Dan, Aurora, and I traveled up to Bountiful, Utah, on Friday so we'd be there for the annual Barclay family Christmas party on Sunday at my grandma's house. I was really glad we were able to go this year since we didn't make it up last year!
On Friday, we had dinner with my grandma and my sister, Becca, and her hubby, Alex, then Dan and I played cards while eating lunchables and jerky. And we even had a chance to chit-chat with my cousin, Heather! It was great to catch up with her.
Saturday brought a visit from our good friend, Laura, and her little man, Kaden. They moved to Layton a few months ago so we all really enjoy our rare little meetups!
After visiting a bit with them, Dan helped my grandma organize her garage so that she could fit two cars in there. Grandma was super appreciative! I tried to help... kind of... but let's just say that Dan has the REAL eye for quality placement in a garage sooo... I mostly watched. But the view was great! *wink*wink*
Saturday night was when my parents, Steph, Grace, and Erin finally arrived so after a quick dinner with Dan and Aurora at KFC, we met up with them to visit Temple Square and see the lights.
You guys. The lights at Temple Square never cease to amaze me and leave me awe struck. The temple is beautiful and with the added lights, the Christmas feeling is abundant.
We spent a small amount of time taking pictures and it was fun and wonderful to be able to just laugh with the family and hold hands with my handsome husband while basking in the spirit of Christmas on Temple Square. Huge shout out to my Grandma Barclay for watching Aurora and Grace so we could go!
When we got back from downtown, we pulled up in front of my grandma's house to find our cousin, Melissa, had driven up to see us from Provo! It was THE BEST to see her! We all packed into my grandma's kitchen and ate food all while there was about 10 different conversations happening amongst everyone. It was loud and completely wonderful.
Sunday morning, we got all dressed up and headed down the street to attend sacrament at my grandma's ward. They were doing their Christmas program so we had the opportunity to sing quite a few Christmas songs and listen to stories reminding us of the true meaning of Christmas. The service was beautiful.
When we returned from church, we helped my grandma with last minute finishes to the dinner then Becca and Alex took us over to see their little apartment not far from my grandma's house. The view from their window was gorgeous! So after I snapped a few pictures, we headed back.
At 5pm, the rest of the family had arrived to start the party. Probably my favorite part of the party is getting to catch up with my cousins, aunt, and uncles, because this is the only time of year we really see them. We all live in different areas of the state so when we get together again, we really cherish it. And boy, do I have a wonderful family! This year, there were quite a few little second cousins Aurora's age and she had a blast getting to know them. It was fun to see them all interact with one another just like we did as kids.
Dan had the opportunity of being "Lucky the Elf" for the party and got to have everyone sit on his lap while he handed out presents for Santa. He has done this a few times now and he always does a great job helping my family get into the spirit of it all. We sing songs and he provides laughs as he asks everyone if they've been good this year and what they want for Christmas.
Aurora sat with my parents as we waited for her to sit on "Lucky's" lap and the whole time, she was so interested in "Lucky"; couldn't take her eyes off of him. But as her name was called and my mom placed her on "Lucky's" lap, the look of terror came to her face and she screamed and screamed. haha Little did she know... "Lucky" is her favorite man.
When the party ended, we thanked my grandma and said goodbye to everyone and then we packed in the car to make the five hour journey home.
What a great weekend.
But honestly, my favorite part of the trip was the 10 hours I spent in the car with my Dan. Aurora slept most of the way (thankfully) so Dan and I had lots of time to just talk, laugh, and sing together. Times like those remind me that I'm in love with my very best friend. And I'd say, I'm perfectly fine with that!
No comments:
Post a Comment