Catching Up . . . . Again

Our first Christmas in Prescott.  We were hoping for a white one, which we got, but not on Christmas Day.  This is our typical "designer" snow.  You wake up to a beautiful light dusting of white, and by noon the sun is shining bright, and the snow is all gone.  

We haven't had a Christmas at home for a long time, and I was determined to decorate the house even if just the two of us were going to be here all alone.  So, I got all the creches out, put up the tree, made candy and baked.  We had some neighbors over a couple of times, and then the Saturday before Christmas, I had a little party for my primary class. Those little kids are so cute, and we were having so much fun that unfortunately, I forgot to take any pictures.  

On Christmas Day, we had the elders over for dinner and then played games--Elder Leavitt on the left, and Elder Chezik in the middle.  They are really good elders, and have since moved into our basement.  We really enjoy them.

Random Photos

While we were in NC, we drove through Tanglewood Park to see the Christmas Lights.  They were really fun and impressive.  Unfortunately, McKenna didn't see anything so great about it, and Alexa, who mentioned on the way there that she wasn't feeling very good, threw up halfway through the park.  It was quite an adventure.  I got a picture of Mckenna, but spared Alexa the humiliation.

We also got to go to a Christmas program at Hayden's school.  He's the reindeer on the right.  It was a cute program, and he was definitely the cutest reindeer.

Eight Already?

I can't believe that Livie is eight already, so two days after Thanksgiving, Nov. 29, she was baptized by her Daddy.  It was such a nice day, and she is the sweetest little girl.  Both sets of grandparents were there, along with aunts and uncles and 8 cousins.  She was baptized in the same dress that I made for her mom when she was baptized, and then her mom's friend Heather Richardson was baptized in it, then her sister, Alexa, and now Livie.

Sorry I left the Bosley family out of Thanksgiving at Casey's.  Actually, this is the picture that was supposed to lead into the fact that we (and the Bosleys) drove to Casey's on Thanksgiving day, but for some reason, last time i posted, "blogosphere" didn't like this particulat picture, and that whole part was left out.  Go figure . . . how could it not LOVE this picture of this cute baby, Nate.  He was six months old here, and crawling so fast toward the camera evvery time I tried to take his picture, that I had a really hard time getting one that wasn't a blur.  Finally I got this one--Is that a cute face, or what?!

Thanksgiving at Casey's

McKenna helped with dinner preparations by staying "out of the way" in her favorite spot.

Tim turned out the perfect turkey,

and Casey and Alexa served the perfect rolls!

As a blogger, I'm somewhat of a failure.  I get so caught up in the conversation, etc., that I forget to take any pictures.  Hence, no pictures of the table and all the people that were there--Tim's parents, Dave's family, and us.  The only real evidence of Dave's family is this picture of Brenden holding McKenna.  (I also need to sharpen my photography skills.)

Holidays in Review

A Surprise Visit and "Stan the Man"

What a great surprise.  Our very best friends from our years in Denton, TX, when Stan was in graduate school, came to visit--Jim and Maurine Richards.  They are really the neatest people.  So much fun.  They just returned last winter from a mission at the Merida Temple in Mexico, and were on a trip to visit their mission president.  We were so flattered that they put us on their itinerary.  We haven't seen them for about 20 years.  Maurine taught school, and Jim is an outstanding artist.  He taught in the art department at NTSU when Stan was a student there.  Now their claim to fame is their daughter who plays the flute with the orchestra on temple square.  If you've ever seen the orchestra on TV, you've seen Jeanine--she's the beautiful brunette who is always on camera.  I can't tell you how fun it was to see Jim and Maurine again. Lots of reminiscing and catching up on old friends.  We just needed a lot more time.  Maurine's the one who taught me how to enjoy my kids and told me how important it is to have a sense of humor.  (She told Jim that, too, when their little boys had way too much fun with their dad's paint one time.  I doubt he saw the humor in it at the time, though.)

While Jim and Maurine were here, we spent some time in Stan's music room, so he could demonstrate his new "toy" the MalletKat.  I should add that Jim and Stan did a performance together at NTSU--Stan playing percussion, and Jim painting on clear plastic that was projected on a screen.  That was back in their "avant-garde" days.

Obviously, this guy is having way too much fun these days!