Daily Journal - December 2009

Tuesday, December 1st
Promise to update this thing this month. Promise! We enjoyed a nice day of sunshine and mild temps today before the CRAZY storm sets in tomorrow and temperatures drop 15 degrees this weekend. Boo! But have the tree up, the stockings hung, the snowman in the yard, and the mantel decorated. We're about a 1/3 of the way there!

Wednesday, December 2nd
Yay! Nathan is gone! And I'm not sad about Noelle either. Finally, I feel like the show is enjoyable to watch again. Don't know what I'm talking about? Then we can't be friends...
The girls are on Day 3 of Operation Room Share and so far it's been interesting. They had one bad night, and naps are still a little tricky. But I think we're making it work. It's nice to be able to go into my room and turn on the lights and not have to tiptoe around or brush my teeth in the closet. But I miss being able to roll out of bed, pick up Rachelle, nurse her in bed with me, and return her to her crib. Because now I have to walk down the hall. And nurse her in the rocking chair. With her waking up 1-2 times a night, I am getting less sleep. Because that jaunt into the girls' room really wakes me up!

Saturday, December 5th
Crazy day! Went to a training in the morning for church on how to be a better teacher (really inspiring, BTW), a rehearsal for a musical program we're doing for Relief Society on Tuesday, planned my lesson for Sunday School tomorrow, and made Shaelyn's party invitations (which always take me longer to do than I think they will). Pretty typical Saturday in December!

Sunday, December 6th
Tonight was the First Presidency Christmas Devotional for our church. Beautiful music, beautiful talks. Shaelyn sat with us and watched most of it. She loved the lights on Temple Square and the Tabernacle Choir singing. Michael and I both got emotional during the broadcast, and Shaelyn got real quiet during those moments. It's nice to feel the Spirit as a family.

Monday, December 7th
We finished putting all the lights up on the house. With Michael being out of town the first week of December, we were late in getting them up. Which was a real bummer for me. But now they're up and I'm feeling all Christmas-y. Michael and I even made some cups of hot chocolate (white chocolate peppermint for me, YUM!) and sat out on the front porch looking at ours and the neighbor's lights. I love having a front porch. I'm so porch spoiled. If we ever live anywhere else, it's going to have to have a front porch. A screened in back porch would be nice, too.
And is it just me, or are less and less people putting Christmas lights up on their houses every year. This year in our neighborhood is pretty sad. Either that or everyone's waiting til the last minute.

Tuesday, December 8th
We have had more miserable weather since the end of October since we have the whole time we've lived in NC (almost 7 years!!!). Maybe our winters used to be bleak and rainy and FREEZING before, but I just didn't notice because I didn't have a three-year-old BEGGING me to go outside. Poor said three-year-old.

Tonight was our Relief Society Christmas dinner. I sang "When Joseph Went to Bethlehem." I love that song. I think Joseph is often an unsung hero of the Christmas story. I love to think of him holding the baby Jesus and comforting Mary and influencing the man Jesus became. I was pretty emotional during the program. Having a baby at Christmas time makes me feel that much more connected to Mary. My friend Nicolle sang a song, "Mary's Lullaby" that speaks to the love a mother has for a child. In the song, she pleads with the Father to spare her baby from all the pain, oppression, and loneliness that would inevitably fill his mortal life. I sobbed listening the song, thinking of my same desire for my babies, knowing that it can't be so. But when you hold an innocent, beautiful baby in your arms, you can't wish for anything less than it never be hurt or disappointed or scared or alone. It was a beautiful meeting.

Wednesday, December 9th
The wind was blowing so hard today, I seriously thought it was going to pick up our house and move it a block down the street. And I would have really minded that, because I love where our house is! But I don't think I've ever heard such strong wind outside our house in all the years we've lived here. I thought the siding was going to rip right off! I was shocked the girls were even able to fall asleep for their naps in the midst of all the howling noise. Poor Maggie has been hiding under our covers all day.