Christmas Images

I hope you all had a Merry Christmas! Last night was fun because Jayce enjoyed the Christmas story. I bought a book showing the biblical as well as the Book of Mormon account of the Savior's birth, and Jayce was quite mesmerized. I hope he "got it." This morning the kids had fun discovering new toys. Jer and I went overboard and vow to do better next year -- we must simplify! Jeremy had a great idea and suggested we order Christmas dinner from Smith's Grocery. Yesterday we picked up the turkey and all the fixins' and merely had to put them in the oven. The meal was delicious and hassle-free. I think it's our new tradition. While our celebration was on the simple side, we had a nice day spending time together.

Sleepy . . . but having fun.

Jayce and Alyssa playing in their pop-up school bus tent.

I was trying to show Alyssa playing with her new ball popper, but once she saw the camera she had no interest in the toy. However, she got sidetracked by the cell phone, and unbeknownst to me, ended up calling Jer's boss. Oops!

Alyssa loves the ABC song -- she's rocking out to Jayce's LeapFrog fridge magnet toy (she escaped from my grasp as I was trying to get her pants on). Later on this poor girl developed a high fever and was miserable the rest of the night. Her Christmas joy was short-lived.

Christmas Quiz (I've been tagged)

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Wrapping paper and sticker tags.
2. Real tree or Artificial? Artificial.
3. When do you put up the tree? We try to wait until after Thanksgiving, but this year we did it the day before.
4. When do you take the tree down? Usually after New Year's, but I think we'll do it this weekend.
5. Do you like eggnog? Yes, but I'm not fond of the aftertaste.
6. Favorite gift received as a child? A dollhouse.
7. Do you have a nativity scene? I have a figurine of baby Jesus, Joseph, and Mary, but I don't have an all-out nativity scene. I'm holding out for the Willow Tree set.
8. Hardest person to buy for? Jeremy
9. Easiest person to buy for? Alyssa -- because she's one.
10. Mail or email Christmas cards? Mail (although mine will be very late this year)
11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? An empty scotch tape holder -- thanks, Dad!
12. Favorite Christmas movie?"Miracle on 34th Street" or "It's a Wonderful Life." Jer's is "A Christmas Story" -- he could watch it all day.
13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? I started buying in October -- big mistake! I learned that if I give myself too much time, I buy too much because I forget all the things I bought previously. Next year I'll need to stick to a list.
14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? On rare occasions, yes.
15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Clementines
16. Clear lights or colored on the tree? Colored
17. Favorite Christmas song? Too many to name! I love the Mormon Tabernacle Choir arrangements . . . they get me every time.
18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? For the first six years of marriage, we went to Utah. This year we decided to stay home (a last-minute decision). Due to our sick little girl, we know we made the right decision.
19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer? Yes!
20. Angel on the tree top or a star? A fancy bow.
21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or Christmas morning? Christmas morning. I think we'll start the tradition of opening one on Christmas Eve, though (my family did that while I was growing up).
22. Most annoying thing about this time of year? So much hustle and bustle . . . wish I had more time to enjoy it all.
23. Favorite ornament theme or color? Our tree has a red and gold theme this year.
24. Favorite for Christmas dinner? Turkey dinner and my Mom's Christmas salad and wreath bread.
25. What did you want for Christmas this year? My wedding ring, which is still lost. I'm sick over it. I kept thinking Jer must have found it and hoped I'd see it in my stocking this morning. No such luck. :(

The agony! The elation!

I was miserable, miserable, miserable due to BYU's inefficient play during the game. I'm still not sure why we didn't take a knee at the end of the second half . . . quite perplexing. I felt like I was watching a mediocre MWC team, not the powerhouse Cougars! Near the end of the game, Jer and I were resigned to a bowl defeat. How could UCLA miss an easy field goal when their kicker was so amazing? Anyway, our sour mood turned to astonishment and relief as the kick was blocked. I'm so glad we won -- but it definitely wasn't pretty. Whew!

La Dolce Vita!

I didn't mean for my previous post to seem so down. I changed the wording a bit to brighten the mood. My intention was to tell a cute Jayce story -- not to make everyone depressed! :) I guess I was just expressing the emotion that all moms feel at times . . . we just never do enough. Thanks for the wonderful words of encouragement! I'm quite content and happy.

