Flake Family Letter 2017

Dear Family and Friends,

This year was a lot less crazy than last year (for example, we only moved once instead of twice! And just down the street instead of across the country). We were grateful for the calmer year because it gave us opportunities to slow down, refocus, and center our lives on what matters most - our family and our Savior Jesus Christ.

This year we enjoyed becoming more familiar with Wichita, Jayze's work, and the people in our ward. We also celebrated five years of marriage in July, finished reading the Book of Mormon as a family, and are expecting another baby boy at the beginning of February.

Jayze: Has really enjoyed all the time and activities he was able to spend with Sarah and the kids. Zoo days, Costco runs, playing catch at the park, attending community events, playing games at home, and cooking were some of his favorites.

In October he was invited to run with a couple of our friends in the Kansas City Half Marathon. He had a blast, and it got the running bug in his system again. He hopes to do another running event in 2018!

Jayze is still the Youth Sunday School teacher in our ward (teaches ages 12-18), and it is still his favorite calling ever.

Sarah: Made a goal to write on her blog (sjflake.blogspot.com) four times a month for the entire year and was pretty close to achieving it! She's grateful she wrote more because it's been a wonderful way to preserve precious memories and pictures and keep in touch with friends and family we don't live by anymore.

She was really, really, REALLY excited when we finally bought a second car in October. It's meant going to the grocery store with the kids during the day, more time playing at the park, and running much-needed errands without having to drop Jayze off at work first. It's been a huge blessing in so many ways.

Sarah is still the 1st Counselor in Young Women's and loves each of the girls so much.

Alma: We got to visit him twice this year! Once in February to visit Jayze's family and the second time in September during a mini-reunion on Sarah's side of the family. Aidan talks about him more and sometimes includes him in his prayers at night. For his birthday we visited the police station and dropped off goodies. We're grateful for his influence and love in our lives.

Aidan: Turned 3 years old in September! He is an awesome big brother to Kimball and a great helper to his mom. He knows his ABC's, can almost count to 20, and is potty trained (yay!). He is still obsessed with Lightning McQueen, but after watching Cars 3, started leaning towards Cruz ("the yellow car") and Jackson Storm.

Aidan loves saying prayers, playing catch, running, going to the park, reading books, and teasing Mommy and Daddy. Although he loved nursery, he was excited (and ready) to start Primary in January. His favorite song right now is "Nephi's Courage," (although "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" is a close second since we started singing Christmas songs). We love Aidan and his sassy, sweet self.

Kimball: Turned 19 months old on December 10. He loves going to nursery, playing with cars, reading books, and laughing at bedtime with Aidan. It's been fun to watch him grow from an infant to a sweet, happy-go-lucky toddler. He's a great imitator (since Aidan's into counting, Kimball now "knows" the numbers 3 and 4). He loves repeating words back to us during prayers, scripture reading, and whatever else Aidan tries to get him to say.

He's definitely a Daddy's boy, although he likes coming to mom for kisses and comfort when he gets hurt. Kimball brings an added measure of joy into our home, and we're so grateful for him.

We hope this letter finds all of you happy and well and that you had a very Merry Christmas and will have a very Happy New Year!

Love,

Jayze, Sarah, and the boys

Christmas 2017

Since we're so far along in the pregnancy, we didn't travel "home" (aka Arizona) for Christmas this year. I was excited to plan it all out - from the Christmas breakfast and activities to Christmas dinner. However, when it came down to it, we missed being around our extended family. That said though, Christmas was still magical. 

Aidan and Kimball still don't quite have the concept of Christmas down. I think Jayze and I were more excited than they were! They still wanted their routine peanut butter oatmeal for breakfast, along with a glass of orange juice (the OJ being Jayze's family's tradition). After that, Jayze and I convinced them to come downstairs to see if Santa ate the cookies and drank the milk and filled their stockings. It was fun seeing Aidan's face light up when he saw that Santa did indeed fill all of our stockings. 

Jayze and I learned really quickly that we were going to have to be patient. The kids were so excited about each gift and wanted to play with them as they opened them. But, that was the best thing of the whole morning - slowing down and taking our time. It was wonderful not having a rushed Christmas and seeing our boys take everything in and show us all their new gadgets. 

After we opened the stockings, we then had to convince A and K to come upstairs to check out the presents under the tree. It didn't take long for them to get the concept of unwrapping a gift. :) I let them make as much mess as they wanted (and as much as I could stand) and eat as much candy out of their stockings as they wanted to, too. 

