Comic Con!

Our boys love comics, Star Wars, and all sorts of nerdy fun.  So Julie and I packed up the kiddos and headed to Phoenix ComicCon!  There they got to check out some weapons, meet some comic book authors, and get some new books.

The boys seemed to think the bigger the weapon the better.

Luckily, when it was time for a break, we found the Lego double decker couch.

I also got to meet Chloe and Jennifer from Heros of Cosplay!  Logan just indulged me.

He was excited about Star Wars, though.

And, of course, Marvel characters. 

McKenna, however, was not digging Elsa.

There was a little area for video games.  It is not too exciting, but I wanted to get a full length shot of her super cute outfit!  Tutus and crossbows!

McKenna turns one!

I don't even know how this happened. How did she turn one?  I love this little sweet Princess. So. Much.

One thing that has really surprised me is how much the boys love her.  I thought there would be some acting out, sibling rivalry, or sadness.  But they absolutely adore her. They fight over who can hold her, or help her.  They each used their own money to buy her a present--hence the panda hat.

I asked them if they were happy or sad that she was a girl.  Logan said happy because she is just cuter than boys.  McKay said she was his favorite present ever.

I found that if you give her a cupcake she actually keeps a bow on!  Score!  A couple of facts about McKenna: carrots make her sick, she refuses to eat baby food or even food with the consistency of baby food, she is a year old and wears 3-6 month shoes, and she loves pulling the boys' hair more than anything. McKenna is not a super giggly baby--it takes a lot to make her smile.  But when she gets going, it's enchanting.

It was easier to just take the whole chair to the bath!

Luckily, the boys continue to find ways to amuse themselves--even when they are not the ones getting presents.

Super Bowl time!

The Super Bowl was held in Phoenix!  It was awesome!  We had our own super Seahawks fan come and hang out with us, eat bad food, and watch the game.

Apparently Skittles is a thing, so we had some of those.

After a while, even McKenna warmed up.  We were all dressed in our green and blue best, although we were disappointed with the outcome.

Jule and Amanda went down to Super Bowl central and got to check out the Lombardi trophy and other fun times.  Loren and  I went out on a date and checked out the stadium, then saw the live taping of The Soup. 

Besides the last five minutes?  Great weekend.

Christmas

The boys had two weeks off for Christmas vacation!  At the beginning of it, they even still loved each other.

We had lots of relatives around, so the boys always had someone to play with.  They made sure to help Grandma Thornton make cinnamon rolls.

And someone had to school her in chess.

McKenna loved these Christmas ornaments!  I was constantly finding them all over the house and putting them back on the tree. 

She also loved getting food from everyone and trying new things.

And she finally warmed up to Grandpa!

For Christmas we had two Grandmas, a Grandpa and Julie.  There was a lot of chaos and love. McKay could barely contain his excitement.

Logan got a lot of 'learning' toys and spent most of the day tracking down various adults to help him build.

The moms were a little tired from all the fun, though.

What?!  I can rip all the paper I want?

McKenna's Blessing

Because everyone was here already, we blessed McKenna at the same time as Logan's baptism (after we got Logan's permission, of course!).  We took just a few minutes before the baptism to give McKenna a name and a blessing and welcome her to the Church.  Yes, she is rocking hot pink shoes and a baby fascinator.  I can't help myself.  She was not impressed.

After a change out of her pretty white dress McKenna enjoyed being held and entertained at Logan's party.  She loves being the center of attention.

We love, love, love having Julie here in Arizona so she can share these special moments with us.

Logan's Baptism

We are super proud of Logan for making the decision to be baptized.  He waited until late December so Grandma and Grandpa Chase would be back from Chile, and Grandma Thornton would be visiting from Montana.  Logan was thrilled that Loren baptized him.

Logan had a lot of support!  Julie, Stacy, and Amanda came, as well as lots of friends--including these gentlemen that helped bless him (Grandpa, Loren, Jeremy Poll, Mike Wayne, Jared Smart).  The room was packed with those who loved him.  He even had an opening song that was sung by a group of his little friends.  They practiced before and sounded beautiful.  I might have teared up a little.  I got to give the talk on baptism, and Grandma Chase gave a talk on the Holy Ghost.

We had a little luncheon for Logan after the baptism, and he was happy to see his friends and get a few gifts. We sure love our Logan!

Art

I love Anthem Prep Academy.  These kids get a classical, liberal arts education, and I am constantly amazed at what they are able to absorb.  This fall we went to an art show for the kiddos.  Each of them was able to tell us the artist, title, and method for the painting they were imitating.  (Side note: Logan saying Katsushika Hokusai is adorable and impressive). McKay depicted some apples using Manet's methods.

Both of the boys love art, so they also do art club after school.  They got to display an extra picture from art club, which is more freestyle and focused on different techniques rather than the 'greats.' They have used clay, watercolor, pencils and oils.

But perhaps my favorite part of the art show is when all the girls started chasing Logan around.