Christmas with the Lewis'

 

Since we had our White Christmas plans, we celebrated Christmas with my parents a few days early.  We have some fun traditions of riding on their riding toys and then making gingerbread houses.  This was fun, AND of course Santa knew where we'd be on Christmas and that we wouldn't be in Texas so he came early to their house and filled stockings and gave some wonderful gifts.  Our family looks forward to this every year and it's always special if they get to have grandma or grandpa be their gingerbread house "helper".

 

And just to put it in there, we have a great dad.  Sometimes he takes a day off from work to spend the day as one of the school "Watch D.O.G.S" Each of our children choose a day for Dad to come and it was Kaitlyn's choice to come just before Christmas on the day they made gingerbread houses.  They were all really excited!

 

White Christmas 2012 (part 4--LAST)

Friday morning dawned in our special home.  It was cleaning day and leaving day and TUBING day!

The owners and some friends were due to arrive in the afternoon and we had to clean it and get it ready for them.

But because we are McKneelys and this trip seemed to have a theme of over scheduling, we'd really wanted to go tubing and had made reservations at Soldier's Hollow (Olympic 2002 site for Cross Country Skiing) So we were in a time crunch.  Cleaning the house and packing all our stuff by our 10:00 reservation.  This was quite the feat!

But everyone pitched in and we were pretty well there (dang washers and dryers took FOREVER with the bedding) in time so off we went.

This was a REALLY FUN activity:

After tubing we headed back to the house to change our clothes and do last minute house prep stuff.  We were headed to this place:

This whole trip started because back when we went on our Disney Cruise (May 2011) it was to celebrate Grandpa Carl's 60th birthday, and we had such a fun time we were trying to find another event to celebrate with a vacation and this was their 40th anniversary of being sealed in the Manti Temple.  Most of the adults went in and left a few out to tend the kids.  After we went for pizza and started the drive home, goal that night was Moab.  And to arrive home Sunday afternoon.

Fun things to note:

1.  I began reading Harry Potter #1 out loud to my family on the way to Manti.  We almost read the whole thing (remaining 3 chapters) by the time we arrived home.  We're hooked!

2.  Matthew got motion sick when I turned on a movie after pizza in Manti and it was dark outside.  This combined with him being still bundled in his seat made him overheated and then motion sick.  I've never had a child so young have the vocabulary to warn me he was going to throw up but he did and we only half way believed him.  It was in the teens in temperature when he finally did and we had to change him on the side of the road.  Thankfully in an attempt to cool him off I'd removed a top layer of clothing from him just moments before so we had a change of clothing handy.  BUT we were up late at the hotel doing laundry.  Stephen braved the cold on the side of the road and truly deserves an award.

White Christmas 2012 (part 3)

THURSDAY:

Was supposed to be ski day #2, but the group wanted a bit more variety than Sundance had to offer and the roads up there and back weren't the best and it was supposed to still snow so they'd get worse.  Park City was the other close resort but pricey and our most eager skiers were our little ones and it didn't make sense to let them ski for $130 a person for a half day (since we had plans that afternoon).  Other resorts were too far of a drive.  Most were disappointed we hadn't skied on Monday as originally planned but hindsight is always a better view.

So we sledded again, this time Stephen tried out Joseph's snowboard and thought it was fun.  It also made a great sled and some of the kids enjoyed going down with Stephen on it.

 

This little angel even bundled as she was did NOT take to the cold or the snow very well, 

her poor parents were real troopers trying to participate as much as they could!  

LOVE her sock monkey hat!

We had tickets to see "Savior of the World" that night and on our way to Salt Lake to Temple Square we stopped in to visit Jean.  She's my grandfathers wife who he married after my grandma died when I was 7.  My grandfather passed last year and now she lives alone.  Our visit meant a lot to her.  My Aunt Cherry lives close by and came to chat too.  It was lovely to see them.

The children were content to sit still for a bit, but then started getting antsy.  Jean brought out some floor puzzles and they LOVED them and worked so well together doing them.  Jean and Cherry complimented them on their behavior, we were so proud of them.

