Family Pictures are...FUN!

This is THE Beach Family, in our perfect form! The photographer had just told John he didn't need to turn his butt so much toward the camera and John said, You mean like this? and FLASH he took a picture. It was great! I loved the pose so much I paid for one. Yes, I'm crazy, but it was PERFECT! Notice Ashley doting on the baby and Parker is just thinking get me the crap outta here, your jokes are NOT going to get me to smile.

I'm not in love with this pic, but it will do.

Did you happen to see the most beautiful boys in the world? Well, here they are?
I love, love, love this picture of my boys! (JayLynn Studios took the professional pics)

Trying to find some pictures to use for our Christmas card this year was... fun, yes! That's the word for it! We tried to do our own family pic. I set up (balanced) the camera on top of a lamp, hit the timer button and then ran over for the pose. Here are a few of the non-winners. Don't let Brillo know he didn't make it to the finished product, okay?

Merry Christmas from The Beach Family 2008

If you didn't receive one of these, I'm sorry. E-mail me your address so I have it for next year...thanks!

I cried on Christmas Eve

Before we played our annual Christmas Eve "What time do we get to wake up Game", Dexter asked, "Can I write a letter to Santa?" I said sure. He found his own paper, grabbed a pencil and proceeded to write Santa a letter. This is what I found in his stocking:What a sweet, sweet boy. Merry Christmas Everyone!

Christmas at Temple Square

The Beach's bundled up (well, I did, the boys still think it is warm outside!) and headed down to Temple Square to see the lights and try to encourage Parker & Dexter to have a little Christmas Cheer!As usual it was beautiful and unusually warm! (no snow)

17 Years Ago on Christmas Eve, John took me to Temple Square and proposed! (Try not to gag!) I had no idea and was totally surprised. He asked me at the Seagull Monument, which is currently drained and boarded up. So there really weren't any "photo ops" for that.

I love the hundreds of luminaries that line the COB walkways.

Parker jumped on John in the parking lot and had a little fun!
Then we headed to Chili's for some nurishment. I don't catch Parker off guard (of the camera) but I did tonight, so I had to post it!Dexter is ALWAYS happier with a full tummy!

Another Beach Boy!

John's Brother, Chris and his wife, Jessie had a baby boy in August...Rex Alan is his name! What a cutie!

The Saturday after Thanksgiving all the Beach's had a family picture taken at JayLynn Studios and then afterwards John blessed Rex at Waldean's home. It was another great Beach Occasion to get together and play some games!

I know this isn't a great picture of Jessie, but Rex looks so cute!

The Wednesday before Thanksgiving all the Beach's were in town, so we all got together for some games at Waldean's. Beach Games are serious business! According to Mike, and usually if he isn't winning, it's not considered "REGULATION". If something is turned wrong or you go out of turn, it is a "NON-REGULATION GAME" and therefore, does not count. This was Jessie's first time "playing as a Beach" so she was a little nervous and intimidated, but she held her own! Mike, Jessie and I won the first game of Sequence! We are so cool!

Here are a few words and phrases you can hear during EVERY Beach Game of Chicken Foot with Dominoes:
GRIDLOCK, COUNT 'EM UP!
BLOCK THE DOUBLE ZERO!
KRISTEN, did you pick the double zero AGAIN?

During Sequence (A card game with a game board):
"Now what do the Jacks do?"
"Did you take your card?"
"No Cabitzing!"
"What do the Jacks do again?"
"Did you take a card?"
"SEQUENCE!"
"If I have a 2-Eyed Jack, I can do what again?"

We joked that we should just record us all playing one night and then just play the tape the next time we play again!

We all have a lot of fun and a lot of laughing!
Parker worked up an appetite and had some leftover turkey. There's the Sequence board and chips on the table in front of him.

The Cousins had a great time wrestlin' Parker and Dexter and horsing around!

Ashley LOVES Rex and wants a baby of her very own to be a Mommy to.

Thanksgiving in Pocatello

We left early Thanksgiving morning to drive up to Pocatello Idaho to have Thanksgiving with my family. We pulled in around 11:30am and checked in to The Holiday Inn. The hotel was great and Parker didn't want to leave. In the "Holidome" they had a swimming pool, a Foosball and a Ping Pong table. It was surprising how many "out-of-towners" there were. That evening the Holidome was filled with families gathered around tables playing games and you couldn't have fit one more person in the hot tub! I guess it was the "HOLIDAY" Inn!

The Worthington Clan was alllll here.... Joan, Tasha, John, Parker, Dexter, Erin, Nat, Annika, Thomas, Ella, Keith, Kristien, Grace, Jessica, Kory, Kevin, Janelle (& lil' unborn Cache) and Layla. Jess had some friends over that you will see in the pics too C.J and Davien. It was a GREAT Thanksgiving in Idaho filled with family and friends and not too many family fights! We started making a list of all the subjects we couldn't bring up...politics, religion, health, etc. etc. etc.



Kory is DONE...and now trying to figure out how to rig up a beer line to drip right into his mouth. No, really, that is what he was contemplating, he told me.

The next morning we went back over to Jessie & Kory's and had a big yummy breakfast! Then we played some Rock Band!!

We even brought our own "Groupies" (Kristien in the back)

Here is some of my Thanksgiving decor outside my house...check out that green lawn!