Today is January 19Th, Christmas seems like a distant memory since we have been so busy in the interim.
Christmas was so much more fun having a little one to share in the joy with. Amazing how most of life's events become more meaningful when there are children and family to share in the joy with. Since I realized that Olivia doesn't really understand the concept of gifts, or Christmas, or Santa Clause, I was committed to not going overboard this year, realizing Mike and I should enjoy this, since it will probably be our last year before the gimmies and Christmas wish lists. I actually got up at 4am this year on "Black Friday," the Friday after Thanksgiving when all the big sales are supposed to occur, to see what all the hype is about. Kohl's had all their toys 50% off, so I scored a xylophone for $7 and two boxes of ABC and 123 magnets for $5. Needless to say, thanks to Olivia's generous grandparents and doting Aunt and Uncle she ended up spoiled anyway. It was so fun to see her play with her new toys! Some of her favorites (and mine) are her Elmo cell phone from Uncle Sean and Aunt Jacky, her Baby Einstein DVD from the Warnicks, and her Raffi Baby Belluga CD and book from Nana and Pops.
Mike and I just did stockings for each other this year, since our major gift to each other was, of course, moving into our new house! Between gifts from each other and family, we both still ended up spoiled this year as well! I got some great new cookware, flatware, and glasses for my new kitchen, and Mike loves his new toolbox, and of course, my brother Brian did very well in getting him gift certificates for itunes and Subway (Mike's favorite place to grab some lunch at work). We also got a date-night gift certificate package, some adorable ornaments in the mail, and (my favorite) a huge box of delicious treats from my aunt Becky (what a fun surprise!).
I think I've gone on long enough about Christmas, but I just have to mention two of my favorite aspects of our celebrations this year. Mike's family's tradition each year on Christmas eve is for all of the adults (and any of the children who want to) to gather around and share their feelings about the Saviour and things that have been meaningful to them over the past year. This is my second time participating in this event, and I love how it helps us keep the focus of the season. Another fun event was on Christmas night when we all gathered to play a board game version of the Newlywed game, which my sister-in-law Melanie got for Christmas this year. What a riot!
However, perhaps the biggest gift Mike and I received this year was the gift of time . . .and back- breaking manual labor . . .and paint. A few of Mike's siblings here in Utah spent (we calculated) about 20 hours helping us apply two coats (I mean, one coat would have been help enough, but TWO COATS!--Now that is above and beyond the call of duty!) of two-tone paint to our entire house (except the bedrooms, where I have other, more bold colors in mind). We were amazed at the generosity given on our behalf. I was barely motivated to do all the painting (I wanted to quit, and call one coat of paint good enough), and this is my house! I am amazed that everyone else was motivated enough to work so hard out of the pure goodness and unselfishness of their hearts.
More help was given on New Years Day when we finally moved into our house. After that we went out to lunch at an all-you-can-eat buffet restaurant Chuck-A-rama (which, despite the name, is actually quite good).
We are settling in nicely to our new home. Most of the houses in our cul-de-sac are finished, so we have been able to meet some of our neighbors. We've already been brought a plate of cookies by one couple, and tonight I get to go try sushi for the first time on a girls-night-out with a few of the women I've met so far in our neighborhood. We hope that we will continue to be able to meet good friends here and get settled in the place we now call home.
Christmas was so much more fun having a little one to share in the joy with. Amazing how most of life's events become more meaningful when there are children and family to share in the joy with. Since I realized that Olivia doesn't really understand the concept of gifts, or Christmas, or Santa Clause, I was committed to not going overboard this year, realizing Mike and I should enjoy this, since it will probably be our last year before the gimmies and Christmas wish lists. I actually got up at 4am this year on "Black Friday," the Friday after Thanksgiving when all the big sales are supposed to occur, to see what all the hype is about. Kohl's had all their toys 50% off, so I scored a xylophone for $7 and two boxes of ABC and 123 magnets for $5. Needless to say, thanks to Olivia's generous grandparents and doting Aunt and Uncle she ended up spoiled anyway. It was so fun to see her play with her new toys! Some of her favorites (and mine) are her Elmo cell phone from Uncle Sean and Aunt Jacky, her Baby Einstein DVD from the Warnicks, and her Raffi Baby Belluga CD and book from Nana and Pops.
