MY BEEHIVES

Cute Kayla digging out her fort, I love the little flakes on her nose

One of the best parts of being a 2nd counselor in the Young Women's presidency at my church is working with my own daughter Kayla. She is such a joy and so fun to be with. Last night we had planned to go ice skating for our activity but the local outdoor town rink was not ready for skaters so we had to go to plan B. In leiu of skating we decided that we would stay at the church and have fun building a snowman together and then afterward we would have hot chocolate. We arrived at the church around 6:30pm and went out in the snow about 10 minutes later. As soon as we got outside my daughter quickly informed me that the snow was not moldable. Of all nights!! We had just had that new snow fall the day before but it happened to be the light, fluffy stuff. Plan C...we decided to just play in the snow. Because the parking lot had been plowed, it made for a good spot to make a snow fort. The girls jumped all over that idea. A couple of times they enlisted my help to make the hole bigger. It was a fun night and we were really happy to drink our hot chocolate after being out in the really cold weather for an hour.

Sister Orton helping with the snow fort.

Kayla and Brittany staking out a good spot for a snow fort
Laura making her own snow cave

LOCKS OF LOVE

I'm proud of my little girl tonight. I told her this morning that I would take her to get a hair cut because she was over due. During our conversation she asked me how much length was needed to donate to locks of love. I told her 10 inches and she wanted to know if she had enough. I told her she would have to ask the hairdresser. She was really torn because it had taken her awhile to grow her hair out and she was liking her hair long. I told her it was completly her decision to make and that she could think about it. I really didn't think she was going to go for it but she surprised me by saying yes while sitting in the chair. Her hairdresser was really good about explaining exactly how much hair she would cut off and where her new hair line would be. You could tell she was really nervous but I stayed totally out of it. I really wanted her to make the decision. I think what helped her finally decide is knowing what her hair would be used for and where it would go. When the hairdresser cut off the last part of her ponytail, her face went red and my heart sank a little bit because I thought she was going to cry. I think because all the hairdressers were giving her lots of attention she was able to pull out of it (it was only for just a second) and then she was all smiles after that. It was a great experience for both of us and I think she came away looking as cute as ever. Great job Stevie!!!

SNOW DAY

Happy snow day everyone!! Another day stuck at home....darn. Here are some pictures of the snow towards the beginning of the storm. If I remember I'll take more towards the end and post them. I still love all the snow that we have been getting. I did have a weak moment last week when we had a lot of melting due to the warm weather and ended up with some water damage. But after today I decided that I can't help but love snow. I liken it to the atonement because when we repent we are made clean again, just like when it snows - everything becomes clean and white. Before my kids were awake I snuck into their rooms and took pictures of them sleeping in. It is nice to enjoy that luxury every once in a while. We will spend the day shoveling, playing in the snow, drinking hot chocolate and playing games. Time to go make the waffles... (Below I added a video of the falling snow)

This video is of Kaleb shoveling during the storm

BEAUTIFUL BLUE EYES

Here are the most recent pictures of Ben. I took these pictures because Ben was having a really good day and I wanted to document how good he looked. I love these kind of days because he is very alert and his eyes are so big and beautiful. One of the qualities I most appreciate about Ben are his eyes. They are like a window to his spirit. Most people who meet Ben comment on them. I am grateful that he was blessed with such amazing eyes. Below you can see how tall he is getting. Ben is hovering around the 40lb. mark but that doesn't stop him from continuing to stretch out. Must be those tall Hutchins' genes. I'm still able to lift and carry him but can't do it for long periods of time like I used to. With Ben's disablility, he has some pretty good contractures - meaning he is very stiff - so that makes it harder to carry him. Thankfully I have my big and buff husband who helps with a lot of the lifting, though I keep whispering to Ben that he will never be too big or heavy for me to snuggle or carry.

FAMILIES ARE FOREVER

This picture is from July when we were out visiting family in Utah. I wanted to post this picture earlier but didn't because I hadn't sent out my Christmas cards yet and this is the picture we used. So...as of yesterday afternoon, I finally was able to mail our cards. (whew!) What a stressful event that is. How many people are with me? Don't get me wrong, I love receiving Christmas cards because for the most part it is the only time you hear from certain people. It's a chance to catch up on each others lives. I also love seeing the pictures that are sent. But...if you don't send them out every year, chances are you will be nixed from somebody's list. I admit it, I have done that to others in the past. Some are added, others are subtracted. It's this pressure of staying on the list. The other reason that we do cards (and I'm sure everyone has their different reasons) is because it is our gift to others. We don't do gifts for most people. I am really trying to get away from the whole material part of Christmas. I would rather have the gift of time. So...because I cannot spend time with everyone on my list, I take the time to write about our past year and send a picture so that they can see how we are all growing and changing. There...with that said, please keep your Christmas cards coming. And for goodness sake, please keep me on your list!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM

Happy Birthday Mom!!!

