Fruge Family Chistmas

Yesterday, My whole family (minus Christopher and he was greatly missed) got together to do our Christmas. It gets so hard with 6 kids and 5 in-laws and 7 grand-kids for my parents to get all of their family together so they try to do it before Christmas on a day that everyone can make it (on years that end in 0's and 5's like 2010 we all get together as a family at some point in the year)

All the grand-kids (minus Parker and Lindon - mom said they were to little with all the other ones around) got to spend the night Friday with my parents. They watched movies and ate popcorn. I hear it was a blast and that Claire (Kevin's little girl) outlasted everyone (even mom)! The next day they played together and went to McD's for lunch and then they headed to see Curious George (minus Parker and Lindon - tickets were too much money for those two and they are too young to understand and sit still anyways AND Claire - who is terribly afraid of any thing dressed up - Santa, people on Halloween, Chuck E. Cheese, Sesame Street Live Characters...the list goes on).

After that we all met up at mom and dads house and ate and then opened presents and enjoyed each others company. It was a lot of fun. (In our family since there are so many we rotate so each sibling get another sibling and their family a gift - it's usually a game that the whole family can enjoy or something for the adults and something for the kids - it doesn't really matter - we never have set a price limit or anything - but it is a lot of fun and a lot easier than buying for 5 different families!)



Our Present from Matt and Kari was Jenga and we whipped it out at like 9 last night. We got it pretty tall and I am please to say I never knocked it down. We played two games and both times the person that got to go first knocked it down (that would be Matt and Kari hehe)! It felt so much taller - and got a bit taller but I videoed the end so no pictures!
Parker (the best I got of him by himself - he cried most of the day due to lack of a decent nap and teething!)
Aunt Squirt wanted to see if he would go to her and she was denied!
Caryn and JustinThe Kevin Fruge Family
The Court Fruge Family
The Justin McCabe Family
Claire (Unfortunately, the best I got of her - she wouldn't look at the camera - lil stinker!)

Meredith (Unfortunately the best I got of her by herself)Hunter
Taylor
Tucker
All the Grandkids (Lindon, Hunter, Parker, Taylor, Meredith, Claire, Tucker) (Of course they are all looking at the camera except mine - oh Parker!)

Our Graduate

If Adam would have wanted to walk at graduation, he would be graduating tomorrow! He opted out because he didn't want to sit there for forever. So congrats Adam for sticking through and finally graduating! He starts working on his Master's in January!

I really, really, really, really want this....

In Black or Metallic Chrome it's at Kohls.
To Bad it's 300 bucks! :)


http://www.kohls.com/kohlsStore/kitchendining/kitchenelectrics/mixers/stand/PRD~25941/KitchenAid+Artisan+5qt+Stand+Mixer.jsp

Eleven Months

Parker is Eleven Months Old! Enjoy the Pictures!

Saturday is a Special Day

It's the day we get ready for Sunday. We clean the house and we stop at the store so we don't have to work until Monday. As a child we sang that song and it seemed like this past Saturday there wasn't time to clean the house because we had so many parties to go to...First we (Parker and me) went to my cousins bridal shower, then we went to Adam's Family Christmas Party with all his Aunts and Uncles and Cousins, then we went to our Church Christmas Party.

At the family party, we ate lots of good food, and had time visiting. The kids under 18 draw names and do a gift exchange that way. Parker got maracas! He loves them. The adults to a "chinese" gift exchange where the girls bring a girl gift and the guys bring a guy gift and then we draw numbers and sit in a circle etc. Adam ended up with a huge thing of drill bits (that he says he needed - I wouldn't really know haha). The funny thing about the girls exchange was there were three crock pots. Seriously. I am not kidding. It was a lot of fun and we enjoyed spending the time with his family. It was Parker's first time to open a present so I videoed the whole thing, but I cut some of the middle out to post on here. Feel free to watch if you are interested.


At the Church Christmas party, we were bummed that it started at 6:00 and we didn't start eating until 6:45 or so because of food competition. I wish it wouldn't have taken so long. Parker was hungry! Then a family in our Ward (the Linder's) Played music for us. They are really good. The dad and oldest daughter play guitar, youngest daughter on piano and the son on the drums. I am not sure the kids ages but I think they range from 16-8 or something like that. The 8 year old is the one on the drums. I videoed Parker dancing and clapping to the tunes. Enjoy!

My Thoughts

Today, Parker and I attended a funeral for my great uncle. He has been battling cancer for 23 years (give or take a few).

I am a very emotional person. If I see other people crying, I cry. My mom was sitting next to me tearing up (I think that I held my composure because I was having to deal with Parker that wanted down to play). His son gave the eulogy and the only way he could get through it was to tell the funny stories first. He was sobbing when he first got up there (I continued to hold my composure). Throughout the rest of the funeral I was able to hold back the tears and even through the grave site ceremony. They had two marines fold a flag to give to my great aunt and had a gun salute. It was amazing to see.

It wasn't until I heard my great uncles grand-daughter with down syndrome sobbing afterward that I started to tear up. It was difficult to see. I know that our families can be together forever and that we will see my uncle again.



On a side and less serious note - everyone in my immediate family and a few family friends know I have a fear of dead bodies. When I was a little girl and my great grandpa died I had a horrible dream. He was a carpenter and I dreamed that they were burying him with all of the tools that he had ever owned and that they were in the bottom half of the casket. In my dream when I went up to view the body, he sat up and chased me out of the church with a chain saw. I have since then received two toy chainsaws as gifts after telling a few people about this (one from a family at church and one from a missionary that served in our ward and we ended up in a class together at BYU-Idaho).
Going up to see the body of my great uncle I had to stand several feet back to pay my respects - I just can't get up the courage to stand that close. It's no offense to the dead at all...I just can't do it. Is that crazy of me?

So

the washing machine is leaking into the tub - ugh - it never fails that something is going to go wrong right?