Mike and I just did stockings for each other this year, since our major gift to each other was, of course, moving into our new house! Between gifts from each other and family, we both still ended up spoiled this year as well! I got some great new cookware, flatware, and glasses for my new kitchen, and Mike loves his new toolbox, and of course, my brother Brian did very well in getting him gift certificates for itunes and Subway (Mike's favorite place to grab some lunch at work). We also got a date-night gift certificate package, some adorable ornaments in the mail, and (my favorite) a huge box of delicious treats from my aunt Becky (what a fun surprise!).
I think I've gone on long enough about Christmas, but I just have to mention two of my favorite aspects of our celebrations this year. Mike's family's tradition each year on Christmas eve is for all of the adults (and any of the children who want to) to gather around and share their feelings about the Saviour and things that have been meaningful to them over the past year. This is my second time participating in this event, and I love how it helps us keep the focus of the season. Another fun event was on Christmas night when we all gathered to play a board game version of the Newlywed game, which my sister-in-law Melanie got for Christmas this year. What a riot!
However, perhaps the biggest gift Mike and I received this year was the gift of time . . .and back- breaking manual labor . . .and paint. A few of Mike's siblings here in Utah spent (we calculated) about 20 hours helping us apply two coats (I mean, one coat would have been help enough, but TWO COATS!--Now that is above and beyond the call of duty!) of two-tone paint to our entire house (except the bedrooms, where I have other, more bold colors in mind). We were amazed at the generosity given on our behalf. I was barely motivated to do all the painting (I wanted to quit, and call one coat of paint good enough), and this is my house! I am amazed that everyone else was motivated enough to work so hard out of the pure goodness and unselfishness of their hearts.
More help was given on New Years Day when we finally moved into our house. After that we went out to lunch at an all-you-can-eat buffet restaurant Chuck-A-rama (which, despite the name, is actually quite good).
We are settling in nicely to our new home. Most of the houses in our cul-de-sac are finished, so we have been able to meet some of our neighbors. We've already been brought a plate of cookies by one couple, and tonight I get to go try sushi for the first time on a girls-night-out with a few of the women I've met so far in our neighborhood. We hope that we will continue to be able to meet good friends here and get settled in the place we now call home.
We got to experience some of the other "joys" of home ownership this past Monday. Mike had the day off for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, so we had made some plans and had expected to be gone the entire day. Instead, we woke up to no water in our two-week-old house. Yup, one of our pipes had froze due to the record cold freezing temperatures we've been having in Utah this past week. So, we spent the entire day tracking down the warranty mananger for Richmond American Homes for our district, who in turn, spent many hours trying to track down his plumbers. Eventually they were able to locate the problem, which was our main water line. It seems the insulation in our utility closet, which is where the main line enters the house, was not installed properly, so, basically, the water line was being kept insulated from the heat of the furnace. Luckly, it is made out of pretty durable material, so It didn't crack or start leaking or anything. And, hopefully, the builder corrected the insulation issue so that this won't be something that happens every winter.
Everything else continues on as usual. Mike goes to work, I am finishing up my American Sign Language classes at BYU and will graduate in August, and I love getting to play all day with my main squeeze, Olivia.
But anyway, pictures are much more exciting than my writing, so I'll leave with some of my favorite images from the month . . .
Everything else continues on as usual. Mike goes to work, I am finishing up my American Sign Language classes at BYU and will graduate in August, and I love getting to play all day with my main squeeze, Olivia.
But anyway, pictures are much more exciting than my writing, so I'll leave with some of my favorite images from the month . . .
Shot of the dining nook from the living room:
Shot of the living room from the front door:
Shot of the living room from the dining room:
Shot of the kitchen from the dining nook:
And, of course, the front of the house:
Olivia's new hairstyle: Pigtails! Her hair is finally long enough, but she was mad that I wouldn't let her have the camera, so I couldn't get a "happy" shot of her and her new do.
I love the progression of these pictures . . .
From mildly curious . . .
Hmmm. I think I want to play with that cool toy Mom has . . .
I said, "I want the camera now!"
Looks like somebody needs a nap!
He really is the most handsome baby I've ever seen! Tyler Nally made his debut. Congratulations Sean and Jacky! Can't wait to meet him.
