Sledding!

The day after Christmas, we went sledding with my sister Sunni and her husband Shawn. It was fun to see how much Mckinley liked it. She actually started going down by herself! We brought a snow skate with us and she went down sitting on that too. It was so funny because she wanted to go faster so she kept pushing with her hands. She fell off a few times but never cried until it was time to go home. She wanted to keep playing.
Sunni and Shawn are "luge style" sledders. Take note of Shawn's sweet hat. My dad brought that hat back from Bolivia.

Another Christmas Down

Christmas was so much fun this year. As usual, it is always so fun when everyone can take some time off to be with family and really enjoy the holidays. This year was especially nice because my whole family was together which hasn't happened for a couple of years.
David was in Salt Lake until the night of the 23rd, but came home that night and once he was home, I was finally in the Christmas-ee mood. I had everything wrapped and under the tree and so on Christmas Eve, we were able to just be together and do family stuff.

Christmas Eve always starts with an early dinner at my Grandma and Grandpa Jacksons. My Grandpa brought to our attention that every year with the exception of two years when my Grandparents were living in New York on a mission, they have had a Christmas Eve dinner. It is so much fun because it is a tradition that is consistent and similar every year. Just like the comfort food that my Grandma serves, it never gets boring. Every year I love it more. We always start off with a dinner and after everyone is full, we go into the living room and sing songs around the tree and someone reads Luke 2. Now that I am an adult, my favorite part about this event is when my Grandma reads a story or two. She has always read a childrens book on this night and I think that it is such a great tradition. I hope I always remember the way it sounds when she reads a story. After the stories are read, each of the grandkids get to open one present. Even though I am 24, my Grandparents still had a present for me and David to open. McKinley got a sock monkey from Grandma and Grandpa.(Which she had to battle with Shawn to play with. It was quite the popular toy.)

Because both sides of my parent's family live in Cedar, we start with the Jackson party and then rush over to the Riddle party afterwards. The Riddle party is always thrown by my Aunt Vicky at her house. It is always so fun, and the more people we can cram into the house, the better. (There were 57 people in her house on Christmas Eve!) There is always a tantalizing selection of hor d'ovres and fun Christmas beverages like Wassail and Punch. In the past, we have always read The Polar Express and passed the Bell on to the person who gets to read it the next year, but we missed that part this time around.
Some Highlights of this party this year were Shawn and Ian playing an impromtu Piano duet, and the Horse back rides on my Uncle Gale's horses outside.( McKinley is slowly turning into a cowgirl as a result. )

After the festivities at the Riddle party had wrapped up, we went back to my parents house and read "Teach the Children." This Christmas tree and story were given to my brother Johnny by my X boyfriend that I dated all through high school. (At least something good came out of that relationship. Hahaha.) We also read The Gift of the Magi, which is another tradition. Then we went home and went to bed, hoping for Mckinley's sake that the naughty gong hadn't dinged one time too many.
I had a hard time believing it but, the next morning we were amazed that Santa had found our house and that we were not going to be finding creative uses for coal. It's possible that Santa got a little busy this year and didn't actually check EVERYONE twice, but the miracle happened either way.
After opening gifts and playing with some new surprizes, we went over to my Grandma and Grandpa Riddles for Sunday morning breakfast. This has always been such a fun tradition that my Grandparents have done as long as I can remember. My Grandpa was a cook in the Navy many years ago, and he as well as my Uncle Todd are always busy at the stove on Christmas morning, cooking away. My Grandpa had a bad case of Pneumonia just recently with a difficult recovery and because of that, it was especially sweet to see him making Christmas breakfast this year.

My Baby Loves Santa Claus

Mckinley has never liked Santa Claus until this year. In fact she has HATED Santa! Before this year she wouldn't sit on his lap, wouldn't talk to him, wouldn't even look at him. Now she understands that she has to be nice to certain people for things in her life to be pleasant. These people include Mommy, Daddy and Santa Claus. Interesting, don't you think?

There is no such thing as a free lunch!

Maybe this is true for some people, but man, we have hit the jackpot this month. Not for free lunches, but for free dinners which are even better! One of the best things about this time of year is the food, and free food tastes best.
We have had quite a few parties to go to where dinner has been served. Between ward parties, work parties, firefighter parties, caroling parties, tasting parties and relief society parties, as well as family get togethers, we have been very spoiled this month. Thank you to everyone for your hospitality and wonderful cooking skills! (And especially my favorite meal of the year at Benihana!) Yummy! You all must know that the way to our hearts is definitely through our stomachs!
I have finally had a moment to take some pictures of our Christmas decorations. (Another reason this is such a fun time of year.) So here they are. I usually have a white full sized Christmas tree that I put up every year. But this year, I borrowed this silver christmas tree from my mom. The neat thing about this tree is how old it is, probably close to 100 years old. It is a metal christmas tree that once belonged to the woman I was named after, Abby Smith Riddle, who was my mothers grandmother. I love it because I think it is so pretty and unique but also because of the many christmas seasons I'm sure it has seen. It has seen many years, good times and bad. World wars, Great Depressions... Wouldn't it be interesting to be a fly on the wall (or in this case, a bird on the tree) to witness the world events and history this little tree has been through?

