Silent Night

I hope Mary's ok with the donkey holding the baby

(Paisley got to be baby Jesus)



I'm not sure she liked her present, but she loved the wrapping paper.

Ah, the day after Christmas. Otherwise known as "The Big Let Down". I'm just grateful I had a day to do nothing but sit and recoup at church. I've never been more grateful for 'a day of rest'. I'm already dreading next year when I have to go to work the day after Christmas.




I've decided Christmas is much like vacation. You plan and prepare and look forward to it for so long, that when it finally comes, it may or may not live up to your expectations, and you always seem to need another vacation to rest up from it.





So many of our traditions are centered around food. As a child, I looked forward to Christmas eve as much or more than Christmas day! Every year, my mom would bring down her glass serving sets. They were cute little glass trays and cups that they used to use in the good ol'days for wedding receptions, just the right size for a little kid. We would have Sprite (soda-pop was a rare treat growing up) and make our own mini-pizza's, customizing it to our likes. Olives were a must, crackers and chips, vegi's and dip, and the traditional yule log.



Spouses and 20 grandkids later, we've had to replace the pizza's with soup to make it more manageable. But our traditional junk night is a staple on Christmas eve.



And now, I have our own Christmas food traditions. Every Christmas we have a traditional turkey dinner with mashed and sweet potatoes, rolls, beans, and my once a year red-hot jello salad, and of course, yule log.


Despite all the hard work, it was a great day. I even got to sleep in til 8 am. Of course I didn't fall asleep until after 1 am (yeah, i'll admit, i had a hard time falling asleep). The kids were happy with their presents, the husband was happy with his, and when they're happy, I'm happy. And when Mom's happy, everybody's happy. It was a happy day.


Today was a good day too. I've tried hard not to let the Christmas blues take over, and it's been nice to be able to finally relax. I didn't even make a big sunday dinner, thanks to leftovers. Then we all sat down together as a family and watched one of the movies we got for christmas. Who would have thought toys could make me cry? Ah, it was a good cleanser cry. I feel refreshed.

Christmas day is over,

The tree is bare once more.

the presents have all been opened,

the gifts neatly stacked on the floor.

Christmas carols are softly fading,

Christmas greetings are no longer heard.

The feelings of anticipation,

no longer within us are stirred.

The joy of the season starts fading,

the day the tree comes down;

we box up the memories and trinkets,

they'll keep till next year comes around.

But the meaning of Christmas shouldn't be stored with the lights

and only come out once a year;

No, the meaning of Christmas should live in our hearts,

the feelings of love always near.

And so my gift to the Christ child

this year I'll give to him,

to keep his spirit within me;

Good tidings for men will not dim.

I'll keep the Spirit of Christmas

every day of this new coming year;

kind acts, good thoughts and deeds

will keep me in Merry Christmas cheer.

Merry Christmas everyone! I hope it was a good one...I hope we can all keep Christmas, not just 12 days of the month, but 12 months of the year!

Christmas memories

I think one of the reasons I love Christmas so much, is because of the fond memories I have of christmas as a child.

Part of those memories come from watching the old silent home movies., before the vcr and videotapes were invented. My favorite family home evenings were the times Dad would drag out the old film projector and big reels of 8 mm film. Family vacations, camping, running through the sprinklers, and every childs birthday and the blowing of the candles were forever captured in our memories thanks to those old movies. But the ones I looked forward to watching the most, were when my brother and sisters and I were lined up in front of the roaring fireplace, in our new pajamas that Mom made us every Christmas eve.

We were allowed to open one present on Christmas eve, of course it was always preselected by our Mom, and it was always a new pair of pajamas. As I recall, in the movies I was usually twirling, my sister twisting/dancing, and my brother would be stomping on some invisible bug. The trees would change from year to year. One year it might be flocked in white with big red crepe paper flowers adorning it, or green with tinsel and popcorn strung about. Our pajama's would also change as the years went by; flannel pj's with new minnie mouse slippers, or tricot nightgowns that were slick and flowing, perfect for sliding down the dining table leaves that doubled as a homemade slippery slide.

Whatever the wardrobe or tree looked like, our faces always held the same look of anticipation for who was to come, in what would always appear to be the longest night of the year!

I'm surprised Santa even made it to our house, with all those wide eyed children who found sleep impossible and was ready to catch him in the act with every bump and clatter they heard. When my sister and brother and I moved to the basement rooms, with our little siblings asleep upstairs, we would stay up late, with our radio turned down low, listening to the Santa sightings and estimating how long it would be before he found his way to our neighborhood. When we could stand it no more, we would sneek upstairs to see if the big guy had made his appearance. I don't know how he did it, but every time he came and left before we caught a glipse of him. And as was often the case, the temptation to sneek a peek at what he left was too great. With our stockings overflowing and presents piled so far and wide around the tree, it was almost overwhelming and made sleep near impossible. And most often than not, it was Mom and Dad who was shaking us awake in the morning, because eventually we drifted off to sleep and couldn't seem to wake up on our own, even knowing what awaited us upstairs.

