That's What Christmas Is All About

My friend Tara asked me a few weeks ago if I would do a favor for her. This "favor" involved my (so called) violin skills, and since I started playing again just this year, I was hesitant.

I was told that her neighbor had a horrible disease which caused her bones to be so brittle that just by moving at all she would break them. Her ribs, her back, her legs - so there she layed, on her back, all day every day. Of couse, I wanted to play for her, but I wasn't necessarily confident enough to play by myself, so I asked my violin teacher Calli to come with me.

Calli and I practiced some Christmas songs and we planned to play three or four duets for this poor girl. We had planned a few weeks in advance, so it came as a shock when Calli called to cancel just a couple of hours before we were supposed to go. I thought about cancelling also, but I thought that I'd do my best, say a prayer, and be confident in myself - hoping that I could pull it off without Calli's beautiful sound to tie it all together.

When we showed up at her grandmother's condo (where she's living), she was surprised and excited to see the violin. It just happened to be her 35th birthday too...so that worked out nicely. This girl (Amy) was a sad sight to see - A couple of IV's in her, an oxygen tank, laying on a small couch with literally everything at an arm's reach, along with a tote (and not a small tote at that) overflowing with medications. She told us her story, informing us that she had been sick since she was about nine, but only in the last three years did it start getting bad. We saw pictures of her when she was probably in her twenties; and she was nearly unrecognizable to the woman in the pictures - a beautiful, blonde beauty queen staring back. And now here she lay, demanding constant care and supervision.

She rattled off names of diseases that I can't even pronouce, and there were too many to remember. We were told that she was given choices in medication to treat her illness. In having chosen the wrong one, she has ended up this way. Despite all of this, however, she was as cheerful as could be. She was laughing, joking, and so happy to just have company that me playing a violin (no matter how bad I might have sounded) elated her. As soon as I saw her, my fear of playing went away. I just wanted to make her happy.

I am grateful for the chance I had to meet Amy. She is an inspiration to all those with illnesses like hers, and an inspiration to everyone, really. She has been dealt some hard cards - and she is dealing with them in a way that is beyond what I can even comprehend. I had the opportunity to be a part in making someone's day better. And I really think that's what Chrstmas is all about.

What Can I Say?

I have been catching up on my "blog hopping" or whatever you choose to call it... I decided to go through my list and it was a great idea for two big reasons:

1) I found lots of yummy holiday recipes (like I need more junk...)

and

2) I discovered, again, just how wonderful my life is.

While it may be a bit odd to discover while looking at someone 

else's life that yours is so great, this is what I realized today.

I was reminded that I have so many incredible friends who will always be friends. Amazing family whom I couldn't live without. A computer and the internet which allows me to have constant contact with my loved ones, all the time. A job, a husband, a roof over my head and money (if only a little bit) to spend on others this season. The ability to read the endless meaningful Christmas stories that bring the soul warmth (The Christmas Box, Christmas Jars), and a TV to watch those movies that make you want to be a better person (It's a Wonderful Life, A Christmas Carol). Life is good. If nothing else this year, please recognize all of your blessings and where they come from. 

It's when we think of the Savior and others that we really remember the reason for the season.

Here's to wishing it were nice,

Here's to wishing it were warm,

Here's to wishing we were ready

To say, "bring on the storm."

But of course, we should remember

What Christmas is for,

A season given to the Lord,

How could we ask for more?

Our wish to you this time of year

Is just to sit in thought,

Recall your many blessings and

Forget the things you've sought.

Remember those in need

And who could use a helping hand,

Perhaps someone needing your love

More than you'll understand.

So make this Christmas special,

And please, be quick to give

And know you're special to the one

Who died that we might live.

Love you all. Merry Christmas.

More Fat Please....

Why are holiday treats more addicting than others throughout the year? Is it because they are made for the season, therefore I allow myself to eat more? I mean, what is it about this time of year that makes chowing down on sweets more enjoyable?

My favorite holiday treats?

Peppermint Bark and Caramels. Can't beat 'em.

Fattening? Yes. 

And yet, I don't feel bad that I down what might as well be gallons of homemade caramels every December, or splurge continuously when there is peppermint bark in front of me. 

Even more embarrassing - a friend at work received some peppermint bark as a thank you/Christmas gift from a client. I told him if he wouldn't share with me, I'd be forced to confiscate some from him.  Apparently my problem doesn't stop at eating the goodies...  it's taking them too.

Isn't it quite fascinating, what holiday treats can do to you?

I Love Primary

Me: Can you believe we've been teaching you guys for almost an entire year?

Kids: No way!

Me: Yep. This is one of our last classes with you guys....

