Christmas Visit to Utah

Grandma gave the kids hoodies for Christmas.  Britta was with Whitney and Abbie, so she isn't in the picture.  Her hoodie was light pink.  Great jackets for chilly winter weather.

We gave Grandma these books.  The author came to Denya's class at BYU and talked about writing.  They are historical fiction stories about the Logan temple being built.  Grandma loves to read, so she was excited. 

Blake helped Grandpa open his gift, the DVD of "Seventeen Miracles," a pioneer movie about the Willie Handcart Company.

Ryan got a BB gun for Christmas and was ready to give it a try.  Don't shoot your eye out!

We set up a target of pizza boxes and pop cans.  The kids were better shots than I thought they would be.

Bake brought his gun as well, so we had lots of shooting going on.  The weather was pretty mild for Utah.  There is usually several inches of snow and temperatures in the teens and twenties.  We brought all our winter snow gear, and didn't even need it!

The girls wanted in on the action too.  Denya got in a few shots as well.

Blake takes his time to get a good aim.  He made fast work of those pop cans!

Opening Presents at the Collins'

Delwyn has the week between Christmas and New Year's off, so every year we make a trip to Utah.  When Grandma and Grandpa Palmer were still alive, we made a big loop to Idaho and then Utah.  It just wouldn't be Christmas if we didn't get to see our families.  We draw names on both sides of the family.  The Palmers decided to stop this year.  We don't have a central gathering place, we're getting too big, and it's too hard mailing the gifts.  The Collins' have a tradition every year with a present opening party and dinner.

To start the party this year, Grandma wanted us to sing the chorus of "My Red Solo Cup", a new country song by Toby Keith.  We have red solo cups at every Collins gathering, so we have gone through a ton of cups the past 26 years.  "I love my red solo cup, I fill it up, let's have a party!"  And party we do!  We ordered 12 pizzas for dinner and had green salad to go with it.  Everyone brought a dessert--we had cinnamon rolls, pumpkin cake dessert, and ice cream.

A lot of the teenagers got shirts or hoodies from Aeropostale.  Denya will look cute in this blue one.

  Blake got an ipod touch for his birthday, but he didn't get a cover for it.  He was pretty happy to get one.

Ryan loves to open presents.  Everyone has to wait patiently for their turn.  All the gifts are under Grandma's tree.  We just start going through them and calling out names.  They are opened one at a time with everyone watching.  We are getting to be a big group, almost 50! so it takes quite a while.  There is a lot of laughing and talking going on.

The girl cousins had lots of fun talking and laughing and catching up.

Delwyn and I had Megan and Evan for gifts this year.  We got a comforter set for their bed.  It is fun when we draw a couple and can get them a combined gift. 

Troy got this snow hat as part of his gift.  We all laughed and laughed.  He was a good sport and posed for all the cameras!

Steven was the happiest man on the planet--I've never seen him smile this big.  You must be a redneck if you get a pitchfork for Christmas!

Judi and Susan got these photo boards.  Utah is full of craft shops that sell the cutest things. 

Layce made these magnetic boards for Vanessa and me in Relief Society.  We can weave ribbon through the holes and tie a bow at the top.  I was excited to get something to hang on the wall.

We decided to take some family pictures...this is Gordon's gang. 

My happy bunch!

The Newly Weds.  We missed Vanessa and Shane' wedding this summer.  We enjoyed talking with them and I just had to get a picture.  They are so cute together!

Things get pretty silly at Collins' Family Gatherings.  Gordon harassed Troy for being the youngest and having the least hair.  Steven had already left, so he wasn't in on the competition.

Zane LOVES Tim Tebow (a Broncos football player) and so do I.  The kids had a tebowing moment.  And that ended another Collins Christmas Party!

Christmas Day 2012

Lined up, youngest to oldest, and waiting to go in!  I go first and turn on the lights and take a few pictures.

These two stockings have seen a lot of Christmas' together.  And this year we got matching gifts!

I see lots of fun gifts! There will be some happy kids.

Ryan is the first one in--he's checking out all his loot!  He looks pretty happy.

The girls both got Kindles! We must be a family of readers.  Pretty exciting.

Denya has been wanting this Wii game for quite some time. 

Ryan got an ipod!!

We both got tablets.

The Bird!! Now Denya can play at college.

Denya and Blake try out the dancing game.  Lots of shakin' going on around here.

Time to open presents!  The kids draw two names among the siblings, plus they get a gift from Mom and one from Dad.  Four presents to open!

Britta will be styling in this BYU hoodie she got from Denya.

New shoes!  Size 13!

The kids have been teasing me that I needed a chain for my glasses.  I'm always putting them down and then I wonder where they are. I won't wear one--they are too old ladyish! Denya bought this pink chain as a joke.  No wonder she kept wanting me to open her gift!  She also gave me a book, "The Christmas List", and when I first saw the chain, I thought it was bookmark.  Then when I realized what it was, I threw it at her--HA!  We all got a good laugh and then everyone insisted that I model it, so I did.  But you won't see me wearing it again, so get a good look now!

Christmas was on Sunday this year, so we had Sacrament Meeting at 1:00 pm. Delwyn and Britta sang in the choir, and Ryan sang, "When Joseph Went to Bethlehem," with 3 other boys. They were so cute! It was a great meeting and added a nice touch to our holiday.

Snow Tunnels

We got a big snow storm in the middle of December.  The kids couldn't wait to play in it.  Something about snow and kids--especially the boys.

Blake built his tunnel on one side of the driveway, Ryan on the other. I expect a snowball fight will follow after the fortess is finished.

Blake and Ryan worked for hours making these tunnels.

They were pretty creative to think of making tunnels.

Oh that Colorado snow!
Lots of snow, but not too cold so you can't be out in it.

A Christmas Play

This year for the ward party, the primary put on a play about the birth of Christ.  It was a nice change from the parties we've had in recent years.  All the primary kids were so excited to dress up in costumes and have lines to say.  At first, Ryan said he was too shy to be in a play, but Denya got him excited about how fun it is.  He played the part of Nephi.

Nephi prays to ask Heavenly Father when Jesus will be born.

That night the sun didn't go down, signifying Jesus birth in Bethlehem.

These are the Gaddiation robbers who were going to kill the believers if the sign was not given.

This is Nephi thanking the Lord for sending the Savior to the world.

The Nativity.

Anna Moser was Mary.  She looked so sweet and loved her part.  She is one of Ryan's close friends.  Thank you primary kids, for reminding us what Christmas is all about!