A Little Pre-Christmas Cheer

This is the best time of year. I can't help but feel nostalgic and smiley and excited and grateful around Christmas time.  I LOVE the ward and family get-togethers, the delicious smells and FOOD, the constant singing, the lights and decorations around town, Christmas Hymns in sacrament meeting, and remembering the sweet story of Christ's humble birth. And I hope that I can pass on Christmas' spirit to my daughter.  

 I think she's getting it.

We aren't buying Scarlett presents to open on Christmas because I already know that there are some wickedly excited family members on the job, and I figure she doesn't genuinely care about much besides cords and climbing and food (She's especially passionate about popcorn, so we allow her to eat an edited de-kerneled version.  She comes from a long line of popcorn lovers.)

She also loves remotes, cell phones, and specks on the floor.

However, I am excited to shop for Scarlett next Christmas and find something that she's really into.  Maybe she'll be into dolls, or horses, or tornadoes (my nephews had a ongoing obsession with tornadoes, so cute and so weird). Shopping for kids is fun.

And apparently, so is shopping for ourselves.  Brian and I got a few Christmas upgrades in our home.

 We got rid of our big entertainment center and got these shelves and wall mount for our TV.  It looks nicer and makes the room feel much more open.

Brian installed a bike rack so our first babies don't take over our human baby's room.  Hurray!

And we got a dog! Just kidding, anybody who knows us knows we would never get a dog.  Some of Brian's colleagues hosted a little Christmas party.  Ben's cute pup Aidy and Scarlett really hit it off. Last time they met she was quite afraid of her, but that evening they reconciled their differences and got into each others' personal space and didn't seem to mind. 

 Ben. Home owner, dog-owner, host.

 Micheal, and Anh-Vu being a crazy fun Vietnamese man.

 Natalie and Scar-child.

 Puppy love.

 Intimate party of 4 men, 1 woman, 1 baby, a dog and a cat.

We even got presents! I got a Swiffer Wet Jet, Brian got a bunch of steak, and Scarlett got a monkey leash.  So thoughtful, they're all too nice.

To me, Christmas is about spending time and appreciating the people you love, and especially about  the Savior, His birth, His message, and the hope He brings to our future.   I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas!  Family, we are so excited to see you next week!

T-giving and Apes

Ever since we returned from Utah for Brian's sweet Grandpa's funeral, I've been in a sweet, lazy funk. It didn't help that I got very sick on the flight home which cascaded into a sick little family for the next week.  There was a nasty virus that hit almost every member of my family.  At first, we thought it was food poisoning since my mom, my little sister, and I all had the same rough night. But as it swiftly diffused through eight other family members, we threw away that idea.
  I haven't had too many post inspirations lately, and that last month flew by. I cannot believe that its Christmas season.  Also, I'm turning 24 (I think) on the 12th of December.  Happy birthday to me!  Brian got me a nice new Canon EOS Rebel xs for a sneaky early present.  In the near future I'm gonna litter this blog with fantastic photography, probably!  Not today though, still waiting for the SD card in the mail.  BTW, I would love any tips on editing, lighting, how to  actually use my camera, etc.

Isn't she beautiful?

Lately, I've just been enjoying cold weather and comfort food and new friends and baby teething.  The baby teething part is a funny ironic joke.  Scarlett's world gets turned upside down when she gets a new tooth, and it  especially effects her sleep habits.  Curse you, stuffy noses and little fevers and wakeful nights! We had a great sleep system down! Sleepless nights aside, it is all totally worth it for sweet moments like this:

 Scarlett loves her dad and her apes.  Whenever I call them monkeys, Brian corrects me. She has a few different species of toy apes, not just in the monkey family. I am thankful for his insightful distinction.

Our Thanksgiving was awesome thanks to our Utah-transplant-orphan ward.  When we don't have family around, we just get together and make a new one.  We had a Thanksgiving dinner with the institute the Friday before actual Thanksgiving, then another meal on the blessed Thursday.  Thanksgiving morning we played volleyball with our ward and a flock of sweet silly missionaries, and after our meal we ended up playing basketball after we cleaned up the gym.  It reminded me of home.  I loved it.
    On Friday we slept in and did some midday Black Friday shopping and finally found Scarlett a coat.  Looks cozy right?

        Its basically a straight jacket when combined with her car seat, but she doesn't seem to mind.  It puts her right to sleep.  And those cute boots are from City Creek's H&M from Grandma Green.  We had such a great time paloosing around city creek and looking at cool displays and stuff we couldn't afford.   I'm so excited to visit for Christmas!