After visiting we RAN to Temple Square meeting up with ALL the MCKNEELY CLAN (20 of us!) Frantically tried to find my sweet Sister Jessica Fisher (a friend serving a mission on Temple Square) but she was ill and not there.  We hiked to the food court in the mall for a bite to eat (Chick-fil-a) and then let Sarah and Nathaniel (sweet boyfriend) take our younger 3 home and put them to bed so that all those aged 8 and over could enjoy "Savior of the World" a wonderful production at the Conference Center Theater.  It was a lovely production depicting the birth and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  It was sweet to have Kaitlyn sit next to me and we could talk about what she was learning and seeing.  She was a bit sad about not sitting next to her BFF cousin Shelly but she got over it and it was a special thing to have time with just her.

White Christmas 2012 (part 2)

Wednesday the 26th was our make it or break it ski day.  We knew it would snow all day but with all the other activities planned we HAD to make it work or we weren't going to get there.

Sundance Ski Resort was our destination as they had the most friendly ski school option for our family.  We enrolled Kaitlyn, Sam and Lindsey all in ski school.

The thought of getting 4 children, luggage, carry on items, and car seats through airport security is overwhelming enough that we'll choose to fly almost every day of the week.  Getting our family through the ski rental shop was frighteningly similar--WHEW it was a swirl.  Everyone was very helpful it was just a lot to get organized.  But we did make it and in time for ski school to start.  The instructors were super nice and as we watched a bit our children seemed to be in good spirits so Stephen and I went up for a run down.

I was terrified.  I'd only been skiing once, 10 years ago, and on my second time down the mountain I fell such that my poles (wrapped around my wrist) twisted my thumb and I was out.  Stephen has been skiing a bit (on the Swiss Alps of all places with little brother Joseph) and he was so patient with me.  I was a wreck, scared, falling down a lot, convinced I couldn't do it and overwhelmed.  Stephen was patient and helpful.  It was a long ride down and even longer when you fall 10 times, but I made it.
 

I needed a breather so I sent him to go down on his own once (I wanted him to make the most of the kids being in ski school and have some fun).  I'm glad I was resting because Lindsey had a potty run.  They'd gotten them to the top and she had to go so they rode her down to the bottom to find a bathroom (and mom).  While in the bathroom Lindsey let me know she was kind of done and didn't want to ski anymore.  Poor thing was cold and DONE but she still had a bit left of her lesson and she mustered up the courage to finish the school.  

I too mustered up the courage to go down the mountain one more time. By now Grandma and Grandpa had arrived at the resort with our little "blue bear" and they agreed to get the kids from ski school so Stephen and I could go down one more time.

On our way up the lift we saw Lindsey and her teacher about half way down the mountain, we called to her and that was the straw that broke her back, she was done!  She started crying and we hollered that grandma and grandpa were at the bottom.  The instructor rode her down to the bottom for some warm hot cocoa.

My second time down was much better.  I was getting the hang of it and only fell 5 or 6 times.  It was still a bit overwhelming but I could do it.  At the bottom I was happy to find my family.  We tried to eat some lunch.  There wasn't much room indoors and so we attempted to eat outdoors.  This did Sam in, he had just gotten too cold and never got back warmed up, he was done for the day.  So Matthew, Lindsey and Matthew headed back to the house with Grandma and Grandpa for the afternoon while Stephen and I kept skiing with Kaitlyn this time.

We headed up the long lift.  Kaitlyn forgot to get her toes pointed up and almost lost her ski down the mountain but we got lucky.  Stephen was just as patient with her as he was with me and the 3 of us headed down the mountain.  Almost at the bottom is the kids area with almost no slope.  This is where she was most comfortable so she and I stopped there and spent some time riding the "lift" up and coasting down.

Kaitlyn was so happy in the snow she is growing so much and it's so great to see her have courage to face new hard things.  She LOVES skiing and can't wait to go again.

White Christmas 2012 (part 1)

We had an adventure before us.  Grandma and Grandpa McKneely have some friends with a vacation home in Heber City Utah that would accommodate ALL the McKneelys and it was available the week of Christmas so we headed to the Winter Wonderland of Utah for the holiday.

It took a lot of planning, and saving, and effort to get there but it was so worth it.

We left the Friday morning before Christmas and made it as far as Albuquerque where we met up with Grandma and Grandpa McKneely and Andy and Laura's family.  The next day we made it the rest of the way into town and to our beautiful home!  When we arrived the home was decorated beautifully for Christmas and our children loved running around exploring.  Each family had their own room and bathroom which made things so nice!

