It finally feels like Christmas!

Christmas in Florida has never felt right!  There are no snow capped mountains, rarely do you find an excuse to pull out a coat, blankets are far outnumbered by beach towels, and you're more likely to wear flip flops in December than boots! It's just weird.  So how thankful I am to finally be able to celebrate Christmas in a home where you can turn on the fireplace, snuggle up under a blanket and sip hot cocoa without breaking a sweat.

Here's how our Utah Christmas unfolded.  Admittedly much of it felt similar to our first Christmas in our Florida house with blue tape on the walls, furniture that still needs to be purchased, and boxes that still need to be sorted through but that was all worth it to spend Christmas together in Utah. This year we hosted my parents, Jack's mom, Steve, and the Brigham City Knudsens!  Paul was with Camilla in Australia and Sean was hosting Amy's family but hopefully in the future we'll be able to get everyone on the same rotation! 

Look who I found at the Heber City dump while getting rid of moving boxes!

Christmas Eve in the new house!  

Christmas morning with some of the family! 

I use to take photos of the kids with their stuff each Christmas so I could remember who got what.  Sage asked if I wanted to do the same this year which I thought was sweet that she knew that used to be my little tradition.  So here she is with her stuff.  This year Ty landed a drone, air pods, clothes and a few other items.  Connor landed a Jet's helmet and jersey, a lot of books that he had requested and a few other things.  While I love the excitement of surprising the kids with unexpected gifts, each year it's getting more and more difficult to come up with ideas!

A special shout out to Connor and the generous gifts he gave everyone. It was clear he had put a lot of thought into each one. Here's Ty sporting the jersey Connor got him and Sage holding the poster he got her. In addition, he got Jack a Chargers baseball cap and me a 49ers t-shirt.  I loved seeing how excited Connor was to give everyone their gifts.  I know that feeling.

Of course it wouldn't be Christmas dinner without after dinner gifts and after dinner dancing! 

It's no secret that the main reason we are looking forward to returning to Utah is to be close to family and friends.  It's been since 1996 that Jack and I lived in Utah and what an adventure it's been ever since.  How excited we are to finally be returning to the one place that has always felt like home.

Good night from Heber City!