12 Days of Christmas

December is always a fun month but this year was especially great. Mom & Dad sent us 12 days of Christmas presents that were really creative and fun. Among other things, the kids made (then ate) snowmen,

designed custom pancakes:

 created glOreos,

learned things they "can" do for Christmas, 

 and got some fun things to play with and/or use to decorate for Christmas,

including some "cheer for you rear" (her words, not mine).

 We also had some old friends from the Miller Ward stay with us.  We haven't seen the Rhodehouse family for several years, but it seemed just like old times. Nate is one of Noah's first ever friends. Ben & Kevin  and Zack & Lincoln were all born within a few months of each other. It was so much fun for the boys to hang out together. Their visit was a perfect excuse to see what the Bellagio does to the conservatory for Christmas. It didn't disappoint.

 How about flying reindeer? 

 And igloos....wait for it...

with a surprise

And these amazing flower covered polar bears.

And giant ornaments. Fantastic!!

  We got our Mo-tab in with a Hallelujah chorus fountain show.  (Not the best shot).

Ever since our Disney experience, the boys have been counting down the days until Tron. In fact, they've become a little fanatical about the awesomeness of the movie. It was so cool that Noah would go see it a million more times. Ben's 3-D glasses over the hair makes me chuckle.

  And to top it all off, David, Emily, Matt & I got to go see the Beatles' Love show for free! The show was absolutely incredible and a really fun impromptu night for us. We even saw Susan Sarandon in the parking lot.

We managed to find the Christmas spirit in Las Vegas, even though I wondered if we could feel like it is Christmastime without snow. Another highlight was going to see our stake's amazing Nativity performance complete with live animals, an angelic choir and the perfect reminder of the real meaning of Christmas.