We Survived!

Good morning from sunny Arizona!  I wish that the above picture was a true representation of where I am at right now.  Sadly, it is not snowing here and rarely ever does.  My dreams of a white Christmas will have to wait until another year.  However, I am in Arizona visiting my sweet and amazing grandma as well as my aunt and cousins.

Survival seems to be the theme of our lives right now. 
First, we survived our year of Four Christmases!  Yes, you heard correctly...FOUR!  HERE is where it is all explained but I will go a little more in depth.  We started with Christmas Eve at the LaFuze residence where all of my mother-in-laws side of the family gathered for fun, food, and lots of catching up.  Then, we stayed the night at my parents house to enjoy the magic of Christmas morning.  I found myself reminiscing constantly over the good old days when I believed in Santa and how magical the morning was when stockings were filled and presents were piled high.  Then, we went to visit the Barretts.  Next visit was to my step-dad's sisters house to enjoy another meal and visit with family.  Lastly, we relaxed at the LaFuze's, opened gifts, had Brinner, and played games.  By the end of the night we were EXHAUSTED!!!  Even thought the hustle and bustle of all of our visits and gatherings, we still never forget the reason for the season. 
(Pictures coming soon!)

Daniel had another incident with his cell phone and it was either stolen or lost.  With me leaving town we have resorted to communicating through Facebook messages which I get on my phone.  We are slowly surviving the little hiccups that life brings you.

Then, as we arrived to the airport we were greeted with the lovely DELAYED sign next to my flight :(  My saving grace was having our car still at the airport so we enjoyed the water front views from Harbor Island until it was time for me to head back to the airport.

I am now happily settled into Arizona and enjoying some one-on-one time with my grandma.  Today is my aunt's birthday so are heading over to her house shortly to make her dinner and celebrate!  Family brings much happiness to my life!

"Count your blessings, not your troubles."

Here We Go!

Well, all of the goodies have been baked, the presents are packed into the trunk, and our Christmas attire is laying neatly on our beds. It is now time for the madness to ensue!!! Maybe I'm exaggerating just a touch. Every year we are very blessed to have family live so close to us (30 minutes away). However, our parents only live 5 minutes apart from each other. So, each Christmas we spend time making multiple trips back and forth on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day so that each family gets us equal time. Let me tell you.....it's exhausting!

However, Daniel and I always count our blessings and remember how fortunate we are that our family is alive, healthy, and so close.

Before all of the madness ensues, some holiday baking was needed!



Chocolately Peantuty Rice Crispy Treats

Homemade Granola

I couldn't keep my hands out of the granola! This year I wanted to make little gifts for friends, co-workers, and family. In the past I would have baked a storm making biscotti, sugar cookies, snicker doodles, etc. I wanted to try something a tad bit healthier because I know how my fingers wander when I'm baking. If you were a lucky recipient of my granola, I hope you enjoyed!

Now that it is Christmas Eve I am a little disappointed that I never iced one sugar cookie or rolled any snicker doodles. I'm sure that between the two families and their friends, a sugar cookie will be in the crowd somewhere.

Since it is Christmas Eve I did want to share a little memory:
The best Christmas was when I was about 10 years old. I was the oldest of the three children and I would always be the one who couldn't sleep the night before. I would lie awake in bed and listen for the hooves of Rudolph or the sounds that Santa was near. In the morning, I would pop out of bed by at least 5am and then wake up my brother and sister. We would wait patiently for Mom to get her cup of coffee and Dad to wipe away the sleepies from his eyes. This year we each got brand new bikes, and they were on the back porch. I was in charge of opening the blinds. As soon as the blinds were half-way open, we saw the bikes, and in the midst of my excitement I began to close the blinds shut! We spent the rest of the day playing on our bikes and trying not to fall over.

The last thing I wanted to share was a verse that always reminds me why we celebrate Christmas:
"But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior had been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you; you will find a baby wrapped in clothes lying in a manger." (Luke 2:10-12)

Oh Christmas Tree

Once upon a time there lived a girl and a boy who were anxiously awaiting for the day when their Christmas tree would greet their lovely doorstep. They piled in the car, headed to the nearest Home Depot, and debated on which tree would be the perfect match for them. Would they get a tall one or a short one? Where would it go in their little house? Would it end up being a Charlie Brown Christmas tree?

All of these questions were soon answered when they came upon the perfect little 5 foot tree. It had great branches for hanging ornaments, would fit perfectly on top of the car, and wouldn't be too much in the way at their house. They strapped it onto the roof of their car and drove home listening to the joyous sounds of a very merry Glee Christmas. Once they arrived home, they noticed one dilemma...the base of the tree was much too small.

The girl tried with all of her might to get it to stand straight. However, her efforts were defeated every time she would let go and the tree would fall very close to crashing to the ground.

Where has her husband been this whole time you ask? Well, he decided that this was a great camera moment and would look lovely on their blog.

This girl was so determined to have the perfect Christmas tree, so she kept trying varying strategies until it FINALLY stood beautifully straight (well, mostly straight). Now the lights and decorations have adorned its evergreen bows. Oh yes, this story does have a happy ending!

If you are curious at all about the bright red bow at the top of the tree, then just go and ask her mother how that got there. She just may have been rubbing it in that we do not yet have a Christmas tree topper, so she tied a bow on the top. It works for now!