Bummer!

Today was the much anticipated Super Bowl XLIII. It's the one where the Arizona Cardinals finally made it!! Sadly, the Cardinals lost...but it was a good game right to the bitter end. Bummer! Mark said it was a good think that we aren't die-hard fans, or we would have taken it a lot harder, I'm sure. We had our annual gathering at Erin's house so the kids would have room to play together while the adults watched the game. Kamille was the good one, and worked on her Relief Society business while the rest of us cheered. Erin cheered loudest of all, and she took a lot of ribbing from the guys. She doesn't cheer all year, but today she made up for it, for sure!!!
Dinner was great. We had Cafe Rio pork, cilantro lime rice, creamy tomatillo dressing and chips and salsa. Erin made fresh tortillas and of course, we had dessert. Erin is so good at trying out new recipes and today was no different. She made marshmallow treats, but used strawberry marshmallows. Not only were they delicious with a hint of strawberry, but they were pink! And she made a devil's food cake with two layers of chocolate and cool whip in between....and Cool Whip icing on top. Yum!
I was sustained today in my new calling....Relief Society instructor. I teach the second Sunday each month and next week is my week. Wish me luck!
Thankfully, this week looks (at this point) to be a "quiet" week...visiting teaching, a class at Scrap Happy Sisters and a baby shower. Not too bad. We'll see if that's what actually happens!

My Dream

Warning....this is a long post!

Last night I had a dream. Here's what I dreamed...
I dreamed that we had our annual Christmas candlelight dinner. I dreamed that all of our kids and grandkids came, along with Dad and Aunt Dovetta. I dreamed that everyone brought the YUMMIEST foods to share. Also in my dream, everyone was happy, glad to see each other, cooperative and loving. As we prepared dinner, everything went smoothly and there were no major glitches. Everyone arrived safely and in due time. All of the candles (battery-type) worked and they all stayed on during the entire dinner. The grandkids got along nicely and didn't argue about who was sitting where. Nobody spilled anything. Everyone LOVED the meal. After the meal, Mark and the boys tidied up the kitchen while the grandkids, their moms and I got them prepared for our Nativity play. I also dreamed that they would all WANT to be different characters and that nobody would get their feelings hurt if they didn't get the part they wanted. In my dream, the costumes all worked and they each played their assigned part well and to their best ability. I dreamed that they wouldn't get silly with it and that they would show appropriate reverence for the Christmas story. After the play, I dreamed that the grandkids would sit patiently and wait until everyone had their early Christmas gift (PJ pants and corn bags) before tearing into them. After that, I dreamed that the ornament exchange would go off without a hitch and that everyone would be pleased with their gift. Then we would sing Christmas carols together and everyone would participate and do it with a smile! In my dream, the grandkids would want to go caroling again this year to Sister Clem's house because they had so much fun going there last year. But this year they were in such a hurry that the parents were still trying to get across the street before they started in their singing! And finally, I dreamed that everyone would have a wonderful time and be sad to say goodbye to each other. That truly was my dream as I tried to sleep last night, and I have to say that all but one thing in my dream was real and true and was my dream come true. Here's what didn't happen....all of the candles stayed lit during the entire dinner. Sorry to say, one of them pooped out and was a dud! Other than that, my 2008 Christmas dream has already come true. Life can go on and I'll be happy. It was a wonderful evening and one I know that I'll never forget. I am so very grateful for my children and grandchildren and their love for one another. I'm also grateful that their love is genuine and that they make my life so happy every day. They are my greatest joy. Thank you, family.

And now to pictures of the evening....

Sorry, but I didn't get a shot of the table when nobody was eating something. But this was our LONG table set for 12.

Six of the grandkids at their special table....Matthew has "graduated" to the adult table...he's getting too tall for the short table! Welcome, Matthew!

Emma and Abby were our angels.

Luke was one of our shepherds. He made a cute shepherd, but the shepherd's crook was deadly in his hands!!

Libby was also a shepherd. She especially loved holding the baby lamb.

Eliza was our shepherd/narrator.

Dallin and Matthew were our wise men following the star. I wish I had a better picture of them together, but it didn't happen.

Ellie and her daddy, Brian, were our Mary and Joseph. I guess we don't have enough "little" boys to cover all of the parts! Thanks for being a good sport, Brian. Dan played the innkeeper, but he managed to avoid the camera!

And Ellie made a sweet little Mary.

This is the best we got for a group photo!