I put up a Christmas garland on the front of our house too. The funny part is that it got so windy that it blew down and would have a new home if David hadn't rescued it. David meant to put up some longer screws so it would stay up but he forgot, so I put it back up. The best part is that I put it up backwards so the part that is supposed to be facing the street is facing the house. By the time I realized this I had said so many swear words trying to get it to stay up, that I'm already going to be doing plenty of time in hell. So that's how it is going to stay until we take it down. I know, it looks pretty sad, and I am in desperate need of a wreath, but we will have to worry about that next year. My domestic housekeeping ship has sailed. (and sunk)

This is Davids tree. Another funny story: Mckinley has been watching Sleeping Beauty and has been carrying around a knitting needle, pointing at things and saying "make it Pink" or "make it blue". She tried to use these magic powers to "make David's tree pink" and he said "it's a man tree, you're not going to make it pink." So here is the "Man Tree." My favorite thing about it is that it has two strings of lights on it. (it's really like two feet tall.) I'm sad that the lights don't show up very well in the picture.

This is my gingerbread village. It gets a little bit better every year because I have been slowly adding things to it. Looks good enough to eat huh?

Brandi Brown!

Brandi! I really really really want to visit your blog. Add this e-mail address ok? abbyroad1@hotmail.com I was thinking that you might have added abbyslemonadestand but I don't think it worked.

Things I've Done
Rene, I copied this from your blog because I thought it was so fun. Thanks for the idea! If you want to do this too, just copy and paste this to your own blog, bold the items that you have actually done.
1. Started your own blog.
2.Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen an eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Danced the night away

Mckinley Janes birthday!

She woke up sick today! How sad. My little girl has been so excited for this day. As we have asked her what she would like for her birthday this year, (she doesn't quite understand the concept that she gets to have toys for her birthday.) she has said that she wants a "happy birthday." To her, this means a birthday cake that she gets to blow out the candles on.
So she woke up this morning with the stomach flu. After her first throwing up cycle, she said "I want some breakfast." Her daddy had promised her that he would make her some wobbles, (waffles) on her birthday. So she helped mommy make her cupcakes while daddy cooked waffles.
Originally, we had plans for a little party where she would get to see some of her little friends, and she has been so excited about having them all over to play. But we don't want everyone to catch the stomach flu, and we figure that the best way to kill it is isolation, that way it wont mutate and come back over and over again. So, long story short, we canceled the party. So sad.
But we are going to let her blow out some candles for her "happy birthday," and open some presents. So hopefully it will still be a fun day for her. (and she gets to drink sprite which she loves.) I will post some pictures of her at the end.
The other thing that I wanted to write about before I forget is the day that she was born. It is terrible but I have never really written much about it, and I'm sure that someday she will be interested to know the events of her special day. So, my dear, here is a little birthday present for you for the future.
On December 7th, 2005, I went to the doctor for my last appointment. Mckinley was due on the 10th, but I had been walking around dilated to a 3 for 3 weeks, so we were expecting an early arrival. However, I had pretty much made it to my due date so I figured that my Dr. would suggest an induction date or something. However, Dr. Laine had been out of town for three weeks and I had been seen during those weeks by another resident Dr. Apparently the method of measuring was a little bit different between the two doctors because by Dr. Laines measurements I had lost an inch in the last three weeks. My water had not broken, and I hadn't been sick or anything so there was no good reason to account for this, and it is not a good thing to lose an inch in the last weeks of pregnancy. Mckinley's heart rate was also slower than it should have been which was a sign that she was distressed.
So Dr. Laine sent me two floors up for a cardiac stress test for the baby, which seemed like a big deal because they were waiting for me when I went up. (No waiting at the University of Utah hospital is not a good thing.) I had not felt Mckinley move that day and the people doing the stress test couldn't get her to move either. She must have been taking a nice nap because she wouldn't move for them. They wanted her to move so that they could watch what her heart rate would do when she moved.
Because of the failed stress test we had to have an emergency ultrasound. The ultrasound technicians have a way of calculating body weight of the baby by measuring the baby's femur and head etc. and according to these calculations they estimated Mckinley to be just barely five pounds. Usually not a good thing for a full term baby.
So after all of this, they sent me back downstairs to be induced. I really didn't want to be induced because I was afraid it would turn into a c section. I HAD to be at a test on friday to take my last final for the semester. However, they really felt that it was necessary to induce me so they started the pitocin and I started contracting. David was working in Park City and so I had to call him to let him know what was going on and I was so worried that he wouldn't make it in time. On the contraction monitor it was showing me having these huge contractions but they were really not hurting as much as I was thinking they would. We had this really funny anesthesiologist that encouraged us to get the epidural early before the contractions were bad and in case a c section did end up being necesary. So I got the epidural, which was done by a student who had to do it twice because she got a blood return the first time. After I got the epidural I never felt a thing the rest of the delivery. I can honestly say that the labor and delivery with Mckinley was never dificult or painful. I really got to enjoy all of it and it was so interesting to feel like an observer in the whole thing because I was so comfortable. A hard act to follow for any future deliveries.
I was on pitocin for about 8 hours, and then I was ready to start pushing. I started pushing a few minutes before my doctor came into the room and once she came in, she helped things move things along much faster. Mckinley's heart rate was not recovering between contractions so I had to have a quick episiotomy and then she was out. I only pushed for like 20 minutes if even that. My mom made it to Salt Lake for the delivery and a bunch of our friends and my sister came in afterwards to see the new munchkin.
She was an absolutely perfect baby. The ultrasound had been incorrect about what her weight would be. She was a healthy 7 pounds 12 ounces and 20 inches long.
A very cute memory for us was David giving her her first bath. He was so cute with her right from the start. He also changed her first messy diaper and we laughed about how awkward it was to change a brand new baby.
I couldn't sleep the night after I had her because I just kept looking over at her and seeing her bundled up sleeping. She was so beautiful to me in every way. It was so intimidating think that she was ours and we didn't know what we were doing.

