It's Christmas Time in the... er... city?

Anyone who has ever been to this lovely little spot knows it is a pretty big stretch to call it a city. The fact that I address our utility bills to the "City of" and not some monopolizing power company is proof enough that this is a still a small town. So, it's Christmastime in our small town.

I've been a horrible blogger lately. I get kind of annoyed when people blog about how bad they are at blogging, and yet here I am-- similar to yelling at your kids while you're on the phone with someone, or not returning e-mails, or telling people that you're going to cry/try not to take too long/just read from your paper when you're giving a talk in church-- all things I don't like, yet find myself doing again and again. Anyway, I've kind of been waiting for things to slow down a bit to catch up on everything I've been neglecting, but I suddenly realized that this is my life and it isn't showing any signs of slowing down any time soon. So, I have to prioritize. I do love to read your blogs and e-mails, and I love knowing what is going on in your life. I realize that I need to reciprocate my part in our communication, so I'm really going to try to keep my end of the bargain. I can't promise daily posts at this point, but I can promise that I'll make a regular effort to keep in touch.

Plus, let's be honest here-- I'm just vain enough to enjoy reading my own writing. Hee.

Anyway, back to the update: Chris is still in SLC tonight, working out the details for our van purchase. If only buying a new car was like buying a sweater: you go to the store, pick out the one you like, try it on, go through the checkout, and voila, you've got yourself a new sweater. Unfortunately, it's a much longer and more drawn out process, so hopefully tomorrow will bring home a hubby and a car that seats lots of people.

It's a pretty even mixture of excitement and trepidation that I'm feeling when I think about becoming a mini-van mom. Owning a mini-van breaks yet another promise I made to myself as a teenager (yes, there are more, don't get me going-- I should have just shut my mouth from age 15-18) and makes me officially uncool. But, I'm accepting my uncoolness, as I suspect it has actually been around for quite some time, and I'm working on embracing, rather than unhappily surrendering to my soccer mom status. We did look at SUVs, but the constant request for a friend to come home from school with Thomas and the constant "He's touching me!" in the back seat ruled out a 5 passenger vehicle, and neither Chris nor I could really get excited about having little boy footprints on the middle seat of our car when they jumped to the back of a three-row SUV. Plus, they're quite a bit more expensive to buy, insure and maintain, and we're nothing if not practical. So, there you have it. And hopefully the thing has enough traction and weight that Jen won't have to push me out of a snowbank! :)

Back to Christmastime-- it's in full swing around here! YAY! Thomas is out of school and we've already had some Christmas guests. And of course, I've taken every opportunity to make and eat those goodies that we only make this time of year. Mmm.

Our tree this year is one of my favorites ever. Since adding the piano, our already small living room is especially packed, so we really didn't have much space for a tree. We moved the end tables to a temporary location and moved the love seat into the corner, and just barely had a tiny little space left. Luckily, Chris and my brother, Jake, found this tall, skinny tree that fits just perfectly. It reminds me a lot of the tree we got in Washington when we drove up into the mountains and cut it down ourselves. We may have to do that next year-- it's so fun. Anyway, our tree couldn't be more perfect.

There is nothing more festive than pulling out all of your old ornaments. I love just sitting and looking at them. If you came into my living room and looked at our tree, you would know that we have sons, that there is at least one Utah fan in the house, and that we've been to some fun places. Our ornament this year was purchased in Vancouver, BC-- a real maple leaf set in metal.





At the beginning of the month, Chris and I went to my company Christmas Party. I borrowed a dress from my sister, Caitlan, and got a little bit dressed up. It was fun, and don't we look cute? Aw.



A few days later, I bought a ready-to-make Gingerbread house kit at Michael's. I had thought that the boys would just go crazy with the decorating, and had planned to let each of them tackle half of the house. Instead, they looked together on the box the kit came in, picked out one of the sample designs, and meticulously placed each little candy while I frosted. It was really cute. They didn't even try to eat any of the kit candy-- of course, having a little bowl of M&Ms nearby helps with that!




I have some more to show and tell, but this will have to suffice for now. Only three days 'til Christmas!!

Oh, and I don't think you read this, my friend Anna, but if you do: HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!