Christmas in UTAH 2019

January 6, 2020

by saradwells in Holiday, Travel Post Comment

If you have been here for awhile, you know that our family decamps to Utah for Christmas each year. It’s our time to enjoy (in small doses) snow that our California selves don’t experience throughout the year, time with family, time with friends, time at restaurants we only have in Utah (I’m looking at you Kneaders and Cubby’s and that one random AMAZING Thai restaurant in Draper). Utah spells vacation and relaxation and family time for us. It always has.

This was the most relaxing Christmas in recent memory for me and Sam. It helps that our kids are older and can occupy themselves or are just easier to do things with. It helped that we left behind our first floor home construction project back in California – we were SO happy to be away from primed walls and cement floors and construction dust and piles of things from the first floor that temporarily live on our second floor. And it helped that our two high schoolers were badly in need of a break and a recharge from busy school and cross country schedules. I did a bunch of weaving on my loom and accomplished my first paint by numbers of two Thailand elephants (it took some serious FORTITUDE, ya’ll), Sam discovered latch hooking, we saw the new Star Wars Rise of Skywalker (AMAZING IN EVERY SINGLE WAY) and Jumanji, ate out daily, spent lots of time with Sam’s mom, visited with lots of friends, went to bed late and slept in, shopped, read, and just recharged. It was just what we all needed.

First up, CHRISTMAS FUN:

*Right before Christmas our family went to City Creek and Temple Square in downtown SLC to see the beautiful lights.*

Continuing with a tradition that is now 12 years and counting, Sam took his daughters to see the Nutcracker. They proclaimed that this particular production in Utah was the best they have seen yet. He first took Sophie when she was just three years old and they have never missed a year since. He started taking Sadie when she was about six :).

*The lights in Temple Square were magical*

I’m not sure why Simon just about lost his mind over his Christmas eve gift of a large tortilla “burrito” blanket but he did. I think I need to blow up this photo because it makes me laugh every time I look at it.

*At 5″10″ he is getting to be a little too large to wrap in the tortilla burrito blanket…*

*We had a beautiful, spiritual and emotional Christmas Eve program that I did not take any photos of or any video of. It was really special and our family will always remember it.*

*These two were plum tuckered out after playing on Christmas morning.*

*While it flurried outside we relaxed at Lisa’s and waited for a delicious Christmas dinner. It was a calm, fun, relaxing night with family.*

*Those were proper big flurries…that barely stuck to the ground 🙁*

*YOU GUYS. Sam MADE that stocking for his mom by latch hooking it! She was crying when she unwrapped it on Christmas eve. Total labor of love 🙂*

Next up, FAMILY TIME:

Uncle Ken came to visit all the way from Canada. We treasure our time with him; we only get to see him about once a year and always soak up our time with him. He talks to each of our kids and Sam and I go into great detail with him about our plans and our concerns and our hopes. He is a tremendous example in our lives and has been such a champion and support to us.

*Grandma and Sophie having a late night chat. That is her sleeping splint she is wearing until her foot heals from its stress fracture.*

*Sam made his sisters aprons featuring Bitmoji’s of himself. They looked brilliant. I think I want one of my own…*

Next up, FRIEND TIME! We have so many friends from college (BYU), from our NYC days who have since settled in Utah and other friends from my childhood and back in California that there is never quite enough time to see everyone. We did our best!

*We love our Lewis’s! We’ve known them nearly 20 years and always try to see them when we are back in Utah.*

*Stubbert and Lewis teens! Simon and Tommy have known each other since birth!*

*Me and Lindsey. Never enough time; I love this lady so much.*

Oh HAPPY DAY the Beverley’s stopped by grandma’s for a visit and Simon got to see his all time best friend Sariah. These two are such a great pair; she brought him the best Christmas present: a sushi plushie just like hers so they both have the same one. Love this girl.

*One of my favorite travel companions and all around friend, Toni. We didn’t have much time together but we made it count!*

*Simon and Brooklyn had their long awaited meet up and spent the day together. We love Brooklyn; it was so nice to see her again 🙂*

And next, CRAFTING TIME! I always like to have both a book and a creative project to do while I’m in Utah. Having those two things makes a vacation really FEEL like a vacation. I did some weaving and painting, Sophie painted birdhouses and Sam did latch hooking. Sadie and Seb both did some drawing and painting as well and Simon (and Seb) played video games until his eyes burned out of his head.

The initial package sent as a Christmas present from my SIL Shannon. She and I and Sam went to Thailand and Cambodia together and of course fell in love with the elephants. I loved the print for this project and committed immediately to completing it before we came back home.

*Initial progress. Have I mentioned that this took forever? Like it literally took me about 30 hours to do…*

*A very sore neck and even blurrier vision but look at that smile of accomplishment! I was so proud 🙂*

*I finished this around 10:30 PM on New Years Eve…my last creative endeavor of 2019. It was a perfect finish to a colorful year.*

*When Sophie needs to unwind and relax she reaches for paintbrushes. My deal with her is that I will always buy her wooden birdhouses or houses to paint as long as it helps her unplug and recharge.*

*Sam latched the most awesome stocking for his mom. I love it; so does she.*

I took some time to reflect on New Years Eve about the wild and full and fun year 2019 was for our family and further, what the last decade was like for our family. I wrote the following on Facebook:

“On this day (January 1, 2020) ten years ago we were 23 days away from traveling to Ethiopia to adopt Sadie and Sebastian. We had never been to Ethiopia, let alone the continent of Africa, had never met our new babies and obviously, had never adopted. Simon was six and Sophie was five. I hadn’t been diagnosed with Lupus yet, my hearing was still somewhat decent, I was untethered to causes and community that today are so important to me. I was a whole different person ten years ago. Not a better or a worse person, just a different person. There were so many fires that had not yet refined me, so many stretching lessons I still had to learn, so many countries I had not yet explored, so many conversations I had not yet had. So much, so many.

In ten years from tonight, God willing, I will have a 26 year old Simon, a 25 year old Sophie and 20 year old Sadie and Sebastian. Their futures, their identities, their experiences are still far out in front of them. God willing, Sam and I will be in our mid to late 50’s. We will have graduated kids from high school and some of them from college. Maybe there will have already been weddings, grandchildren, job and career changes.

So much is ahead of us in this new decade. I’m 98% excited and 2% really nervous about what lies ahead. What is most important for me as I look ahead is the shape that our family as a whole takes and how the six of us evolve. There is so much I need to learn, so many places I want to go with Sam, so many experiences I am longing to have. As we drove back from Utah today, it was a really good opportunity for me to mull over my options and opportunities. What a gift to have options and opportunities and the freedom to pursue anything and everything. Happy 2020 everyone; the best is yet to come”.

Happy 2020.