Polar Express

We had the most wonderful opportunity this morning! We got to ride the Polar Express to the North Pole and visit Santa in his workshop. Then, as we rode the train back, we got to go through the life of Christ through Simon Dewey's paintings that were displayed along the track. It was very touching. A family in the area has built a 1/8th size train track for a miniature Union Pacific train and every year they give people rides to the "North Pole" at no charge. You start off in a barn watching the Polar Express until it is your turn. Then you listen to the music from the movie as you go through the festive landscape on the way to Santa's workshop. Then each child has a chance to sit on Santa's lap. This is the first year that Brielle hasn't screamed when introduced to Santa. She even told him that she wants a bike for Christmas. Then Santa teaches the children the true meaning of Christmas. Santa gave each child a necklace with a bell, a candy cane and a pass-along card for the movie Joy to the World. Santa explained to the children that the candy cane is a "J" for Jesus and that we should remember Him. He then asks them to pay attention to the pictures as they ride the train back and to tell their moms who is in the pictures and what He is doing. Along the track there are about 20 large paintings of Christ from His birth to His resurrection. I was so impressed by the way that family chooses to use their resources to serve and to share the message of the gospel. What a wonderful Christmas experience!Nathan meets SantaBrielle Meets Santa...and is even happy about it! :)

Sitting in Santa's workshop.

Here is the train as it passes a couple of the pictures of Christ.

And so is Jared...

Saturday afternoon I mentioned to Jared that we needed to use the mushrooms that were in the fridge for dinner that night otherwise they would go bad. I came downstairs a few hours later to find a steak dinner complete with mashed potatoes and corn covered in an amazing mushroom sauce that would compete with anything you would find in a fancy restaurant. I was in heaven.

Then, tonight, after helping me wrap gifts Jared headed to the kitchen AGAIN! An hour later we sat down to gourmet dinner #2. It consisted of chicken breast stuffed with a cream cheese mixture, spinach and cream cheese rolled in 2 slices of ham with a light brown sugar and butter glaze on top and spagetti with a homemade alfredo sauce that was to die for. Did I marry the right man or what?

And yes, I am dang glad that he is a better cook than me as well!

My Favorite Christmas Tradition

Summer, Kari, Jamie (My intramural raquetball partner...we took 2nd in the tournament this week! Yipee!), and Me

Shopping?...No, good guess because I do love that. But, my favorite Christmas tradition is doing Sub for Santa or the Angel Tree. It brings the spirit of Christmas into my heart like nothing else does. I love the feeling I get when I "splurge" to make someone else happy...especially a child that I know probably doesn't have the means to get "splurged" on very often...if ever. This year the MBA Spouses Association did an angel tree and a few of us got to go shopping to buy things with money that was donated for the extra tags that no one had volunteered to take. We had such a fun time and found some great deals at Macy's. The spouse's association president, Summer (far left), LOVES Macy's and after shopping with her there I can see why. She knows how to find fantastic deals and it was so rewarding to be able to buy high quality things for these children. Christmas time truly is "the most wonderful time of the year!" What is your favorite Christmas tradition?

Brielle's wrapping...DONE!

Brielle is officially ready for Christmas. She got all her presents made last week and she wrapped them today. She had a blast doing each step...especially choosing the paper, wrapping the gift and writing the tag. As you can see, she is very proud of her work. So, grandma and grandpa and aunts and uncles, you can be excited for Christmas morning now. Brielle definitely is. (Now if only I can get as prepared as she is!)

Brielle is a Better Cook Than Me! Yay!

