Rotary lunch

We went to the Rotary Christmas lunch this week. It was delicious food, fun entertainment, and (I have to admit) quite nostalgic for me. I remember so many of these events as a kid. I remember being dragged kicking and screaming; I remember making an absolute nuisance of myself; I remember being bored; I remember being entertained.
Xiana was the youngest and cutest member of the crowd. She loved being introduced and clapped and cheered with the best of them. When the performer sang Christmas songs, Xiana cupped her hand like she was holding a microphone and sang into it with her eyes closed and her head swaying. She mimicked the last word to every line of every song. When the President of Rotary asked questions, Xiana enthusiastically shouted answers into the air. When we first sat at the table Xiana asked for a sugar packet ( I have this terrible habit of letting her have one sugar packet whenever we eat out... Brian hates it :). I grabbed one of the sugars and went to open it when she said, "not that one, I want the strawberry one!" pointing at the pink sweet and low. My old high school principal was there and he immediately came across the room to give me a hug and talk with me. To say I was impressed would be an understatement. I only attended Reed for one year, and only went to class for maybe two months so I was quite touched that he remembered me. All in all, it was a memorable lunch and I'm glad we went. There are a lot of kind people in this world that genuinely want to do good for others. It's neat to see; particularly at the holidays. After the lunch, we went to the Chapin's house so that Xiana could see their amazing decorations and be spoiled by our good family friends.
They always do elaborate decorations both outside....
and in!

Getting all dolled up

Xiana loves to help me get ready. She sits in the sink while I do her hair, my hair, my make up, and she plays with the blush brush. It's fun. It's our "girl" time.
We went to Brian's ward Christmas party. He is in the ward that I grew up in and it's amazing how many of the same people are still in attendance. It is a very established ward which means I know a lot of people in it, but there are very few children (by very few I mean 3 kids in nursery). There are both advantages and disadvantages to that, but I will say it was delightful to see so many people from my childhood and youth. I forgot how much I love so many folks.
We both wore leggings and boots... Xiana was quite proud.
When we got home the Jenkins were over. My dad's good friend Vonn passed away a month ago. He had an amazing family and it was really fun to see them. Xiana especially enjoyed playing with their grand daughter.

Brian and Xiana playing dress up. :)

I almost gave this little outfit away because I thought it was too strange. Then, today I found it in the closet and decided to give it a whirl. I'm glad I did because it. was. adorable. She is a little hippie girl right after my own heart.

Sledding!!

I love sledding, but not just any old sleds will do. No, once you have unleashed the speed that is snow tubes, you will never revert back to toboggans, discs, sleighs and the like. My family has always gone sledding in the meadows at Mt. Rose. And we have always used speed demons otherwise known as tubes. Everyone on the hill has always been envious of our sleds as they are incomparable in both distance and speed. It has been a family tradition as long as I can remember. One year, when the slope was particularly icy, my dad flew into the air and landed on his head resulting in a trip to the emergency room with fear of a broken neck. Did this stop us? No! The following year we made our way back up that mountain and went sledding again. Even my mom went sledding with us.... until one day, we went sledding at our normal spot, and my mom decided to take a thrilling run into some trees winding up with a broken arm. This was the last chapter in a long book of family sledding. This year... seven years later... tradition returned. Only this time, there were more Andersens than Freys, and certainly no mom to speak of. Still, we went to our normal spot and it was a blast. People always conjecture about which sleds will go the fastest. They always think that one or the other is going to outrun the tubes, but I know. And I will always know that you cannot mess with the snow tubes. They are fast and furious! This year, we were the first to arrive at our location. As a result, we had to trail blaze in snow up to our thighs... all the way up the mountain. In addition to that, each adult had to carry tubes/sleds/children. I got to carry Xiana all the way up... I know she only weighs 20 lbs, but this was no small feat. Once up, I was somewhat afraid to head down this mountain with my fragile baby in my arms. So, after a trial run, I had Brian take her down. She. Loved. It. What can I say? I have been attempting to train her to be a thrill seeker her whole life. I can't imagine how enjoyable it would have been to be her, or the other kids. They got to sled down on the laps of an adult, and then be carried back up to the top of the hill. It was hard work. It got easier as others arrived on the hills and we were able to start packing down a trail. But the first few times up were really hard. By the time you got to the top, you had to take a rest just to be ready to head back down to the bottom. And yet, it was absolutely worth it. As we cascaded, glided, tumbled, sashayed, slid, and soared down the mountain, I knew that every ounce of work it was to get back to the top was a fair trade for the excitement of the ride. Then I got to thinking. Isn't that what life is all about. We work really hard for extended periods of time so that we can have moments of sheer joy, excitement, and fun. And in the end, it's always worth it. Nobody ever said, "man, I wish I hadn't worked so hard to be able to enjoy that." On the contrary, we prioritize and figure out ways that we can achieve our goals. And most goals, at least goals worth having, don't often come cheap. We have to put our blood, sweat, and tears into the fruition of our dreams. And then.... bliss. So it turns out, life is very much like sledding. We work hard, climb to the top, carry those who aren't quite strong enough to carry themselves until a later date when they will be, and then we enjoy the fruits of our labors....
First time at the top...
at the bottom...
back to the top... (taking a little break)
And at the bottom... (climbing up with a tube in one hand and a child in the other... pretty typical of the day)
back at the top...
time for a little snack break
the boys raced... Mark smoked them!
racing to the bottom
The kids were wiped out before the adults which is really hard to believe considering all the work we were doing.
Every time we got to the bottom of the hill Xiana would say, "let's slide one more time."
I told them to say cheese. They were both a little preoccupied with eating the snow. Rowan was even dipping his crackers in it.
The warning on this sled says, "single rider weight capacity 120 lbs"
But we didn't die.

