Lights

Moving right along, we got the lights up today. By tomorrow we should get the rest of the decorations on the tree.

And once again, the artistic side of me seeps out as I attempt unsuccessfully to keep the camera still. Looks kind of pretty doesn't it?

Creeping up on Christmas

This past week went by at warp speed, and we are scrambling to make ready for the 18th et. seq. We seem to be slowly getting all things in readiness, with Joanne leading the way. Last night we did manage to get a tree from Raley's. This is the "live tree" made famous in Rebecca's blog (if you haven't been there and seen the video of Tyler interacting with their tree, you really need to go). The "synthetic tree" was the subject of a prior post and, as noted, is relegated to peeking at us through the dining room window as we scurry around inside decorating, etc.

Here is a picture of the tree waiting around in the back yard for me to take the time to get it ready for "planting" in the house. The long wait was occasioned by the need for me to mow the lawns (although it has been very foggy all week, the grass hasn't be cut for many weeks and it finally today dried out just enough to cut). And I also spent some time at the hardware store laying in stores of the tools and materials necessary to install the new vanity in the master bath. It will look great when I get it all done.

In this picture you can see the other tree in the background. Amazingly, both trees were in the back yard almost all day and there were no signs of fighting or other misbehavior on the part of either tree. They got along just fine.
And here is the tree in its place of prominence in our living room. We'll put up more photos after we get it decorated - shouldn't take more than a couple of days.

Oh yes, we are taking time for the important things - last evening we got an attachment for our Kitchenaid that allows us to grate chocolate that can then be used in the baking of . . . toffee! Yummmmm! I came right home and did 5 bags of it - enough for 10 plates. That way there may actually be some left when everyone comes later this month. ;)

Finally, the word for the week is "penultimate". If you think you know the meaning of this word, and its application to our family, leave a comment to that effect and we'll announce the winners in a future post.

Tree's Up

It's the day after Thanksgiving and we have our tree up. At least the one we got from Grandma Ottley. We don't have any room in the house, so we put it up out on the patio. What do you think?
Here it is again after dark, but with a flash - still not too impressive.
Here's that night view without the flash. Pretty cool, huh? We like it. We are well on our way to being into Christmas. In order to get the tree out, of course we had to clean out the garage, so we got that added benefit.

And one of the great things is that although it's outside, we can see it through the dining room window. What a great sight. It kind of makes it almost worth it for it to get dark so early.

So are you wondering how I got these cool shots? I am pretty surprised myself, because I didn't get out my tripod to take them. So here is one of the more "artistic" shots:

Pretty cool, huh?

Brooke in CA

In the midst of providing a Thanksgiving feast for about a dozen people today, Grandma Joanne put together a little video of a great visit we had earlier this month. We had lots of fun that week, and have the photos to prove it. I may put some of my own up later, but here's a few - put to music no less. Grandma's getting very good at this.

My 25 Words

Today in Priesthood Meeting we discussed President Monson's address in General Conference last October, including the story of Jay Hess. Brother Hess was shot down over North Vietnam in the 1960's during the conflict in Vietnam. After over two years in captivity he was allowed to write home, but he was limited to just 25 words or less. Since hearing of this story last October, I have reflected many times what 25 words I would leave to my posterity. My initial thoughts are:

"Follow the Prophets. Come unto Christ. Sing the hymns. Study the scriptures. Love your family. Attend the temple often. Seek light. Receive revelation. Be grateful."

It may require a bit of refining, but there you have it. Nobody who has spent much time with me would be surprised at the first three, they are the key. What a gift it is to live in a time when we have the word of God through His authorized servants. Basically, they tell us to do all of the other things in my list, and many more that cannot be included in such a short list. Every month we can receive the most important education we can receive from the best periodical published - The Ensign. This includes the two bonus issues in May & November. These are high on my list of things I feel thankful for.