Finding Christmas

I had a hard time getting into the Christmas Spirit this year. I think it's because I was too distracted by too many things. Like my pregnancy. And no snow in Seattle. And no going home to spend the holiday with all our family. And mailing gifts to loved ones instead of delivering them in person. And trying to help a husband through finals. And doing my best to keep up with a 2-year-old while being 8 months pregnant...you get the idea.

I'm happy to say, though, that I found Christmas. Just in time. And here is how.

Bradley
He is one amazing guy. First, he finished his finals, then quickly proceeded to get our home ready for Christmas. He sang carols all day. He took us shopping to make sure we had everything we needed. He played with Lainy constantly (she had missed her Daddy terribly during finals). He made dinner. And at night, he read us Christmas stories under the Christmas tree.

Our Lainy Girl
Brad's parents got Lainy a Fisher Price nativity set. She has spent the last three weeks playing with it. She has slept with the angel and Baby Jesus. She's even learned the whole story (with very few prompts). My favorite part is when the angel appears to the shepherds. Lainy says: "Angel say: "Glory to God in the Highest. On Earth peace, good will to men." It's adorable and so, so sweet.

2 Parents-In-Law
They came the Sunday before Christmas and filled our home with love and cheer until they left Christmas Day. They did my dishes, cooked meals, bought groceries, vacuumed my house, played with Lainy, brought a plethera of our favorite Christmas movies, treated us to some fun activities, and acted so excited to be spending Christmas with us, even though it must have been hard to be away from their home and other children. Our house felt very empty and quiet after they left.

The Ronald McDonald House
Brad wanted to be sure and make time to do some service this Holiday Season. We wanted it to be something Lainy could be a part of. So Brad grabbed his violin and we headed up to the Ronald McDonald House. We collected a small audience and Brad played them Christmas Carols. It was so neat to see the peace that beautiful music can bring people. I could tell that Brad's little concert helped get their minds off at least some of their worries. It was a special evening.

Nazareth Night
My favorite Christmas tradition. We turned off all the lights, lit candles, prepared simple food, dressed in ancient Israeli garb (towels on our heads and robes wrapped around us) and had a nice quiet night thinking and talking about that sacred night in Bethlehem. We read this talk by Elder Holland, which really brought the Spirit into our home. It was such a nice break from the hustle and bustle of all our other Christmas preparations!

The Christmas Ship
I'd heard about a tradition in Seattle where a cruise line decorates one of their ships in Christmas lights, hires a choir to sing on board, and sails around to the beaches and waterfronts of Seattle. Anyone who wants to decorate their own boat can follow behind the Christmas Ship, while people on the shore watch and listen to the choir. We decided to go. The beach was lined with hundreds of luminaries, and we arrived just in time to see the Christmas Ship pull into shore. What a fun tradition! The choir on the ship was great! The parade ended with the people on shore joining the choir in "Silent Night". It was something we could only have done in Seattle, and it made me grateful to be here.

Christmas Eve pageant
You can't let Christmas Eve pass without doing a little pageant. Not in our family anyway. Brad's Mom brought her script and the five of us acted it out as best we could. Lainy played Mary, Brad was Joseph, Mom was the angel, I was a shepherd, and Dad played a wiseman. It's always so neat to read the account straight from the scriptures.

Christmas Morning
Lainy was sooooo excited that Santa actually brought her a dollhouse and eaten the cookies she'd left out for him. I surprised Brad with a little gift that actually made him cry. I was shocked to discover that Santa had left us a double jogging stroller/bike trailer. (Hooray!!) It was so fun to open gifts and think about each giver. Isn't Christmas morning always magical?

So that is how I found Christmas this year. It was a little different, but wonderful and magical in so many ways! I hope you were able to find it too!

A Few of My Favorite Things. . .

This Mrs. Claus ornament. I think she looks so sweet!

This sweet Santa my parents gave to Brad and I a few years ago.

My Nativity.

The Wisemen that were added to my Nativity this year.

Having a 2 1/2 year old at Christmas time. She's so excited about everything and makes it magical for all of us!

And, of course, this man who just finished his finals and probably wishes he were back on a beach in Hawaii, but has been helping me cook, clean, and get ready for Christmas instead.

Merry Christmas Everyone!!

Baby

Today Lainy pulled me into her room saying she'd put her baby to sleep. This is what we found:

Cute hu?

