Christmas in Redding

Traveling down to Redding the weekend before Christmas was a little dicey with all the ice and snow but the new suburban did great and we got there safe and sound. We enjoyed seeing the Redding gang and got to hang out with the fam form L.A. and Grandma Lilly who flew in from Texas for the holidays. We opened presents the night we got there because we just couldn't wait a second more.



Mike Hillman found all of the goings on hilarious.


You can spot JJ with our brand new Sony DVD cam that his parents gave us. They want movies of the kids! Alli is ecstatic about her new Hannah Montana bed set.

Alex is excited about all his presents. Grandma Lilly oversees all the unwrapping.

Tiffany shies from the camera but Drew and Jill are ready for their close ups!

More and more presents. Jill discovers she and Mike got a DVD cam as well.

Drew thinks he is playing Alex's DS. He does manage to move the players around the level. He wants to be like his big brother and always is watching Alex play video games.

We had a great time visiting with our family and also those that we hadn't seen for a few years. We'll have to go down to L.A. next and visit them...Maybe we can sneak in a visit to mickey mouse while we are there!

Alex can't wait to play with this electonic circuit thing that Papa and Nana bought for him.

Cousin time. Check out Drew's new haircut. It was my first time braving the clippers but I managed it ok. Thank goodness for candy and SpongeBob to distract him!

Elf Night

Elf Night


This was Andrew's first year with the Elf. He loved it! Sometimes the toddler's are scared of the Elf but he was entranced and wanted to keep hugging her.

JJ's Grandmother has been dressing up as an Elf for their Christmas family night for decades. It started as a small tradition of getting her 3 daughters together with their young children on Christmas Eve to exchange gifts and eat. The Elf would make an appearance while Nanny was mysteriously absent doing some task. When Nanny returned from her chore the grand kids would regale her with the tale of the Elf's visit and show her all the things she had brought. This has expanded to include spouses of the grandchildren and their children now. We don't fit in any one's house anymore so this year we had it at Upper Crust in Redding. When I was dating JJ I was lucky enough to be introduced to the Elf our first Christmas together. That Elf can be brutal and she always gives the new girlfriends and boyfriends a hard time. It is great and we hope the Elf keeps visiting for many years to come. There is talk of a retirement of the Elf but that is too sad to think of so I hope that is not true.



Most of the original grand kids all grown up and most of them with kids of their own.




Then Great grand kids what a a squirrelly bunch they are! This pic was hard to take.





Papa Jim is the twinkle in this Elf's eye...watch out Nanny she may steal your man!




The Halseys posing with the Elf.

Getting Ready for Christmas

We try to get our Christmas tree the Saturday after Thanksgiving and this year we continued that tradition. Having the Christmas tree up is a signal that Christmas time is officially here and it sets the mood in our home. I love walking in from work and smelling that fresh pine smell. Andrew is peeking out from behind the tree before it was decorated. It is fun to watch him experience all of this for the first time. The older two kids have almost as much fun helping Drew and watching him as they do doing all the Christmas stuff themselves. I am so lucky to have such great kids.

Papa is hanging out with the kids. Alli looks distracted, I wonder what she is thinking about.

Here we are all together at the Christmas tree farm earlier in the day.

Christmas Tree Hunting

We returned to the one of the many local Christmas tree farms to get us a Noble! And we looked and looked through acres of trees. Finally we all agreed on one and JJ got busy sawing it down. We happened to pick one with the hugest trunk, it looked like a double trunk for about 6 inches from the ground! JJ and Papa(Rob) finally logged it like mountain men and dragged it to the waiting tractor. Nana (Teri), Carrie Allison and Drew waited in the hay while Alex supervised the cutting of the tree.
The kids and I hold on on the way out to the Noble Fir section.

Drew ran around until he was covered in mud. I think he had the best time of all!

The best part is getting the spiced Apple Cider and Hot Cocoa while we pay for the tree. You can see my maternity pants falling down!

Thanksgiving 2008

Thanksgiving this year was fantastic! We had 26 of our family and future family stuffing themsevles and watching football! Glorious. I was most thankful that JJ could be here this year to experience the chaos that is Thanksgiving at the Halsey's. He loved every minute of it.


Family that came:
The Halseys:
JJ, Carrie, Alex, Alli, Andrew

The Burners:
Adam, Sarah and Aiden

The Russells:
Spence, Susan and Cassie

The Mankos:
Rob and Teri

The Wilts:
Tia, Mike, Joe and Danny

The Farris'
Dallas and Kathleen

The Farris'
Sam, Annie and new baby Addison

The Borders:
Larry, Cheri and Link

Farris' and Wilts litsten carefully as the Matriarch speaks.




















Sharon and Mitchell mingled with Cassie, Link and the soon to be in-laws.



















Dad looks on as Rob, JJ and Adam talk turkey.
















For a slideshow of Thanksgiving 2008 scroll down to the end of the blog. Pictures of the kids and more family pics are there.

Alex Football

As promised...pics of Alex in his uniform. He LOVED tackle this year and is already talking about next year. We are so proud of him and it was a blast going to his games. Go Pats!!

Halloween 2008

This is the gang at Papa's Pizza right before the trick-or-treating. I loved the themed Halloween and this year my kids let me have this fantastic memory.

"I have an important message R2..."

Defiant Princess and Darth Vader

The one, all wise. May the force be with you.

Puppy Love

Drew loves Thor. He tries to ride him all the time which Thor tolerates although he doesn't like all the attention at times. Drew also likes walking around with Thor's tail in his hand which is dangerously close to the pooper! No mishaps yet.

Jack-o-Lanterns

The carving of the pumpkins was even more fun this year with the help of the Burners and our own Daddy!! Somehow I didn't get pictures of Sarah, Adam, Aiden or myself but we were there having fun.

Cox wedding

The fam trekked down to Redding to participate in Bryan's wedding. JJ was the best man and looked so handsome in his tux. We all had a great time seeing old friends and hanging out with the Redding clan. It was great to see our friend get married (he made it under 30!) and are very happy for him and his new bride Melissa.

Drew had a little freedom at the reception which her obviously enjoyed! Allison couldn't wait to be able to dance with her brother. They practiced for a week before the wedding. Alex was a good sport and danced with his sis.


Love the Daddy, Daughter dance! So cute.
Outside the VFW hall with JJ's Family.