It was play time pretty much the rest of the morning. Jayze made one of our favorite breakfast dish - baked oatmeal filled with raisins, dates, and walnuts. After the kids' naps, we all clambered downstairs and turned on a Christmas Mickey Mouse movie and ate popcorn and apples. Jayze and I snuggled on the airbed while the kids made a mess with their popcorn and climbed on and off the bed. 

Dinnertime was a yummy crockpot pot roast (per Jayze's request), along with carrots, potatoes, salad, and fruit salad. 

During the day, we lit Alma's candle and thought of him every time we saw it and smelled it. I'm so grateful for that tradition. 

We were all tuckered out by the end of the day. It's always bittersweet when Christmas day comes to a close. I didn't want it to end. But once the day came to a close, I remembered that this feeling doesn't have to end when Christmas ends. A new year was coming, with the anticipation of newness, brightness, hope, and resolve, which made taking all of the Christmas decorations down the next few days worth it. 

Merry Christmas, 2017!

December Highlights Part 2

Just a few highlights from the second part of December. 

Park Day:

It was good to get outside on a semi-warm day. Kimball loves playing in the sand, doesn't like the swing so much, and enjoys sliding down the slides. Aidan loves running around, the swings, and trying out the balance obstacles. I love 'm boys. Some days I just can't get enough of 'em. 

My Birthday:

My birthday fell on a Saturday this year (yippee!). We made it a family event. We watched the new Pixar movie, Coco (sooo good and we didn't even have to go out with Kimball once! Although, I did have to chase him down the aisle one time), went to Denny's for a free Grand Slam, and then topped it off with a quick store run (which was probably not the smartest because the kids were exhausted and grumpy by that point. No naps will do that). Since we got home so late, we saved the brownies and ice cream for the next day. 

It was one of my best birthdays yet. Normally I like getting a babysitter and spending the evening with just Jayze and me, but this year was so fun celebrating all day long with my boys. 

Gingerbread House:

We built a gingerbread house this year! We kind of cheated and bought an already-made mix. When we opened up the kit, the whole roof was broken. So, we made a gingerbread fort instead, which turned out way cuter than I thought it would. Aidan especially liked helping us decorate it, and Kimball liked eating the candy. 

Haircut:

It had been weeks since I had given Kimball a haircut. So when it came time to do it, I sort of panicked. I wasn't feeling well and Kimball started screaming the moment I turned on the razor. I went to start cutting the bottom of his hair, took one swipe, and stopped, shocked. It had gone all the way up against his head! I was so confused until I finally saw what had happened - I had forgotten to put a guide on the dang thing. He went like that the rest of the day (haha!) and then Jayze helped me do a military cut the next day. It made us all laugh. 

Whoops!

Aidan wanted his picture taken, too. 

Shepherd Story Tradition:

Our bishop in Idaho introduced our ward to one of their family traditions that Jayze and I ended up adopting for our own family. We read the story of a crippled shepherd boy watching his flock on Christmas while we eat jerky, cheese, bread, olives, and dates. In the story, the shepherd encounters a stranger that turns out to be Jesus. It's a sweet, tender story that helps bring the Christmas spirit into our home. The story is a little long for the kids' attention span right now, but the food helps keep them in the same room at least. It's a tradition I hope they'll enjoy more as they keep getting older. 

Christmas Eve:

I loved having Christmas Eve on a Sunday. Jayze and I participated in the musical program during church, and all the singing brought such a sweet spirit to the rest of our day. It really felt like our day was centered on Jesus.

That evening, we did our eggnog tradition. It's a tradition Jayze's family does that we do in our home now. We each have a candle (birthday candles this year since I forgot to pick up tea lights) and then take turns lighting one candle at a time. It symbolizes Christ's light and how we can share our light with others. Then we drink eggnog afterwards. I'm not an eggnog fan, but Jayze totally is (and turns out the kids are too), so it's worth it. :)

Then we set out cookies and milk for Santa by the stockings and tucked the kids in nice and tight with the promise of a beautiful Christmas day when they woke up. 

When Jayze and I went to bed, the Christmas lights were shining bright and we left them that way all night long. 

December Highlights Part 1

(Started writing this at the beginning of December - just now finished it!)

Last week and this week were crazy, crazy, crazy. Here are a few highlights to help me catch up.

Moving:

We moved! It was just a few blocks down the street, but it's a bigger place and so far it's suiting us well. We were so grateful for all those who helped us lug boxes and furniture. Our couches are especially beasts, and there's no way (probably even if I wasn't 7ish months pregnant) Jayze and I could have done it on our own. We've loved being in a bigger place, and Aidan hasn't wanted to go back to our "old" home once. Great transition!

