy SCORE OF ALL SCORES!! No lines. No wait. And screaming deals!

We also hit a few more stops before heading home. About a block away from my parents house our car ended up acting funny and we literally had to coast home. Next morning the car had to be towed and we received a nice little bill. Happy Thanksgiving to us! However, we still feel pretty lucky that it happened when it did. I would have hated to be stranded in town at 2am with 11 degree temperatures. I even documented it for proof.


I'm telling you, you haven't experience Black Friday until you have shopped with us! Open invitation to all.

Happy Birthday Hopers!

For Hope's BIG 6 birthday we took our little family to Classic Skating for a rip roaring evening of fun. It was a blast. On her wish list.... smashing a cupcake in her face. Ok. Done deal. One of the things we love most about Hope is her passion for life. She never disappoints in showing her excitement for her gifts. A few of her favorites were a gigantic pink diamond {ya know the ones at the check out stand at Hobby Lobby that you wonder who in the world actually buys them?} a scooter, and a cute balerina piggy bank.

Happy Birthday Hope! We love you!

Gratititude.... to infinity and beyond...

It would appear that I have been very ungrateful lately as I have neglected my daily thoughts of thanksgiving. However, rest assured that is not the case. Most days I do stop and think about what I am grateful for but it seems that lately they have never made it to the cyber world. So here is my "catch up" and conclusion all in one...

*Today I am SO grateful to be in my warm cozy home, with the fireplace crackling , surrounded by my family, protected by the snow and freezing temperatures. I am grateful the storm waited to hit us until we were all safely home. I am grateful for the warm soup and sandwiches that we ate for dinner.

* I am grateful for a hot bath and a good book. My bathtub goes into overdrive this time of year.

* I am grateful for people who inspire me. Recently I have found myself marveling at the strength and wisdom of those around me. People who are positive no matter what the outcome. People who do it all and never complain. People who invite others into their lives regardless of circumstances. I marvel at them and when I grow up I want to to be just like them.

* I am grateful for the Holidays. I love family gatherings and the Holidays provide many of them.

*I am grateful to be a mother. My children are amazing, hysterical, inspiring, maddening, and exhausting all in one.

* I am grateful for Troy. He is the hardest worker I have ever met. His determination and drive never ceases to amaze me. And lets face it; any man that can put up with FOUR girls must be pretty amazing.

Gratitude #12

Today I am grateful for TECHNOLOGY. I've been sitting at the kitchen table for the last two hours with not one but two laptops, my cell phone, and home phone all placed strategically before me as I do the preparations for my upcoming competition. Seriously, what did we do before we had all these capabilities??

Gratitude #10 & 11

{Hope sporting her new birthday dance outift}

Today we are grateful for none other than LITTLE MISS HOPERS!!!! After all it was six years ago to the day that she entered our lives. Little did we know the joy and laughter that she would bring into our home. She if full of spunk, a leader , and has the ability to make friends in any place or situation. Hope can always put a smile on your face!

Ironically, people say that Hope is a lot like my sister ADREE. And she is yesterday's missing gratitude entry. I am grateful to have a sister. I am grateful for my relationship with her. Rarely does a day go by that I don't talk to her. We are almost opposite in every single way and provide a good balance for one another. Not sure what I would do without her. A few little known facts about my sister.... 1) She used to always ask to borrow my clothes when we were younger. Being the nice big sis that I was I oblidged. For a small fee of course. For every article of clothing she borrowed she owed me a 10-20 minute back tickle. Win/Win situation right? 2) Although we are five years apart in age there was a 3-4 year period when I was first married and she was in high school where people ALWAYS asked us if we were twins. I never knew if I should be flattered that I looked young or if she just looked a lot older than she was. 3) My sister could not wait to leave Logan, live in a big city, marry a football player and work in a major salon. She married a cowboy, moved to a small country town called Neola, and occasionaly does hair out of her house. And she couldn't be happier. And I'm happy for her.

{Me, my mom and my sister}

Anywhooo. Back to Hopers and her birthday celebration. We started off the morning with her breakfast request of oatmeal, hot chocolate and toast. Our little family is headed to Classic Skating tomorrow night for her real celebration but we wanted to make today special as well. So the girls and I headed to the mall for a visit to Santa, lunch at the pretzel shop, a ride on the carousel and then the ultimate suprise. She has been asking to get her ears pierced for quite some time so Troy called her while we were at the mall and let her in on our little secret. We were really there to get her ears pierced. She was just a tad bit excited...
She had nerves of steele and never showed any signs of reluctance. After it was done I came to the conclusion it was because she had no idea it was going to hurt! She had a huge smile on her face as they started to squeeze and then it froze into a slight grimace while tears welled up in her eyes. It was hilarious! She SO wanted to be happy but you could tell she was in pain. So funny.

So, Happy Birthday Hopers (and Adree yesterday)! We love you both!

