Christmas!

These are totally out of over.  You'll be just fine. 

 New Year's Eve.  We went over to J&E's house and played games.  We had chips and dip and lots of yummy treats.  I don't remember but I think the girls got DOMINATED in Canasta... but I can't remember.

 Christmas Eve
This year we were very sad that we didn't get to go home for Christmas.  J&E invited us to spend Christmas Eve with them.  We went to dinner at this Chinese Buffet place.  Not very good.  Brian didn't even like it...  We came back to the house and had a small musical program with a couple stories. All said and done we were wrapped up by 8:00 PM.  We went home in hopes that we could Face Time with everyone in Idaho and it would be like we were right there with everyone.  There were technical difficulties and it didn't work.  Very sad Jessica. f

 Brian was this year's victim of the song 'Who has a beard that's long and white.' I think it's called Must Be Santa?

 New Year's Eve.  Eating our cake along side of our sparkling cider.

 Christmas Eve.  We thought it would be appropriate to have a picture in front of our house for our first Christmas.  Notice no snow.  We have snow now and it is freezing!  And I love my Christmas lights but it was too light to turn them on to see them.

 We kept the breakfast tradition alive this year.  We went to Cracker Barrel and had pancakes, ham, juice, biscuits and gravy, fried apples and eggs.  All for 8.99 folks.

 Ignore that I don't look so lovely.

 My loot that Brian hid.

 Brian's loot.  I thought I was smart getting boxes out to put all of our stuff in.

 Before diving in.

 He ended up a happy man.

 Christmas morning in front of our tree.

 He doesn't look happy does he???

 My stocking...

 Really nice new golf balls...

 Movies for us both...

 A shop vac.  YEA!!! Now Brian has no excuse to use my nice vacuum outside on crazy things!!

 My loot again...

 My Santa Stuff:)  Santa must like me.

 All of Brian's stuff

These are the really cute Ho Ho Ho signs that E made me.  They looked really cute up on my mantel.

Gingerbread Men Are Magic

So this week in school we are reading several different versions of the Gingerbread Man.  Gingerbread Boy, Gingerbread Girl and several variations.

After reading all of these stories we have done Venn Diagrams to compare and contrast the different stories.  We have also been talking over the past several months about genres and what is real and what is fantasy.

This little boy totally made me smile.  I am reading one on one with him and he leans over to me and whispers:
Boy: Mrs. Allen?
Me:  Yes ______
Boy:  Do you know why this story is fantasy and isn't real?
Me:  Yes!  I would love to hear.
Boy:  Well, gingerbread men could really be magic and walk around.... but... animals can't talk.... So I know that this story couldn't really happen.
Me:  (Not knowing what to say and trying not to smile too big)  _____ great job!  Those are good detecting skills!

The way he said it and the look on his face was so priceless.  What would life be like if we truly believed in magical things?

The PTO came and did a Santa Shop where the kids could come pick out a small gift to give to their parents for Christmas.  They had a santa come in to the gym and talk to the kids as they were picking their gifts.  My second graders are a little skeptical of santa right now but a couple of kindergarten kids that I also work with ran up to me, Mrs. Allen, Mrs. Allen!  Santa is HERE!!!  Can you go outside and see if his raindeer are hiding behind the playground.  We couldn't see them.  They were so excited to see santa.  The REAL one, yet so sad they couldn't see a raiindeer.  I got a laugh out of that one too.

Humor Me

So this week Gary and Sheila came to visit for Thanksgiving.  We had a great time and did a lot of fun things.  It is sad when family has to leave.  

One day we decided to go to a movie.  The rest of the crew wanted to see Lincoln and I wasn't too excited about it so I ran in to the new Twilight movie.  *** I will try not and spill any of the details.

In the movie a comment is made that two people are so happy that they will get to live together for a thousand years.  If you know anything about the series you know that it is about vampires.  Once you are a vampire you never change.  You don't age.  You don't eat.  You can't be in the sunlight.  (Many other vampire shows are different but that is how it is in Twilight.)  

I am not a die hard Twilight fan.  I find them entertaining if nothing else.  

The line that I am talking about is one of the last lines in the movie.  As the credits started to roll I couldn't help but be sad.  Not sappy sad, but sad that that seems so desirable to some people.  And the truth is, it is possible!!  