Traditions are an important part of Christmas, and one of the traditions I've kept alive with my own children, is to let them open one present on Christmas eve, and if you guessed it was a new pair of pj's, you would be right.

The other tradition, you know, the one about having a hard time sleeping at night...oh don't you worry. Pathetically I'm still keeping that tradition alive as well.

Tis the season to be...sick. falalala.

My husband thinks I'm crazy that I start watching my favorite Christmas movies in October/November. I admit, I always thought I was a little over anxious for the season to begin, so thought perhaps that's why I pull out my DVD collection a bit premature. But this year, while having an AHA moment, I realized my subliminal mind knew all along what it was doing when it craved to see Tim Allen in his silky red pj's, which by the way, I own a pair just like it, only mine don't have the initials SC embroirdered on them, but their still just as festive!

Anyway, my AHA came as I realized I had only watched one christmas movie thus far in the season, the new Jim Carrey's "A Christmas Carol". As I was trying to figure out how I was going to fit in all 10 of my favorite christmas shows in only 18 short days, that's when I realized...this is why I start watching so early...so I can get them all in. heck, even just 2-3 would be great at this point.

This month is always so busy, and every year I vow to start preparing earlier so I can sit back, relax, and enjoy the month of December without feeling all the rush and busi-ness that comes with it. I thought I was doing pretty good too. We had our annual Sister Candy Day on December 1st, and my visiting teaching all done by the 3rd. But every night brings something new. Birthday dinners for Chelsea and my mother in law, family night, RS dinner, Trey's choir concert, Tary's work party, my work party, ward christmas party, family christmas party...and I still need to bake goodies for the neighbors!

Is it any wonder that my body has said, ENOUGH! Unfortunately it has rebelled. I'm home sick today. Forced to slow down by a cold. And yet oddly enough, I still haven't squeezed in a good movie. I slept in till 10, (that felt wonderful) wrapped all the presents while the kid is in school, read a short little christmas book, and now I'm blogging. In an hour I'll be at the church, helping set up for the Relief Society Christmas dinner, but believe me...as soon as it's over, I'll be in my silky red pajama's with my Nyquil and blankie, and cuddled up with Santa Clause.

...and to all a good night!

Too busy to give thanks...NOT!

Hey, it's stuffing...no one is going to notice a little carpet fuzz, right?

I feel like such a slacker! Thanksgiving has come and gone. It seems like only yesterday that it was Halloween, and tomorrow will be Christmas! How does this happen? And why do I seem so surprised that the days fly by this time of year?


I apologize for not publicly expressing my gratitude to family and friends, and if you're reading this, you must be one of them. Thank you for being a part of my life.


Chelsea and I were driving across town last month, and we drove through my old neighborhood in Murray where Tary and I lived for 2 years when we were first married. We really liked our neighborhood, our ward, and the friends we made there. When we started looking for a home of our own, we wanted to stay close by. We even made an offer on a home there, but it didn't work out. We ended up in a town farther than expected, but have loved the home and the neighborhood where we have lived for the past 23 years.


I was wondering out loud to my daughter, how different our lives might be if we had stayed in Murray. Would I be the same person I am today? Would she?


Would I be a chocolatier (that's an exaggeration on my part) if I didn't live across the street from Carla, who happens to make the best chocolates in the world and passed on her trade secrets to me?


Would I be a quilter if I hadn't been a visiting teacher to Sue, who inspired me with her beautiful wall quilts and talent for sewing crafts?


Would I had been able to be a stay at home working mom if I didn't know the sweet ladies in my ward, Devina, and Tammy and Alison, who all convinced me I should get a job at JetBlue?


Would I be where I am today, at the best place to work with the best job in the world? Or would I have stayed at Hunter Douglas because it was just down the street, and in my comfort zone.


Would Chelsea have ever met and married Joe if they didn't grow up in the same ward, go to the same school, and share the same friends? Would she even be married yet? Would I still have my beautiful Paisley who has Joe's eyes?


So many 'what if's'...it reminds me of my favorite Christmas movie, "It's a Wonderful Life". George Bailey gets to see what life would have been like if he wasn't in it. He got to see just how much influence for good he had on the people in his community.


I'd like to think that my community, my ward, my neighbors and friends, have made me who I am today because of their influence in my life, and the lives of my children.


I don't believe in coinsidences. I think someone above knew where I needed to be, to be with the people I needed to be with, to help me get to where I needed to be.


And for that, I am Grateful. And just in case He reads my blog in his spare time, I Thank You.


And so my dear friends, I Thank You for the influence you have had in my life. For the talents you have shared, the laughter, the tears, and most of all, your examples.



For my dear family...your influence is a constant in my life, no matter where I live. You have shaped and molded me more than you know. It's because of all of you that I want to be a better person.


For my three sweet kids...I love you for the children you were, for the people you grew up to be, and for the Mother you created in me.


For my dear husband, who saw enough potential in a silly 16 year old girl to make him want to hang around and wait for me to grow up, and who is still patiently waiting for that day to come....I love you and thank you for choosing me. Thank you for the life we have built together, for the future we are still building...


...and for agreeing to move into our home just because it had a really big kitchen!



I love you all! Happy Belated Thanksgiving!