2009 Christmas Letter

Dear Family and Friends,
We hope you have all had a wonderful 2009. Here's a little bit of what our family has been up to this year.
In February, Aidan turned one-year-old, and in the same month he learned how to walk. In March, the kids and I flew to California for my step-mom's 50th birthday party. Jason was busy working on finals so he wasn't able to come, but I think it was good for him to have the house quiet for a week while he studied. The kids and I had fun visiting all the family in California, and Laurie's birthday party was a blast with a kids' table set up, a live band and a really delicious BBQ. We also got to visit the beach as usual while we were there which is always a really fun treat for the kids.
In April, Connor turned four-years-old, and Jason graduated from BYU-I so we had a joint birthday/graduation celebration. Also in April, we found out that we would be moving to Utah. Jason got an internship working in the IT department of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We only had about two weeks notice to move, so we took a quick weekend trip to Utah, found a place to live, said goodbye to some dear friends and family in Idaho, and moved to Utah the next weekend. Then the very next weekend after that, we drove to Sacramento, CA for my sister, Sherri's, wedding. It was a crazy time, but we were so glad that Jason got a job and so happy that we could go to the wedding to be a part of their beautiful day. Gavin and Connor were ring bearers, and I was a Maid of Honor.
In July, Gavin took swimming lessons and loved it. Gavin also turned six in July and had a Star Wars themed party. In August, our family went to Lagoon (an amusement park in Utah). Connor was our little Dare Devil while Gavin had a lot of fun just going on the kiddie rides like the helicopter and airplanes that you can make go up and down. Gavin and Connor both learned how to ride their bikes without training wheels on the same day and were just smiling from ear to ear when they figured it out.
This year Gavin started kindergarten, and we've decided to have him attend the Utah Virtual Academy which is where we do school at home with all of the lessons supplied to us and keep in contact with a certified teacher through emails and phone calls. So far we've really liked the program, and we especially like how the kids will pass each grade like normal because they're still required to take state exams and keep track of attendance. Also in August, Gavin started Soccer and really liked it. Connor said he didn't want to play this year, so he helped sit with our family and cheer Gavin on.
In September, Gavin lost his first tooth and was really excited to leave it under the pillow for the Tooth Fairy. For Halloween, the boys dressed up in a Star Wars theme: Gavin was Darth Vader, Connor was a Clone Trooper, and Aidan was an E0Wok. Also in October, we flew to California for my brother, Aaron's, wedding. Gavin and Connor were ring bearer's for this wedding too.
For Thanksgiving, we drove to Eastern Idaho to spend the holiday with family. Unfortunately, Jason's grandpa passed away the Saturday before Thanksgiving, so it was a bitter-sweet holiday with the family.
We think of you all often and hope you all have a wonderful Christmas. As we reflect on the Savior's miraculous birth and life, we hope all of our hearts can be filled with increased love and thanksgiving this Christmas Season.
With Love,
The Mortensens

Christmas Morning

Here are some pictures of how we spent Christmas morning:
Here's Aidan in his new car...he opened almost all of his presents from inside this car...there was no getting him out of it! He LOVED it!

More opening of the gifts...





Our family in front of our Christmas tree. (The poor tree has been dead for a week and spilling pine needles all over the place, but at least it stayed green!)

I love this picture...it's just captures perfectly the content feeling of just lounging around on Christmas Day!

Aidan Singing

Lately, Aidan has taken to singing at any given time of any given day. Sometimes it's really funny and makes me laugh, sometimes when I'm trying to drive it's a little distracting, and sometimes like in this video, he's providing his brothers with a little entertainment while they do their school work. One thing's for sure...whenever he decides to serenade us it sure is cute.

O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree, How Lovely Are Thy Branches...

Last Monday, we told the kids that we could put up our Christmas tree only to remember that when we moved, we left the artificial tree behind! The kids were so upset about not putting up the tree like we said we would, and all week they kept asking if we could go get a tree. I went grocery shopping yesterday and they had some nice trees for $25 dollars, and the kids were so excited asking if we could Pleeese get a tree to decorate tonight. I agreed to get the tree and on the way home, Connor said, "Gavin, you finally got your tree! You've been waiting forever for this tree." (I guess a week can feel like forever when you're a kid!) Then Connor said, "Mommy, I've been waiting my whole life for this tree. Thank you!" (So dramatic, but funny!) Here we are decorating the tree...
All I can say is thank goodness for those little plastic covers on the outlets because this little baby was ready to light things up!

Gavin and Mommy by the tree.

Connor, Gavin and (the backside of) Bo.

Connor loves to take pictures, and right as he took it Jason surprised me with a kiss.

The big boys did such a good job decorating the tree. They were so careful to try to evenly distribute the ornaments only to have baby brother come by and knock them all off! But, they were patient with him and would just say, "No, No Aidan" and then pick up the ornaments and put them back on the tree...over and over again!

The boys couldn't decide who should be allowed to put the star on top of the tree, so I tried to help both of them do it. (Did you notice that Connor has his pants on inside-out! I had pointed it out to him earlier in the day and he just laughed and said "whoops!" but apparently wasn't affected enough by it to bother fixing it.)

Time to bring in some presents.

The boys love this little book. On the outside it looks like a nice red Christmas door, but on the inside I have one family Christmas picture from every year (starting with the first year Jason and I were married) along with an explanation of presents and what we did that year.