Right now, as I type, BYU is leading UCLA, 10 -3. The Cougs aren't looking too confident . . . I hope we turn things around and really light things up. I'm so nervous! I wish I was there (I went to the tailgate party but had to return to get my kids to bed). Jeremy and I are looking forward to the day when we have the freedom to attend a football game -- such a simple request, yet so complicated in our current situation.

Have a GREAT night! I am done, done, done with Christmas shopping and am looking forward to seeing the kids open their presents. I think Jer and I went overboard -- we're more excited than they are (and we're not even expecting any gifts for ourselves . . . we made a pact). Anyway, three more days!

I'm just a person

Lately I've been feeling very overwhelmed -- with gratitude and guilt at the same time. :) I've had wonderful friends send Christmas cards and goodies my way, yet I've done NOTHING. I still have every intention of sending out Christmas cards and doing something nice for others, but I haven't mustered the motivation. I could use sick kids and holiday busy-ness as an excuse, but I think everyone else has been in the same boat.

Jayce has further humbled me today. This morning I was telling him that some moms go to work. I used our friend, Wendy, as an example, telling him she's a school teacher. He retorted, "You're not a school teacher, Mommy, you're just a person!" He reiterated that point later when he noticed a bug in his cereal (don't ask me how it got there). I offered to get it for him, but he insisted on waiting for Dad. I asked him why I couldn't do it. He replied,"You're just a person and Daddy saves me." I should be offended, but I thought it was rather funny.

Christmas in Disneyland

As an early Christmas present, Jeremy's parents treated our family to a couple of days at Disneyland. The kids were able to spend time with their cousins Abbey, Eliza, and Carson, Uncle Eric and Aunt Amber, as well as their grandparents. In typical Disney fashion, everything was so festive -- I loved the decorations, Christmas trees, Haunted Mansion, Small World, etc. Sleeping Beauty's Castle also had a cool night show where icicles would form as snow would fall on the surrounding crowd. So fun! Certainly, especially during the holiday season, Disneyland is the Happiest Place on Earth. I'm really grateful for the Pikes. We had a blast! (Note: We didn't get a lot of pictures . . . we'll have to get more from Jer's family. This was the best I could do for now).

Fascinating me!

I've been tagged by Kellie.

Six things you probably didn't know about me:

I'm really into politics and current events. I'm constantly reading newspapers, magazines, and political commentaries/stories. I feel passionate about my conservative views, yet I rarely express them. I realize politics is a highly polarizing issue, so I shy away from discussion. However, if you're Jeremy or my Dad, you can't get me to stop talking about the latest thing I've been musing about. I love debating!

I can't stand having my feet touched! Once a former flame offered to give me a foot massage. It was nice gesture, so I allowed it. However, I was miserable and mentally begged him to stop. Even now, on the rare occasion I get a massage or go to a spa, I instruct the therapist not to touch my feet. Jeremy's not allowed near that area, either.

I have to do a brain teaser every day or I can't fall asleep. These usually consist of crossword puzzles, Sudoku . . . anything similar to that. I'm desperate to work my brain, and even if it's 2 a.m. and I'm exhausted, I'll still do my silly crossword puzzle. I wish I wasn't so diehard because I need my sleep!

My joints are hyper-extended. I didn't fully realize this until high school -- when my friends and I were eating lunch, one guy friend commented something about my arm. I was thrilled because I thought he was complimenting my tan. My enthusiasm quickly waned when he said, "No, I was wondering how you could bend it like that. Does it hurt?" Ouch! So much for impressing the opposite sex with my bronzeness (a rare feat for me). My brother, David, and I share the same anatomical annoyances. Besides my arms and legs, my back is hyper-extended as well. When I lie down I can't touch my entire back to the floor. I remember in gym class when we were doing crunches, the instructor would tell me to push my stomach to the floor, but I couldn't -- my body wouldn't let me!

I hate the feel of wooden spoons. I'm not sure why . . . I have nothing against wood unless it's made into a utensil. When I touch one, I have to touch something else immediately to cancel out the willies -- like a dish cloth or something.

At age 3 or 4 I memorized all the verses of "The Spirit of God" with the primary. I was so proud and loved the song so much (it's still my favorite today) -- I would sing it during sacrament meeting with much gusto. However, as much as my parents tried to convince me otherwise, I was sure the lyrics were "Oh Santa, oh Santa" instead of "Hosanna, Hosanna." I thought it was appropriate to mention with Christmas approaching. :)

Now I'll tag Scott, Glen (get a blog), David (get a blog), Jennifer (get a blog) -- I think most of my other friends have done this one, or Kellie just tagged them.