My reader.

Laila finished her first book today!

It's a really interesting book about politians.  ;) 

Stitches.

After the kids had their first church Christmas concert last Sunday we went to g-ma & g-pa's for lunch.  Axel fell off his chair, hit the chair next to him on the way down & split open his chin.

As they were sewing him up with 5 stitches my relaxed little guy fell right to sleep.

Drawing while we waited for the doc...

All tuckered out.  

Unfortunately, he was not as well behaved for the stitch removal.  Who knew it would take 4 of us to pin him down...  Again, thankful for Children's being so close by.

Met g-ma & g-pa at U Vill after, for some celebratory hot cocoa.  No more stitches!  

God Jul!

I gave myself permission to not do Christmas cards this year so, this is as-good-as-it-gets.  Merry Christmas to all & may this next year be filled with peace, healing, joy & blessings.

Love, J, K, Lai & A

Eve.

I hosted Christmas Eve this year.  I was bummed my siblings weren't able to join us but, a pack of Swedish cousins made the trek.

I loved catching up with my dad's side:

Brett, Malkolm, Jake, Andy, Carl, Bjorn 

Then:

Visiting daddy.

Then:

Annual trip through Candy Cane Lane.  

Christmas came early for me this year.

Bring it!

Merry merry!

Movie, cousin's & popcorn.

Getting into the holiday spirit with a little 'Rudolph the Red nosed Reindeer' movie and a slew of cousins all in jams.

Nutcracker 2012.

I surprised Laila with a trip to the Nutcracker.

Cold won't keep these kids indoors.

A date with Dale.

I've always been in awe of Dale Chihuly's work.  Haven't ever heard of him?  Well, you obviously don't live in Seattle...  Or Washington.  Or the US.  This guy is a world-renowed glass blower.  He has work all over the world.

His museum just opened this year at the base of the Space Needle.  We pawned the kids off on the g-parents & had a wonderful evening out.

The NW room. 

Sea room. 

Up close at the sea sculpture.   

Garden.

Boats.   I told Jason that this boat represents how I want my life to feel.  

...this boat is how it normally feels.   

So beautiful.  

Peek-a-boo Space Needle view. 

Giant outdoor sculpture.  

I'd love to visit again in the day light.  AAAAND when it snows.  Way to go Seattle, this is way better than the tired rides that used to sit on this plot of land.

Disneyland, Christmas 2012.

Jason surprised me last year on my birthday with a Christmas time trip to Disneyland.  My birthday is in February so, we had been waiting a loooooong time for this trip.  We also decided to invite our families - the more the merrier.  The merrier it was.  Topping out at over 21 people that we knew at various times of the week... Merry merry.  

Ready, set, fly!

 First up:  The new Cars Land

My mom (grammy) with Lai

Waving at Red ("I can't believe they're real mom" as they watched Red, Mater & Lightning drive around talking)

Team Olsson's with Lai (think air hockey/bumper cars)...

Flo's

Mater

Cozy Cone Motel - so stinkin' cute!

Luigi's tires

Hub-cap Christmas tree

The founder

Beyond special & fun to have Gram & Papa join us for a few days!  

It was so fun meeting up with this cutie, late one night.  Since her & Ax were too short to ride the big Cars Land Racer ride, we strolled around taking in the sites.  

Thanks for making the trek to visit with us Alex, Alli & Addi!!!  

Hot date on the Racer ride...

Racer was our favorite

It's really so hard to capture just how cute Radiator Springs in the new Cars Land is... Especially this time of year.   Throw it on your families bucket list!  

I'll have to finish posting Disney pics another day.  I'm so sorry posts have been so few & far between...

This whole job thing, coupled with physical therapy & everyday life doesn't leave much time for this.  I will however post more pics soon!  Stay tuned.