Christmas Presents for Adults

Jason and I often use Christmas as an excuse to get each other bigger things we've wanted for awhile, and this year was no exception. For years I have wanted to replace the entryway chandelier. Jason knows how to replace lights, but we've held off on this one for so long because of the two story height. So we were just going to hire an electrician, but when we got it home, Jason said, "You know, if I could rent a tall ladder, I bet I could do it!" So rent a tall ladder he did, and now I have a beautiful new light! 

You may remember Jason lost his wedding ring in Lake Michigan this summer, and we decided it was past time to replace it. He wanted one similar to what he'd lost, but we were finding very few rings that were even gold, and not really the style he liked. So, we ended up finding a jeweler who could make him one based on a picture we showed him of the old one. It wasn't a perfect match, but he likes it, and it's good to have a ring on his finger again. The old inscription read, "I will love you forever." The new inscription reads, "I will STILL love you forever."

 

Christmas Parties

We've had some fun Christmas outings this month. We went to the Christmas Church and enjoyed their carriage rides and hot cocoa (I think the promise of their divine cocoa is how I get about 4 members of my family to go!).

We also enjoyed our ward's Polar Express themed Christmas party.

And I got to join Jason downtown for his work Christmas party.

Turkey Trot

One of Eli's Youth Goals was to train for and run a 5K. He and Jason signed up for the Turkey Trot, a 5K on Thanksgiving, and began training in early October. Eli would get up shortly after 6am and run with Jason in the pitch black and cold with little or no complaint.

But then, about three weeks before the race, he got a pretty bad case of the flu. He missed several days of school, and felt pretty weak for awhile. We were worried all his training would be for naught, and prepared a speech about how sometimes we don't quite met our goals, through no fault of our own. But a few days before the race he was ready to train again, and then on race day he ran the whole 5K without stopping! He was one of not many kids running, and the first one to cross the finish line! Way to go Eli!

Seeing Santa

In early November Jake went to the mall with me on an errand and saw this amazing Santa set up they had going. He fell in love with the idea of seeing Santa there. Annoyingly to me, they "recommended" reservations (which actually would be great), but you had to pay $25 for a reservation (that's the annoying part). The money would go towards a photo package, they soothed. I decided to go ahead and pay for the reservation, since waiting in a long line didn't appeal to me, and Jake really had his heart set on this place.

Well, we got to the end and they printed off about five sheets of photos and told me that yes, my reservation fee went TOWARD a photo package, but the cheapest one was another $25. I was annoyed because I didn't want to pay even more, and come on- they'd already printed them! They would just have to throw them away if I didn't take them! But I declined and walked away with Jake. 

You couldn't take your own photos there with Santa, but I figured we could at least take a couple at the entrance. When we turned around, the photo lady was there with a pack of our photos. "Here, you forgot these," she said with a wink. Jake and I thought her generosity was so touching. Our own little Christmas angel!
 

Snow

One of Ali's birds, Snow, died about a month ago. She was pretty sad, as one would expect. She decided to paint a picture of her in remembrance.

Relief Society

The end of this year marks three years for me as Relief Society President. The time has flown by, and I've learned a lot and had great experiences. I'm not in any hurry to be released, which is probably good since I don't think my Bishop will ever release me!

This year I got to be involved in teaching and fellowshipping a single mom and her two teenaged kids.

We also had a lot of really fun activities, and our activity attendance has gone up since I started personally inviting every single sister each time!

The best thing about this calling is that mostly I just get to love and serve people-two things I like to do!

Winter Concerts

'Tis the season for school concerts! This winter we got to go Logan and Ali's band concert, and Logan's Jazz band festival, a holiday choir concert for Eli, a regular choir concert for Eli, and Eli's band concert. Whew! Good thing they were all amazing.

Jake is a good sport at these concerts, especially when he remembers to bring a book (even if he as to read it sitting backwards because the only light in the theater is coming from the stage), or can play with the fidgets his wonderful mom keeps in her purse (for when he forgets his book), or can read the books his amazing mom keeps on her phone (for when the fidgets get boring).