Christmas Traditions

 What a great month!! Love this time of year. We decided that this year we would start a new family tradition....gingerbread houses (or in our case...graham cracker houses).

 The kids were stoked. I love that they still like to do these kinds of things and be a part of doing family things.

 Luke was very sure of what he wanted to do and also very sure that he wanted to eat his as soon as possible. I think his only lasted about 15 hours and that was because part of it was through the night!

 Sam says he believes in simplicity...and then he said it was a jail that the prisoners broke out of because his sides kept falling in...silly guy!

 The crowd at the table. Love these peeps!

 Luke was also fascinated by what everyone else was doing. He loves to give help and just watch them work.

 My house.

 Sarah's finished product. Quite creative.

 Kathryn and her house. She spent lots of time on this baby!!

 Seth because no 14 year old can ever do a normal pose. His house was gigantic just like his personality!!

 Natalie's house. 

 All of them lined up and done. What a fun night spent together and definitely a keeper tradition.

 Last week we went out to the South Hills to look at Christmas Lights. We have done this for 10 Christmases now and I love it. 

 We went with Brownlees and some of the kids other friends. The lights are amazing out there and we love the Christmas spirit it brings.

 Seth (promise he is there...oops, dang finger) with his friend AC, Brittany and her sister Brianna.

 The siamese twins. It is was raining and Tessa didn't have a big coat so Kathryn was sharing with her. They are the best of friends. Love Luke in the background.

 Luke and Tyler.

Sarah posing in the mountains.

Such a fun time with friends. We are so blessed!!

Winter Showcases

 The last week of school is absolutely crazy with recitals and showcases for all the kids. Kathryn's class sang "Carol of the Bells", recited the poem "My Christmas Wish for You" and did a tap dance to "Shake It Off".

 It was so fun to watch. Kathryn takes great pride in doing well and practicing and practicing. She was fabulous up there and her smile is so contagious.

 Sarah's class sang "Waving Flag", which she had a solo in and did awesome, and "Noel, Noel". They recited "My Christmas Wish for You" with all the 5th graders and then tap danced to "What I Like About You".

 She had a great class and it was so fun to see them up there, plus the dance teacher is amazing. The dances are so fun.

 This girl can sing. She was born with an amazing voice and it's so fun to see her use it.

 Luke's class recited "The Night Before Christmas", sang and tap danced as well (and for the life of me I can't remember his songs...).

He did awesome. He concentrates so hard on the tapping and you could see him counting as he went through the moves it was great. Totally made our night!

 Taking a bow at the end of the night. So fun to see.

I forgot the camera at Seth's recital (I know, I know...) but he did a fabulous job as well. It is getting so good at the violin and I love that he is taking it so much more seriously than he ever has. So proud of him!!

Christmas Ornaments

Our little tree is getting quite full and I love it. I love the memories each ornaments brings to the kids and I love how excited they get to unpack them all from the box. My mom, Grandma Mc, was able to spend that night with us so we decorated the tree that evening and opened the kids new ornaments for this year. They get so excited for this and I don't blame them, who doesn't love to open presents!!

 Luke this year got a ski ornament. He went skiing for the first time this past year and thought is was "OK". Silly boy. Hopefully we will get to take him again so he can change his opinion.

 Kathryn got a glass ornament that says, "Be Strong, Be True, Be You". She loves to be herself and has no qualms about. What a great trait to have.

 Sarah got a cute pair of boots. She has really learned to be super fashionable and dress up every day. She is learning to art of matching outfits and overall does a tremendous job.

Seth got a 4-wheeler ornament...wonder why!!?? (said quite sarcastically). Quote of the night:

Seth: "Wouldn't that be ironic is the ornament fell off the tree?"

Grandma: "Well he won't since he's wearing a helmet!"

Hahaha...Seth thought it was super funny and so did the rest of us!

I love Christmas traditions and love this month that we have to celebrate our Savior.

Merry Christmas!!

If we missed you this year on our card list...

we sent out this amazing picture...

and this amazing poem.....

A Sam Beus original!

