Christmas and New Years 2009 Part 2

Christmas Day Brad and Sara came over. They were headed out of town early the next morning, but were nice enough to stop by and visit for a couple of hours. It's always fun to catch up with friends. Even Chasey, Lyndsay, and Rylee popped in for an hour or two. Mason and Rylee were so cute playing together. He tried to poke her eyes out, but she would just scream (out of excitement) at him, startle him enough that no damage was done :)

The whole group that night

Cousins

The next morning we went to breakfast with Chase and Lynds before they flew back to Utah. Mason stayed home with Grandma Melinda, so that was a nice break. Thanks! We went to this little restaurant on the beach that had unlimited pancakes. They were huge and I barely finished my first plate. Afterwards we walked out by the water and Lynds took some cute pictures of Rylee playing in the sand. All to soon we decided it was time to head back. It was so nice just to visit with them and catch up!

After all that partying and Christmas festivities we all needed to recuperate! But, Bowen was itching to get out on the boat and go fishing. So, that's what we did. It was fun for the adults (Mom, Coach, Bowen and I), but Mason absolutely did NOT want to wear his life jacket. Plus it was pretty cold ( I know. Florida, cold? I didn't know that was possible!) And he was totally exhausted! Finally after fighting it the whole time we were out there, he fell asleep for the last 1/2 hour. What a stinker! Even though we didn't get so much as a bite, the water was glassy and the sunset was beautiful!

Me looking beautiful with my windswept boat hair. Ha ha!

In between Christmas and New Years it was a blur of activities. Popsi had driven down from Alabama. What a treat! It was so good to visit with him. Thank you, dad, for making the long trip to see us! We were able to go out to dinner with him one night. We tried to get in as much time as possible because we don't get to see him all that often. I guess it's time for another trip for him to come out to San Diego...eh? One night we went with Carl and Mariah for sushi. Yummm! It was a good break from the kids too! Another night we went out with them and Popsi which was so much fun. And another evening we went out with them and Margie, Stu, and Marley. I was CRAVING Sweetberries so after dinner Bowen and I headed there. On our way Mike Oneal called Bowen to see what he was up to. It just so happened that he was already at Sweetberries so we told him to wait and we would be there in just a minute. Mikes parents were there and so were a couple of other guys Bowen had grown up with. It was like a mini reunion! We ended up going back to Mikes place to watch to hang out and watch a movie. It was a good night!

I knew there were lizards everywhere, but I hadn't seen any that I could catch. Mason had never seen a lizard up close and I wanted him to experience one first hand. We had already played with it for while before Bowen filmed this, so Mason was pretty much over it.

I think I ruined my chances of him ever trusting me again.

One very important event that we were able to go to while we were there was Carl and Mariah's family being sealed together as a family for all time and eternity in the Orlando temple. What a wonderful day it was! Carson and Amelia were so adorable! It was a beautiful ceremony and I think everyone there shed a tear or two. After we all went out to dinner then headed home. Popsi and Margie had graciously volunteered to watch the other kids while we were in Orlando. Thank you to them for giving us the opportunity to go. When we got home that night Mason was sound asleep. Just the way I like it! Ha ha!

All to soon New Years rolled around. Mariah and Carl had a HUGE party at their house. There were games, toys, even a bouncer for the kids; a giant inflatable screen that people were playing the wii on; and tons and tons of food! Also, whenever Bowens family gets together, there must be a ping pong match. My skills aren't what they used to be, but Bowen put up a pretty good match!

Mason was obsessed with the slide, the choo choo's, and an inflatable chair. It's so funny what catches a kids attention! I made my mango salsa which was pretty much gone by the end of the night (I think Bowen had a lot to do with that) What a night! One of the most important things going on was the football game of course! There was so much going on that Mason would absolutely not go to bed. So he stayed up the entire time. We all got together for the countdown to midnight..3,2,1, a kiss to ring in the New Year, then bed!!! It was a really fun night. Needless to say, I think everyone slept in the next day.

I think it was the day before we left, mom took us out to lunch at Panda then we drove around for a bit and ended up at De Soto National Park. It was nice to learn a bit of history about the area and walk off our lunch. Mason loved just being able to run around! It was pretty chilly and we didn't stay too long, but it was a fun afternoon.

Even though we were there for almost two weeks it seemed like not enough time. We had such a fun time being with all of our family and friends. Thank you to all!!!

Our plane ride home was...well...lets just say Mason and I were in tears a time or two. Bowen didn't know what to do with us. I felt so bad! But we made and recuperated from the flight. Now I want to go back!