For Christmas break, Hal and I drove to Colorado to be with my sister, Wendy, and her adorable family. They were great hosts, and Wendy is a great cook! When we got there, she made me a birthday cake--it was delicious! And I received the best birthday gift--a subscription to Taste of Home :) Which is where the recipe for my birthday cake came from:
http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Peanut-Crunch-CakeIt was such a treat to see Alli and Carter (in addition to their parents of course), but they are officially so cute! On Christmas Eve, Alli was preparing to reinact the Nativity, so she pulled off the couch cushions and climbed inside a cube she had formed with them. She informed us that she is "baby Jesus waiting to come out of Mary's belly." I think that was about the most literal reinactment of the Nativity I have ever seen.
Alli and I were such good friends, of course until Grandma came. Then the coveted seat next to Allison at the dinner table became Grandma's and not Aunt Holly's. So the glory was short-lived but it was fun while it lasted. I can't blame her anyway; Grandma is super cool. Plus, Alli recognized some of the best parts of Christmas; when my mom first arrived she said like ten times, "I'm sooo happy you're here." And then at dinner she announced "The best part of Christmas is having Grandma and Grandpa here!" I can agree too--family is so special. I do have to admit, I tried to win over their hearts by making these cute little "elf" outfits out of socks that my friend Amber Burrows showed me how to make, and the one I made for Allison made it into her treasure box! And Carter liked the buttons on his.
Here is a picture of the one Amber made. They're even cuter with some candy and little oranges in "bottom" :)
Speaking of Carter, he was so grown up, especially in being tech-savvy. Whenever we were on the computer, he would slide his way into our laps and ask, "Can I push da button?" or ask to see Thomas the Train. Whenever we would show PowerPoints for devotionals, Carter's job was to click to the next slides, and he did it flawlessly!
It was also fun to see and share talents on Christmas eve. Wendy and I played a duet of "Silent Night" on the piano, Allison read a verse from the Book of Mormon (and earlier that week performed "Up On the Housetop" on the piano with some help from Mom), Carter may have sung "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" (He would randomly sing that all through the break, singing, "He's making a list, he's making it twice" :) ), I think Dad sang a song, but I'm afraid I don't remember what Anthony did--he was a really good dad helping Alli and Carter with their talents! Hal recited and performed some Shakespeare--specifically lines from Hamlet. And Mom led us in an elf cheer, which was a little something she picked up from working on the Polar Express the past few months leading up to Christmas.
Christmas was also special because we were able to talk with Tanner while he's on his mission in Russia. He sounded great! Since I'm reporting on this so late, I can't remember the details. I do remember he wanted a big red book that was a Russian dictionary or something. He mentioned the language is difficult--I can only imagine. But he also shared some great stories, and overall sounded happy; so that made for a happy Christms for my Mom especially.
Other highlights include attending the Denver temple, seeing "Little House on the Prairie" the musical, going to the movie theater, visiting a life science museum, going to the gym, visiting the Molly Brown home, and just hanging out at home--Alli and Carter kept us plenty entertained. Meanwhile, Hal had a lot of work to do, so I would help him with that sometimes.
The day before Christmas eve, we had a Twelfth Night celebration where guests are to bring an appetizer and then have their name drawn to be the Queen and King of the evening. I of course won, and enjoyed wearing my crown during the night, and I also enjoyed the entertainment provided by the other guests.
On Christmas eve, we tried to celebrate it Coloradoan style (according to the World Christmas books). So we started off with a tradition (that I think was adopted from Spain or some other country) where we travel like Mary and Joseph on Christmas eve to find a place to stay. We were to knock on neighbors' doors who were prepared with a script to reject us (Mom acted like each of neighbors by hiding behind different doors in the house.) Of course we finally found a place to stay and sang a song.
We decorated ornaments and exchanged them through a story about Lefty the Elf, where we pass our ornaments to the left or right whenever the story cleverly says "left," "Lefty," or "right." We learned about Colorado reindeer from Carter and I presented on Simpich dolls.
Alli and Carer also broke a pinyada--I'm not sure how that directly related to Colorado, but I know it did.
It's so nice writing about Christmas and remembering the fun and comfort of being with family and children. I miss them a lot, but I love the memories!
Allison preparing to be baby Jesus in "Mary's tummy" which she created.
One of the many instances of Carter behind a computer. He's not pushing the button here...but it was one of his favorite things to do.
Talking with Tanner while he's in Russia.
Mom leading us in an elf cheer.
Hal performing Hamlet.
And Dad performing a song with Wendy on the piano after we had "knocked on neighbors' doors" as Mary and Joseph--Dad's still wearing his costume.
What a Merry Christmas!