Beus Christmas Poem 2014

This year at our house has been sunny and bright,

Except when it hasn’t, then it’s just been alright,

Our children are happy and brilliant and kind,

Except when they’re acting like old melon rinds.

Luke loves to draw, to play Legos and read,

His laugh is infectious, his smile’s in the lead.

Kathryn is bubbly, sincere, and so strong,

Her reading’s incessant, her math’s rarely wrong.

Sarah is lovely, and gracious, and smart,

Her life is sweet music, and it’s from the heart.

Seth is a rascal, still loves violin,

His kindness is masked with a mischievous grin.

Julie, my Julie, is radiant and faithful,

Her food is so sav’ry, her manner so graceful.

I was first loser in judgeship and footrace,

In what matters most I hope to be first place.

We’ve been to amusement parks, concerts, recitals,

And occasions are rare when we must check our vitals.

A “new to us” van, a dog, mounds of books,

Soft water, dishwasher, and young learning cooks.

Our faith has grown stronger, our future looks bright,

Our love has grown firm as we stand in the Light.

We hope you find Christ in this great Christmas season,

Find hope, love, and joy, for He is the Reason.

From our fam’ly to yours, hope this year was a good one,

 May the next one be better, this poem is now done. 

Thanksgiving

What wonderful magical time of the year!! 

 We were so excited to head to Caldwell for Thanksgiving. The younger 3 had all week off school and as soon as Seth was done, we loaded head up and took off for the grandparents.

 Nothing like cooking together. Wednesday was pie day, one of my favorite days ever!! Especially when I have helpers. Kathryn and Luke helped me make all the pie crusts. They stayed right in there with me and were awesome.

 They learned how to do all parts of it and man did those pies turn out awesome.

 We played Christmas music (I know, I know...don't tell anyone), drank pops, and baked away.

 They even made pie crust leaves to put on the pies. They turned out so cute. Loved having those stick with me in the kitchen. 

 That night the gang came over for pizza and making Oreo turkeys. All the grandkids made their own for the big day.

 Some were pretty cute and some just needed lots of help, but hey that's the beauty of letting kids do it. They sure had a great time.

 By night, a few of us were very tired and ready to be off our feet. Can you tell?

 Thursday, my sister Emily found a "Turkey Trot" for all of us to be a part of. There was a 1 mile walk or a competitive 5k. All of us opted for the 1 mile walk while Emily and Sam did the 5k.

 The morning was beautiful, perfect for a day outside. My cousins that came into town for Thanksgiving also came and met us there.

 To get ready, we were doing some serious dancing. The rest of the crowd didn't really want to join us but man did we have a good time warming up.

 Getting ready at the start.

 All the kids decided it would be fun to run the 1 mile so they took off and beat almost all the adults back. They were so stoked and had lots of energy!!

 Kathryn kept up with Natalie the whole time and did awesome.

 This guys was just so excited to be with his cousins. I love that look on his face. Just says it all.

 This guy came in as 1st loser in 22 minutes and did awesome. Got his running in for the day!

 Drinking water afterwards and waiting for everyone to cross the finish line.

 After seeing if anyone would win one of the raffle prizes (Seth won Huckleberry popcorn--delicious) we stopped and got a pop and headed back to the grandparents to start making dinner.

 These girls were our awesome decorators. They set all the tables and got them all pretty for dinner.

 After all the food was ready (with everyone sharing the load--it was awesome!!) my dad shared a message with all of us.

 Then Seth played a song for all of us. Man that kid is getting great!

 Then it was time to eat!! Man do I always wish I had more room in that stomach of mine, well at least only on Thanksgiving. The food was amazing--wow!! I think the best yet. The company was amazing and so good to be with family. After dinner, and while the boys were cleaning up (love it!!), the ladies just chilled. Nat and I had the best idea!

 Kathryn learned to play football. Boy does she have quite the arm.

 The day also involved lots of mario kart tournaments. Sure kept the cousins happy.

 The rest of the weekend was spent being lazy, sewing, talking, playing at the gym, taking walks, no shopping, good church meetings, and packing up to head home.

 What a great time we had. Love being around all these wonderful people!