Caleb's Birthday!

Another family get-together, this time to celebrate Caleb's 2nd birthday!  It was also close to Alicia's birthday, but typical Alicia, she didn't want us to make a fuss over her.

Caleb and Alicia

He's not quite sure what to think about all this...

Eventually, he figured it out!

Jillian got the job of feeding ice-cream cake to Nolan.  He loved it!

Uncle Dallas and Aunt Sharon's 50th Anniversary

The Saturday after Christmas, my Uncle Dallas an Aunt Sharon celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary.  Brad and I had gone to the temple the night before and decided to stay overnight in Bellevue since we had to be over there again in the morning.  The kids came over in the morning with my mom.  We all met up at the Ward building next to Newport High, where we used to have big family Christmas dinners when my mom's parents were alive.  All four of my cousins and their kids were able to come for the anniversary party and it was so much fun to see them again!  We decided it's been at least six years since we've all been together.

David, Debbie, Uncle Dallas, Aunt Sharon, Donna, and Daniel.

Debbie is sharing some thoughts about her parents and their wonderful 50 years together. I have many fond memories of working for my aunt and uncle's catering business when I was in high school.  My uncle has a great sense of humor and always made washing dishes a lot of fun. They taught me a lot about hard work, attention to detail, and enjoying your job. 

Me and Donna...she's four years older than I am, but we always had a great time together as kids. We reminisced about playing Barbies, her huge Smurf collection, braiding each other's hair at sleep-overs.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Eve at Grandma Vikki's:

Sorry, Caleb, you're just a little bit bigger than you were last year! 

 Our annual "Chinese Christmas" with all the cousins--there were 35 of us this year!

And this isn't even all of us...

Sisters!  Jingle-bell Jillian and Kandy Kane Kylie!

and more sisters! Christmas themed names are so tricky...ummm...

Christmas Cookie Kaylin, Apple Cider Alexis, and Christmas Tree T. 

OK, that's enough!

Brad, Mom & Dad, Dylan, Dax and Collin Hansen, and Jonathan

James, Haley, Roya, Amanda, Aliyah, Andrew, Brad & Dad

Christmas Morning at home:

Yay!  Christmas is finally here!

I told them I wanted a picture of them in front of the tree and this is what I got...

Jillian had a very One-D Christmas!  I found some One Direction wrapping paper at the grocery store and wrapped all her presents in it.  I forgot to take a picture of them, though!  Here she is opening a One Direction calendar.

Ben got the whole set of Ender's Games books.

 Kylie sporting her new Adidas slides.

Brad bought an Atari for the family.  It was so much fun to show the kids all the video games that were popular when we were kids!

We had a fairly low-key Christmas gift wise.  One of my favorite gifts was getting to talk to Nathan.  He is slowly adjusting to life in Mexico and fortunately has a very kind, patient, native-Mexican companion.  He says understanding people is challenging and he's trying very hard to stay positive.  He's only been there one week, so he knows it will continue to improve. 

My parents, Corey and her family, and Brad's mom came over for Christmas dinner. Brad cooked a delicious New York strip roast, a change-up from our traditional prime rib.  After dinner, we opened gifts and played Telestrations, the new game that Grandma Susan and Grandpa Tom gave to Ben.  A great evening:  delicious food, great company, and lots of laughs!

Cookie Exchange

Fun times at the Van Aken house!

Getting ready for the cookie exchange:

the cookies are all decorated,

the table is set,

the guests arrive,

and socialize,

Let the eating begin!

Let it Snow!

The kids have been hoping for a snow day ever since temperatures dropped into the 20s and 30s a few weeks ago.  It's been so cold because the sky has been clear, which means no snow!  But Friday morning, the necessary conditions aligned and we woke up to the white stuff!  True, it was less than an inch, but the kids had a two hour late start for school; just enough time to get out and play before they left. 

 

A boy and his dog in the snow...nothing more fun than that!

By jumping on the trampoline, Ben was able to make multiple snow balls at once!  We had a great snowball fight, which Kylie joined.  Then, since the snow was perfect for packing, we built a snowman.

 

Pretty good for less than an inch of snow on the ground!

The house looks so pretty dusted in white.

And the hummingbirds were out in search of some food!

UW Field Trip

Ben's class went on a field trip to the University of Washington and I chaperoned.  We got to go to the planetarium and see a very cool demonstration about the universe.  Afterwards, I chased five fifth graders all over the UW campus.  Unfortunately, they didn't stop moving long enough to get pictures.  I loved being back in the midst of Suzzallo Library, Denny Hall, the Quad, Red Square, Drumheller Fountain; all the beautiful spots were just like I remember 20 years ago!

We met up with the rest of the group at the new Husky Stadium, where we went on a tour.  At the end, the kids were invited to run down the tunnel onto the field and then run around and get their energy out.  Smart tour guide!  Maybe one day Ben will be a student here...

It's perfect!

 

We had to cut the very top off the tree, but Ben quickly put it to good use! 

 

Other than that, it was a perfect fit, and we think it's one of our best ever!