I figured I better finish up our Christmas posts now that we're three weeks into January. We thoroughly enjoyed the Christmas season and stayed pretty busy with all the fun. Our ward went all out with a Polar Express themed Christmas activity, even including a moving cardboard locomotive, complete with steam puffing out the smokestack. Everyone came in their pajamas, too. Santa made an appearance and even though the boys spent their entire time in line memorizing what they would say to Santa, only Grant could bring himself to offer a quick, sideways glance at Santa once seated on his lap. Tate kept his eyes safely diverted to some point on the floor and Luke lasted long enough to snap a quick picture. How come some of the most exciting childhood experiences are also the scariest?
We were hoping to have the Kimballs join us for the weekend before Christmas, but sickness and bad weather prevented any visitors from coming. We still had fun as a family and continued with some family traditions. On Christmas Eve night we had a little family nativity with the boys and I dressing up like shepherds and Ryan as the angel who delivers a message to us. We then went to find the previously set up nativity in another room (basically a baby doll in a box with some toy animals around). Apparently Luke had snuck in the room while the angel was delivering his message because we found all the animals thrown around the room and baby Jesus tipped out of the manger. After putting everything back together we all had a chance to bear our testimony of Jesus. Then we continued with the Nickerson tradition of bundling up to head outside for a star walk. It was freezing cold, but fun to pretend to look for a new star.
When we got back home, the kids got cozy in their new Christmas PJ's and we enjoyed some hot cocoa before sending the little ones off to bed.
The boys were very excited on Christmas morning but actually did not come and get us out of bed until 7:00am. We had emphasized the night before that they had to stay in their room until then and, surprisingly enough, they listened. We all had a fun time opening presents and getting treats in the stockings. Even I had a surprise or two (a swanky, red necklace), thanks to my awesome hubby.
Poor Luke had been sick and had quite a sore bum Christmas morning. He took about 20 minutes until he had calmed down and was ready to enjoy the presents. He must have filled his diaper early in the morning and then gone back to sleep, because his little bum was quite raw! That's got to be a pretty hard way to start your Christmas, no matter how old you are.
The boys were very excited that we finally got a gaming system. Ryan and I felt even more in tune with the 21st century when my brothers gave us a 6 month membership to Netflix. We are living the high-tech life now!
Luke's two most favorite gifts: his huge puppy and a stuffed animal that was sold as a reindeer but that Ryan assures me is definitely a moose because it has palmate antlers; a long, skinny, one-colored body; and a rounded muzzle (all traits that a moose enjoys and a reindeer lacks). Grant had picked out the reindeer/moose for Luke from the dollar section at Target and it has become Luke's new sleeping buddy. After much debate, Ryan now refers to it as "the moose formerly known as reindeer" or "the moose that once masqueraded as a reindeer" or "the mislabeled moose" or, when pressed, "the reindeer that looks exactly like a moose and nothing like a reindeer". It's also fun to see that Luke tackles the giant puppy and rolls around in its fur about 20 times a day so we know we picked a good gift.
The boys have really enjoyed all their Lego gifts this Christmas, and I have enjoyed the extended quiet play time they have brought. If I ever notice that things seem too quiet in the house, I usually find the two of them kneeling on the ground, surrounded by Legos, building away. I'm just glad there is something they like to do together that somehow results in less fighting than usual. And it's fun to see that they build some very clever things- usually planes, boats, or cars for their little character people.
Ryan's boss was awesome and gave all the docs a new Traegar grill for Christmas so for Christmas dinner we let the Traegar do the work. The turkey turned out delicious! Possibly the juiciest turkey we have ever had!
The recipe is really simple. Just rinse and dry the turkey with paper towels inside and out. Salt and pepper the inside body cavity of the turkey then fill the body cavity with celery, baby carrots, garlic cloves, rosemary sprigs, and a lemon cut into quarters (Ryan squeezes the juice out of each lemon quarter with his fist as he puts it into the turkey). Then rub the outside with olive oil and salt and pepper the outside. Cook at 325 F until the temp of the deepest part of the thigh is 165 F (~4 hours). After removing the turkey let it sit for at least 15 minutes before carving it.
It has been the best recipe we've used in an oven and it was made even better by smoking/cooking it in the Traeger grill at 325 F with Maple wood pellets. The turkey was so moist that the breast literally gushed liquid as Ryan carved it. Delicious!!
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