Please Sir, May I Have Some More?

Buttermilk! Mmmm...

Grandpa likes buttermilk. It's something that, as far as I know, has only been passed down to one of his children, and that's not me. When Grandpa comes to visit he buys himself a quart of buttermilk so he can enjoy some before he goes to bed. He likes to talk about how RaeAnne (my older sister) will drink buttermilk with him, and that obviously endears her to him in a special way. So now that we know who his favorite child is, we must come to determine the favorite grandchild, a legacy which has gone unclaimed for years, but has now been decided.
One night while Grandpa was enjoying his nightly buttermilk, Carter (who is in general a mooch) looked at Grandpa with those big blue eyes and began to beg (there is a certain sound that goes with that begging, kind of an "uh, uh!"). So, Grandpa, being in search of a kindred spirit shared a little spoonful of (I will refrain from using any adjectives here) buttermilk with Carter...



I think we all expected a sour expression at the least, maybe a cry of protest, and a little pool of rejected buttermilk on Grandpa's pants. What we didn't expect was for Carter to return for more... again, and again, and again. He liked it! He really liked it.
Spencer, who is very careful about what he will sample, saw Carter enjoying Grandpa's buttermilk, and knowing that it is with buttermilk that we make our beloved Butter Syrup, decided that he too would sample Grandpa's "treat". I felt that was very brave of him...
But, alas, it was not to be. Carter would have to walk the buttermilk path alone. (I include this picture even though it is, sadly, blurry because I love the look on Spencer's face, and the little glimpse of Grandma and I enjoying this whole show)...
Not a fan...

And here he is, back for more...

Mmmm.... good...
The sad thing is, even though Carter has discovered this new love, he will have to wait for Grandpa to return to enjoy it again. He just isn't going to get it from me.
Thanks Grandpa!

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Morning and five kids waiting anxiously to see what treasures await them downstairs! But, if I remember right, it was Grandma and Grandpa who were up first, I think they were wondering if Santa would really find them in Chicago.

And down they go...
Carter is a huge fan of balls, so Santa brought him a little basketball hoop which Carter loves to play with!

Candy canes are a must!
Tyler seems to be our official "Writer of the Note to Santa". This year's note said, "Dear Santa, Please make sure each raindeer gets a peice of the carrits and the raindeer food neer the entrance of our front door. The cookies are for you and other people you want to give to. Love the Gordons and Grampa and Grama." Santa must have been hungry because the plate was nearly empty the next morning.
Grandma got a beautiful new scarf in her stocking...
and I got some very comfy new socks...
One of my favorite parts of looking back at these Christmas pictures is seeing the facial expressions. Like when Sydney opened her long-awaited Dora doll...
Spencer inspecting a great new telescope (been a little cold to use it much yet)...
Carter getting into the spirit of things....


If any one person in our family is good at being excited when opening presents it is Sydney. We always get reactions such as, "Ohh! A Pillow Pet! This is just what I wanted!"



Tyler is right up there with Sydney in excitement when opening gifts, especially when the gift is a signed BYU football...

Christmas is awesome! Nothing like time with family to laugh and play and take care of each other. Especially when you get family that comes from far away just to be with you and especially when that family is Grandma and Grandpa! Thanks Mom and Dad!

Christmas Eve! Yes, I know I am late...

I realize it is almost March, and these are Christmas pictures that I am posting, but I don't want to miss these because it was such an awesome Christmas! The reason for it's "awesomeness" was this...
The absolute highlight of our Christmas was having my Mom and Dad join us. We had so much fun, and the kids were so excited they were here!
Christmas Eve holds a few traditions for us. One that seems to have evolved in the last few years is to go see a movie as a family. Mom and Dad were especially excited about this because they got the opportunity to see The Yogi Bear Movie (as voted for by the kids). While it was really a very silly movie, I did hear Mom laughing a few times, and the kids did enjoy it, so I guess all was not lost with that choice.
When we got home we made some sugar cookies so Santa wouldn't go hungry when he got to our house...





One fun thing this Christmas was teaching the boys how to play "Settlers". Spencer had played with us before, but it was new for Tyler and Sam. I was impressed at how well they all caught on, and I really enjoyed playing with them.
We are missing a few pictures here, such as the nativity that the kids did (even Carter participated). The best part of the night was Grandpa reading "The Night Before Christmas" and recording it in a special book for us. The kids listened to it over and over (and they will for years to come. That is really awesome!) Thanks to the elf who helped with that!

Decorating and eating (of course) yummy sugar cookies...

Then it was off to bed in great anticipation for the morning to come!
More fun Christmas pictures to come...