December 2013

• Christmas is here and the kids are excited!
• To the relief of the whole family (especially the kids) I decided to not take the job of the recreation coordinator for the city and all we had to do is get through the 20th and I would done working. The month was especially crazy between Christmas fun and me trying to train the coordinator and tying up loose ends but we made it and Christmas was completely enjoyable and stress free!
• Here are some of the fun things we did for the Christmas season:
• We drove through the lights at Thanksgiving Point for Family Home Evening on night and then stopped in to see the reindeer. It was freezing out if you can't tell by the look on Addy's face.

• Addy tried out and made it into the annual Talent Show at school. She played the Christmas piano piece she had been working on, "Jolly Old Saint Nicholas" and did terrific. She really is so talented.

• Basketball finished for the season and the girls got tickets for a Jazz game. The weather was horrible and the game started late so Todd took the girls and Chris and Cathy went along too. They had a great time especially since tons of kids they know were also there since they were city recreation tickets.

• The girls both were able to perform at the school Christmas program. Cute, cute, cute! I love seeing the fun songs that the teachers put together. 

• Suzie and Bryan hosted the Bassett family Christmas dinner. She had all the kids put on the nativity. Unfortunately Addy was sick that day so she and I stayed home and watched The Sound of Music (the original, not the Carrie Underwood version:). Addy was so bummed that she couldn't go! Todd said Brynn and Bodee were pretty darn cute.

• Two fun things about the picture below: First, do see that amazing nativity set?? Yeah, that's from my childhood. Yeah, my dad painted those figurines. Yeah, I love that it was passed down to me. Second, do you see that sweet Packers garden gnome? That's my Christmas present from my BFF Merri! Not only did she give it to me but I had to open about ten boxes to get to it. It was so funny! Oh, and don't forget the magazine letter cut out Christmas card that was included. She's the best!

• On Christmas Eve morning  Todd's 36th Birthday we took the man of the house to breakfast at the Black Bear Diner in Sandy. This guy sure is good to us! The kids were so excited for the holiday celebrations to start!

• After breakfast Todd wanted to stop at Scheels for some last minute shopping. Here are the kids waiting for the Ferris Wheel.

• Later on we took our annual visit to the Salt Lake Temple to see the Christmas lights. The kids have some serious reflectors on their coats:)

• Love these boys!

• Bodee is going to love this picture when he's about 15 years old...

• After visiting the Temple we headed over to Chilis for dinner with Todd's parents. After Chilis we headed home and did all the regular family Christmas Eve traditions. The kids were SO excited for Christmas morning...it was definitely contagious. 
• Santa visited the Bassett home! Here's some of what the kiddos got. Bodee: Imaginex Batcave/helicopoter/Gotham City Jail, Toy Story characters, Spiderman costume. Brynn: Salon Doll, DJ music set, Zoomie Dog. Addy: Salon Doll, Rainbow Loom, Easy Bake Oven. Jen: Garmin, Kindle paperwhite. Todd: Camping chair, clothes, slick tires for his bike. It was a super duper great Christmas. We really enjoyed our day and loved spending time with each other.

• Below is our 2013 Christmas letter:

Dear Friends and Family,

Merry Christmas! We hope you’ve had a wonderful 2013. The Bassett house has been busy as usual and the kids are growing up so fast.

Adalyn started second grade as well as her second year of Chinese Immersion and she definitely loves school. She has continued playing soccer, golf, and basketball. Addy also began piano lessons this year and even performed at the school talent show. She loves hanging out with friends and is considered our “goofy” child with all her silly faces and dance moves. The sad part is these mannerisms come directly from her mother.

Brynnlee started kindergarten in 2013 and loves her teacher. She has proven to be the more competitive athlete and scored quite a few goals this year in soccer. She also started playing golf and basketball. Brynn loves to sing and we often find videos she self-recorded on our phones of songs she made up complete with facial expressions. We still call Brynn “Chicken” as a nickname and we offered to change it to “Babs” but she requested we stick with “Chicken”.

Boden is definitely a fun three year old boy. He really loves super heroes, movies, Minion Rush on the iPad, and playing with his best friend Emerson. He really took to swimming this summer and has become a little fish. Bodee loves to sleep with his sisters and almost every night climbs into one of their beds or all three of them end up sleeping together. (I can only imagine how comfortable it must be for all three of them in a twin bed!)