Moving day. Aidan was so sweet to Kimball. Kimball was feeling so sick, and Aidan tucked him into the bouncer (that neither of them are allowed to sit in, haha). 

Sick:

Kimball had been sick throughout the week before we moved, but I thought he was over it by moving day (Saturday). Nope. Jayze woke up to Kimball's throw up and a big blow out. All that day, Kimball was pale and lethargic. Then, right as I was tucking Aidan into bed that night, he threw up too. It was my turn to throw up a couple of nights later. Thankfully Jayze never got sick and helped me and the kids recuperate.

Right before A. threw up. He read to Kimball while Jayze and I got their bedroom ready for them to sleep in. 

Unpacking and Cleaning:

After we got better, I had to keep going back and forth from our old place to our new place to wrap up loose ends and clean. Aidan and Kimball were so patient. I also had the task of unpacking the boxes at the new place. I realized it really was a need for me to get cracking when we started making cookies and pumpkin bread and we had to search through four different boxes for our mixer, bread pans, and ingredients. Our kitchen was 95% organized the next day. :)

"Kimball, sit in the box, and I'll push you!"

Christmas Tree:
Since the kids were sick and it was my turn to give the lesson in Young Women's that Sunday, Jayze stayed home with the kids. I walked into our living room after church to a set-up Christmas tree - thanks to Jayze and Aidan. Later, Jayze wrapped the lights around and around to the tune of Christmas music. Afterwards, Jayze lifted Aidan up to stick the star on the very top. Then we turned off all the lights so the Christmas ones could twinkle in the darkness.
The kids loved it, and so did I. It brought an instant magic and Christmas spirit.
We were going to decorate with ornaments later, but lost energy (and I didn't want to have another thing to tell the kids not to touch in the midst of still organizing and going through boxes). I actually ended up liking the beautiful simplicity of it.

Polar Express Party:

We found time (and the hot chocolate mix hidden at the bottom of one of our boxes) to have an at-home Polar Express party. Aidan was so excited when Jayze asked him if he wanted hot chocolate: "I get hot chocolate like them!" Aidan and Kimball got scared at some points, but loved it for the most part (especially Santa Clause).

The Best Christmas Pageant Ever:

Jayze heard about this family-friendly event/play from someone at work, so we decided to go see it. I was a little nervous I'd just be walking the halls with Kimball (like we did when we watched Cars 3 in the theater), but we didn't have to go out once with him. He did get restless a few times, but the singing and kids grabbed his attention. It was so fun and enjoying to be with my boys and to hear mention of the baby Jesus over and over again. By the end, that's all Kimball wanted to talk about. I think Aidan's favorite part was the rowdy angel. :)

Santa:
This year we saw Santa at Cabela's. The backdrop was gorgeous, the line wasn't long, and we got a free picture. Aidan and Kimball both sat on Santa's lap at the same time, and they were the cutest things. They couldn't even look at him, and Kimball's shy smile was the best.
When I asked Aidan if he told Santa what he wanted for Christmas, he said, "No, I'll tell him tomorrow." Haha.
When we got home, Aidan wanted to me to put the picture of them with Santa on the fridge where he could see it. I think we'll do the same thing next year if Santa visits Cabela's again.

Eagerly waiting in line to see Santa.

Feels Like Fall

Yesterday I took Aidan and Kimball outside to play in the grass. The air smelled crisp and cool, and the leaves on the trees are just starting to turn color. Pine needles and sticks littered the grass, as well as brown, beat-up pine cones. The trees are still keeping the pretty ones to themselves. :) 

We barely needed light jackets, but I put them on the boys anyway. We had fun kicking the soccer ball, climbing up and down the stairs (K is addicted to those things right now), and peering up at the sky every time another plane flew by. 

Yesterday definitely felt like fall, and I loved it. 

Hitting the bottom of his shoes to activate the light-up function.

Fall is my favorite season ever, and I'm beginning to feel the change - not just outdoors, but inside of myself, too. I have all this pent-up energy just waiting to be spent on baking, crafting, drinking hot chocolate and apple cider, picking pumpkins, and snuggling up with a soft, cozy blanket. I'm ready for the chunky sweaters, wrap-around scarves, beanies, and ankle boots (I need to get me a pair). I'm ready to step on dry, crunchy leaves and soak in all the orange, red, and yellow colors.

And believe it or not, I'm excited for the cooler weather (can I get another amen for fall clothes and yes, yes, YES to more walks outside).

The sun is still warm and glowing even in a more pale sky, the trees show us their last, glorious hurrah before hunkering down for the winter, and the air smells like honey and spices and traditions and excitement.

Summer was wonderful, but I'm all about this new season, and I'm definitely welcoming it with open arms.