I wish I could have captured my dad's face. It was priceless. When you hit the bumps, the kids go flying out of your arms and it's really challenging to hold on to the tube while you wrestle them back to your laps. Scary, but fun!
Just relaxing
Last run of the day...
We hiked back to the cars where we had hot chocolate waiting for us. I love this day. I love sledding. Life is beautiful isn't it?

From the mouths of babes

• Xiana is under the impression that it is always her birthday so I explained to her that next is mommy's birthday and then Brian's. Well, mommy's birthday has come and gone so next is Brian's right? The other day we were playing at the neighbor's house and one of the boys said that is birthday is next week. Xiana defensively exclaimed, "no! Brian's birthday next!"
• One morning I saw her put a piece of cheese under her shirt and say, "my baby in my tummy."
• One of her new favorite expressions was coined one evening when Kacie and I were shopping. We were in the front seat talking and Xiana said, "hey, what you talking about guys?" I thought it was so adorable then.... but I might have mentioned it a time or two in her presence and as a result, she asks it several times throughout the day. If she doesn't understand or hear what we're talking about, or if she finds that she needs a little more attention than she was previously receiving.
• A car pulled out in front of me and I said, "look at this nonsense," to myself. My ever hearing child innocently asked, "what's nonsense?"
• We were reading the story of Samson and she perceptively exclaimed, "that boy hurting!"
• Yesterday she came to me while I was eating and said, "I up" "no" I replied. She waited all of 20 seconds before asking, "how bout now?"
• I was talking to Brian on the phone and asked if Kevin (his brother) was coming with us. Xiana immediately said, "hey, I know tevin, I yike tevin." She listens to every word I say whenever she is around. I have to be careful!
• Xiana came to me yesterday asking to sing the Jesus song. It took me a little while to discover that she was talking about "Jesus Wants Me For a Sunbeam." It's really sweet that rather than the irreverent and emphatic sunbeam for reference, she thinks of it as the Jesus song.
• Brian has been shaking Xiana'a hand and saying, "nice to meet you." Which she, of course, mimics. The other day she walked up to my dad, shook his hand and said, "nice to meet you grandpa." He was so impressed I didn't have the heart to tell him that she was not the originator of this expression.
• If ever she gets frustrated that someone doesn't understand her, she has taken to telling them, "tome here, I'll show you."
• Likewise, if you are eating her pretend food, or playing any of her wide array of imaginary games, she likes to tell you exactly how you should be playing. If you take a bite the wrong way, or drive or fly or talk on the phone the "wrong" way, she says, "no, not yike dat, yike dis," demonstrating the proper way.
• Brian was asking her what her whole name was the other day to which she replied, "Xiana with an X."
• Speaking of which, I don't know if I've mentioned she now calls herself Xiana. No more nana.
• We were shopping for a birthday present for one of her friends and Xiana said, "my pony." I explained to her that it was a present for Kamryn. She thought for a minute and then said, "and we share."
• Ever since it snowed she cautions me every time we leave the house, "be tareful mommy."
• I overheard her on the phone saying, "I'll email you." It took me a few to figure out where she got that. Then, we were watching Sesame Street and Elmo was checking his email. That must be the source as she is a Elmo junkie.
• We were at Walmart and Kacie and I were talking about how cute a pair of socks were. Xiana, listening as always, grabbed the socks off the shelf and yelled, "Oh! My! Gosh!"
• The shower curtain in our bathroom is lighthouses. Xiana always points to them and calls them temples.
• One day Garrett couldn't understand what she was saying when they were playing with her fake food. She said, "eat it tending," and he said, "no honey, we don't really eat this food." She replied, "no, tending!" I had to translate that she was saying pretending.
  
• I am still not sure where she got this one from, but all I can think is that her 2 year molars are coming in and I referenced them because yesterday she asked me to open my mouth so she could see my "molars" and then identified the correct teeth.
• When she plays hide-and-seek she can now count to 30. Also, she can spell her name.
• She was in the bath and I changed into a dress for school. When I came back in she said, "what you wearing mommy? You wear a dress? You a pretty princess?" I assured her that, yes, I am a pretty princess and that she is too. She looked down at her naked body in the tub and said, "no, I a mermaid."
• "I yike Elmo," she told me, "I no yike cookie monster, you yike cookie monster?" "Yes," I told her, "it's okay if you like them both. You can like Elmo and Cookie Monster." "Oh" she said. We went through this several more times throughout the day before she finally said, "no, I no yike cookie monster. He kinda scary."
• One day when she was pretending to drive her car to go grocery shopping she came into the kitchen with her arms full of "groceries" and asked, "hey, where I park my car?"
• I did her hair for church on Sunday and put bows on top. She asked if Garrett would get her dressed so he did. As we were heading out the door I asked, "hey, what happened to your bows?" She replied, "Garrett take them out." (which he most certainly did not) My dad said it was her first alibi.

