Ward Christmas Party

This year our ward hosted one of the best church Christmas parties I've been to in a long time. Everyone brought their favorite Christmas treats to share and each family was encouraged to dress in Nativity costumes. My kids thought this was the greatest - like Halloween and Christmas rolled into one! What's not to like?

We managed to hit all the important parts - we had Mary, Joseph, the angel, a wise man, and a little lamb - along with a baby doll to be the baby Jesus.

After a bit of mixing and mingling, they split the ward up by birthday month and had everyone sing parts of the "12 Days of Christmas" so we all got to see who we shared birthday celebrations and get to know ward members a little better. Then instead of having Santa come, the bishop gathered all the kids around and told them a Christmas story and handed out goodie bags. It was a fun social time, but very focused on the Savior and the true meaning of Christmas.

5 going on 15

We can't believe she's already 5! Of course, she doesn't believe that she's only 5 - so I guess it all evens out. Leah has been such a joy in our lives. She reminds us that life is an adventure so we shouldn't let fear stand in our way. We love her enthusiasm and determination (most of the time) and are very grateful for the joys and challenges she has brought to our lives over the last five years.

We love you Leah!

We had a little family birthday party at Grandma and Papa's house this weekend. We had a fun pizza party followed by a Dora birthday cake and ice cream, of course.

Happy Birthday Leah!

No Moms Allowed

I found this sign on the door to Leah's bedroom yesterday.

She's either planning a surprise for me or doesn't want me to see the huge mess she's made in there. Guess which one I'm betting on?

Advent

My parents were both raised in the Lutheran faith - which resulted in some really fun and meaningful traditions for us as we were growing up. One of my favorites was always Advent - the time of anticipation of the Christ Child's coming. We would receive advent calendars from our grandparents every year (the kind where you open a door each day to find a surprise behind it), but my favorite was always the one my mom made that would hang on the wall. I loved it so much that I made one for my family...

Everyday we get to hang a new ornament on the tree and read a little note explaining the symbolism of the ornament and why it helps us think of Christ. We started last night for Family Night and I thought I'd share by posting an advent section in the sidebar to help us all look forward to the coming of the Christ Child.

Happy Thanksgiving, Y'all!

This year I hosted Thanksgiving dinner at my house... and for once it wasn't because I was hugely pregnant (2003) or had just given birth (2007). No, this time is was for the purely selfish reason of not wanting to pack up my kids and drive anywhere... that, and my parents and sister were willing to make the trek up here from Houston. We also invited our wonderful neighbor "The Swan" (thus dubbed by our 3 year old). After some discussion, we decided we didn't want to eat turkey, so we came up with a somewhat atypical menu that we all thoroughly enjoyed.

First, Leah entertained us with her newly found tree climbing skills.

Here she is in the pear tree in our backyard.

And soon it was time to EAT!

The star of the show... Roast Rabbit

Stuffed with all kinds of yummy veggies which made the tastiest gravy ever!

Accompanied by smoked brisket and mac & cheese

Not to mention broccoli, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, and orange fluff

Mmm, mmm!

Even Peter enjoyed the meal.

And the best part was that it was nice enough to eat outside... I'm so thankful to live in this country where we can enjoy such good food and travel freely to visit with family and friends. I'm also thankful for the gospel of Jesus Christ and the freedom we are granted in this country to believe and worship as we choose. I hope you all had a wonderful holiday surrounded by the bounty and blessings of your lives.