Kids: (Gasp...) Noooo! You're not moving up with us?

Me: We wish. But let's not worry about that. Let's focus on the lesson today.

Jake: How can I focus when I have that on my mind?!

He Surprises Me Sometimes

Chris is a total guy... as you've seen the "tough guy" post below. But once in a while, he'll surprise me by doing something to pass away the time... instead of playing with the ipod or on the computer, he'll do something like this.

He crochets. And he's dang good at it, too. 

He made me this scarf and beanie.

I think I'll keep him.

Tag... Again

I guess it's my time for tags... the truth is, not only am I bad about doing long ones, but I don't always check everyone's blog... so I was actually tagged to do this in October. Oops! Sorry, Danielle. But here you go, my 4th picture in my album.

These are my parents, Tracy and Shelly. In my opinion (of course, I am biased - but I know a lot of people that would agree), you couldn't find a more fun couple to be around. I am so grateful for my parents and for everything they have done for me. I would not be where I am today without the love, support, and friendship they have provided me my entire life.

This picture was taken at the John Mayer concert this summer. Just one of the reasons why I love them: they have fun! They go to concerts with us and dance and laugh and aren't afraid to have a good time. This is how it's been through all my 25 years.

Here are ten of the many reasons why I love these people:

1. They love music. I recall almost every saturday morning waking up to music blasting downstairs. They introduced me to the classics: The Eagles, Styx, the Beatles, Heart, Michael Jackson, Garth Brooks, and more bands than I can mention.
2. My dad's a drummer. How is that not cool?
3. My mom is willing at any time to go hiking up ensign peak, no matter what the hour (I don't doubt that at some point or another, we went in the wee hours of the morning).
4. They taught me about Jesus Christ and the restoration of the gospel.
5. They supported me on my mission.
6. Even though looking back I realize we didn't have much as kids (we've lived in a couple of trailers), we never felt that way.
7. They are always there to listen and laugh or cry with.
8. They give and give and give. My sister and I counted once how many individual people they have taken into their home. I believe it was 35. 35 people who had a place to live because of the kindness of their hearts. And this was several years ago; there have been even more over those years.
9. My mom is a never-ending energizer bunny.
10. I am alive because they took the time to take care of me when I had cancer... how any parent could live through that, I can't even imagine!

Thank you for everything, mom and dad. I love you.

I tag: 

Holly, Tami, Katie Miller, Paige F, and Anna Mead

5 Things

I guess I haven't done a tag in a while. I admit that I am pretty bad about not doing the ones that are too long... but this one's not bad.

5 things I was doing 10 years ago:

• Loving my first year of seminary with Bro. C
  
• In concert choir with Mrs. McPharlin - I wish everyone knew who she was... what a nut case!
  
• Working with Fun Services
  
• Dragging State Street with my mom
  
• Loving 9th grade

5 things on my to-do list today:

• Study for my re-take test
• Go to lunch with my mom
• Find Las Vegas Bowl tickets for my boss
• Color Holly's "Busy Book"
• Practice my violin

5 snacks I enjoy:

• String Cheese
• Thin Mint ice cream... it's only available for a limited time... try it now because it's the best stuff out there!
• Pumpkin chocolate chip cookies
• Vanilla Wafers
• Pretzels

5 things I would do if I were a Millionaire:

• See the world
• Get my family out of debt
• Pay a lot in tithing! :)
  
• Set up college funds for my kids
  
• Give to charity

5 places I've lived:

• Woodruff, Utah (population about 100 these days)
• Australia (ok, it was only for a month... but it sounds cool to say I lived there)
• Salt Lake City, Utah
  
• Fresno, California
• Selma, California

5 people I tag:

• Heather
• Nuria
• Christy
• Jeanette
• Robyn

He Will Be Missed

I believe it was last year after April conference that my good friend Katie mentioned she had gone to one of the sessions. 

Knowing that it is sometimes difficult to get tickets to the conference center that aren't stand-by, I asked her, "How are you so special to get tickets?"

To this she replied (very non-chalantly, I might add), "My grandpa spoke." Since that isn't something you leave alone, my next question was of course, "Who's you're grandpa?" Not even looking in my direction, she said, "Elder Wirthlin." Having been taken a little off guard, I asked the silly question of, "Who?" It was then she looked at me and said, "Joseph B. Wirthlin."

After that day, she teased me here and there, offering an invitation to his birthday party or to any gathering he might be at. I never got the chance, but I enjoyed some of the stories she told me about him, having a more intimate relationship with him. It made me wonder what life would be like when you have a grandpa as an apostle? 

