Bright and Earl-y: Christmas in Utah 2017

Picture with Santa at the ward Christmas party 12.9.17

Owen is still obviously not a fan and Madden was not amused.

We spent Christmas in Utah this year and drove the whole way to my parents house from Arizona on the 16th. We didn't have time to stop and visit family in Vegas along the way because we had to make it in time for Brad to go to the BYU basketball game that night. Talk about dedication!

We did however have time to stop at McDonald's for a break. A little back story...anytime Brad and Owen play basketball in our backyard and Owen misses a shot, Brad yells "MISS!" like any good father would.

So, Owen's playing in the McDonald's play place and it had a little basketball court where a couple little girls were playing when we got there. So Owen goes in while they were shooting the basketballs and every time they missed a shot Owen yelled "MISS!" super loudly. Proud parenting moment!! haha

Owen was so excited to arrive at Gigi & Poppop's house and spent most of that first night watching Poppop's train go around the tracks.

Owen & Madden hanging out with Gigi

Visiting Santa 12.18.17
Owen hasn't been a fan of Santa the past couple of years and this year was no different! Madden got sick as soon as we arrived in Utah so I stayed home while my mom & sister took Owen to see Santa at the library. Owen definitely made some progress this year. He sat on Santa's lap (with my mom as a buffer) and even gave Santa a high five after the fact. I'm hopeful he won't be terrified when he's four! But let's be honest, he probably will be.

Showing off his goodie bag from Santa

Salt Lake City's Temple Square 12.18.17
That night, my parents, sister and my little family drove to Temple Square to see the lights. Owen complained of being cold the whole time (despite his many layers & blanket) and Madden looked miserable as well. But all of us adults enjoyed ourselves!

This little bear outfit from my sister is probably my favorite winter accessory :)

On the way home, we got a video of Owen singing his all time favorite Christmas song, Jingle Bells. I can't tell you how many times we've listened to this song this winter...

Gardner Village 12.20.17

One of the days we were there, my family along with my mom & sister spent the morning at Gardner Village. We grabbed some lunch at their restaurant once we got there and then walked around looking at all of the little shops which were all decorated for Christmas. I love this place!

Owen insisted on drinking Aunty Jess's drink...with not one, but two straws.

After lunch, Brad and Owen went into the furniture store and were trying out all of the chairs and couches. On one particular set of chairs, Owen pointed out that he liked his chair and Brad responded "but it's $600!" Owen paused for a few seconds and then slapped his forehead with his hand (which he's been doing a lot lately and it's hilarious) haha.

Museum of Natural Curiosity at Thanksgiving Point 12.21.17
My sister and I took Owen to Thanksgiving Point and he had a lot of fun. Well, most of the time. Owen was way less brave this time around and I had to "rescue" him multiple times in the huge play area. I think I was dripping sweat by the time we were done!

Christmas in Color in South Jordan
That night, we took the boys to see Christmas lights in South Jordan. They had a blast driving through looking at the lights and dancing to the music.

Provo 12.22.17

Monte L. Bean Life Science Museum

The next day, Brad & I took the boys to Provo to take them to the Bean museum on BYU's campus & the BYU bookstore. Owen insisted on pushing Madden's stroller the whole time and loved everything about the museum. So did Brad and I since it was free.

BYU bookstore
This was Madden's first time on BYU's campus & at the bookstore so we made sure to document by taking a picture next to Cosmo. Owen also somehow talked us into buying him a new Cougar basketball & very overpriced plastic miniature football helmet.

Back at my parents house

Madden decided to grow up all at once at my parents house because he advanced from scooting to crawling & also learned to pull himself up to standing on everything. Oh, and he learned how to climb stairs too...hence the gate. And here I was thinking this trip would be "easy" since he wasn't super mobile yet!

Visiting with Ally Fajardo & her kiddos 12.23.17

The next day, I took the boys to visit my friend Ally Fajardo who lives really close to my parents. We became really good friends when we worked at Qualtrics together and it was so good to see her again! On the drive to their house, Owen asked if Ruby had Lightning McQueen & other Cars toys and I had told him probably not. Well, I was wrong because not only did she have Lightning McQueen, but a ton of other cars that they played with the entire time. I think Owen fell instantly in love.

Here are some pictures of Ruby, Clarke, Owen & Madden :)

BYU basketball game with Owen 12.23.17

That night, Brad & I took Owen to the Marriott Center for a basketball game. According to Brad, he did much better this time around and wasn't nearly as scared as he was the first time! In fact, I think he had a lot of fun! He clapped when everyone clapped and kept asking where Cosmo was because he loved watching him dance. He also didn't even get scared when it got super loud, which is big improvement for our overly sensitive child haha. We probably didn't even need to buy that huge bag of popcorn to distract him...

Here's Owen and Brad sharing a Cougar tail. I took one tiny bite and they devoured the rest.

We can't wait to take him back to another game! He hasn't stopped talking about it since :)

Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve fell on a Sunday so we all enjoyed one hour church. Here's Owen standing in the front of the chapel dancing around while the primary kids sang. I let it slide since it was Christmas Eve.

Gingerbread houses

On Christmas Eve night, Owen got to make gingerbread houses with Gigi & Aunty Jess. Although I think he spent more time eating the candy than actually decorating the house ;)