Adventure #54: Christmas in Utah

"The best of all gifts around any Christmas tree: the presence of a happy family all wrapped up in each other." - Burton Hillis

December 19- January 3, 2015

Right after Jordan and I saw Star Wars (previous post) we picked up Maria, finished packing and cleaning, and then zipped over to the airport. It was Maria's first flight and boy we were spoiled. First class and everything! Maria's first time in first class was also mine and Jordan's first time in first class. Lol We hope that Maria won't keep that as her standard for flying.  She was so good during the flight. She ate, played, and slept. No screaming and crying (lucky for us and everyone else).

We arrived in Salt Lake where my family (everyone except Ryan because he had work) picked us up. Then we headed up to Jordan's family. At this point only Jordan's mom and sister knew that we were coming. It was about 11pm when we showed up so Jordan's parents had just hopped in bed. We snuck in the front door and Jordan started to play the piano (his dad LOVES when piano music fills the home). Jordan played all four verses of a Christmas hymn and no one came! Jordan tried playing as loud as he could and he kept saying, "Are you kidding me?!?!?" Jordan finally started playing the Peanuts theme song (the song Jordan is known for in his family) and immediately Jordan's dad came running in. 

It was so fun to see the surprised look on his face and then on Spencer's face, too. Of course everyone was most excited to see the baby, but we were okay with that.  :)

Within the next couple of days Maria got to experience her first snow! In New Jersey it was still 75 degrees at times. So Utah introduced her to winter.

We all went to church together, my family and Jordan's family. It was one of the neatest things to see both our families together for a few days. They all had so much fun together, and Jordan and I wished our families could get together more often. 

We knew my family would have to leave in a few days so we got some nice pictures after church. We really wished that Ryan could have been there too.

James and Maria were like two peas in a pod. Maria LOVED being held by him, and he loved to hold her. She was always smiling when she was with him.  :)

Even though I'm not a fan of cold, snow, or winter in general. There was something beautifully peaceful about looking out the window to see this:

One morning, John and Mary stopped by with their kids so we finally got to meet their sweet baby Matthew! Maria and Matthew mostly just stared at each other, as pictured below.

The Bassett side had a family reunion that we were able to go to. Most of them had never met Maria and it was so much fun! We sang carols to neighbors, drank hot cocoa, and caught up with family. This is my grandpa, and Maria's great-grandpa who I love very much. They don't get kinder than this man.  :)

Unfortunately my family had to go back home to CA, but here are the last pictures we took with them.

Poor Maria got her first cold while we were in Utah and had a hard time drinking bottles. We hadn't done very much solid food before, but we decided to give it a go. She LOVED sweet potatoes. She would not stop eating them! haha We were relieved she finally got some food in her.

One of my favorite moments happened on Christmas Eve as I held Maria by the Christmas tree. It was quiet, peaceful, and I couldn't help but think about our Savior's humble birth. And I couldn't imagine what it would be like to hold a tiny baby and know that he would become the Savior and Redeemer of the world. It was a precious moment.

The next morning was Christmas!!!! Maria was spoiled, of course, and so were we. 

We thought this onesie was so funny.

John and Mary came back which meant we got to spend time with their cute kiddos! I guess Maria wasn't used to sharing the attention...

We also got to take family photos together with EVERYONE!!! We were so glad to have an updated picture with all the new babies!

Jordan's parents couldn't get enough of these babies. All of them born within 11 days of each other.

We also had a lot of fun putting these girlies together. 

Jordan got to go skiing with his family. He had been wanting to do that for a very long time, so he was extremely happy.

That night was New Years Eve. We got to spend it with our gang, the Corbitts and Pages. And somehow, I didn't even get a picture of all of us! But we played games all night and Maria had fun showing off her New Years outfit.

We wished we could have stayed longer, but Jordan had school starting in a few days. At least Maria got some much needed cuddles from her Aunt Brittany.  :)