We had a busy and very fun Christmas season. The problem was that I didn't have my camera with me for most things that we did. I wasn't sure if I should post without a picture. I see now that writing something would've been better than nothing at all. We did lots of service projects. The kids are great helpers. We enjoyed lots of parties with various family members, friends and neighbors. Here is a shot of each of the kids visiting with Santa at the ward Christmas party!

Spencer had the opportunity to show off his singing skills! His music and dance class held their Christmas Show this month. Spencer did a great job! He performed a dance as the Grinch with his friend, McKellen Adams, then sang a solo from the song "Where Are You Christmas?" from the Grinch movie. I think he had a lot of fun too. Nobody who has seen the video footage could deny that!!!

Here is Spencer as a wiseman! He would've had a crown but somehow it got torn to pieces.....I wonder who did that!

Both boys did a fabulous job at the Annual Christmas program put on by the elementary school. Each grade got to sing a few songs. The Kindergarteners sang "Jingle Bells", "Frosty the Snowman" and "Silver Bells" while the 1st Graders sang "Twas the Night Before Christmas."

Look closely!!! Spencer is in the second row from the front and Cameron is on the back row.

We enjoyed acting out the Nativity Story on Christmas Eve. Cameron played the part of Joseph with his cousin, Alex, as Mary. Ashley was a shepherd and Spencer was a wise guy....I mean wise man!

Happy Halloween!!

What a fun and busy day! The elementary school had it's annual Halloween parade. The kids walk around each of the classrooms then take a walk up and down Main Street. It is a town event! Families from all over town can come downtown to see all the cute costumes. Ashley pointed out every princess in sight!!

After the parade, it's time for the class parties. I am Cameron's room mother this year so I dressed up as a witch, then the Kindergarteners and I made Witch's Brew! I did this for Spencer's Kindergarten class the year before and it was a hit. The end of the poems teases the kids that if they drink this potion their hair might fall out.....we had to convince a few that it was only a Halloween trick!

After school, the kids came with mom to do what I call "backwards Trick or treating!" We had sweet rolls that we delivered to each of the young women in our ward....

....then we took a hot meal to some of the widows and widowers in town. Here we are delivering to Great Grandma Cox! It is an important service project to teach the kids about giving the treats, not only recieving them!!

They ended the night at the trunk or treat on Main Street. They got so much candy that they complained about carrying their heavy buckets. Boo hoo! Cameron's bucket strap even broke in half! Then we had a party with some fun neighbors before going to bed....very, very late!!

Jolly Jack-o-Lanterns

We enjoyed a night of pumpkin carving a few nights before Halloween.

First, we drew our patterns.....

Then we cut!!!

Everyone enjoyed cutting into the pumpkins although......almost nobody liked taking the slimy seeds and pulp out!

But what a glorious finish!!!

Free Drugs??

The kids just celebrated Red Ribbon week at school. The first day they came home and told me that they learned about "free drugs". I asked, "Do you mean Drug Free?" It's amazing how much things can change by switching two words.

Viva Mexico!!!

We just went on a 7 day cruise to the Mexican Rivera and had so much fun. Our ship was the Norwegian Star and we left from Los Angeles.

(Grandma & Grandpa Cox, Mom, Dad, Ashley, Spencer and Cameron)

Our Cruise director told us that the average person gains 6 lbs. (per day) while traveling on a cruise line. Now, I understand why. There was food available practically 24 hours a day. Of course, we felt we needed to get our money's worth so we took advantage whenever we could!

We enjoyed a nice cup of hot chocolate and a movie to go to bed almost every night! This particular night, Ashley ended up spilling her cup down the front of my shirt and all over the foot of my bed. I was glad to have maid service that day!!

Our cruise was called a freestyle cruise which meant that the dining was at our leisure, in other words, buffet. That was fun for lunch and when we where just snacking but we enjoyed sitting down and being served at the restaurants. We had a formal dinner with the whole family one night and on the last night Rich and I took the kids to the kids' cafe then went to eat at the steakhouse! That was the best meal of the whole trip!!!

