Merry Christmas

We had a wonderful Christmas in Ohio. Initially we were sad to not be with our families this year, but we kept very busy and made some fun traditions for our own little family. If it weren't for great friends I think we would have been very bored. Some highlights were:

1. Making Gingerbread Houses with friends! Sarah made a Gingerbread Trailer House, complete with wheels.
2. Bowling on Christmas Eve. The Johnsons introduced us to this family tradition and it was a blast. We found a bowling alley that was open, but it was in Plain City which is 20 minutes away and it's a tad "Hickville". In spite of a dog running around, we had an awesome time. The kids had never bowled before and that made it even more fun. We were shocked when Allie got the first strike! The Johnsons brought several prizes and our family ended up winning them all...although we shared with everyone else. So...Darin won for highest score, Sarah won for lowest score, Allie won for first strike, Darin won for most strikes and most spares! So...ya luckily Allie and Kate take after Darin. We hope Roman does too!
3. My niece Kayla came to visit us on Christmas Eve and is staying until Jan 5th. She is 17 and a senior in h.s. We LOVE having her here! She actually makes me look forward to the day that my girls are teenagers!
4. Christmas Eve Dinner with our Bishop's family and several others from our ward. The food was amazing and so was the entertainment--music from homemade instruments.
5. Christmas morning with our family was wonderful. The kids woke up around 8...not bad. It was hard to keep them from opening all of the gifts at once but somehow they restrained themselves. Something about little kids on Christmas morning is just magical. They were delighted with everything from socks to toys. Allie asked me if I could hear bells, I told her yes and she said that means I believe in Santa. She's right!
6. Christmas dinner at the church. Several friends who stayed here got together Christmas afternoon. It was so nice to be around people we love rather than sitting at home wondering what our families are up to. We even had the kids put on a Nativity...although Joseph was a no-show. ha
The festivities were great but we definitely took time to reflect on the true meaning of Christmas, the birth of our Savior. Having a son this time of year gave me a new perspective to how Mary may have felt...on the smallest of levels. I can't imagine the circumstances she was under, or the complete understanding she had of giving birth to the Savior of the World. I can only say that I am grateful for her and especially grateful to Jesus for the Life He Lived and the Life He Gave.

We are looking forward to this New Year! We are inviting friends over for a big breakfast--the Sundbergs shared that tradition with us when they lived here. We'll also be setting some Goals for 2008!!!

Have a Happy and Safe New Years!