Happy 2010!

Wishing you...

{JOY}

and {LOVE} in

The lights at Temple Square!

We went to see the lights at Temple Square

for Family Home Evening along with a gzillion other families!

I can't remember the last time that we saw the lights,

but they are gorgeous and

totally worth braving the cold and crowds of people.

Brooke and I had fun using the new lens

that Kimber gave Brooke for Christmas!

Here are just a few of the pictures that Brooke took.

A win for the Cougars at the windy Vegas bowl!

It was a cold and windy night

but the Cougar football team was fired up

for the bowl game against Oregon State.

With the cold wind blowing over 40 mph

and the Cougars dominating the entire game

rolling over the Beavers 44-20,

it made for a crazy fun night!

It was so bitter cold that we spent most the night

huddled together, jumping up and down,

guzzling hot chocolate and cheering on our Cougars!

We stormed the field at the end of the game

along with hundreds of other BYU fans.

Thanks to the BYU cheerleader that helped me scale the fence!

So fun to celebrate with Tyler and the team on the field

and dinner at PFChang's was definitely memorable!

We were glad that we were able to share the fun night

and the great win with Tyler!

Bundled up and ready to watch the game!

Allie and Mom sporting their face tattoos.

Celebrating with Tyler on the field after the game.

Tyler celebrating with the newest and cutest BYU coed, Ashley!

Confetti being blown everywhere
during the celebration after the game!

The girls showing some Cougar spirit

with their BYU approved face tattoos!

The girls with the famous Cosmo the Cougar,

who made the ESPN highlights by helping with the fieldgoal net

when it got tangled over the goal post during the game.

Harvey Unga signing autographs for little BYU fans!

Bishop Falls...I mean Coach Falls, grandson found us on the field

and was so excited to get a picture with Tyler!

Tyler was excited too because

Bishop Falls was one of Tyler's favorite football coaches

in high school and I believe he was the one

who gave him the nickname "Kickerdude!"

Merry Christmas from Park City!

The girls spent the day on the slopes with Santa today!

Snow, sun and Santa...it doesn't get much better than that!

Just wishing you all were here to enjoy it with us.

Ashley's Goodbye Party!

Since Ashley is leaving for college this week,

we had a little party to celebrate.

She had lots of sweet friends and dear families

that stopped by to wish her well.

Her kind heart, contagious laughter and

sweet smile will truly be missed by so many!

Ashley's BFF's, Spencer and Matt

came early to the party to give Ashley a large fern,

decorated with festive ornaments and a plant.

There is special meaning behind this funny gift

but I'm not sure what it is nor should I share it at the time.

But there was a lot of squeals and laughter

that took place at the time when the gift was given.

The kids "hiding" behind the fern.

What is Ashley supposed to do with a

large fern at college?

Dad offered to plant it in the backyard

and care for it while she is away.

Ashley and her dearest friend and

favorite Sunday School teacher, Julie Hansen.

The first tears of the night were shed

when Ashley had to say "goodbye" to Sister Hansen.

Ashley and Haley. Best friends since 1st grade.

Ashley and one of her favorite families in the ward,

the McNaughton's. They definitely have the cutest kids!

Ash and cute little Brittany Ragan. Love that girl!

Ashley's going to miss these cute kids!

Aren't they adorable?!

WinterBall!

Tonight the little girls went to WinterBall!

It was Brooke's first formal dance!

They both looked gorgeous and had a good time!

Ashley and Brooke looking so cute!

Brooke and her date, TJ.

Ashley and her date, Craig.

I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas...in Granite Bay!

That's right...we woke up this morning to snow on the ground!
The kids down the street made a snowman and the

Seniors had a snowball fight in the parking lot before school!
What a wonderful way to start the Christmas season!

Celebrating the BYU Win over Utah!

Well, we have bragging rights for a year with the BYU win over Utah!

The final score was 26-23 in OT. It wasn't pretty,

but a win is a win and we will enjoy the victory...

and look forward to another great game next year!

Tyler and Sonya celebrating after the game!
This picture was taken after Tyler stormed the field
with the rest of the BYU team
after Andrew George's touchdown.
It was complete chaos, with BYU fans
who joined them on the field, jumping up and down,
screaming, high fiving each other and
fans smacking the players helmets and slapping their backs!
It was a fun memory and great night to be a Cougar!