Earthquake

Morre had her baby and after a myriad of complications got to take him home. Xiana had been really excited to hold the baby. She got her wish and then proceeded to be a holy terror the rest of the time we were over, sorry Morre! Calin is a sweet baby and so far, very good. Xiana didn't quite get the concept of the baby being out of her tummy and kept assuring us that there were two babies now, one in Morre's belly and one in her arms.
awwwwww
The next night for family home evening we made a gingerbread house.
It turned out really cute. My mom makes her own gingerbread and then she melts hard candies in the windows to make stained glass. I remember in years past creating exact replicas of our homes and gingerbread houses with electricity. I even remember one year for my birthday, my mom was ambitious enough to let 13 of my friends and myself make our own houses. She was crazy. But, as usual, I digress. So, we made the house and it was really cute and fun.
Can't you tell how much fun it was? jk, Garrett really did have fun.
Here is the front finished product.
And Suzy homemaker here attempting to make icicles.
Then... two days later my good friend Kate and her son came over. Kate and I were talking in the living room roughly 10 feet away from the kids. They were awfully quiet all of two minutes before we heard a crash. I instantly knew what it was. Both kids were scared out of their minds crying hysterically as they pointed (from on top of the table mind you) at the shattered gingerbread house on the floor. Kate and I assured them that it was okay. They both looked like they were trying to quickly figure out who to blame. Of course, the fact that they were on the table with vibrant colors from m&m's running down their faces didn't leave them with much of an alibi. It was pretty funny. So, in the end we determined that there must have been an earthquake; judging from the damage a rather large one :)
Here is my little ham hamming it up before church last week. She got to wear her snow boots to church because Brian specifically selected the black ones which would go with her dresses. Good job babe!
She insisted that I take a picture of her and her bear. By the way, this is not actually her bear at all. I tried to explain to her that it was my bear and I was letting her use it. She didn't believe me and exclaimed that it was hers. To prove my point I read the tag on the bear's ear, "to Lenaya, from Nic." The next day I saw her rip the tag off the bear, hold up the remnants and read aloud, "to Xiana love mommy." It was priceless!

Let it Snow!

After the first huge snow storm in Reno, all of the stores were sold out of snow gear. And I mean sold out! Because I lived in Vegas for the last four winters and all of Xiana's life, the thought never occurred to me that she would need actual snow clothes should we want to venture out and about. For a few days I made do with extra layers and plastic bags over her boots, but then I decided to check the stores. I guess you snooze you loose because Walmart didn't have a single pair of boots or gloves or snow pants left. Target had exactly one pair of snow pants...nothing else. Fortunately, they just happened to be pink... and size 12 months. You'd think this would be a problem since Xiana is over 2, but... she is tiny so they fit perfectly. I still couldn't find boots, but in Brian's Christmas shopping endeavors, he came across some that are, not only warm, but adorable! The final touch was gloves for both of us from Costco... Score!
Thus, we were ready to go!
The snow was really dry so when we attempted to make a snow man, we were pretty unsuccessful. I decided to make a snow turtle instead and Xiana certainly didn't mind.
We made some snow angels too. Xiana got such a kick out of it that she asked to do it again and again and again. She also asked if we could bring the angels to Brian tomorrow.
Her little angel is priceless!

Oh Christmas Tree Oh Christmas Tree

This is Kacie's beautiful Christmas tree. I had Xiana pose in front of it so that I could pretend it was my own. I marvel at her ability to go all out for Christmas. I think it looks beautiful, but maybe I'm a little bah humbug-ish because it also seems like a lot of work (to say nothing of cost). Regardless, Kacie always decorates her whole place extravagantly, and I love visiting.

Please notice all the presents under this tree...mind you, Kacie lives alone!
Then we went to the ward Christmas party... speaking of extravagant decor....
Xiana hasn't been able to see as much of Charlie as normal lately between winter colds and busy schedules so they were thrilled to get to spend an evening by each other's sides.
Xiana is not into sitting on Santa's lap. She proclaims to all who will listen, "I no sit on Santa yap, I sit on mommy yap." Although she did tell him she wanted a princess which is a step in the right direction from the last 2 Santa's laps she did not sit on.
We got a tip from Kacie and went to the same lot she used for a tree.
Surprisingly, we picked the first tree we laid eyes on. The guy working said we must look around because it couldn't be that easy. Still, true to our word, the first tree we saw was the one we took home. It's funny that it never worked that way when we went out to cut one down. We usually traipsed around the woods for a long time before we found the perfect tree. This meant that we got to carry it that much farther. Disclaimer---I'm just saying. I'm not complaining because I LOVE cutting down a Christmas tree. We will have to reinstate that tradition next year.