Saturday P-90X - Baby A needed in on the pull-ups.  :)

 Donuts for Dad's day at school -the kids in the back of Dad's car on the way (couldn't quite snap a shot of the 3 of them....)

 more snow.....

breakfast of choice these days: vanilla yogurt w/ granola (and occasionally blueberries)

 I told my sister, even with Christmas decor lingering well past it's proper season, I still need twinkle lights somewhere.  It's just so dark in the winter - I can't quit cold-turkey.  I've found it's best to gradually wean myself away - not quite a 12-step program, but still pretty effective.  Usually by the time St. Patrick's Day comes around I can part w/ the winter-twinkle-lights.  It just takes time.  :)

Today's the day!  Christmas goes back into the blue bins till Thanksgiving 2011. :)

snow on the skylight - makes me so grateful for heaters!!!  (I can't put Christmas away on Sunday!  We're supposed to be resting!)  :)  This was actually my first day back to our ward since before Christmas - we drove home the 2nd, I stayed home w/ sick kids the 9th, so I started teaching my new  9-year-old Primary class today.  I think we're going to have some good times.  :)

Enjoying a quick snack of alpha-bits before Saturday morning chores.  Then we had a fun fun fun trip up to KC for the rest of the day to see buddies and go to Shelby's wedding receptions - we love being close enough to run 'home' for the day. (no time for putting away Christmas today, either!)  :)

Today it seemed like a better idea to play with trains rather than take down Christmas (we had Baby A's playgroup here this morning).

 Yes, the date says Jan. 13, and yes, those are still Christmas decorations glowing in my home.  :)  What can I say???  We didn't get home till the 3rd, and then we all got sick....  And then I just had to tie up all the loose-end-projects I had sitting around (messy craft room, collage wall, food storage....).  So tomorrow, I promise, I'll get the decorations down.  :)

J-boy's best friend (the heating in our apartment is terribly uneven - the ductwork is all in the ceiling of the first floor/floor of the second floor, so the vaulted-ceiling-living room never really gets warm (the heat just rises up the stairs) and upstairs is boiling hot when it's comfortable downstairs.  And then there's the 'craft room' with no vents at all.  So we've enjoyed our cheap-o space heater.

 She climbs all the way to the top of that chair to reach the buttons of choice on the DVD player - I don't particularly like my 2 year old having that much independence.  School was cancelled today because it snowed yesterday.  Silly school board.  So far J-boy has had 2 days of school since before Christmas, K-lady has had 3.   Can we please get a routine?!

 Why does he do this?!  When will he start being embarrassed to see pictures of himself in his baby sisters' clothes?!

All this time at quarantined at home has been great for my unfinished projects - I finished putting up my collage wall and completely rearranged/reorganized the 'craft room.'  I love deep cleaning in January. :)

Back in November we did some food storage work at my in-laws after our ginormous Thanksgiving feast (it was actually a GREAT way to spend the evening).  We finished off a big order from the cannery (mostly wheat, with a case of hot chocolate for good measure).  But then we bought a few bags of flour from Costco,  and didn't have time to package them up.  So they sat around the infamous 'craft room' for a month and a half - today I'd had enough.  We were still on the edge of sick but I was sick of being sick, so I got to work.  Pretty soon Joseph was feeling guilty for sitting on the couch (really, that was NOT my intent!), and came over to help :)  We had a good time and finally got things squared away.  I love putting things away.  

another sick day - we actually turned OFF the movies for a bit and made thank you cards (our DVD player sure gets a lot of use when we have sick people at home).

 

Now Joseph's down w/ it - we blew up the air mattress in the play room to be the sick bed. :)  fevers, chills, cold & cough kinds of ick

 all the kids home sick - Baby A's on the mend - I love those eyes...

K-lady and J-boy came home from school and fought over who got the couch and who got the chair, and then fell asleep - and fevered.   More sick days....

 finally finished unloading the van - whew!  Joseph's back at work, the kids are back to school tomorrow...

 more driving.... (we stayed the night at a hotel in Rawlins and had a leisurely start in the morning = home around 11:00 that night) (Baby A had a fever all day = lots of sleeping in the car - I guess it's a blessing!)

Last day in Utah - we left after lunch and got a few hours behind us.  Mom sat down at the piano and started playing & singing, and K-lady went right over and started singing along - filled me w/ all kinds of nostalgia and gratitude and love and mushy feelings. :)  I treasure this little memory.

A few cut-throat games of connect-four with 2nd cousins and 1st cousins once removed and great grandma L and other distant and well-loved relatives.  (we didn't make it to the count-down -- we were driving through the Salt Lake Valley when the clock switched over, the children fast asleep in the back of the van, Joseph and I enjoying a little Harry Potter on CD, watching fireworks shoot up randomly across the valley.  Joseph: "Happy New Year, honey.  2010 was a good year."  Tara: "It was good, wasn't it?  Happy New Year, Babe.")