BYU/Air Force Game and the cutest little Cougar fan!

Tyler's little cousin Josh is a big BYU fan
and even bigger fan of Tyler's!
Here are some pictures from the BYU/Air Force game
that Cindy, his mother, took of Josh and Tyler.

Tyler warming up on the field before the game.

Tyler and Josh enjoying a moment on the sidelines before the game.

Tyler and Josh showing off their matching jerseys!

{Thanks Sonya and Cindy for taking these cute pictures and
letting me steal these photos from your blog and Facebook!}

The Annual Shopping in San Francisco trip...with Dad!

Every year, the girls and I always head to San Francisco the Monday before Thanksgiving to spend a day Christmas shopping together. We actually didn't have a lot of Christmas shopping to do this year but the focus of our attention was going to be on finding "the perfect" WinterBall dress for Ashley. Dad expressed some interest in this quest for a dress and suggested that we wait until Tuesday afternoon, when he would be off from work so that he could join us! Dad, being the expert shopper that he is, most certainly was more than welcome and we were confident in his ability to find the "perfect" WinterBall dress for Ashley!

After we arrived and parked (that's a whole 'nother story...too long for this post...parking in the city is always an adventure!) We headed straight for the Jessica McClintock store. After Allie, Dad, Brooke and Mom made a number of suggestions of possible choices for dresses, Ashley, announced, "Well, I kinda feel like, if you get a dress from the Jessica McClintock store, that for sure there will be someone else at the dance with the same dress." To which Dad, who was dazed and confused, replied, "Then why are we at this store?" We tried to explain to dad that even if you have no intention of buying something at a store, does not mean that you don't need to go into the store and just look! It's all part of the process and experience of WinterBall dress shopping. At that, he put back all the dresses that he had gathered for Ashley to try on and we walked out of the Jessica McClintock store empty handed.

We crossed the street and made our way over to Macy's, took the escalator to the 5th floor, found a number of darling dresses for Ashley to try on and sent her to the dressing room. She came out and modeled the first dress and it was gorgeous and she looked stunning in it! We all agreed that she didn't have to try anymore dresses on, this was "the perfect" WinterBall dress and we were done looking. It was just too easy!! Allie, of course, had to complain about how there are much cuter modest dresses now than when she was in high school and then she reminded us of all the homely dresses that she wore to every dance and we giggled and laughed. I hope she isn't too scarred because of it:)!!! But it is true, there are a lot more options out there right now and I love it!! I don't know if it was because dad was there to help shop or what, but finding a cute, but modest dress for Ashley and Brooke this year was much less painful than ever! Yeah!

The girls in front of Macy's,
as we begin our shopping adventure!

Dad and his girls are all smiles,
after we found "the perfect" dress!

Caffe Sport

After our successful shopping experience, we drove over to North Beach to Caffe Sport, one of our favorite italian restaurants when dad and I were in dental school! Favorite means that we actually only went there 2 times because we really couldn't afford to eat there. We went once with our friends, the Anderson's, who introduced us to the place and then we went with our parents after graduation.

The five of us after an incredible authentic Italian dinner!
It was truly, as good as I remember it, 22 years ago!

Allie serving herself some yummy pasta,
with a portrait of a creepy man on the wall behind her!

The girls got all giggly and silly after dinner...
it happens everytime these 3 get together!

The same exact decor that covered

the walls and ceiling 22 years ago!
It hasn't changed a bit!

Allie, helping advertise for Happy Hour
at the Columbus cafe next door.
That Allie is always so willing to lend a helping hand!

What are you thankful for?

At this Thanksgiving time, let us all pause and reflect upon the things that we are most thankful for. Here is a video for all to enjoy:

Ashley's Trip to NYC!

Ashley flew to NYC to spend the rest of her

birthday weekend with Kimber and Brett.

They enjoyed a few days of sightseeing, shopping, and visiting.

Kimber's friend, Natalie Hill, is the understudy

for the lead in "Bye Bye Birdie",

so for Ashley's birthday,

Kimber arranged to have Natalie give Ashley

a private voice lesson,

tickets to see the show and after the show,

Natalie was so kind and gave them a backstage tour.

Ashley loved it and it was definitely

the highlight of her weekend.

Thanks Kimber, for being a wonderful host

and arranging such a fun birthday surprise!

Pretty fun!

{The cute pictures and layouts are from Kimber's blog. Thanks!}