Katie is one of the most wonderful, funny, kind-hearted people I know. I think, like her "granddad" (as she called him), the gospel of Jesus Christ has played a role in how wonderful she is. Thanks Katie, for being an example to me, just like he was.

He passed away just last night at the age of 91, being the oldest living apostle today.

Here is just a bit of his last conference talk, which was heart-warming for all who listened.

"The next time you’re tempted to groan, you might try to laugh instead. It will extend your life and make the lives of all those around you more enjoyable."

Charming

Matt and Jenny Baker are good friends of ours. A little while ago, we saw Matt at a movie. I thought I'd share the following snippet of our conversation.

Me: "Chris showed me how much he loves me last night and took me to see Twilight."

Matt: "..... I don't love Jenny that much."

What a sweetheart.

Tough Guy

Though Chris always talks about his high school wrestling days, I've never really seen him wrestle. When we run into his old wrestling buddies, I try my hardest to be interested in what they have to say about the "good old days" at Olympus while wrestling (I promise that I really do try, honey). Because of my lack of interest, I usually give a courtesy laugh in the right places, and shake my head at their crazy stories.

Ultimate Fighting (otherwise known as UFC) is similarly boring to me. Call me crazy (and some people do), but I don't enjoy watching guys beat each other until they bleed. All the hype and all the drama is highly over-rated. 

So when Chris decided he wanted to start Jiu-Jitsu (a form of martial arts, which is what UFC is), I threw up a red flag. However, after much explaining, coaxing from others (mostly my cousin's husband Ben, who also does it) and begging, I decided that he should be able to do what he'd like to do. If nothing else, it is a great form of exercise - and though it is a bit more pricey than what we're paying at the gym, he would be motivated to go. Unlike now... that goes for both of us. Why keep paying the money for the gym when we don't go? We were roped into Gold's and we have a contract. Boo.

When he began Jiu-Jitsu training, he was on cloud nine when he got home. He was so happy, so excited to tell me about it. And though he was rather sore, he couldn't wait to go back. That was about a month and a half ago. And though I haven't enjoyed paying for things to get him started, it has surprisingly become important to me because it's important to him.

Then came the tournament.

Sure, it's all fun and games until someone's trying to win something. Those guys are brutal. I've seen it on T.V.... I know, it's not UFC - there is no punching involved. It's all submission... no real rules, no time limits, and in order to win, you have to choke the other guy out. Yes, I said choke. But believe you me, I was not looking forward to seeing my husband being strangled.

While I knew he was strong and smart when it came to wrestling (or so I hear), I had no idea what to think about Jiu-Jitsu.

As I was patiently watching and waiting

and praying that he didn't end up like this guy

(who I felt awful for),

Chris name was called. It was his turn. He was in the Novice division, the one just before the beginner division. Don't let the rank fool you.

Chris won his first match in 55 seconds flat. Not so bad. I was actually surprised about how laid back I was about it all. It wasn't quite as hard to watch as I thought it'd be. (There is a video below if you're interested in watching.)

This is him all smiles after his first match

He won his second match as well... 15 minutes after it started. That one was pretty nerve-racking... as I said before, I didn't like seeing my husband being strangled. And 15 minutes is no short amount of time as you watch your husband get stuck in tough positions over and over.

There was no room for this match on the big open mat that his first match was on, so they moved them into "the cage." He loved it.

He's in control here, but this was a little crazy... they were up against the fence a lot of the match. It wasn't very fun to watch him being squished into the hard metal as the other guy tried to gain control.

Chris in control on this one

By the end of the second match, I knew that he knew what he was doing. I learned that he would be getting either first or second place in his division after the next match. I think because of this, he may have been a little over-confident... and lost the last match in a matter of seconds. Literally.

But, he did come home with a 2nd place medal. 

How's that for a first tournament?

Did I mention he'd only been training for three weeks?

Here are some videos if you're interested. They are both of him winning... except I forgot to get the coolest part, when they raise the winner's hand at the end. 

Sorry honey!

Twilight Review

I first want to say that everyone who goes to this movie thinking critically and analyzing everything is going to hate it. The film was low budget, they only had two hours to tell the story, and it was a movie - how could it be expected to match up with the book?

That being said, I thought it was well done for what they did have. Sure, there were a few downers. For one, the Cullens were all ghostly white, with Jasper looking almost on the verge of Edward Scissor hands. Not all of the special effects were all that "special," and it was a little hard to get used to the camera work. But overall, I thought is was good. It's just a fun movie... if you're looking for anything more than that, you'll be disappointed.

I thought Bella, although she was dramatic in some parts, was well cast. Edward was perfect, and I really enjoyed their chemistry together. I wasn't a fan of the villians, however. 