Dallin, Eliza and Abigail were the brave ones who performed for us, "I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas". They did a great job!!

Patient kids waiting until just the right time to start opening their gifts! They all seemed pleased with two new pairs of PJ pants and a corn bag all their own!









Some happy expressions during the ornament exchange.

Hattie enjoying some of Emma's birthday cake.

Dallin being....well, Dallin!

Yesterday was Emma's sixth birthday and she's blowing out her birthday candles.

Libby lost two teeth over the weekend and managed to keep them both a secret until her mom noticed them missing! Luckily, the tooth fairy came for a visit for both missing teeth!

Caroling at Sister Clem's house....luckily, I managed to get a quick photo before they finished! They were so excited to go, they forgot to wait for the adult slowpokes!!
It was one of my best days so far. Thanks again, family, for making my Christmas dream come true!!

'Twas the Week Before Christmas...

A week from tonight Santa comes! How exciting!!! I love Christmas, what it means, the anticipation, family gatherings, decorations and all the good stuff. But I have to get through the not so good stuff in the next few days....wrapping gifts! The first few are fun to wrap and decorate, but after a while, it gets....well, tiring. But that's on my agenda tomorrow and Friday (if I don't finish tomorrow). On Sunday we're having our family Christmas dinner. It's something we've done for as long as I can remember. It's always been a candlelight dinner, and in years past, we used real candles clipped to each person's dinner plate. Fun, but tricky to not catch your sleeve on fire as you reach for something across the table. Since we've had grandkids, we've gone to battery candles. It's much safer. The grandkids totally look forward to the candlelight part of the dinner. Every year they ask if it's time for the candles. We use real dishes (no paper for this meal!), cloth napkins and stemware. Of course, the grandkids have their own special dinnerware. I even have Christmas silverware. Many years ago I found some made by Debbie Mumm with Santas and snowmen on the handles. We always have ham and various side dishes. This year is no different. The best part now that the kids are all grown is that they contribute by bringing the side dishes. Everyone chooses something they're really good at, so we get the best of each family. This year there will be 19 of us. Dad and Aunt Dovetta will join us again this year. The kids always request that Aunt Dovetta bring her yummy broccoli salad and spiced nuts. Dan usually makes the traditional green jello salad. Brian and Kamille are bringing potatoes....my guess is that it will be funeral potatoes...Brian's favorite. Erin's making dilled carrots. Yum! And for "dessert" we're having our favorite Christmas candies...peanut butter balls and 7-layer bars. Christmas dinner is always a big deal, even if it's not always on Christmas day. This year we're trying something new. We're going to have a Nativity play. We have the costumes and props ready and the grandkids will play the parts. We decided (so there aren't any hard feelings) that we'd let the kids pick their part "from a hat" and we'd do the play as many times as we need to so that everyone gets to play their "favorite" part. I hope it works out well.
Sunday is Emma's 6th birthday. It's hard to believe she's six already.
Since it's her birthday and they'll be here already for dinner, she'll be having her sleepover that night. We're excited! I don't know yet what she'll choose to do or what she'll choose for her gift, but I know it will be a lot of FUN!! Happy birthday, Emma!
Mark had a fun day today with Eliza. Her class at school was making gingerbread houses from graham crackers. Each child could choose one family member to invite to school to help build and decorate their house. She chose her grandpa! They even made special invitations for their honored guests. Mark couldn't turn down that kind of offer, so he arranged his schedule and went to Eliza's school this afternoon. Their house turned out cute and it held together well. I think her favorite part was that she got to ride home in his DARE truck! What a fun treat!
My excitement today was a change of hair color. I used to color my hair all the time, but for the past several months I've tried the au naturalle look. It's been okay, but I don't like the texture of my gray hair....it's too wirey, if that makes any sense. So today, Amber colored my hair again. It's more on the red side than before, but it still has the blonde highlights. She said the color value is the same as before, but the tone is different. It seems much darker to me, but that could be because I've been used to boring, dull gray. I'll get used to it...and I hope everyone else does, too. The texture is WAY better now. And if my hair is happy, so am I!
Finally, Mark and I have been listening to another book on CD. It's called Mary and Joseph by Robert Marcum. We tried listening to it this past summer, but for some reason neither of us could connect with the book. So we set it aside and tried again this month. I'm so glad we waited. It was a wonderful fictional version of the story of Mary and Joseph (and of Christ as a child). I would definitely recommend it. We finished it tonight and we were both sorry to have it end.