Ashley was so tired, she feel asleep at dinner and stayed asleep for the rest of the night!

The cabin stewards that cleaned our rooms were so nice. They made our towels into a different cute animal each night. We caught a picture of one of them. I went to a seminar were the room service workers taught how to make the animals, so I'll be practising!!

The boys became affectionately known as "9595" because every time our cabin stewards saw them they were running towards our room calling out our room number as they checked each door!

The interior of the ship was very beautiful! We had some great views while traveling. We met many people from all over the world. Anywhere from Poland to India to Hyrum, UT!! Here is a shot of the three kids manning the elevators!

The entertainment was fun. We saw a magician, a father & son juggling act, dancers and singers, acrobats who could balance on top of one another from head to head, and comedians. I learned a disappearing cracker trick from the magician which I'd like to show anybody who is interested! We enjoyed a few games of air hockey and fuse ball too.

The kids each had lots of things that they loved most about the cruise. They loved the designated kids' cafe because everything was just their size. The chairs were small stuffy squares and the tables were only a few feet off the ground. They could walk back and forth and eat as much or as little as they liked. Another thing they loved was the kids' club. Each day and night there were activities that they could choose to be involved in. They met lots of friends which they played with during dinner and at the pool too!

Spencer played with the 6-12 yrs old kids while Cameron and Ashley went with the 2-5 yrs old kids!

Face painting was a hit. This is Cameron as a ferocious tiger. I didn't get a picture of Ashley, she had beautiful flowers all over her face!

Another favorite, probably the most favorite time, was at the pool on ship. There were two main swimming areas. One was for little kids and the other for older kids. We liked both. They each had water slides and hot tubs.

Cameron and Spencer on the kiddie water slides!

Mom and Dad on the older kid slides!

Ashley preferred the small kiddie pool!

Grandpa and Grandma got into their suits only once. But they enjoyed the slide and that was enough!

Because the harbor was too shallow in Cabo the ship had to drop anchor out at sea and take passengers to shore by tender boats. Cabo has the most beautiful beaches of all the stops. The water was warm and crystal clear. We took a tour around the sea of Cortez in a glass bottom boat. We fed the colorful fish, saw sea lions and crabs and got a great shot of Los Arcos, the famous rock formation that Cabo is known for. After that we spent a few hours playing at the beach. When we got back to our cabin that night we found the pockets in Cameron's swim shorts were completely loaded with sand!

Matzatlan had cliff divers that jumped into 7 feet deep ocean waters from a 35 ft. cliff. In order to avoid the jagged rocks below the divers had to time their jump with the swell of the incoming waves. Here is a picture of the three kids in front of the diving cliffs. It rained there but was still very warm due to the 88% humidity! We toured the city, visited the cathedral and shopped in the market.

We got off the ship late in Puerto Vallerta so we missed a bunch of the organized tours. Plus, it was later in the morning so the humidity made things pretty hot! We occupied our time by visiting the beach. We got crowded by salesman at every beach. We were offered anything from jewelry to tattoos! Some vendors said their merchandise was "almost free" you know "$50!" Rich let them know that $50 is not almost free!!

Spencer was convinced that he was going to find crabs from the day we told him he would see the ocean. He was able to catch a small crab along with a few hermit crabs. It took some talking to convince him that they needed to stay with their families in Mexico and not come home with us!

Spencer and his newly caught hermit crabs!

After some time at the beach, we found a couple of taxi drivers willing to take us into the jungle. It was beautiful. The foliage was luscious and green. We saw spiders, turtles, iguanas, and waterfalls. There was a place to go on the zip line or to slide down the waterfalls like a playground slide!

This is Spencer and Mom at the "El Eden" restaurant in the Puerta Vallarta jungle. The pool at the bottom of the waterfall is full of turtles!

Spencer and Cameron carefully poising on a 2 1/2 ft wide bridge. By now, Cameron has grown tired of getting his picture taken seriously!!!

We had a good time. We're not sure we will be seasonal cruisers like some of the people that we met but we enjoyed our time together and the sights we saw. With all the fun that we had, still....there's no place like home!!!