A Very Merry Christmas

Heavenly Father certainly treated us to an extra gift this year with the beautiful sunrise that greeted us on Christmas morning. Breath taking.

I think the boys' eyes were as big as saucers when they walked out and saw all the presents. Jason and I never put anything out until Christmas Eve because it is safer that way. Well that and nothing is ever wrapped until the kids go to bed on Christmas Eve.

Kaden and Jase were up before Ethan and Kellan. We didn't think there was any reason to wake up the little boys or to make the big boys wait so we opened presents in shifts.
Kaden's two main gifts from Jason and me were a telescope and a microscope. He is totally into space and science and we love it! Thank you Star Wars! Unfortunately it has been too cloudy every night since Christmas to see much with the telescope, but it will clear up eventually. And the microscope has been a lot of fun. Reading all the safety instructions took me back my chemistry lab at ISU and fond memories of Emergency Mercury Clean-Up Kits. Hey they wouldn't have a kit if someone hadn't spilled the mercury before right? But Kaden was very careful with everything and we hope his interest in science will grow even more.

Jase absolutely loves Christmas. He loves the snow, the music, the lights, the presents, everything! We got Jase his first Nikon. He loves taking pictures and is always asking to use our camera, and we are always telling him no. So now he has one of his own to practice with. He takes pretty good pictures and gets so excited about them. We think this will be a great creative outlet for him and hope he develops his skills.

One of my favorite things about Jase is that he is equally excited about ALL of his gifts. Whether it's his traditional Christmas sweater, a camera or new socks he loves to hold them up with a big cheesy grin and pose for a picture.

Even new tidy whities make him happy! When was the last time you were that pumped about new undies?

We found this awesome hat in Idaho Falls and I couldn't resist.

Finally about 9:00 Ethan and Kellan woke up. Kaden and Jase were sure to be good "helpers" as Ethan started to unwrap his gifts.

Kellan was pretty happy about opening presents too.

Or maybe I was just excited to put his new Christmas clothes on him. I found the baddest skull clip on tie at The Gap. I HAD to get it for him. It was one of my favorite holiday purchases! And doesn't he look so stinkin cute. It went perfectly with his pin striped pants and red vest I found to match.

Ethan had a very Lightning McQueen Christmas. He loves Cars....and everyone knows it. It certainly made gift buying easier.

He was totally content to color in his lightning McQueen coloring book with McQueen crayons at his McQueen table set with his Lightning socks.

After we finished opening presents at our house my parents came over for breakfast. Every Christmas morning my parents join us for a sugar filled Christmas breakfast. Jason made delicious Almond Joy pancakes (he makes pancake batter and adds chocolate chips, coconut flakes and slivered almonds....soooooo yummy). It is so fun to see the kids show off all their new loot and complete outfits (right down to socks and undies) to my parents. We love having them over for breakfast.

That afternoon we headed over to The Byrd's. It was like a whole other Christmas! The boys scored new video games, a jump-o-lene, Nerf guns, books, puzzles and a bunch more. Oh and thank you Uncle Robert for not buying Kaden and Jase guns or ninja fighting sticks this year!

After we exchanged family gifts it was time for the Byrd family traditional homemade gift exchange. This year we went in order from oldest in the family to youngest. So Jason's mom had Jason this year. She had me pick out some of Jason's favorite photographs he has taken over this year and she printed them and put them in a book.

Jason was excited to see some of the pictures he has never printed. It was a very thoughtful gift.

Next, Jason had Robert. Jason worked extra hard on the wrapping.
Ethan was a big help unwrapping it.

Robert was totally surprised to get a table. Who wouldn't be?! Jason made a really beautiful buffet table for Robert's house. Tanya, Robert's girlfriend, was sure to remind Robert that this was indoor piece of furniture and he wasn't allowed to use it out in the garage. Robert gave Jason a great compliment by totally agreeing with Tanya. :o)

I was thoroughly impressed with Jason's handiwork.

