We were able to visit the Phoenix zoo while we were there. (There was some mix up and this was not the zoo Nan and Pappa were sending us to but it was still a blast!) We started our visit with petting the stingrays. We were all a little nervous at first but it was so neat!!
Elizabeth is our most cautious of the bunch but the employees there were fantastic. They started by showing her what to do, then Elizabeth put her hand on top of the ladies and then Elizabeth did it all by herself!! The stingrays felt very smooth and would come right up to you. The lady working there said they feel/track your heartbeat and that is why they come up to your hand. Definitely a great experience!
Next stop at the zoo - watching a 4D movie! The girls picked Polar Express. It was about half hour of the movie but was good. It was your standard 3D movie but the 4th D added smell and feel. When they were dancing and talking about hot chocolate it was all we could smell. Then when the train was sliding and cracking through the ice we could feel moisture and the backs of our legs got whipped. And then Santa poked the boy in the back and we too got poked in our backs through our chairs. It was a unique experience when watching a movie!
We went on a train ride around the zoo to see where things were and to plan our day. The girls really enjoyed going into the monkey village. We were able to walk and look around while squirrel monkeys ran around with us. They had just placed some treats in different containers around the area so it was fun to watch them try to find them and get them out. There was some monkeys trying to beat our their friends for sure!
Next up - a ride on the camels! Cera and Emilee were all grown up and happy to go by themselves!
Dad was a lone rider but still enjoyed himself.
And Mom and Elizabeth were a team. Elizabeth was nervous but had a good time.
To finish up the unique experiences at the zoo, the girls were able to feed the giraffes.
The girls were pretty brave to hold lettuce out for those long, purple tongues!!
Then the posed for a picture with their friend.
Dad says it's the perfect photo bomb!
We had a great time at the zoo! We enjoyed seeing all the animals especially those that we don't usually see at home. We also loved the new experiences we had there. But most of all, we had a wonderful time as a family making lots of new memories together. (Elizabeth insisted on taking our picture, hence why she isn't in it!)
We weren't very excited for the long drive (one day to Lehi, Utah and one day to Surprise, Arizona) but we were sure excited for a family vacation. The girls were fantastic on the drive and it wasn't as bad as we thought. (Most things usually aren't we've found.)
We arrive in Arizona on Dad's birthday and Nan and Poppa had ordered a special cake. The girls thought the picture was fun and loved that we could eat it.
While in Arizona Mom enjoyed some runs in the beautiful weather! It made her laugh though when she spotted these Santa hats on the cactus' while running. She had to stop and take a picture. We really do get in our little bubbles with how we celebrate and picture our different holidays.
The girls loved swimming at the outdoor pool! They wanted to go everyday and luck for us it was pretty quiet as the weather was cool to those that normally live here.
The golf carts driving around on the roads and their own parking sections were entertaining for the girls.
The first morning we were there we were able to go into the backyard and pick some fresh delicious fruit! The girls said this tree/bush reminded them of Spongebob Squarepants' house.
The girls were pretty brave at picking their own fruit but some trees had thorns so they got some help with those ones.
Fresh oranges, lemons and grapefruits - yummo!!!
One afternoon Nan and Poppa took the girls out to a movie and ice cream so Mom and Dad headed out for some Mexican food. It was much more authentic then what we get at home and we were overfilled when we left!
We had packed a few games to play while we were visiting. We even got Dad involved. Elizabeth and Dad loved to win!
Nan and Poppa even have a room dedicated to games in their house - it was fantastic!
Our visit started out great and just kept getting better!!
The girls were pretty excited for Christmas morning! Cera was up early but stayed pretty quiet until the agreed upon time of 7:30 am. Elizabeth needed a little help waking up but was happy once she was awake.
They were shocked by some of the big presents they found under the tree.
Emilee was pretty excited to get her own GT snow racer!! Too bad we leave for Arizona before she can give it a trial run.
Check out Elizabeth's excitement as she opened her new skylanders games. For the past month, whenever we go to Costco, she asks to go look at the game and characters. What a cutie!
Cera has been saving up her money for a new phone. She was a touch sad to not find one under the tree but then this ringing started. She found a couple missed packages behind the couch! One was her phone and the other was a selfie stick!! The girls enjoyed testing both items out.
Of course we had to break out some of their new gifts in between getting ready to leave for Arizona the next day. Emilee and Elizabeth enjoyed digging for their dinosaur bones and rocks respectively.