Escape to Midway

The day after Thanksgiving, we went on a much needed little vacation to Midway to stay at the Homestead and ride the Heber Creeper to "The North Pole." We had been telling Mckinley about it for weeks and she was so excited to be able to go swimming and ride on a train. So we left Friday morning with our car full of Thanksgiving treats and leftover turkey sandwiches for the drive. When we got to Midway we checked in and went swimming. They have a really big hot tub thats like half the size of the pool and as soon as Mckinley realized that she could swim in the warm pool, there was no going back.
After swimming, we ate dinner at Fanny's Grill, which was fun because we just walked over from our room. The whole village was decorated for Christmas and Mckinley loved seeing the lights and Christmas trees and there was even a pair of Clydesdale horses pulling a carriage. The food at Fanny's was pretty good. Especially after swimming.
Then it was train time! We got into our pajamas and drove to Heber to board the train. As soon as we got on, Mckinley was bouncing off the walls, she was so excited. She made fast friends with the elves and the lady reading the Polar Express. As soon as the train starts moving they bring around hot cocoa that's as "thick and rich as warm melted candy bars," and cookies that are made by Mrs. Claus. Mrs. Claus even comes around with the recipe! Aparently they are Santas favorite cookies.

The train conductor on our train came onto our car and told us some history about the Heber Creeper. The train is a steam engine that is one of the oldest trains still in operation. It moves at top speeds of approximately 15 miles per hour! It also uses about 2000 pounds of coal to make the 20 mile trip to the north pole and back. We rode on a famous car. It starred in the movie A River Runs Through It.

During the ride, we sang christmas carols and one of the songs was The Twelve Days of Christmas. Mckinley got to hold up the sign for the 9th verse.

Mckinley also got to meet Santa Claus and we loved it because she was so excited to see him. Previously, she was always scared of him, but not this time. In this picture, she is looking at the christmas bell he gave to her.
Mckinley also danced with the elves while we were singing some of the Christmas carols. They were so cute with her and really knew how to play with little kids.
After the train ride was over, we went back to our hotel and read The Christmas Orange. You know which one I'm talking about. We only brought two oranges and after we read the story we broke up the oranges to make three. Maybe that will help us remember to think of others this season.
The next day, we went swimming again and checked out. We did spend some time walking around the Homestead village because the weather was so nice. Then we went down to Salt Lake and went to Toys are Us.(We have a birthday coming up!) It didn't take long for us to remember why this weekend is not fun to shop. People EVERYWHERE! But we still had fun.
We went to Settebello and ate the worlds finest pizza for dinner. And we did it the right way-with gelato first. MMMM!
Then we showed Mckinley the lights at Temple square. She was so enchanted with everything "christmas time, " it reminded me of when I was a kid, and was so excited about everything this time of year. It was such a fun trip. We wish we would have been able to see some of our friends but we didn't make any surprize visits in case some of you were still doing family things for Thanksgiving.