Gratitude #9

Oh so many things to be grateful for today!! Where shall I begin? I am grateful for the rejuvenating effects of a girls weekend. I am grateful my mom, sister, sis-in law, and cousin are so much fun to hang out with. I am grateful that my Christmas shopping is now 97% COMPLETE! I am grateful that my hubby never complains and my house is clean when I get home.

Gratitude #8

Today I'm thankful for hair dye. REALLY thankful!!! Otherwise I would be a 33 year old freak show walking around sporting a full head of gray hair. Not Kidding. I'll even show you the proof....

Told ya I wasn't kidding!

Gratitude #7

Yesterday we drove home from Logan. And we did it safely. With no harm or accident. And I am grateful. We passed an accident on the way and it made me think " that could've been me." But it wasn't. And I am SOOOOO grateful. I am grateful for the example my parents set of always saying a prayer before we drove long distances. It is a tradition I have carried on with my own children and provides us all with a huge sense of peace as we travel. So thank you mom and dad and thank you Heavenly Father for watching over us. We are grateful.

Gratitude #6

Today we are grateful for a lazy day with NO SCHOOL!!!! We are officially off track for the next four weeks! That means sleeping in, no homework, and well whatever else we want! Sounds exciting hey? It is. For the first week at least. After that...might not be so grateful anymore. Boredom kicks in, girls start getting on each others nerves and my patience is tried. BUT for now, we are grateful for an easy breezy week!

Gratitude #5

A day late but grateful nonetheless. Yesterday we were grateful for the chance to head to grandpa and grandma's house for a few days of extended family time. Thus the reason for the missing post yesterday. We were too busy visiting! My girls were thrilled when we pulled up to the house and they saw the multitude of cars! Hope exclaimed, "Look mom! They must be throwing a party just for us!!!" Ah. It's good to feel loved isn't it! :) And how can you not be grateful for that?

Gratitude #4

Just got back from the Utah Dance Judges Association workshop. This time as a audience member and NOT the Administrative VP. Have to admit I was grateful. Grateful for all the time and effort they put into the workshops and grateful it wasn't me this year. Is that selfish?

I'm also grateful that Troy got to get away from the stress of work today and have a boys day out. Well ok, kind of. He and friend took four girls with them to the BYU game but still it's a nice little break from the Saturday to-do list and I'm grateful he got to do it.

Since it's just me and Caymbree sitting here I asked her what she is grateful for today. Her reply, "ABC patterns". What??? Then she broke out in the ABC song. SO. Little C is grateful to know the ABC song. Cute. {Hope is practicing ABC patterns in kindergarten. I'm guessing that is where the ABC pattern comment came from?}

Gratitude #3

Today each and everyone of us in the Hodges household are grateful for TEACHERS. Yesterday we had parent teacher conferences and it confirmed what our kids have been telling us all along. They have AMAZING teachers. Hope has the perfect kindergarten teacher. Tons of energy, full of songs, warm and cuddly but firm when necessary. Hallee's teacher is a grandma and is very kind and loving. And according to Hallee she "never yells and is very patient."

Caymbree has two preschool teachers that are incredible. I am blown away with the little projects that Caymbree comes home with. Like check out this pirate pumpkin they made for Halloween...

Seriously??? I am always so impressed with what she is learning and the fun activities they do.

So, thank you to all the wonderful teachers out there...especially ours. We know the time and effort you put into your classrooms. And we are grateful.

Gratitude #3

Today I feel overwhelmingly grateful for my health. For my children's health. For my parents health and even my grandparents health. I am filled with awe and gratitude for those who help take care of the sick and ailing.

As a Relief Society presidency we do weekly visits to the sisters in our ward. Last night we stopped to visit a 90 year old sister whose health is slipping away daily. Her mind is sharp but her hearing is almost completely gone and her body is shutting down. She's frustrated and embarrassed to be a burden. Her daughter and primary caretaker is burning out quickly. Our secretary is a nurse (in the NICU nonetheless) but amazing in action. While I was timid and squeamish she was bold and assertive. Nurses are amazing creatures. And I am grateful there are people out who are not only willing to do these thing but actually love what they do as well.

Gratitude Entry #2

Another morning. Another predictable routine. I suppose that's what I should be grateful for. Predictability. At least when it comes to Hope. I wake up Hope. I lay out her clothes for the day. She complains about her clothes for the day. She gets dressed. She complains about how it feels or doesn't feel. I ignore. She complains. I state that she can come out of her room when she is done complaining. She eventually does. We do her hair. She makes faces in the mirror as she tugs and pulls on her clothes. One last warning. AND were done. She's over it.

So, I'm grateful that it's predictable but even more grateful that it is short lived. And as I asked Hope if it was really necessary to complain about everything she puts on she informed me that she hadn't complained about the white undershirt. Oh goodie. So I'm grateful that she doesn't complain about everything.