The girls helped with the family Christmas letter by writing one of their favorite memories from the year. Cera enjoyed our surprise girls trip to Utah with Grandma (minus the long drive).
Elizabeth enjoyed riding Joe, the horse at Ken's house. (She also was proud of the horse she learned to drive using her hand.)
And Emilee liked the day she met her new teacher. (Emilee is also becoming quite the artist and pays close attention to the small details in her art!)
We are so grateful for the wonderful year, full of ups and downs, that we have enjoyed!!
The girls were so excited with the Christmas poppers Christina Marie brought. They think it should become a new tradition.
The girls enjoy the outings for ice cream after their concerts! Although Mom and Dad would love for them all to perform on the same night, the girls love the multiple visits for treats after each performance.
Mom and the girls spent a day shopping together. They have been dying to go to the new American Girl store that opened in the city. It is located inside a bookstore that had lots of other fun Christmas things. Check out our cute elves! We have Surprise Elf.....
..and Smiley Elf....
...and Giggles Elf. We sure do love our elves!!
We then headed to Ikea for some shopping fun and the girls enjoyed a lunch at their cafeteria. They thought it was great and the price was right and it made some great family memories!
We enjoyed our annual visit to Santa at Bass pro. We picked a much busier night this year so we had some time to fill. We took some pictures.
The girls said hello to their reindeer friend. He must not have been feeling well as his voice and movements were much more limited than last year.
The girls were sad that there was no snowball fight area this year but they still enjoyed some shooting.
We wandered the mall for awhile to pass the time also. Emilee spotted this sign and just had to get her picture with it. Shopkins are the new thing even though Mom has tried to fight it.
One morning Mom came out to the car to see Cera trying her best to scrape off the frost on the windshield. (Em tried a few days later) What great kids - they just need to grow a few more feet as standing on the tire isn't the best option.
We love to make and give out goodies each Christmas. Here is one of the mass preparations of plates for delivery. This is one of our favorite things to do at Christmas!!
Cera and Emilee's school raised some money to hire a zumba instructor to come into the school to work with the kids over a period of 7 weeks. Each grade learned a dance and then performed it for anyone that wanted to come watch. The girls did great and were proud of themselves for learning and performing their dances well. Good work ladies!
Dad's company booked 2 theaters for the premiere of Star Wars. The girls were pretty excited to go (they have mixed feelings about missing school as it was the last day before the holidays) and we were able to take Uncle Tyler with us also. Even though we were nice and close to the screen, it was still fun and a good show.
The girls were so excited to spend a few hours at their friends house that has a skating rink in their backyard! They spent most of the time outside and now want one in their backyard. It's been great to watch their skating skills improve this year between rollerblading around the garage and getting their ice skates on a few more times than last year.
We also enjoyed our annual trip to see the live nativity show. We took Aunt Tori and Uncle Tyler along. It sure was chilly and we were glad we had some hot chocolate waiting for us in the car afterwards!
We also enjoyed seeing Santa riding around town on the fire truck. We arrived a little later than last year so we didn't get too many extra pictures with Santa or the fire truck. The girls were happy to wave and jump back in the warm car.
We headed home after waving at Santa, enjoyed watching "The Grinch Who Stole Christmas", eating finger foods, opening one gift and then leaving treats and a note for Santa. It's been a wonderful Christmas season!
The girls love the annual Christmas cousin sleepover! This year Grandma decided to start the party at they gymnastics centre in town. The kids were so excited for this surprise!
The kids loved the freedom of running around and playing on the equipment.
Elizabeth enjoyed swinging on the bar and then built up the courage to drop into the foam pit.
After some free time, the coach had the kids play some games with the parachute. They also played a few rounds of hide and seek in the dark.
Mike even joined in the fun. He liked climbing into the foam pit but wasn't able to get out by himself. Grandpa had to climb in to help him out and then he got into the pit again. What a guy!
After gymnastics they headed to Grandma and Grandpa's house for some pizza.
Of course there were some games to play and the kids loved it!
After a good night's sleep, the cousins enjoyed unlimited pancakes for breakfast and exchanged Christmas gifts. The kids all seemed pretty happy with their full bellies and gifts.
And just before all the parents came to pick up their kids, a cousin picture was taken. That's a pretty good looking crew!!