Laurent was okay, but James and Victoria killed it.

It made $70.6 million dollars this weekend, and they've already announced that the second book, New Moon, will be made into a movie. My only hope is that they will fix the flaws and do well on that one, too.

I Pulled It Off!

I wanted to throw Chris a surprise party for his 25th birthday last year. Because we were in Florida, it didn't quite work out - so I decided to do it this year. And miraculously, it stayed a surprise! A ton of people came, and I think it turned out well. Thanks to everyone was able to be there, and I'm sorry about the UFC fight that I ordered but didn't work!

Unfortunately, I didn't get the chance to take many pictures. 

Thanks to Heather and Paige, I have a few.

Brandon, Talisia, Christy, me, Nuria, Cole

Chris, me, Paige, Lorin

Chris's good friend Bryant made a special BYU cake just for Chris.

Singing "Happy Birthday"

Blowing out the candles...

Because Bryant is a huge Utes fan, he decided to 

have a little fun with the cake. Not only was the inside 

red, but it was also seasoned with cayenne pepper....

We played a game where everyone had to write down a memory of 

Chris. I read the memories, and he had to guess who wrote them. 

We got some pretty wild stuff - especially from his family who had 

more than their fair share of memories from his childhood 

that were to funny not to share.

We finished off the night with some karaoke. 

Chris and Lorin got down to serious business....

Thanks again for those who were able to come! We had fun!

Excellent

Not only is she beautiful, but she can SING.

I went to Carrie Underwood's concert on Wednesday night. That girl puts all of the other american idols to shame.

She toured with Little Big Town, who are quickly becoming one 

of my favorites. If you love harmony, you will be amazed. 

Here is one of their new songs, "I'm With The Band."

Like I said. Excellent.

Family Week O' Fun

My older sister Holly moved to Florida about two years ago. 

Her husband Tim is from there - he stole her away from us and we only 

get to see them once a year, if we're lucky. :) (Kidding, Tim.) 

We love Holly and Timand we were sooo happy they found some low rates 

and were able to come out for a week! The entire time they 

were here was jam packed with stuff - including a big sleep over with 

all the siblings! It was so nice to spend time with everyone. I saw my brother 

Taylor more that week than I have in months!

Here are some highlights. (I of course will try to limit the pictures...)

Cessna and Robby playing - Robby is Holly's two and a half year old. 

He's a little smarty, and a little crazy... I'll post some videos later.

Me and Bree - my five-month-old niece 

who I had never met before this trip

They came to visit me at work, this is Robby playing around 

the dominoes chair we have located in our conference room

The grandkids hangin' out together. 

They love when their cousin Robby comes to play!

This was the night of the sleep over.  Everyone was there - even 

Hannah Montana graced us with her presence and her awesome rock skills :)

On Saturday night, it was our turn to do the cousin-dinner 

get-together. Each month we take turns getting together and 

cooking together, and socializing. We had fun - even though 

we had about 15 people crammed into our tiny space!

Taylor and my cousin Angela

The dinner crew... this isn't all of them.

We had chili and cornbread. Mmmmm.....

Playing a game after dinner

On Sunday we had family pictures. It was so nice having everyone together.

These pics are from my camera - I can't wait to see the final products.

My immediate family:

Taylor, Holly, Dad, Mom, Heather, TJ, Me

My sisters. We love spending time together.

Heather, Holly, me

My adorable niece Bree. She is so much fun!

The grandkids.... why is it so hard for kids to 

just look at a camera and smile?

Holly, Tim, Bree and Robby. We miss you!

We had so much fun. We love you and can't wait for you to come 

again - and we will try our best to come see you.  

I think you know we'd rather be in Florida at this time of year!

Tradition

About half way through my mission, my companion Sister Wilson and I were in a district in Selma, California. We had some zone leaders that brought some treats to district meeting one week that were pretty good. They told us the next week was our turn. We took turns for a few weeks, each companionship trying to out-do each other. So we decided to bring donuts - homemade. Still to this day, the elders think they won. But we know the truth. Nothing beats homemade donuts.

We decided that we wanted to make it a tradition. Each year, around this time, we make them. And this year was our fourth year. 

Amanda and her new husband Jeff came over, and we caught up on new things, reminisced about old, and enjoyed our time together.

Amanda, Jeff and I

The newly-weds

My niece Cessna and Jeff, coating the donuts with sugar

There were a lot more than this made, but they were gone that night.

I think everyone liked them. Especially my nephew Lance. :)

Amanda is like another sister. 

We love her so much - and we can't wait until next year! 

Holly, you better be here too!

My sisters Heather and Holly (Holly lives in Florida) with me and Amanda