On a side note, I love having a real tree this year. It smells soooo good and fresh and foresty! I love it.

Aidan's Big Boy Bed

On Sunday night, we put up Aidan's big boy bed. He LOVES it! I was worried that he'd be so excited with his new found freedom that he'd just keep getting out of bed, but so far, as soon as we tuck him in for the night, he just goes to sleep. It's so great. The only time he gets upset is when he wakes up in the morning or from his nap and can't get the door open...he gets really, really upset, and it takes a while to calm him down. It's strange that he would get upset about being trapped in his room, but he wouldn't really get upset when he was trapped in his crib! Other than that, he's loving his toddler bed.
Here's Aidan turning on his mobile...

then he lays himself down and waits to get tucked in.


Gavin likes that he can snuggle with Aidan in the toddler bed.

Good Night sweet baby.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Here are a few things I'm thankful for:
Beautiful baby blue eyes...goofy baby smiles...

yummy food to eat with family and friends...
my sweet four-year-old...my cuddly one-year-old...

my inquisitive six-year-old...

my wonderful husband and best friend...

cute chubby little baby hands...

seeing the joy on my six-year-old's face when he gets to play Rock Band...

my wonderful family...

sweet baby cheeks...nephews that help take care of the little ones...

All these things and much, much more, and how thankful I am most of all to know that families are forever. What a great blessing it is just to know that! On a more serious note, Jason's Grandpa passed away last Saturday so we came over to Idaho a little early for the funeral. At the viewing, just seeing Jason's Grandma talk to her husband as he lay there and fix his hair into place the right way so sweetly just made me think of what tender feelings there are between husbands and wives. What a wonderful feeling it is to know that when someone we love passes on from this life, it's not the end, that we will see them again, that husband and wife will be reunited in such a sweet reunion in the next life because of the blessings of being sealed together forever in the temple. I feel so blessed to know of these truths.

Christmas Spirit

Rock Band

Jason's parents came to visit over Halloween weekend. We had a lot of fun visiting with them. Jason's dad brought Rock Band over and Jason, his brother Travis, and their dad had a fun time playing it. I played the guitar a few times and that was fun...then I attempted the drums...woah, not good. I stuck with the guitar. I thought I was getting really good at the guitar after a few songs so I tried Medium instead of easy...and...I got booed off the stage after like 10 seconds! Jason got pretty good at the drums. Later that night, the kids got to be the lead singers. The only song that they kind of knew was "Yellow Submarine." They were so cute singing along and sharing the microphones.


Last Halloween picture...I promise! I just forgot I had this one. It's of my kids and their cousins, Taydem, Taylyn and Talen all lined up and ready to Trick-or-Treat.

Family Prayer

This is what Gavin said to me yesterday.
"I actually had a good warm feeling in my heart yesternight before we said family prayer."
I thought, okay, even with all the craziness that goes on in this house, I must be doing at least some things right. And, that made me feel good.

A Conversation with Connor...

Connor and I were laying in bed the other night when our conversation when something like this:
Connor: "I did one bad thing today."
Mommy: "What's that?"
Connor: "I punched the baby."
Mommy: "Yeah, that's not good."
Connor: "But, I did one good thing today."
Mommy: "What's that?"
Connor: "I didn't punch him very hard."

Trunk-or-Treat

I'm posting this a little late, but here are a couple of pictures of the kids "trunk-or-treating" for Halloween.

Halloween

Look closely...this is the only time you'll see Darth Vader and a Clone Trooper hugging! (And they even did this without being asked! Wow!)

Baby Aidan is a teddy bear, but the boys call him an E-Wok (I hope I spelled that right!) to go along with their Star Wars Theme.

Pumpkin Carving Time!

Last Friday, we invited Jason's brother, Travis, and his wife, Trudy, and their kids to come over for some dinner and to let the kids carve their pumpkins. The kids all had a lot of fun and did a great job on their pumpkins...with a little help from the adults!

My nieces, Taylyn and Taydem.

My nephew Talen. He has the best grins!

Gavin & Connor.

Jason's brother, Travis, and his wife, Trudy.

All of the kids sitting in front of their pumpkins. We tried to put Aidan to bed a couple of times, but I think he was all too aware that he was missing out on some fun with his brothers and his cousins, so we let him get back up and come out and play.

What to do on Standby at the Airport...

We happened to fly home through San Francisco on a day that had terrible rain and winds in San Francisco, so we were on standby in northern California for a while until it was safe to fly into San Francisco. We finally got a later flight out, but missed our connection in San Francisco. Luckily, we were able to get on the last flight home out of San Francisco that night. We spent a lot of time just waiting in airports, but we were so glad that we got home that night and didn't get stuck in San Francisco that late at night.

Happenings in California

While in California for my brother's wedding, we were also able to spend some time visiting with family. My cousin, Jaydie, was there who I haven't seen for quite a few years. She had two little boys that my boys had a lot of fun playing with. We all took a walk to the beach one night, and the kids had a blast. My cousin, Jaydie, and I even got in the water. It was really chilly, but fun!

Gavin stood at the edge of the water like he was surfing! He loved it.

Aidan really liked my dad's dog, Elvis. Elvis is usually really scared of people he doesn't know, but he seemed to do okay with Aidan petting him. Aidan was actually really soft with him.