Sunday morning we set in to watch Miracle on 34th Street in the movie room (cute movie) and attended church in a ward in Heber.  The first building we went to was closed, the second actually didn't have a sacrament meeting when the church website said they would, and finally we found a ward at a third church building.  There was a beautiful musical program with some very talented ward members and a memorable congregational rendition of Handel's Hallelujah chorus.  I don't think that should EVER be a congregational hymn but we gave it a try.  That afternoon we enjoyed a walk in the snow and while the driveway was shoveled some people started building a snow fort.  We enjoyed countless cups of hot cocoa and continued to our whole time there.  That evening we had family scripture study and it was wonderful when each of the children wanted a turn reading a verse.  It was a powerful thing to have 18 of us there together reading from the Book of Mormon!




Monday was supposed to be a ski day but it snowed and there were some concerns about it being too cold and miserable for the kids so we built a snowman, played in the snow around there, went sledding instead.  That was pretty fun.  We found a place in Park City that was a perfect hill with stairs we could use to climb back up.  Matthew liked it as long as he was the only one who was able to go down with dad.

 

And seeing as how it was Christmas Eve, that night was FHE with our Nativity re-enactment.  Here's how the roles got divvied out....

 Kaitlyn was the Angel, Sam was the inn keeper, Lindsey was the Star and Matthew was Joseph.  Then all the uncles were the 3 "wise guys".  It was superb!

Christmas Morning dawned and it was exciting.  20 people can make things drag on, but with little ones it's always exciting.  Matthew woke up saying, "Santa came!  I like Santa!"

For us Christmas was simpler, we decided to make memories this year, our children were warned that gift giving would be light in exchange for the experiences of sledding, skiing, tubing, snowball fighting and tromping in the snow.  And Stephen decided to become Santa himself and built a few presents this year.

Lindsey got a much desired doll bed.  We had every intention of making her one but as a ruse we announced we'd be making a bed for her cousins and would just make her one at the same time.  When talking about the one he'd make for her cousins, she burst into tears saying how badly she wanted her own because Kaitlyn didn't let her use hers as much as she'd like.  It was so sad I almost spilled the beans to let her know one was coming.  But waiting was worth the reaction.  She was SO HAPPY!  She even got a bit misty and was just smiling and giggling.  She then proceeded to carry it all over the house in Utah giving Freddie the most luxurious sleeping spot imaginable.

Matthew also got a homemade present of a puppet theater made by dad.  Being child #4 is always a challenge to figure out WHAT to get him that we don't already have that isn't just adding more junk.  The idea came one day when watching him play with a theater at the library.  It was a hit with him and all the kids--what a great present.

Kaitlyn got roller skates and Sam got to see a picture of an assembled new bicycle that couldn't make the trip.

Stephen also busied himself making a doll bed bunk bed for our nieces and a shelf for mom and dad mckneely for their TV in the TV cabinet.  He swears he'll never take on so many projects again, but he's been super stressed at work lately and woodworking is an outlet for him so I tried to be supportive even though his workshop is also my parking spot.

Christmas afternoon brought more fun in the snow, the arrival of Joseph and Liz from Boston, and a wonderful feast of ham, potatoes and rolls!

Allen Nativity 2012

In my church assignment in Public Affairs I have the blessing of being involved in our Stake Nativity Exhibit.  It is a privilege.  But it's also an undertaking of mammoth proportions.  Planning for it begins in August and it takes hours and hours to get all the details taken care of.

This 2 day event featured 670 Nativities, the most we've ever had on display, and about 2400 in total attendance.

This year's event really went off without a hitch.  Each year our attendance by those not of our faith slowly increases (950!) and it's being viewed as a community event more and more.

The musical numbers were excellent, the spirit was truly felt by those who attended, and we had very few problems with irreverent children.

We added a VIP preview night which was attended by the Mayor and Mayor Pro-Tem and some family members as well as a county judge. And we had 3 media publications carry publicity about our event, one of them had never done so in the past so that's progress.  We'll take the baby steps!

One special experience I want to record is Friday morning is usually a slow time with not many people in the exhibit.  This is appreciated by the committee who always seem to have a few extra things they're trying to finish up.