Yesterday I made 6 dozen rolls for several different things that we have going on and Brielle asked if she could help. I was in a hurry and "help" usually means that it is going to take twice as long, with twice as much clean up, but I couldn't refuse. She helped me make the dough by counting each cup and stirring all the ingredients. She is learning to be more careful so only a little bit escaped the bowl. Then she "just happened" to wake up from her nap right as I was starting the next step (I don't think she ever went to sleep). So she helped me roll out the dough, cut it into triangles and then she rolled them into crescents all by herself. I was so impressed! They looked as good, or better, than mine. Not only did she do a great job, there was a lot of counting and shape identification practice, as well as fine motor skill refinement. Who knew cooking could be so educational? Next time I will accept her "help" with a little more enthusiasm!

Can anyone tell me how to change this picture so it is up and down? I still have a lot to learn! Oh, and I wanted to do a slide show like I see on so many of your blogs and I'm not sure how, so if anyone has tons of time and their hands and wouldn't mind explaining it to me I would love it!

Nativity Weekend

On Friday night we went to temple square to see the lights. We all enjoyed the lights, the singing in the tabernacle, and especially the nativity (Despite Nathan's grumpy face in the picture :) ).

Then on Saturday night we attended a live nativity put on by a stake here in town that was absolutely amazing. I guess they have done it for the last 12 years. They have a very detailed set with the stable, Jerusalem shops, the rocks for the shepherds and a throne for King Herod. It was especially touching to watch Brielle as she watched Mary and Joseph travel to the stable and then to see baby Jesus be born (that was very tactfully done). She was in awe. After the play we were able to go outside where there were live animals to pet...donkeys, sheep, goats, and even a camel. It was the perfect way to enjoy this season and brought it all to life for the kids, which means so much! Jared and the kids petting the animals.

Family...One of our greatest blessings!

On Wednesday Jared and I enjoyed going to a delightful MBA Christmas Party. We had a wonderful meal and then listened to a concert put on by Jon Schmidt. It was so nice to go out, just the two of us, without any recruiters around that we had to impress (the other times we have been out just the 2 of us since moving to Provo has been with recruiters). We were able to just relax and have fun. And it was all thanks to Brian and Michelle who cheerfully agreed to leave work early, miss dinner and an activity that Michelle was planning to attend, and rush down from Salt Lake in order to watch our children for us when we were not able to find anyone available here in Provo. Tears come to my eyes just typing it. It is always hard to ask others to help me out, but even harder when I realize the sacrifice that they are making. What a blessing it is to have such a wonderful family and to live close enough to them now that we get to spend more time with them. Thank you Brian and Michelle for giving us such a thoughtful Christmas gift. And...we love your beautiful new car! You need to post about it so everyone can see it!

Christmas Dancing

We have a toy train around the bottom of our Christmas tree and it comes with a "train station" that has 3 buttons that play Christmas songs. Through it Nathan discovered the joy of "playing a musical instrument." Last night during family scripture study Nathan decided to entertain all of us. He would push a button and stand up and dance for the 10 seconds that the song played. Then he would toddle over, bend down, and push the button again and start dancing. He did it over and over and over.We loved it! We tried to "capture the moment" and this is the best we could do...

Decorating for Christmas

Our home is all decorated for Christmas! Yipee! We spent Sunday afternoon decorating and had such a wonderful time. It amazes me how happy one can feel simply by unwrapping beloved nativity sets, listening to Josh Groban Christmas music, and watching their husband and children decorate the tree. They had quite an assembly line going. Jared would hand an ornament to Nathan who would pass it to Brielle and say "here you go." She would say "Thank you Nathan" and hang it on the tree. She did a fabulous job of decorating the tree, although there were a few branches (the ones that were at eye level) that were definitely her favorite. They were blessed with lots of ornaments. I love this time of year and the joy that seems to fill the air! Merry Christmas season to all of you! One of Brielle's favorite branches.

Santa Claus Nathan!

Brielle Decorating

Unwrapping nativities

Can I be a Blogger?

Hello Friends!
Thanks to urging from many of you and an unrequested email from Shonna with a step by step how-to guide (thanks Shonna!!), I now have a blog. I'm not quite sure what to do from here, but I'm sure I will figure it out!!