Merry Christmas

We had a great Christmas. It's amazing how much you can pack into one weekend & how quickly you can spend all the money you've been saving all year! Trav & I decided last September to buy our Christmas gift for each other a little early. What I should have done is put a big bow on the box & put it away for a few months. But we couldn't resist & have been enjoying it since then.



With the start of Football Season in September the price was the best we had seen, so we bought ourselves a new TV. We had good intentions. We set limits for each other saying that we would only do stockings... well you know how that goes. For some reason if you don't open it on Christmas it's just not the same. But we had fun shopping for one another & our families.

We spent Christmas with my family this year. Christmas Eve we decorated cookies, shared a wonderful meal & played "Scum." For some reason it was decided that the President & V.P. needed some kind of crown. We agreed Tyler's Disneyland hats would do. Trav & I both had a turn at the top of the table as Pres.





We went home that night & I really enjoyed celebrating Christmas just the 2 of us. We exchanged one gift that night, New PJ's for me & a new pillow for Trav.



Christmas Day we spent the first couple hours just us then it was off to Mom & Dad's for "Brunch," more gifts & a little Wii. From there we went to Grandma Jan's for even more gifts & Lunch.

The best part about having a Missionary out is that all day long you have something to look forward to. Kiel called about 6 that night & we all enjoyed visiting with him. Leave it to the Holidays to make me miss my little brother more than ever. I am so proud of him, he is not the same Kiel we talked to last year. And although I might regret saying this, I really hope these next 9 months go fast!

That weekend we went to Idaho Falls to spend a little time with the Butterworths (of course by this point I have totally lost interest in taking pictures). I appreciate all they do for us. Trav & I have been very blessed, we have wonderful family all around us. This year we came home to find all was well (doors still shut tight... unlike last year) & the first thing I did was cut my finger using one of the Cutco knives Lorie & Steve had given us. Nothing a Band-Aid couldn't fix.

Today is January 1st which means that it's time to take the Christmas tree down... but I'm just not quite ready. For me the Tree holds so much of the Christmas Spirit. Wondering what some of the symbolism of this tradition is I looked it up on Wikipedia. Here is some of what it said:

"...the evergreen tree represented eternal life and the promise of replenishment during the cold winter months. Apples and other fruit were hung upon the tree to represent the plentiful food to come. Candles were lighted to symbolize the warmth and brightness of the sun."

Although this definition doesn't directly refer the the Savior it does mention things that I often associate with him such as eternal life, faith, hope & light. I guess I don't want to take down the tree because it reminds me of Him. I am grateful we have this time of year to remember the "Reason for the Season" which is remembering Him who came to earth so humbly, but to fulfill a great purpose & ultimately He became greater than all.