Then Robert had me....again. I was a little nervous about my gift this year. Last year Robert had me and gave me a candle. Why on Earth would that make anyone nervous? Well let's just say it was a candle with "special" powers. It was made with special naturally organic....plants. And once the candle was burned to about half way there was a hidden "treasure" inside. Oh yes, Robert is always a good time! So this year Robert told me he had been working on my gift for the entire year. I thought, "Oh no, what other decorative uses has he found for "plants". Fortunately I opened the gift and found a strange black box that resembled a camera. Robert made me night vision. When you look through the eye piece of the box you can see in total darkness. RAD! This gift will be a lot of fun up the mountain this summer. AND it's totally legal! Bonus!

I had Craig this year. After 3 different failed attempts at 3 different projects I finally made him a picture frame with baseball stuff all over it. It might not have been super fabulous, but making anything with 4 boys pulling for my time and attention and after 3 melt downs, it was the best I could do. I hope he uses it.

To finish the day we went over to my parent's house for a fabulous dinner! We ate and then made the kids wait while we cleaned everything up before they could open their presents. Jase was trying to be sneaky.

The biggest surprise of the day was finding out that my brother Lane and his wife Serena are having a baby!!! Hooray!! We are thrilled for them. Lane got in practice holding Kellan. I love this picture of my littlest son and my brother. Melts my heart.

Kaden was getting tired of waiting. This was the face he made when asked if he wanted to help with dishes to make present time come any faster. Ummm...that would be a no.

Finally we were done and we lined up all the boys on the rug. Jase was all smiles.Grandma Marley brought each of the boys out one bag. Inside was a blanket. Let's just say the boys were less than impressed. Grandma encouraged them each to open their blanket all the way up. When they did they each found $100 bucks rolled up inside. The boys were stoked!

The Marley family tradition that has been carried on since 1986 has been for my parents to give Lane and I a Christmas bear with the year on it. Since we have gotten married my mom has gotten us a bear for each family member. That made 6 bears for our family this year. It is kind of a crazy tradition, but Jason and I love it!

A relatively newer tradition started about 4 years ago between Lane and Serena and Jason and I. One year we gave Lane and Serena this random DVD of an obscure television program from the 70's called Lancelot Link. Well they saved the silly thing and regifted it to us the next year, and has been going back and forth ever since. It was The Marley's turn for it this year. Can't you just see Lane's excitement. hehehehe.

We had such a wonderful Christmas this year. The best part was spending time with one another and receiving so many visits from friends and family. Especially when those friends and family all bring delicious treats! We hope your holiday was as full of love and joy as ours and your new year brings much happiness and peace.

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Wow! We made it....and with 52 minutes to spare. Make no mistake it was a race to the finish this year getting everything ready for Christmas....ok so we do this every year. Someday perhaps Jason and I will get better about being prepared for Christmas. Although, truth be told the mad rush and big push to the finish has become apart of the Christmas experience. And near panic attacks at the Costco 2 days before the big event become memories. Of course as a child I loved Christmas, who didn't? As a parent the entire Christmas experience is more meaningful and special....yes panic attacks included.
Every year at the start of the holiday season Jason and I remind the children the true meaning of Christmas. We teach the children about the importance of Jesus' birth and have tried to explain many of the traditions of Christmas. This year we really tried to focus on why we give gifts. It is always so hard to tell if anything you are teaching your kids is actually sinking in, but every once in a great while those precious little spirits show you in deed that they are listening. Last Sunday in church we were told of a family that was in need. A collection was started to help provide a Christmas for a family that otherwise wouldn't be getting anything. As soon as Jason and I got home we collected some cash to contribute. Then Jason turned to Kaden and Jase. He told them of the family and how they were in need and asked if they would like to add any of their money with ours. They both said they did and ran to their rooms and came back with a few bills. Jase had only a dollar saved and gave it right away. Then Kaden came with two bills in his hand, a 10 and a 1. He looked at me and said he wasn't sure which one to give. I told him it was his choice and either one would help the family and then encouraged him that if he wasn't sure what to do to pray to Heavenly Father about it. He turned around took 2 or 3 three steps and stopped. He walked back to us and put both bills in the pile. He said, "I know what Heavenly Father would want me to do. That family needs this more than I do." Without another word and a peaceful smile on his face he walked away. Jason and I both looked at one another with tears in our eyes. He got it! Kaden truly understands the meaning of Christmas. It's about giving. Jesus was born into this Earthly life to give all that he had for us. He gave his life that we might return to our Heavenly Father. There is no greater gift.
This Christmas Kaden gave me the greatest gift I could have hoped for. In deed he proved his testimony to me. A simple unselfish act of our child reaffirmed my own testimony of the gift of our Savior Jesus Christ.
Sitting in my warm and quiet home with all 4 of my angels snug in their beds enjoying the glow of the Christmas tree the sense of peace and joy is profound. In a few short hours my home will be full of smiles and laughter and the wonder of Christmas will swell in my heart. It truly is the most wonderful time of the year.

