December Stuff

This year Kenna has opted to give a whirl at playing the viola at school.  I love that she is willing to give it a go.  I am absolutely no help with learning to play an instrument, but hope that she can learn to enjoy it and keep up with it. 

Here she is at her first orchestra concert.  Considering they are first-year students, they actually did pretty darn good.  Hello there maestro!

The week before Christmas each of the kids had a sing-a-long at the school.  They each were so cute and fun to watch.

Allie with the 4th grade:

Kenna and the 5th grade:

I have to be honest though, I think Ty and the first graders take the cake.  It was so adorable!

We had an Israelsen Christmas party that was a ton of fun, complete with a cousin nativity.  Kenna is Mary, Ty is Joseph, Allie is a shepherd, Lexi and Kai are angels, Tate is the best baby Jesus EVER, and of course Oakley is directing the whole scene.  She later decided Tate had a pretty good little seat and wanted to take over the manger. 

The two little angels, Lexi and Kai:

The most PERFECT baby Jesus, Tate.  He seriously is the cutest little pa-tuty ever! 

We headed back to the Israelsens on Christmas Eve for some delicious soup and cinnamon rolls.  Here is Grandpa Israelsen with his oldest and youngest grandchildren, ages 11 and 3 weeks.  The girls are still ahead!

Thank you December for another busy and fun-filled month!  Most of all thank you for giving us a chance to reflect on the birth of the most precious baby ever to walk the earth.

Happy Birthday Kenna!

For Kenna's birthday this year, she decided she really really really REALLY really wanted to go on a little trip to the mall with her friends.  This was the talk of the town for about two weeks, and the anticipation was HUGE, but the big day finally arrived!  Three of her besties walked home from school with her on the Friday after her birthday, then me and the tweens loaded up and headed to the mall.  Those silly little girls would have stayed there the entire night if I let them!  They wandered in and out of a few different stores, got their pictures taken in the photo booth, ate a pretzel, and just loved being out with each other. 

Afterwards, we grabbed some Little Caesar's pizza then headed back to our house to eat before we took the ladies home.  Overall I think it was a success and ended up being just what Kenna was hoping for. 

I can't believe my first little lady is ELEVEN.  Eleven!  One more year of Primary, then we are on to Young Women's and then.....oh my she'll be graduated before I know it.  She is turning into a beautiful young lady and I am so proud of her.  We probably have some great hormonal teenage adventures ahead of us, but for now I am so grateful she has found a cute little group of friends who are good girls.  And I guess that even though she would rather spend time at the mall than play with dolls (that ship has sailed), at least she is more than happy that I bum around with her!  Maybe she'll feel the same when she is 17........????  I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Happy Birthday Mom!

December started off with a surprise birthday trip for my Mom.  The weekend before her bday, Me, Steph, and my sis-in-law, Nicole surprised my Mom with a little overnighter trip to Salt Lake.  We definitely mastered the surprise factor!  We showed up at Mom's house with some balloons and told her to pack her bags.  She was so shocked, it was so fun!

First stop was lunch at the Garden Restaurant in the Joseph Smith Memorial Building downtown.  If ever there is a perfect setting to eat, it is there!  We sat right next to the window where we had the most amazing view of the temple.  Oh my heart!  The food was amazing, we talked and laughed, and on the way out there was a beautiful choir singing Christmas songs up in the balcony of the entrance to the JSMB.  I am absolutely in love with that place.  I so wanted to get back down to SLC with the kids to enjoy temple square and the lights and such, but it never happened.  Frowny face.

Before our evening activities, we went to check in at the hotel.  Matt and the kids had gone before us and decorated the room.  It was so darn cute, and Mom loved it.  There were little foil bits of "Happy Birthday" confetti all over the room.  Dear maid, we are so sorry.  We tried to get the worst of it picked up.....

Our first activity was at a place called "Conquer the Chamber."  Basically you go in a room and use different items and clues in the room to try to solve a mystery to unlock the room to get yourself out within an hour.  Overall, this was really fun.  The exception being we were put into a group of six other 15 year old boys.....ya, basically they were extremely obnoxious and a bit on the unruly side.  We would love to go back again and do it as a group of more....how shall I put it.....like-minded adults?   

Our last event of the night was a comedy play/musical at the Desert Star Theater in Murray.  The show was about a little made-up Utah town that needs to earn money, so it puts on its own redneck version of The Nutcracker.  Oh my heavens, this was SO MUCH FUN!  We laughed and laughed!      The theater itself has a rustic feel to it that is absolutely charming.  They do a whole variety of shows- mostly spoofs on other shows.  Definitely worth a repeat!  I want to take Jacob back and see another show sometime.

After the show we came back to the hotel and played some card games for a bit then hit the sack.  We were tired after such a fun day!

Steph had come up to Smithfield to surprise and pick up my Mom, so my Dad came down the next morning to pick up me, Mom, and Nicole to take us back to Cache Valley.  This is my Dad showing off Mom's wig on the way out of the hotel.  Ah ha ha ha ha haahah haha ha!  He is such a nut, I love it!

Overall it was the BEST weekend, we had such a great time. So grateful for such wonderful memories with family.  It was so fun to surprise Mom and celebrate her and the wonderful, amazing person she is.  Happy Birthday Mom!  Here's to at least 20 more!!!

Merry Christmas

It seems, during this past week before Christmas, that amidst enjoying countless hours of Christmas songs, wrapping, and plates full of goodies from neighbors, I have also had this underlying current of sadness as I have noticed many different tragedies in the lives of people around me- both near and far.  The news seems to be constant with tragedies of death and loss as well as great suffering caused by the hurtful actions of others.  My heart aches to see many who are dealing with such overwhelming sadness right in the middle of "the most wonderful time of the year."

The other night as I was thinking about this, I had a thought pop into my mind about the whole reason we do all that we do this time of year.  It all boils down to the night a perfect, tiny little being entered the world:  The Savior.  It hit me that at the very same time I am reflecting on the sadness and injustices and suffering in the world, I am also reflecting on the life of the very One who has come to deal with those very things.  If ever we need a Savior, it is then.  The times when anger at the actions of others seems to blacken my heart- it is then I need the Prince of Peace to soften my heart and take away the anger.  Then is when I need to recognize He who has come to right every wrong, to correct every injustice.  When the pain of loss is deep and overwhelming, it is then I need Him who has taken away the sting of death.

A few weeks ago in Sacrament the speaker was talking about the Savior and how we as a religious people are readily able to recognize Him as the Savior of World, yet often struggle with truly understanding that He is the Savior of us as individuals.  Have I really come to understand that the Savior knows me personally and rely on Him not only for saving the world, but saving me in my personal afflictions and trials?  In my own moments of despair, confusion, and error do I know that He is MY personal companion?  I realized that although I can answer yes to this question, I have many gaps that can be filled.

This Christmas and throughout the new year I will be continuing on this journey.  That I will do as the wise men did-  they didn't just see the new star and believe in the Savior of the world, but they actually took step after step on what must have been a difficult journey to finally sit at the feet of the Savior and see Him, and know Him.

Faith Hill sings an absolutely beautiful Christmas song entitled, "A Baby Changes Everything."  The very ending of the song says,

My whole life has turned around
I was lost but now I'm found
A baby changes everything,
A baby changes everything.

He changes everything for the world.  He changes everything for ME.