CHRISTmas :

Christmas this year was a little different from the rest. Really only  because I don’t technically “live” at home, even though I come here every weekend. So we had our normal family Christmas party for my moms side of the family and it was great as usual good food (especially the new chocolate fountain that I hope is at every single one of our parties), family, and fun (as all our parties are).

We usually do a dinner with everyone, then the older kids (us) get to go and fill the socks that everyone brings. The whole sock thing was a tradition I think my great grandmas started with my mom and her siblings and they loved it so we continue it and do it every year. So we filled the socks while the kids got ready to the nativity which is what we do every year as well. I remember being in the nativity, oh man good times. We always wanted to be the shepherds. When we were little we wanted to be the angels. The cutest thing about that is, all the parents are recording and just loving it while me and my cousins and sisters can’t help but giggle and laugh at the little kids just wandering around the stage like they are on a new plant. It’s great.

So then after that we have Santa come (my uncle James) and give all the kids their socks and they can sit on their laps. The funny thing that happened this year was we had a microphone that was really the microphone that went to the primary room. So it was like a foot long and Ashley looked like a fool trying to use it. And yes, we really do need a microphone for just our family. We are very large, and very loud. I guess that’s what you get for having 9 siblings. It’s just a party every day!

Another funny thing, my aunt Diane brought coal for my mom. So, we called her up with the weird microphone she sat on Santa’s lap and he gave her a huge rock of coal. That’s just my aunt Diane for you. She’s hilarious and always does the funniest things to everyone. In July we voted her the funniest of all our Aunts ;)

Then, it was Diane’s turn to sit on Santa’s lap. My mom had this huge bag of red hot’s that we have literally had for 5 years. My mom brings it to the gingerbread making party we have around Christmas at Diane’s every year. It’s hilarious because we all remember it and don’t even use them.

So, Diane sat on her lap and guess what she got? Yep. The bag of red hot’s. She laughed so hard.

This year was a musical Christmas theme. After we do the whole Santa things we do something that goes with our theme. So people performed piano songs and stuff. Then Karl sang her song, with the weird microphone. After she was done singing, my grandmas told my mom “Her middle name is Ruth.” My mom laughed and then announced that to everyone. My grandmas is always so supportive and kind. I love her so much!

That was that. We went shopping a little after then went home to get ready for Christmas eve. We cleaned up, ate dinner, and went a little crazy. Literally, we were bouncing off the walls. It was a blast. We always get to open one present on Christmas eve, it’s always PJ’s. Not this year!

A little bit ago I told my mom that we had a lot of pictures of Christ in our house so this year (we get a different picture for our house every year from the money that my grandmas gives our family for Christmas) so I really think it would be cool to have a picture of a strong women in the church like Emma Smith or someone like that. So we all open our presents expecting pajamas. But nope, we each got a beautiful picture of one of the ten virgins. I think it’s beautiful. Then we read the story of the ten virgins and talked about it. My mom told us that every time we looked at the picture we should think that we can be her and return to our heavenly father making sure that our lamps are lit at all times. J It was very spiritual and a new twist to our Christmas eve. I can’t wait to get home and hang it up J

The rest of Christmas was fun. I like it being on Sunday because then it really is centered on Christ. We woke up early to go to our cousins church and watch her sing, her church was at 9:00 so we didn’t open our presents before. We came home and opened them and then ate breakfast, played a few games and went to church.

What I got for Christmas:

1.      New lotion and perfume.

2.     New shirts

3.     New shoes

4.     A new super cute coat

5.     A Cosmo pillow pet

6.     A new BYU jacket

7.     New pair of jeans

8.     The picture

9.      A spongebob connect 4 game

10.   Lot of stuff in my stocking

11.   Your Happily Ever After book (which I’ve wanted forever, it’s my favorite talk ;)

12.  A weight watchers scale (I think my mom is trying to tell me something ;)

13.    Then a bunch of stocking stuff that was stuff I actually needed like bobby pins, pencils, gum, and chap stick.

Overall, it was simple and amazing J I loved every second of it!