I am grateful for the gospel of Jesus Christ and the knowledge that families are forever and I will get to live with my companion for a thousand years plus some.  I am glad that I get to age.  Did I just say that?  In one of my favorite movies, The Guardian, the old lady bartender says:

 I've always been old Ben. Ya' know what though, I don't mind. I mean if my muscles ache, it's because I've used 'em. It's hard for me to walk up them steps now, its 'cuz I walked up 'em every night to lay next to a man who loved me. I got a few wrinkles here and there, but I've layed under thousands of skies with sunny days. I look and feel this way, well cuz I drank and I smoked. I lived and I loved, danced, sang, sweat and screwed my way thorough a pretty damn good life if you ask me. Getting old ain't bad Ben. Getting old, that's earned. 

I love that quote!  I feel the same way. Except for the smokin' drinkin' part :)  I am grateful that I get to get old with my husband and all that brings.  Becoming an aunt.  Becoming a sister-in-law. A mother in the future.  I can't imagine what it would be like if we were the same age for the rest of time.  

I love me some food.  Ask all my clothes that don't fit right now!  I am glad that I get to find pleasure in food!

I am grateful that I can spend every day in the sunshine!  

I am glad I am not a vampire.  I am glad that I get to live this life and enjoy and endure everything that it throws our way.  And once this life time is over, I get to spend eternity with my Brian and get to enjoy whatever may come on the other side.  Being a vampire is not desirable.  Being a human and having the gospel is the most desirable thing anyone could ever want. 

That was a really random post, I know!  Please forgive!

Happy now? Part 2

 Mine

 Brian's

 Ours

Hard to see but we thought it was the perfect Walmart picture.  On the Merc... Right side of the trunk... That is a lock.  It is a piece of metal glued to the truck and to the bumper thingy because their trunk won't stay closed.

Oh Mother...

So on my mom's blog she is doing a protest in response to all of us that don't update our blogs very often.  Including me...  But she knows everything that is going on with me anyways, and she is like the only one that reads our blog in the first place!

Anywhooo, here it goes.

I am busy with school and Young Women.  Lots of meetings lately and activities.  I wear comfy, gruby clothes every day to school because I know it is just a matter of time before someone throws up, spills something on me or gives me lice.  The day I get lice is the day I put in my 2 weeks.  Not kidding.

Brian is off of work this week.  Why did I go back to work??  I could be at home doing fun things with him all week!

I have a list of things for him to do this week a mile long.  He is making really good progress and I am really excited.

I have started my Thanksgiving cooking.  I have made 2 pumpkin cake rolls and need to start tackling more batches of rolls.

I am trying to have my Christmas shopping done during Black Friday sales. I am not going to go out but I am going to try and do some online shopping.

Our Christmas lists are short this year but have very unattainable, expensive things on them.  We are not going home for Christmas this year.  I am ok with it right now... but I know that when December gets her and all the traditional Christmas activities are going on I am really going to be sad.  Just plan on it.  We are not going home so that we can save our money and come for a couple weeks in the summer.

I put my Christmas tree up last night.  I know, really early but I don't have anything to put on my mantle or decorate with now that Halloween is over so I figured I may as well put up the tree.  Maybe come January I will have to put my easter stuff up REALLY early so I at least have something to make my walls not so barren.

There you have it mom, Happy now???

-Your Daughter.

Mom kindly reminded me today that my blog is extremely outdated.  Yes, it is.  I don't feel like blogging right now.  So I'm not.
Yesterday I had a cute little first grader raising his hand at the lunch table.  I went over and asked what he needed, he said nothing, he was answering a question.  I said ok and didn't think much else of it but he wanted to tell me.  He said I was raising my hand because I hate my life.  My friend said raise your hand if you hate your life.

I said oh why did you raise your hand? He said well because nothing goes right, I make stupid mistakes, I do stupid things and I am no good at school.

Well today that is how I feel.  So I am not blogging today.  No, I don't hate my life.. just not a fan of it today ha!

Maybe Tomorrow I will update the blog :)

slackers

I too have been slacking in the blogging world.  I check all of these blogs and get frustrated when people don’t update them.  I guess I fall in to that category as well.  Last post… August 30^th!  Not much has been going on though!  Brian has been on a few trips, lots of Young Women stuff for me, lots of church stuff for Brian and house work. 

I don’t even remember what we did for Memorial Day!  I think we just did yard work and stuff around the house.  Oh!  We did buy a bed..  How exciting is that…  Brian just got back from Gillette, WY.  His flight was cancelled and he got home 24 hours late.  We had a friend from BYU-I come out and stay with us while he attended a conference at Purdue which was fun to have him here.

My parents are coming this weekend and I am so excited!!!!!

We have off the 26-29^th of October and trying to plan a fun mini vaca.  We might go to Nauvoo or DC.