Santa Claus is Coming to Town!

Last Friday evening the boys got a very special visitor. Santa made it all the way from the North Pole just to visit them! Ok so maybe it wasn't the big man himself. Grandpa Byrd was on special assignment from Santa to be his helper for the evening with a bag full of goodies and a lot of jolly ole ho ho ho's.

Kaden and Jase thought they were pretty clever! They figured out who Santa was pretty quickly. After a few stern looks from Mom they kept their mouths shut about it so as not to ruin it for Ethan. If you look on the far left side of the picture you can see Ethan hiding in his bedroom. He wasn't too sure about this Santa guy in his house right at first.

But when Santa opened his bag of goodies Ethan was quick to join right in!

I love the magic and wonder of Christmas and the irresistible smiles it puts on my boys' faces.
Santa had his arms full with Ethan and Kellan.

Getting this bunch to all look at the camera at the same time...and smile...was tricky. At least no one was crying!
Finally it was time to get down to business. Kaden had quite the list for Santa. From a new bike, to a flat screen TV, Nintendo DS, Playstation 3, a telescope and about 400 other items. It never hurts to ask right?!
Jase's list was relatively similar to Kaden's. Jase looks up to Kaden so much and is always trying to be just like him. Of course Jase added his list of Spiderman toys too.

Ethan mostly just smiled and giggled on Santa's lap. It was so cute!

Kellan didn't ask for much this year and by next year I am sure he will be terrified of Santa. So for this year a picture with the jolly ole guy was enough.

When Santa Claus left he was sure to remind the boys that he was watching and they needed to be good or else they would end up on the naughty list. Sometimes I wish Santa was around every night!

Our Baby's Blessing

Thanksgiving weekend was a busy weekend for our family. Thanksgiving was a little different this year. I always cook the big meal at our house, because I love to cook and Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday and nothing warms my heart more than to have my little family gathered around our table for a traditional meal. But this year we ate dinner with Jason's family and it was nice. We also attended my nephew Laney's baptism. Laney is a wonderful boy and we were so proud of his choice to be baptized.

And finally, on Sunday we blessed Kellan. It was the perfect end to a fantastic weekend. The weather was less than perfect however. It had snowed so much that several of our family and friends from out of town weren't able to make it, but they all sent their love and we greatly appreciated their thoughtfulness. My dad braved the storms and icy roads and made it home for the events. I knew it would take a lot more than poor road conditions to keep him from this special weekend in two of his grandson's lives. Sunday morning as the snow really started to accumulate and I had heard of several wards being cancelled I feared ours would too. Thankfully ours was not cancelled.

I think Kellan would have been content to sleep right through everything. I didn't want to get him dressed until it was time to leave, because babies and white are a dangerous combination! So he stretched and wiggled while I got him ready on the couch.

I was grateful Kellan is a sound sleeper. He slept right through all my fussing over him. Slept through the car ride to the church. Slept through the blessing. Slept through the entire sacrament meeting. And slept through most of the luncheon at our home after.

Because Kellan was asleep and as I mentioned I didn't dress him until it was literally time to get in the car we didn't take any pictures of him all dressed until after the day was over.