 A little fun with the L's - Cousin N gave Aunt Emily a run for her money with the boys' new sparing gear they got for Christmas -- she said, "Aunt Emily, will you fight with me?  We can fight for fun, but I will still love you, and you will still love me, right?"

Having recovered sufficiently to go bowling with the family, Grandpa Bruce enjoys a smooch from his cutest little granddaughter.  :)  (okay, the cutest is up for debate, but she's definitely in the running)  (Cousin B and M threw up tonight at the Chick-fil-a after dinner!  The fun continues!!!)

 J-boy and Ms. B played foosball for hours!  It was so cute.  Flu bug hit Grandma and Grandpa and Kendra today.  And Great Grandma B. : (

 Ms. B let Baby A help her with her gingerbread house - so sweet!!!! (Joseph was down with it today)

 Sweet little lady with Great Grandma B - I love it!!!

 I love this girl - this picture makes my eyes prick with tears while I smile.  I've told Joseph that living next to Heather and Ryan for that year in Ohio has ruined me for life - I will always always always be trying to live near them again.  Our quick little 2 1/2 days together for Christmas was just not enough.  (can you believe she was up all the night before throwing up - that's right, we were definitely sharing the love).

 The whole fam damily after church on Sunday.  Well, not ALL of us, but a good crowd, at any rate (we missed you, Dave, Mindy, Eric & Scott!!!!!!!)

 This little lady (my 6 month old darling niece) is so dainty and cute - she was crossing her ankles just before I snapped this shot.  :)  Cute PJ's, too, eh?

 J-boy got a REAL FLIGHT SUIT and some awesome lego sets - little boy heaven!!!!

 K-lady got a doll house that's taller than her!!!!  (Made with love by Grandpa Bruce for a 9-year-old Tara once upon a time)

 Christmas PJ's on Christmas morning - Joseph and I and Gabe broke the rules and got dressed - I'd been up all night throwing up, so I felt like I had a reasonable excuse to shower and clean up before tearing into the presents Christmas morning.  Baby A had already changed out of her PJ's, but since she changes clothes 20 times a day, it was only expected.

  YAY!  Joseph was my hero and drove from 4:00 am till we pulled in at mom and dad's at 7:30 that night.  We only stopped TWICE!  (I guess the kids were rather dehydrated, having been sick the day before - potty stops were at a minimum)  We made it in time for Christmas Eve stories and games and pajamas!  PJ's Phase 4: cute cousins wearing 'jama's!!! (the other 3 were already in bed)

 I thought the sunset through the icy window looked kind of cool.

 Finally on the road!  After a little make-over session with mommy's make up Baby A settled in for some movies.

PJ's phase 3: DONE!  I just made the pants; mom bought shirts to go with them.  They turned out darling!  

But this picture doesn't really show what we did on the 23rd.  The day started around 1:30 am with K-lady throwing up (on her bed).  Baby A followed suit around 2:30, and J-boy finished us off at 3:00 by throwing up on HIS bed.  Their room REEKED.  So instead of waking up at 4 am and driving to Utah, we decided to stay home for the day and do laundry and hopefully get rid of the bug so we wouldn't take it with us. (No such luck.)

The Christmas party at church included a lovely program with music and spoken word, all reverent and sweet.  Which meant that Joseph got to hang out with Baby A and J-boy in the hall while I played the piano.  :)  But he did get this cute picture! :)  We got home from our party around 9:30, and dug into the packing of the car (I had done a little during the day, but not nearly enough!).  Joseph gave up around 10:30 and went to bed, I finished up around 12:30.  But the night wasn't over yet.

 sick day #1 (of many many in the next few weeks).  J-boy woke up & threw up - stomach bug on it's way for all of us!  Saltines and sprite in a sippy cup, blankets pillows, coats, hats and movies.  We thought he was better by bedtime....

 bundle of Christmas joy delivered to the big city today by Baby A and myself (a few last minute errands before we head out of town!)

 we made treats for friends/neighbors today.

 cute little clutches for my cute little neices.

 pajamas phase 2 (cut out)

I felt so triumphant taking my small bundle of packages to be mailed - didn't ever make it to the Christmas cards this year, but the present made it out on time.  :)

 Christmas-in-a-bag (well, three bags), all ready to transform the primary room into a Christmas party for my Activity Day girls.

 Not much for naps these days, but we both still need our hour of quiet time.

 This cutie IS still part of the family - she just doesn't make it into as many shots as her younger counterparts.

The craft room (food storage room, home office, mud room, pantry, garage, etc) seems to take the brunt of my busy days.  Luckily, it's horrid messy state scares the children away, so I'm free to leave Christmas gifts in plain sight - kind of like Where's Waldo.  There's so much going on, you can't see what's right in front of you.  And it all hides behind a curtain when company comes to call.  :)  

Today was NOT a perfectly ordinary day!  Today we got our new camera!  We bought a previously-loved canon rebel from a friend, and Joseph brought it home tonight after an exciting night of hunting (actually, not very exciting - no deer).  So I ran around the house taking pictures of any random thing I could (with a FLASH!).  Hurray!!!!