A Very Merry Christmas

This was our first Christmas together and it has been filled with many great memories. It was filled with old traditions and possibly some new traditions.

Jana's family has a Christmas Eve tradition of eating pizza by candlelight so we went over there for dinner and to sing some traditional Christmas songs around the piano. After visiting with her family we ventured over to spend some time with my parents and watch " The Christmas shoes". It was a very good movie and I tried to be a helpful husband by wiping away her tears but I guess that I was smearing them across her face. I was starting to get a little teary eyed but I think that I would have to attribute that to the fact that I have sinuses. The truth is I was actually a little emotional because the show was very sad.

Christmas came and went very quickly but it was filled with many great memories of those we love the most, our family. Our main present for each other were these coats that we had found at Cabelas. My coat had arrived at the store but Jana's was on a backorder so I inquired with one of the associates that was ringing me up at the Sports Authority. She called one of their other stores and they actually had the coat that we wanted in stock so we bought it there instead. In the morning we went to Jana's parents and enjoyed a delicious brunch after we had finished unwrapping our presents. We then ventured over to my parents and enjoyed spending time with them even though the power had gone out at their house. It truly has been a Christmas that will be remembered for a very long time and it was nice to be able to spend it with our family.

We hope that all of you have had an enjoyable holiday and remember what Christmas means to you. Whether it is a special time of the year that is spent with family, or the birth of our beloved Savior. May you all enjoy the wonderful holiday season.

December Joys!

Sorry it has been so long since we have had an entry. Life has been busy. Since the last time we wrote Mark and I went to Arizona with his parents to be with his grandparents for Thanksgiving. It was nice to be somewhere warm. While down in Arizona we went to the Arizona Auto Show, which has become a traditional event for him whenever he visits his grandparents for Thanksgiving. We were also able to go and visit my cousin Julie to see her new house. It was nice to be able to see her and all of the Richards family.

The next cool thing that happened is that my brother came home from serving in the Macon, Georgia Mission. This picture you see is of me and him at my school. He came to see me since I didn't get to go to the airport. I was surprised to see him there, but it was a great surprise! When I introduced my parents and Charles to my class, the kids were completely silent. That ended when my family left...they were quickly back to their chattiness. Later that night Mark was able to meet Charles face to face because Charles was in Georgia when we were married in August.

We have also been spending some time with Jason, Shelli and their adorable baby Emzli, born on October 25th. I think that she is so cute. It is lots of fun to be able to have a new little baby in the family. This picture is from my mom and Jon's combined birthday celebrations. November and so far in December we have had lots of family time, which has been very nice.

It has taken us awhile, but we finally have a Christmas tree up and decorated! My co-worker gave us her old tree, and we gladly accepted. It is just the right size for our little apartment. I think it looks pretty cute. Mark helped decorate the tree, and he also sprayed our star so it would match the rest of the tree. We couldn't find a tree topper that we liked. Mark then found one that we both liked, but it was the wrong color. While I was at my parent's house on Saturday spraying my student's Christmas Ornaments green, Mark sprayed our star sliver. It looks very nice. I also took some time last week to put up all of my Nativity sets. I have 11 different sets, and I am working on embroidering one more. I think our place looks very nice. I also got out all my Christmas dishes. It has been fun eating on something new. Here are some pictures of the tree, the star and some of the Nativities.

Mark and I are looking forward to the time we get to spend together in the next few weeks. I only have 5 days left until my much needed Christmas break begins, and Mark also gets some time off from work. We will continue to enjoy the many fun time with our families this holiday season. If you would like to enjoy some nice reading, click on the Christmas Advent button on the right side of our blog. We have enjoyed reading a new entry everyday, feeling the spirit and being uplifted each time. Enjoy the holidays and the time you have to spend with your families!