Such a smiley sweet little man!

I had looked all over for a little tux just like the one Jase wore when he was blessed, but could not find what I wanted. In the end I decided to ask Jase if it would be all right with him if Kellan wore his blessing outfit. Boy if this didn't please Jase! He was so proud that his little brother wore his tux. It was very sweet. And it was a good thing we didn't wait any longer than we did to bless Kellan or Jase's tux would not have fit. As it was the top was an inch short. It fit Jase perfectly at 8 weeks. But Kellan at 5 weeks was a close call. My sweet little short Jaser!

Kellan's shoes were also very special. While I was searching for an outfit for Kellan I asked Peggy, Jason's mom, if she still had Jason's blessing outfit. She brought it over and I fell in love with the sweet little satin shoes. Right away I knew they would be a part of Kellan's blessing day. They were a little big on his tiny feet but they added an extra bit of love and tradition to Kellan's outfit. I hope someday Kellan will be able to pass them on to his children.
I love his crazy hair in this picture.

Baby tails. So sweet.

I wanted to get a family picture as soon as we got home from church, because I knew if we didn't we wouldn't get one that day. Unfortunately I wasn't quick enough. Before I even got Kellan out of his car seat Kaden and Jase had their suits off. So I had to get them both redressed and brought upstairs for pictures. As you can tell, they were less than cooperative. Oh well something is better than nothing. And in all honesty this is a pretty accurate depiction of our family.

I wish I had gotten a picture of Jason in his suit with Kellan. Jason was dangerously close to stealing the show with his suit that day. Generally Jason doesn't wear a suit, because well to be honest he hasn't gotten a new one since he left on his mission. And that's been....well we'll just say a while ago. So I surprised him with a new suit for the day. I loved having all 5 of my boys in suits. What a lucky woman I am to be surrounded by handsome men all the time!

Jason got a quick pic of Kellan and me before I changed him out of his whites.

That evening we were sitting around and Jase wanted a picture with Kellan. I just happen to be holding him so I made the shot too. I love this picture. Two of my sweet boys. Ok and maybe because I think Jase actually looks a little like me here. He does right? Right?! Come on one of these boys has to at least slightly resemble me.

The blessing that Jason gave Kellan was beautiful. Jason blessed Kellan to be strong and wise. To be strong both in body and in his testimony of the church. And to be wise in all his choices. He blessed him with the desire to fulfill an honorable mission. And one of the most tender blessing he bestowed on Kellan was to marry one of Heavenly Father's choice daughter in the temple. Kellan was blessed to always be a light in our family. Every blessing Jason pronounced on Kellan was truly inspired by the spirit of God. It bore testimony to me the power of the priesthood and spurred my thankfulness for my husband who is a worthy priesthood holder. Having the priesthood in our home is a tremendous comfort to me and something I strive not to take for granted. I look forward to and pray for the day when my home will be full of 5 worthy priesthood holders.

Thanksgiving weekend was without a doubt the perfect time to bless our son. For him I am infinitely grateful. For the peace and contentment I felt from the first moment he was placed in my arms I am thankful for. The space that I had felt that was missing from our family he filled exactly. I am grateful for his light and innocence for it reminds me to be a little more soft, a little more gentle with everyone around me. No earthly words can express the gratitude in my heart for my family. They are everything to me. They humble me, strengthen me and encourage me to be my best self. I am not always the perfect wife or the perfect mother. If given the opportunity there are many things I have done that I would change over and over again. But I wouldn't change where I am in my life now for anything. I am so richly blessed with a husband who not only tells me he loves me, but has proven that love time and time again. He is the embodiment of a help meet and my eternal companion. My 4 sons, Kaden, Jase, Ethan and Kellan are the lights of my life. They are my greatest accomplishments and dearest blessings. Mothers often worry how they will love a second child as much as they love their first. After four I can testify that love is without end. A mother's heart's ability to grow to encompass all of her children is a divine gift from a Heavenly Father that understands the limitless power of love.