Making it Feel Like Christmas

As I have mentioned previously, I have had a hard time getting into the spirit of Christmas this year. Christmas shopping was a bit stressful this time around, Spiff was very busy in his surgery rotation, and our vacation with my family has seemed so far away! But I have finally managed to catch the Christmas Bug, and I am very excited about the upcoming festivities. I realize that I am responsible for making it feel like Christmas. I also realize that this will be more important to my family as Gunner gets older, so for future reference, here are a few things we did this year that helped me get into the Christmas Spirit...

My friend, Maggie, gave me a Christmas tree! Pretty awesome gift, huh? They bought a new one last year, and she gave us this great little, pre-lit(!!!) tree, which Spiff and I decorated, and which I am completely in love with! I love the lights, and they have been on every waking hour since we put it up. This little tree has been a great centerpiece for our family this month, and was the thing that really helped me oust my humbug. Thanks, Maggie!

Apparently, it's very important for me to decorate my home in order for it to feel like Christmas. We put up the tree, an advent calendar on the wall, and our fabulous Playmobile nativity scene, and it makes me giddy to go into our living room!

We also attended a Christmas festival in the historic district of a local suburb. We got bundled up, braved the cold, and walked among the festive streets. We tried chestnuts roasted on an open fire for the first time. They're very good, but oddly taste a bit like potatoes. And we watched the Santa Claus Parade, filled with all kinds of Santas, carolers, and even the Sugar Plum Fairy. Very fun!

Uncle Sam Santa?

Frontier Santa

So, Merry Christmas! We wish you all have a wonderful holiday season!

5 Year Ago Today...

Spiff and I Got Married!

Our Wedding Luncheon, post ceremony:

The Winter Wonderland Reception:

Happy Five Years to Us!!!

That's what we were doing five years ago.

Spiff's sister was defending her BA Honors History Paper (well, that...and attending our party). What were you doing?

The Homeless Man

Gunner is apparently aspiring to be a hobo when he grows up. He has a diaper box which he pushes around the house, filling with various and sundry articles of interest. Currently the rather weighty contents include: 1 empty 2 liter soda bottle, 1 24oz parmesan cheese container, 6 boxes of easy mac, 1 empty box of wheat thins, 1 tupperware full of cheerios, 1 3/4 cup measuring cup, 1 jumbo Lego, 1 Power Ranger cell phone, 3 floating bath animals (a whale, a polar bear, and a starfish), a container of hand lotion, a rubber spatula, an aluminum trivet, a Kitchenaid serving spoon, 12 board books, and a silicone oven mitt. I guess wherever he decides to settle he'll be well fed (assuming he can get into the easy mac), and entertained.

Fast Sunday

I'm having a first today. Well, not a Real first, but a first-in-a-long-time kind of first. I'm not pregnant, and I'm not a nursing mother anymore, so I'm fasting. And oh, boy, I forgot how difficult fasting is. First of all, I forgot about the blessed occasion until after I had already cooked oatmeal for Gunner and me for breakfast. Just as I was about to spoon it into our bowls, Spiff reminded me that it is, indeed, Fast Sunday. So I replaced my bowl into the cupboard, fed Gunner, and listened to him hum away as he enjoyed what was Going to be my breakfast.

Also, I am in the nursery, and snack time was slightly torturous for me today. I do enjoy the fact that we nursery leaders get to enjoy snacks with the kids. It is a small, but delightful, perk in such a difficult calling. But since I couldn't have my Craisins and animal crackers today, at least the kids were well behaved.

Now I'm home, waiting around for dinner time, and I'm having to fight the strong urge I have to be crabby with my family. My body thinks that my belly button is well on its way to merging with my spine. My stomach thinks that I have betrayed it, and it has absolutely convinced my mind that I might Not Ever Eat Again.

I will admit that I was able to listen to and absorb more of the testimonies in Sacrament Meeting today than I have in a long time. Whether that was because of my renewed efforts in fasting, or because Gunner was actually a good, non-temper-tantrum-throwing boy, or a little bit of both, I'm grateful to have felt the Spirit today. I guess that's why we do this to ourselves. Right?

Ho Ho Ho

Gunner met Santa in the mall yesterday. He was walking the halls during a break, drinking a Mountain Dew. Gunner looked at him like he looks at all strangers, with a uncomfortable stare that I know as, "Mommy, someone is looking at me." He was otherwise unfazed by Jolly Old St. Nick. And no, I didn't get his picture taken with him.