Merry Christmas....

From our gingerbread house to yours....
We have been enjoying the holiday festivities. We were honored to be invited to Kim's 10th annual gingerbread house party. We had a few construction issues as our roof caved in several times. Nothing a few candy canes couldn't fix though. It is always fun to get together with old friends.

The other morning as we left our home we were greeted by a happy smiling face....
Our dearest neighbors had built this little guy right at our door step. What a happy surprise! Who can resist a face like that? Thanks Apfels!
We have enjoyed spending time with family and friends and partaking of the spirit of the season. We wish you and your families all the best this Christmas.

Buddy the elf, whats your favorite color?

Saturday night we headed to Temple square again to check out the Christmas lights. This time we went with Brian's family. It was much colder this time around as the snow was falling down. We had a great time. Everyone was hungry so we stopped into the Lion house pantry to partake of some delicious rolls. While we were sitting in the restaurant in walked Buddy the elf and his girl friend...whats her name? Jody I think. Brian and I thought it was hilarious! Who decides to dress up like buddy and walk around Temple square. So we had to get a picture with them. I am sure they were off to spread Christmas cheer by singing loud for all to hear. Good times! Bye BUDDY hope you find your dad!

Award winning Crazy Christmas Cherry Cobbler!

I have had a few requests for the recipe that won 1st place at the ward dinner. It is super easy (duh does Billie make anything that isn't?) and I am still in shock that it would win a prize! Credit does need to go to Craig and Kellie who gave it this great name. I am sure that helped the judges make the call. It is delicious though. Enjoy....

2 21oz cans of cherry pie filling
1 White or yellow cake mix
1 cube butter melted
Empty pie filling into a 9x13 pan. Sprinkle dry cake mix over the top of the cherries. Pour melted butter evenly over the top. Spreading it evenly with the back of a spoon. Bake at 375 degrees for 40 min. Or until golden brown on top. Tastes great with vanilla ice cream! * You could use any fruit pie filling you desire.

Tis the season for Crazy times!

This was a fun but BUSY weekend! I like how people think that it is best to plan their holiday activity at the beginning of the month so things won't be too crazy near Christmas. This sounds like a great plan except when everyone has the same plan! Friday night we had our ward Christmas dinner that we did not attend because my family had planned a trip to temple square to see the lights. I did however send my dessert that I had signed up to bring and it won 1st place!(Crazy Christmas Cherry Cobbler anyone?) We had a great time at Temple square. It was a little chilly but good times. Saturday we had tithing settlements in the afternoon, followed by my work party that evening. We ate at Tucanos and it was pretty tasty! It was Andrea and Adam's birthday celebration following that. We had a great time with the Taggarts as usual muchas laughing! Sunday we had our Sinterklaas celebration with my family. We celebrate the Dutch Christmas every year. We eat Dutch food, sing dutch songs and everyone gets a gift from Sinterklaas....if you have been good that is! It was another successful celebration. We had a great time! So now the rest of our month is pretty open! I guess we can just sit back and relax now! Happy holidays everyone! P.S the snow has begun to fall.....its beging to look a lot like Christmas!

Thanksgiving in Seattle

We had a fabulous Thanksgiving. We made a quick trip to Seattle. We left bright and early Thursday morning. We spent the Turkey day with Brian's parents. It was a good day full of delicious food and lots of rest and relaxation and then some good game playing! Friday we spent the day with Kelsey, Aaron and their giant of a baby Harmon. (He is the cutest giant I have ever seen.) Friday night we sipped some delicious pina coladas while relaxing in the hot tub. Saturday we went to the Seattle temple. That night the Evans family joined us for dinner and games! Good times had by all. Harmon had such a good time he "exploded" with happiness. The next morning it was off to the airport to come back home. It was a quick but fantastic trip. Thanks Bruce and Claudia for your love and hospitality. We look forward to the next trip! (unfortunately I took ZERO pictures of the trip. I promise it really happened though!)Here are some pictures that Kelsey sent me...Look how cute her Giant is! I like him.