Merry Christmas (and a warmer new year)

We hope that everyone had a wonderful Christmas. Ours was certainly unforgettable (and eventful). On Christmas Eve, we read the Christmas story (as always) but this year the kids wanted to act out the story. We scrambled around trying to find costumes to satisfy Aubrey and Bryce. Gavin would only agree if he could be a Power Ranger so we decided who better to protect sheep than Power Rangers and we put him in as a shepherd. Everyone really took to their part. It was a lot of fun and a great way to remember our Savior and His birth.

Christmas morning was early, but fabulous. It is so fun to see kids get so excited about everything, that is one of the great joys of the holiday.
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Christmas afternoon we started cooking. The missionaries were coming for dinner that night and we had decided to make a turkey dinner with all the fixins so it would be a festive meal (is that what they eat in Serbia??). Anyway, for some reason the turkey didn't cook all the way even though we cooked it nearly an hour longer than the bag had said and because the turkey was slow we didn't get the rolls in the oven in time. Dinner was a comedy of errors, but we had a good laugh and so did the elders and we ate things as they became available. That is one Christmas meal they won't forget any time soon.

Next, about eight o-clock our power went out. It got cold, quickly. We put the kids to bed and tucked sleeping bags around them. We put them all in one room to try to keep things warmer. It was a long night. Logan kept kicking out of his blankets and then couldn't get back in so we would have to go tuck him back in. As long as we stayed in bed we were fine, but if you had to get out to use the bathroom or something, it got pretty dicey. The power finally came on the next morning at 7:08, just as we were packing up to head to my mom's for some heat (kids under eight don't sleep in..especially when you don't want to get out of bed).

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Finally, as we went outside that morning we were welcomed to a wonderful white world of winter. It was pristine and untouched and beautiful. Not so much fun to shovel, but our kids had a great time trouncing through the drifts. What a fabulous holiday, we wouldn't change a thing. We are so grateful for our Savior, whose birth and life we get to celebrate this time of year.

Very Happy Holidays to All!!!