Maybe I need to teach her not to cover up a baby's face with the blanket before we have a real baby around. . .

Speaking of real babies...ours is due in less than a month! Crazy stuff. We're getting excited!

Dr. Hansen (aka Brad) has put me on temporary bed rest until he finishes his finals on Wednesday.

Why did he put me on temporary bed rest? Well, maybe it's because I decided to carry all of our groceries up our three flights of stairs (in one trip) last week, which led to some contractions...which stopped after I layed down for a while. (In my defense, I couldn't decide if it would be worse to carry them all up in one trip, or to go up and down the stairs 3 or 4 times...I guess got my answer.)

Or maybe it's because I felt an overwhelming urge to re-arrange the furniture in Lainy's room (so it can accomodate another little girl soon), which led to some contractions...which stopped after I layed down for a while.

I'll have you know I'm being a very good patient now.

And Dr. Hansen is doing phenomenally well on his finals.

That's all for now. I hope you're all having fun getting ready for Christmas!

Singing Tigers and Honest Toddlers

So Lainy and I watched a few minutes of the Christmas Tree lighting at Rockefeller Center in NYC tonight. (On TV, not in real life.)

Aretha Franklin sang "Joy To the World" to start the show.

This is what she was wearing:

After watching Aretha for a minute, Lainy (always the commentator) turned to me looking thoughtful and said: "That tiger sings really good".

Ha HA ha!!!

I'm still laughing as I type this...

Thanksgiving Break

Here are some highlights of our Thanksgiving break:
1. My sister Hayley coming to stay with us. She's so awesome. We just love her!
2. Finding out my parents sent Hayley with an activity fund, which we spent on some really fun stuff we that we might not have done without the help. (Thank you!!)
3. Pikes Place Market (again). But this time it was much more lively. And yes, we did devour a dozen more mini donuts in about 30 seconds flat.
4. View from the top of the Columbia Center. It's twice as tall as the Space Needle and 1/3 the cost.

5. Watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade with a very excited 2-year-old. When Santa Claus came, Lainy yelled "Santa! Santa! Bring presents for everyone!" Too cute.
6. Spending Thanksgiving dinner with the family of one of Brad's med school friends. They were so kind! Dinner was delicious, and I was very grateful that I didn't have to cook a whole Thanksgiving dinner by myself.
7. Playing rock stars at the Experience Music Project (a museum) Friday morning. Brad was lead guitarist and singer, Lainy and I played the drums, and Hayley was on the keyboard. It was hilarious. Way better than Rockband (as we were playing real instruments in front of a huge screen of screaming fans who had apparently been sleeping on sidewalks for two days in order to see our show).

8. Salty's restaurant for lunch. Yum. The restaurant was decorated for the Holidays in huge six foot, handpainted nutcrackers. Lainy loved them (almost as much as her french fries and Brad's mango smoothie).

9. Watching Hayley and Brad trying to eat crab legs - complete with having to crack the shell to pull the meat out. It was messy, but it sure smelled good!
10. White chocolate mousse cake. It was heavenly. It might be worth the trip to Seattle if anyone's interested...

11. Taking a ferry boat to Vashon Island. I've been wanting to go on a ferry ride since we got here, and it didn't disappoint.
12. Seeing this in real life:

To fully appreciate how much this meant to us, you'll have to go read a Christmas book called "Red Ranger Came Calling". Seriously. Go read it. You'll be glad you did.
13. Shopping with my sister in interesting new stores only to discover once again (for like the hundredth time) that GAP clothes just fit our body type the best. Good thing they were having a sale...
14. Seeing the crazy UW Husky and WSU Cougar fans gather at Husky stadium for the highly contentious Apple Cup football game. (And the fact that UW won 30-0)
15. Sleeping after playing hard all weekend!

A short note to my sis: I love you! Thank you for doing my dishes, for your input on how to make my garland (it turned out cute!), for not noticing (or not commenting) when the 2-year-old was acting up and her mother was frustrated, for carrying Lainy down three flights of stairs every time we left the house, and for being so darn fun to have around. We miss you already.

A short note to my parents: Thank you for sending Hayley here. I still miss you though. Love you!

A short note to the rest of my family spread across Idaho, Virginia, and DC: I wish we could have been with you all for Thanksgiving! We miss you and love you! A lot!