In my heart I'm having a panic and lack of faith that maybe no one will come.  It IS the weekend of an away playoff High School Football game, and many people have been before, etc.  Well, at 10:00 sharp, BUSSES of people from the Allen Senior Citizen Center arrived and they oohed and ahhhed appropriately at the exhibit.  They stayed for HOURS asking details about each scene on display, I overheard them tell their friends that they come EVERY YEAR and others tell me that it was their first time but that their friend drug them along and how grateful they were that we did it.

The Spirit of our Savior was there, in that room, it was palpable!  So many of them felt it.  The special musical numbers began and we needed to set up more chairs.  I stood silently in the corner fighting back the tears and in my heart said a prayer of gratitude to my Heavenly Father for letting me see first hand the fruits of our labors and bringing the true spirit of Christmas into the hearts of so many.

One special exper

Thanksgiving 2012

So we've been trying to find time to go camping again.  Thanksgiving break offered us that chance.  The children have the week off from school so Stephen took the week off as well.  We spent 2 1/2 days at Lake Mineral Wells State Park where we camped and went...ROCK CLIMBING!  Stephen is a certified rock climbing instructor with the Boy Scouts and while he's taken a few groups out climbing, he's never taken us, his family out.  So we were super excited!  The weather was great, a little cool in the mornings.  (SIDE BAR FOR A FUNNY STORY)....Matthew got REALLY COLD in the mornings and we had to convince him to put on warmer clothes.  We were telling him that his lips were PURPLE because he was so cold.  Well, anyone who has spent time with Matthew knows that he's really into gender identity right now.  He knows he's a boy, identifies with boys and boy things and boy COLORS.  He refuses to use any cup, plate, towel, etc. that is a GIRL color, and insists on only using boy colors.  So when we suggested that his lips were turning purple he was beside himself and insisted that his lips were not PURPLE, but GREEN!

So back to Rock Climbing.  We borrowed some gear from our friend (Stake President) Jay Jones and were ready to climb.  We even had some friends, the Alldredges join us for the day and it wouldn't have been the same without them.  It was helpful to have friends to entertain whoever wasn't up on the rocks, and great to have other adults there too.  Everyone did so well.  Kaitlyn was the first one up the rock and she shocked us with her lack of fear and just scurried right up the rocks.  But we'd forgotten to explain to her how to come down so that was a bit tricky because to repel down you have to really lean back far in a way that's unnatural.  But she did awesome!  Sam went later and he also made it up to the top without a problem.  Coming down was a bit scary for him and Stephen ended up climbing up the back side of the rock to meet him at the top and help him get on the descent.  I was so proud of my husband.  He clearly knew what he was doing, which made us feel safe and confident in climbing.  

The whole day I was seeing gospel analogies over and over as we climbed and I realized how important family activities like this are in giving our children experiences that we can draw upon in gospel lessons at home.  Lessons on having parents and family as anchors, having faith, courage, overcoming fear, being able to accomplish hard things, being obedient to rules, (I can keep going).

Each of our children LOVED their turns climbing....

I was a bit scared, it was harder than I imagined it would be, I kept wanting to know what my path was supposed to be and wanted to know not just my next move but the next 3 or 4 moves (how is that a metaphor for my lift) and when I didn't have a solid grip while I planned my next move up the rock it freaked me out.  But my sweet husband climbed up (rope-less) to hang with me until I got some courage and I did make it!  And this little guy had the BEST time getting dirty at the bottom...

  

 

Kaitlyn turned out to be the star of the day, she went up 3 times and would pose at the top for me to capture a picture!  I was so proud of her.  I sent photos of her and Sam climbing to their teachers, Sam's AIM teacher, Mrs. Bell, even printed the pictures and posted them in her room (on her door) such that anyone walking by could see him!  He thought that was pretty cool!

So camping and climbing were a success.  We arrived home mid-day Wednesday and I began putting together the makings of a traditional feast. I don't think I've ever done it all on my own before, now I realize the benefits of feasting with family.  But I did enjoy it just being us and it being a quiet relaxing day!

 The day after Thanksgiving we ventured out to the Dallas Arboretum to see the Dale Chihuly exhibit (again) but this time we were accompanied by my parents and saw a special visitor there too!  Matthew was excited to see Santa!