Todd kept happy keeping his yard green this summer, taking a hunting trip with his dad and brothers, and taking Addy and Brynn golfing as much as possible. He is busy at work and really enjoys the company he works for.

Jen was busy being a mom to their fun, crazy kids, leading her Girl Scout troop (that includes Addy and Brynn), running her 7^th marathon, volunteering as the PTA secretary working in the city recreation department.

We are so very blessed and are grateful for all love and friendship we feel from all of you. We wish you and your family a wonderful and happy 2014.

Love,
Todd, Jen, Adalyn, Brynnlee, Boden

• The 26th was our 8th Wedding Anniversary! I can't believe we've been together for eight years. It is so fun to see how far we've come and what a great life we've built together. I love Todd so much and truly appreciate all he does for me and the kids. We've got a lot of great years coming our way. We just went out to lunch for our anniversary since we're heading to Florida on the 1st.

• Girls playing with their new Salon Dolls.

• Todd has taken the girls skiing a couple of times in the past but he is determined to really teach them this year and take them often. That being said, the week after Christmas was spent finding skis for the girls. He found great deals on KSL and now they each had a set of skis, boots, helmets, and goggles. He took them for their first ski day of the year on the 30th of December and they are addicted!

November 2013

• November was just as busy and crazy as October...maybe even more so. Here are some of the highlights:
• Todd took Bodee to Home Depot on the first Saturday of the month for their weekly craft. This month it was a boat. Cute, huh? Afterwards they help give Lady dog a hair cut at Grandpa Bassett's house.

• Brynn got hurt during her basketball game and so this is the first picture she took. Todd finally got her to take another, happier picture. Ha!

• Todd went to New York for his yearly conference. The wives were all invited to come along but I decided that I wouldn't go because of work. Lame. Instead we had lots of Mommy/kid time:) Bodee and me at Firehouse Subs. He looks so good in uniform!

• I also took the kiddos swimming one night and afterwards we went to good Ol' Porter's Place for some rockin' scones. Pretty great kids I have here.

• Todd had a good trip (but really wished i was there, of course:). He even found a chicken hat and since we call Brynn 'Chicken' all the time...it's just so cute.

• Bodee in bed reading a book and fast asleep with the cute bunny Aunt Amy gave him.

• Marci and I took our Girl Scout Troop on a tour of Lehi's history as part of a badge requirement. It turned out to be a pretty fun activity.

• Brynn lost her first tooth! Yay! 

• The Tooth Fairy forgot to stop at the Bassett house one night when Addy lost a tooth. (This actually happens often:) Addy wrote the Tooth Fairy a note to make sure he knew where she was. 

• Addy got braces this month!! It was a big step for her! She seems too young to need braces but her spacing is so bad it has to be done. She looks great!

• Addy started piano lessons a few months ago when the school year started. She had her first recital this month and did terrific. She was a little nervous but played very well. She has really enjoyed playing the piano.

• Super sweet note written to me by Addy. I love that she translated it for me too. I'm a lucky mom!

• Brynn had a Pilgrims/Indians party at school for Thanksgiving. Her class make the Indian costumes. 

• I hosted Thanksgiving this year! It was really fun for me. Dane came down from Idaho and Chris, Cathy, and Eli all came as well. Cathy had already bought a turkey so she made that and her delicious stuffing. I took care of the rest although I cheated and bought a couple of pies from Kneaders. (Wait...I did have to make Grandma Pinch's pecan pie from scratch). It really was a great Thanksgiving. Super pleasant and enjoyable.
• Todd and I did go out to Kohls for Black Friday and after that we hit the outlet mall. Since Dane was around we had a babysitter to go out late. We felt pretty crazy staying out so late but we had a really good time together.
• The Friday after Thanksgiving we headed down to St. George for Chrislyn's baptism. I remember when she was born while Todd and I were dating. Can't believe it's been eight years! It was a terrific weekend for our family. November has been so crazy we definitely needed the family time.

• Dinner at The Brick Oven. We got a little picture crazy while waiting to be seated.

• Bryan brought his kids over to our hotel to swim one afternoon. Loving the cousin time and a warm pool in November!

• Cathy rode down to St. George with us and therefore was forced to stop by Zion's National Park on the way home. It was so gorgeous and we stopped to hike for about an hour. I really wish we could have stayed for a couple of days. Luckily Cathy loves Todd a whole lot and was willing to listen to him sing in the car:)