Sunday, December 28, 2014

spencer butte

We hiked Spencer Butte on the day after Christmas. It was a beautiful day & the whole Hecht family (all 18 of us!) were able to make it! I wore Elsa on my back until the very end, when Kenton took over for the final climb. Phew! I think the last time I hiked the butte was almost exactly two years ago, when I had just found out I was pregnant with Elsa, but wasn't telling anyone yet. :) I think it was harder for me this time! But we all made it to the top & were able to enjoy the view...along with tons of other people! It was a popular day for a hike...we could've had a party up there! :P













Kenton took Elsa to a flat area to let her walk around a bit before being strapped back in for the hike down. ;)







The whole group!

Working hard to get some smiles from this serious girl.

Back to business. :P

Saturday, December 27, 2014

three christmases in one

 We managed to squeeze three Christmas celebrations into Christmas morning. We are blessed by having both of our families living in town, which makes for a busy holiday, and we wouldn't want it any other way.

Our Christmas celebration started at 6:00 am. We woke the boys up but let Elsa sleep until a bit after 7:00.

Finley set out cookies & milk for Santa on his own. We've never really made that a part of our tradition, but I think he's being exposed to more Christmas books & movies these days. He asked a few questions about how Santa makes it down the chimney & I was unprepared. I gave him a lot of "I don't knows" & "maybe it's magic" answers cause I wasn't sure how much to say. What a strange predicament we parents have gotten ourselves into. I don't want to spoil the magical side of Christmas for him, even though he knows the real reason we celebrate Christmas. I'm not ready for such a big kid. I should probably figure out what to say, cause the straight-up "Is Santa real?" question is coming...sooner, than later, I'd bet. :]










I really like this next series. The boys were really hoping for a new Wii game & they were super excited to receive it from us. :)



 Elsa's turn to open gifts. She's at a really great age where we could probably have done without anything & she wouldn't mind. But she also shows interest in specific toys, animals & books, so it's fun to give her something that relates to what she enjoys. We ended up saving some hand-me-down toys & books to give as Christmas gifts & that worked perfectly. :) I bought a couple new things for her, but she certainly wasn't able to tell the difference. :P






Christmas at the Henry's started at 8:00 am.

 Brian moved down from Alaska earlier in the week! Hooray!



Christmas at the Hecht's started around 11:00 am.








 I love the blur of movement & excitement around the still & steady Elsa. So much fun!




 Kenton drew Erik's name this year for our sibling gift exchange.


 Becca drew Kenton's name.

 Gretchen & I drew each other!

We all went in together on assembling a gift basket for my parents.

It was a full day & we actually ended up back at the Henry's for Christmas dinner & a movie. I was having a hard time staying awake, even though I didn't do much but eat, lounge & visit with family all day. We are so blessed to be able to share the holiday with our families.