Happy Holidays (Finally!)

Where has the time gone! We left on December 17th to spend the holidays in Utah and stayed nearly three weeks. After returning home, I spent a crazy couple days getting everything in order before school started again, so now I'm finally getting around to posting about our Christmas break. We had such a wonderful time seeing family and friends, and best of all, we actually had some time to relax! Also, Hannah officially started walking on December 14th, so everyone got to enjoy the newest toddler! Here are a few pictures from our holidays (they are few in number, mainly because I relied on my mother-in-law's photo-taking abilities and haven't asked her for copies of the pictures yet).

We had so much fun staying with my parents and James' parents (Grandma and Grandpa Winder, we love you too but just don't have pictures yet!)Grandma McNutt was reminded how messy it can be to feed a one-year-old (that is yogurt all over her Sunday clothes!)Speaking of food, Hannah learned how much she loves ice cream...at least until it gives her a brain freeze!I think two major themes of our trip were sleeping and eating! And Hannah was always willing to help out in the kitchen!We were able to see a lot of people as we went to church at our old ward in Centerville, James' parents' ward, and my parents' ward.Christmas was so much fun this year as Hannah was a little more into the presents (or at least the wrapping paper and bows!). Her favorite toy was a car that Grandma and Grandpa McNutt gave her to play with when she comes to visit. She loved to go on drives around the living room.And she was constantly finding a new way to get in and out of the car!I was excited to be able to see some of my closest girlfriends while we were in Utah. It was so much fun to catch up with everyone!Another highlight of the trip was Jordan and Kristi's wedding! We celebrated with Kristi's bridal shower, a Winder/Williams family dinner at the New Yorker, and a really nice dinner/reception at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building (in the same room that James and I had our reception!). We love our new sister-in-law and are so happy for Jordan! They are a great couple.Hannah was a little worn out by the time we started taking pictures......but at least she got a little life back in her after warming up inside for a few minutes!
Isn't she the cutest little walker!Brandon, Melanie, and their kids also came out for Christmas and the wedding! It was so much fun for Hannah to be able to play with her cousins. She especially loves to be with Allison--the girls have to stick together in the Winder family!Hannah wanted to make sure Peter knew that she may be small, but she's got a lot of fight in her.The JSMB room where Jordan and Kristi held their reception dinner had a beautiful view of the temple (which apparently is even better if your mouth is full of a tasty donut!).Maybe someday I'll make a post with the other cute pictures from the break. But until then, here's a quick list of some other great memories:

Grandma and Grandpa Winder's Christmas parties
Hannah being an angel in the nativity at the Handy party
James coughing so hard he could hardly breathe
Hannah coughing so hard one night that I almost took her to the ER
Decorating politically-correct sugar cookies with Linda and her sister
Seeing Mom and Dad's new house in Spanish Fork
Playing in the snow with Hannah
Reading a good book

So here's a late "Merry Christmas" and we love you!