2.26.2011

Let's Finish Up!

I decided that I'm tired of thinking about all the things I haven't blogged about yet.  A blog should be current, right?! It's one of my worst habits with any kind of journaling/life recording task.  I have great plans, get behind, and am forever trying to catch up.  For the sake of avoiding this self-inflicted trap, I've decided to finish up with a few old things so we can move on with the new!  Ambitious? I think yes!

At the end of December, all of Mitch's family took a trip to California.  We first spent some time in San Diego--a new favorite vacation spot since Parker and Steph live there--and then moved on for a fun-filled New Years in the happiest place on earth, DISNEYLAND! A big thanks to Mama and Papa Smith for the special Christmas gift.  We had a ton of fun! Here are a few highlights from our trip.

Panning for gold at the Mormon Battalion Historic Site in San Diego

Pump that water Porter!

Love these boys :)

The fam at the Hotel del Coronado

We went to see the Christmas lights at the San Diego Temple and it was beautiful.  And as tradition has it, Mitch not only wanted to look at the nativity, but become part of it. 

The Smith family all in one boat at Disneyland=FUN!

Porter Kenzie and Eliana having too much fun to look at the camera.  

Train ride!

We had a long day, and at the end the kids were getting tired and a little cold.  I just couldn't resist a shot of Porter all wrapped up.  Cute!

All the Christmas lights and decorations were still up at New Years.  Disneyland plus Christmas?! It doesn't get any better than that!

Happy New Year from the whole Smith gang!
 

2.07.2011

Christmas!!

Now that it's been well over a month, it's probably time we gave a little info about our super fabulous Christmas!

On Christmas Eve, we enjoyed a nice dinner with some family friends and played games.  We had a great time.

We started Christmas day at our own little apartment (fun!).  Santa had come....a little...so we opened a few gifts and examined our stockings.  Thanks mom for the way CUTE stockings!



 Afterward, we headed to Mitch's parents where Parker and Steph surprised everyone with a trip home for Christmas! We weren't expecting to see them until we went to California for New Years.  We opened gifts with the family and had so much fun.  As always, watching the little ones open gifts was the best part.  The rest of the day we enjoyed playing with new toys, taking naps, playing games, and visiting with the fam.  Oh, and of course, we had really yummy food!



The Kiddos.  So cute!

Our new Grand Piano! Ok, maybe just the closest we'll have for a few years :) But, it's pretty "grand" to us!
Somehow Mitch ended up wearing the girls' new princess stuff.  Oh, Mitch.....

Our first Christmas together was wonderful!  It was great to spend it with each other and our family. 

2.02.2011

Weddings, Holidays, Blink, It's February!

It sure seems like the last few months have gone by quick! It's already February and I haven't even posted anything about Christmas! Mitch and I had a fun-filled five week break so we'll have to tell you about our adventures a little at a time.

Way back in December right before Christmas, Mitch and I went to Idaho and Utah for the weddings of some really great friends.  During the trip we also got to see a lot of family.  FUN! Our first stop was Caldwell, Idaho where we saw two of my sisters, their spouses, and the cutest 3 year old currently living in the state of Idaho.  We had a blast visiting and playing while we were there.  On Saturday the 18th we attended the wedding of my dear friend and former roommate Jodi.  They were sealed in the Twin Falls Temple.

Warning: The following story is lengthy (but funny!). Feel free to skip it if you don't have the time.

This may look like an ordinary Church building, but in fact signifies one of the funniest experiences from our trip.  No, it is not the chapel the reception was held in.  In fact, nothing in connection with the wedding took place here.  Here's the story:  After the sealing there was a luncheon held at an event center in Twin Falls.  Problem was, we didn't know how to get there and there was nobody around to ask.  The only person who would be at the lunch and whose number we had was the bride, and well, we figured she wouldn't answer on her wedding day.  So in a moment of genius, Mitch decided to follow a car leaving the temple parking lot and hope it was someone who had been at the same wedding we had.  (We saw around 5 brides while we were there.)  Lucky for us, they took us right to the luncheon! Mitch would make a really good stalker; they never suspected us ;).  As we were headed in, we found ourselves entering what looked to be a family fiesta.  Although both the bride and groom speak spanish, we figured we were in the wrong place.  As all eyes stared at us, we smiled and walked out before bursting into laughter at our mistake.  We did eventually find the luncheon which was being held upstairs.  The reception that evening was at a church building in Jerome.  Again, we didn't have the address but we figured we could find the building.  After all, how many churches could there be in Jerome?!  Apparently more than we figured.  After driving for a LONG time, and stumbling accross several church buildings, we found a building with lots of cars that we just knew had to be the right place.  We got ourselves all ready, went in, and once again looked around and felt a little out of place as we had earlier that day.  We definitely had showed up to the spanish branch Christmas party complete with a shiny wedding gift.  We about died laughing as we walked out.  Apparently our inner Latino was just dying to get out that day! Through a series of phone calls and a little more driving, we found the reception and had a great time.   

The Bride and Groom make an exit! Sadly, this is one of the best pictures we got of them.  We're terrible at remembering the camera when we're having fun!

After our visit in Idaho we headed to Utah for another wonderful wedding.  Mitch was a groomsman for his good friend Spencer.  The wedding was beautiful and we were so happy we could make it! 


While we were in Utah, we stayed with my sister Melanie and got to visit my Grandparents.  How cute are they?!  We love to see them every time we are in Salt Lake. 

Mitch and I had a lot of fun making gifts for our friends' weddings.  I had made one of these for the teacher I did my student teaching with and we decided they'd make great wedding gifts too.  Convenienty her last name is also Jensen.  I'm basically the least crafty person ever, but we actually tried to get a litte creative and made these fun name frames. 

Can you tell what they say?! The left one says Camacho and the right one Jensen.  They are the last names of each of the couples.  All of the pictures were taken outside by us! We decided alphabet hunting makes a great date! As you can see, the matted frame looks a lot better, but it's hard to find them with just the right number of slots.  

Check back soon for more fun from the last few months!