Hope is grateful that Thanksgiving is coming soon. When I asked her why she looked at me like I was an idiot and said, Uh.....the yummy FOOD?!!!! Of course. Imagine my embarrassment.

Hallee is grateful for good friends, Trinity, Jane and Sarah to be exact. In fact, we have had some great chats around this neck of the woods as Hallee is starting to realize the importance of good friends. If this can only last!!!!

A bowl full of gratitude

I'm sitting here eating my bowl of cereal {banana nut granola to be exact} and realizing that it is NOVEMBER!!!!! Holy Cow people!!!! You do realize this means there are only 53 days left until Christmas!!!! And that means it's time to feel jolly right?? I felt a little whiny last month but it is officially the start of the holiday season and orneriness will no longer be allowed! SOOOOOOO....in between bites of Honey Combs and granola the girls and I decided to be grateful for all that we have. And we are going to document it. Day by day, bit by bit. Not sure exactly how it is going to work but we'll just play it by ear. So off we go....

Hallee is grateful "to get to go to school today because it's fun to learn."

Hope is grateful for "my family because they are nice and play with me."

Caymbree is grateful to still be in bed sleeping! (Whoot whoot!!)

Oh wait. Mr. T just walked in. He's greatful for "beautiful surroundings". Anyone else want clarification? He's still dazed and confused about what I am asking him to do here. Maybe he'll get better.

And I am grateful for .....drumroll..... I'll go with my little brother ROB aka FLOB, or Ro-dog. Since it is his BIRTHDAY TODAY!! Happy Birthday to the best little brother in the world! We miss you and wished we lived closer. As the baby of the family Rob had the uncanny ability to get me to do just about anything he wanted growing up. He pretty much had me wrapped around his little finger. Don't worry over the years I have learned to resist his puppy dog pleas (ok not really but I'm trying). Anyway. Thinking of my little bro does make me a tad bit sad that my girls will probably never get to experience this type of relationship. But this is about grateful right!!!

Happy Birthday Rob!!!!

(Rob and wife Rachel)

Halloween HODGES style

And now introducing the Hodges girls - Halloween style...

Hopers picked out this fun little flower girl costume. SO cute. SO her.

Miss Hallee transformed into this vampiress for the evening. For the carnival she wanted to be a pretty vampire but for Halloween night all gloves were off....

And little C couldn't have been cuter in her kitty cat costume. LOVED IT!!!

And just so you know I kept true to my word and let me children pick out the costumes this year. Nice job girlies!

Halloween Festivities

The Halloween Carnival came and went and ironically had its most successful year ever. (Despite the fact that they had fewer volunteers than ever). But enough about that. The kids had a blast as usual and loved running into their friends as their costumes were finally unveiled.

One of Troy's clients is part of the Larry H. Miller group and after working relentlessly to get them up and running for their grand opening they thanked him with tickets for the entire family for the Jazz game. Of course it would fall on the same night as the carnival!!! So Troy and I took turns working the first two hours of the carnival while the kids ran free and then we rushed home, changed clothes, wiped off all the costume make-up and headed for the Jazz game. Caymbree was highly disappointed when we got there and kept saying she didn't want to watch the "boy game" she wanted to watch the "girl game" and pointed to the Jazz dancers (that's my girl :). Unfortunately, the Jazz dancers only performed once during the entire game which left Caymbree feeling a little jipped!

Bye-Bye bankie!!

Caymbree was spoiled rotten with blankets when she was born. They came in all shapes, sizes and colors with a variety of textures and materials to pick from. Interestingly enough from the time she could express an interest she always favored this one. By the time her first birthday came around she dismissed any and ALL other blankets and no other options were acceptable. Washing the dang thing required careful planning and thought because she would not willingly give it up.

For the past year I have purchased a few other blankets with similar colors and textures hoping she would let me swap them out. Silly me. Those blankets now belong to her sisters. In the past few months I have become increasingly annoyed by the dirt and stains that permanently adorn the blanket. Caymbree and I have had a weekly discussion about saying "bye-bye to the bankie". She has not been thrilled.

Last week I took her with me to a little boutique and when we walked in she spotted this beauty...

...and all the stars aligned, the angels sang, and little C proudly claimed this magnificent piece of art as her very own. I was hesitant that I would be throwing my money away once she realized the significance of her decision so I had her carry it around with her while I shopped and we discussed the matter in detail. She agreed to throwing her old blankie away if I bought it. I was desperate and took the plunge. The purchase was made, we walked out to the car where she said her final good-bye to her faithful friend and I (pretended) to throw it out the window. So long bankie!

Only once during the drive home did she feel any sense of doubt when she timidly proclaimed that her new blankie did not have a tag like her other one. (She used to hold on to the tag to fall asleep). I told her I would sew a tag onto her new one if she wanted and all was well once again. And she has never turned back since.