So much to say about this month! It was a whirlwind of happiness and joy from beginning to end. We loved having Grammy and Papa in town for a few weeks of the holiday season-- it really allowed for a great amount of festivities and celebrating right off the bat- ha! With gingerbread house making, peanut butter pinwheel baking, Christmas tree construction, Christmas light viewing and neighbor gift assembling (wooden nativities and bagels with cream cheese), we were in full swing come December 10th when they left. It was a wonderful beginning to our month to have them in town. One of my favorite parts of the month was certainly our commitment to "light the world" each day- an initiative the church had presented to help us focus on service and our savior. I loved reading the scriptures each evening and reporting back as to how we were able to give and love throughout the season. We put the ornaments on a little tree after completing the activity. It was a great reminder and really brought the spirit into our home. Loved receiving Christmas cards in the mail and also viewing darling Christmas photos on instagram of our family and friends. It is a special part of the holiday season for me because I just love my friends from all over the country! We enjoyed a special evening at the Kuletos participating in Christmas games, doing a white elephant gift exchange, eating goodies and then walking up to see the neighborhood lights on Stoney Gate- we LOVE this tradition we've done for the past few years. Ev's favorite present was the extendable mistletoe- haha!
One special component of the season this year was our participation in the Stake Christmas Choir event. We initially did this as a favor to our friend and Ev's piano teacher- Laura Miles- who is the conductor. I agreed to accompany the primary; Anna and Grant joined me. Evelyn sang in the youth choir. It was a big commitment to meet at the church every sunday for 2 hours starting in November..... but it filled our hearts and minds with the beautiful music of the season and it was a joy to be a part of this fabulous event. SO grateful we did this and we will certainly do it next year!!!!
Loved hosting a few special events at our home-- Christmas Eve brunch with friends, an early New Year's party as we would be out of town for the real deal, an early Christmas dinner with the Jones as they would be out of town for the real deal, and Blake's office party where he presented his girls sweet little necklaces that I had picked out- among other things!
We had many people in our thoughts and prayers throughout the month. With so many fires on the loose- we were worried and sad for friends in LA and San Diego. We prayed a lot that the fires would be contained without too much damage- but it was a scary time and we felt so much for so many who had to evacuate and live in fear. We prayed for the Paces, who gave up their precious little Aidan to a family for adoption after almost a year of tending to his little needs. What an awesome example Jamie has been to all of us in taking on this responsibility and giving of her life in such a way. And now it's very sad because everyone misses little Aidan, despite the fact that he is with a family who loves him.... it's a hard thing to be without someone you love. I gave Jamie a big old sweatshirt and an eye mask and told her to stay in bed for as long as needed.... this wouldn't be easy. But she, of course, is handling it like a champ. So proud of my sister! And then in BIG news- Michelle just got called to be the YW president! So I have two sisters currently serving their buns off and I couldn't be more grateful for them or more proud. I think one of the biggest highlights of the month was putting together and collecting items for a family in need to deliver as a secret santa sort of thing. The Marston family all donated treats and gift cards and we assembled our basket for delivery. The family was so grateful and sent us pictures of the kids (to an anonymous number!!!) so we could see how excited they were! So happy we were able to do that- and really a highlight for us.
Loved attending all of the festivities that happen this time of year-- the ward Christmas party (I decorated for this and helped with the music portion of the program; Evelyn sang Silent Night), a good friend- Sameen's birthday party at the mall where we took awesome pics of ourselves in red lipstick and ugly Christmas sweaters, the Crafts N Cocoa at the school was a blast. A lot of work, but a lot of fun. Not sure I'll co-chair this next year as it was a little too much on my plate, but loved working with new friends and putting on a fun event at the school. Christmas time at SeaWorld! Festivus for the rest of us is a yearly tradition we attend at the Andersons and always love being a part of this fun event! I had a Christmas breakfast for a few friends at my house where we exchanged gifts and enjoyed each other's company one morning while kids were at school. It's always a highlight of the month! Felt very excited when a friend left an amazing balloon wreath on my doorstep after using it for her choir event! I needed one for our school event and was so grateful for her generosity ( so I didn't have to work so hard!) And speaking of working hard, I felt so extremely exhausted after this blessed month of festivities-- I had to laugh out loud when I saw the sticker on the truck ahead of me one day say, "Cowboy Logic: a little sweat never killed nobody" or something like that. It was just too funny as I was literally sweating running from one class party to the next, lifting heavy pieces of furniture from my house to the school for the Santa booth, wrapping 5 billion presents and baking cookie upon cookie! It was all wonderful but a little tiring- hahaha! I guess working hard is part of the mom gig around the holidays. Loved this Holiday To-Do list I found online. I tried to keep it in mind throughout the month!