I love you!

Becky

ARROW OF LIGHT

Kaleb achieved great success last month by earning his "Arrow of Light" award from the scouting program. He is now able to move on to the boy scouting program setting his sight on Eagle! It was a fun night as he earned many Weblos pins and patches. He was one of four boys to receive their "Arrow of Light". I owe a lot of thanks to his Weblos leaders - Mike and Donna. They were wonderful with Kaleb and we couldn't have done it without them.

THE POLAR EXPRESS

Because I didn't start this blog until almost Christmas time, I didn't get to write about our experience on the "Polar Express". The first week into December, I got a phone call from Make-A-Wish asking us if we would like to receive tickets to the Polar Express. For those of you who haven't read the book or seen the movie, this will probably be a little confusing for you, for those who have...you'll understand what kind of adventure this was. How could we turn away tickets to ride on the actual Polar Express? Because they were offering 7 tickets and we only have 6 in our family, we invited one of our close friends Kathy to go with us. We drove about an hour north to catch the Polar Express. Thanks to Make-A-Wish we had "exclusive seating" tickets. (the best seats on the train) Dressed in our pajamas, we were the first ones on the train and were seated in a roomy car. They served us hot chocolate and a chocolate with a nougat center. After about 30 minutes of waiting we were headed off to the north pole. We traveled for a bit and visited with the different workers on the train including the engineer who stopped to have his picture taken with us. (see below) Finally we made it to the North Pole, it was a long journey. The elves met us and guided us to Santa's workshop. Once inside we got to meet all the elves that work so hard every year to make all the toys for the children. Because Ben was from Make-A-Wish, he even got his own "ELF" escort. Her name was "Jingles". A man came out dressed in pajamas and read us the "Polar Express" story. When he was finished, Santa came out to meet all of the children. (my batteries from the camera had run out by now) He stayed for about 10 minutes or so before he had to say goodbye and then we were escorted back to the train for our long journey home. (okay...it was only about 15 minutes) We so enjoyed our experience and want to thank all the great people at Make-A-Wish for thinking of us and giving us this special memory. We love you guys!!!

SNOW HISTORY

I love snow! I love lots and lots of snow. We returned home from our weekend with family to another snow storm. It was great. For those who haven't heard, NH broke their snow record for the month of December. Monday's storm broke the 100 year old record. To start the new year off with a bang, we got another storm that produced another foot or so. If you love snow, this is the place to be. I think we have over three feet total right now. I hope you enjoy these pictures!

This is our trampoline

Our GMC Safari was almost buried.

NEW YEARS EVE PARTY

This is only half the crew that went out the door

at midnight. Notice all the barefeet...

Happy New Year to everyone. Last night we spent the evening at my sister Jenny's house along with Aaron's family, my family (minus Steve and Ben) and Zach and Alana. We spent the night playing pool, dance dance revolution and a bunch of other fun activities. But...the reason I chose to blog about this particular event is because of the tradition that my sister Jenny started about 16 years ago or so. Before midnight hits, we each choose something that we want to have happen in the new year whether it is to improve upon something or maybe you hope will happen, and then you choose an item to represent that wish. When you decide upon the item (some choose scriptures in hopes that they will be more dutiful in their scripture study, some carry money in hopes that maybe their financial situation will improve, etc.) then off come the shoes and socks and we stand by the door as the countdown to the new year begins. Once midnight strikes we all head out the door carrying our items and run around the house barefoot in the snow. It's crazy, I know...but it is a fun tradition and everyone looks forward to it each year. Because the snow was crunchy and hard and around 8 inches deep, some of us did not make it all the way around the house. (just for your info, you only have to run outside and back in again for it to count.) Zach, Roger jr. and Adam were the only ones that made it around the entire house - and mind you it is not a small house. Congrats to them and to the rest of you...Happy New Year!!!