Christmas with the Tribe

^^ ugly sweater party. nailed it.





^^ Christmas lights at Temple Square + family photos at Liberty Park  
^^ twin pic + an endless supply of baked goods

You could say my family is pretty spirited.. Thanks to exorbitant amounts of Christmas cheer, we had an "ugly sweater contest" at our extended-family Christmas get together on Monday and The Tribe brought some serious competition. All twelve of us sported particularly ugly sweaters for the competion. Bad news: my twin brother and I got disqualified.. Good news: It was because my sweater was too innovative, transforms into a tree, and his was too funny, I will let you guess why. So we prettttyyy much won

Then all too soon it was Christmas Eve! I did all of my present shopping in Europe so that was already taken care of, but between all the skiing and hanging out with the family, my first ten days in America went by in the blink of an eye. For dinner we had my favorite homemade meal, then us kids finished last minute wrapping and watched Elf! Best night.


^^ the ten kids (plus dad + uncle bill in the background) sporting our new animal hats and christmas PJs!

Christmas morning with The Tribe meant all twelve of us sitting in our front room with a tree + presents sprawling across a good portion of the room. Most people probably would have called the scene chaotic and crowded, but I think it was a perfect mix of crazed present opening (thanks little boys!) and an undeniable spirit of family and friendship. And that is what it is all about!

Can I get an amen?!
AMEN.


Thank you for all your kind comments! I hope that your holiday season was/is filled with hope, peace, and cheer.  xoxo