Better late than never...

Some of our holiday experiences, in a nutshell...

We went with Ben's family up to Pioneer Village, where,

despite the freezing temperatures, we honed our line-dancing skills,

and saw the best live Nativity I've ever seen.

Jordon (Ben's brother) and Brittany flew out from Indiana! We spent a day up in Salt Lake with the whole family...this is at the State Capitol...

where Ben and I both went to High School prom...but with different dates. :)

Temple Square was beautiful, of course.

And you can't have Christmas Eve without singing some carols,

or taking family pictures.

Jordon and Brittany were nice enough to bring their daughter to meet us (who should be on the cover of Cutest Baby Magazine),

and everyone just ate her up.

Lastly, one of my best friends, Danielle, got married!

After years of being Tom-boys together, we are finally growing up. :)

They're perfect for each other, and we're of course excited to have more married friends!

IN-N-OUT N NEVER AGAIN

Due to the significant Utah Valley hype over the new arrival of IN-N-OUT to the valley, Kristin and I decided to try it out. After being driven through the parking lot by numerous IN-N-OUT employees like cattle on their way to the corral, we were brought to the window where we would receive our feed.

I ask, "So what's this 'secret menu' I've been hearing about?" One of the 120 workers all crammed into a 10' by 10' grease room answers, "Oh it's aslkdjfasldjflaskdjflsajdflaskdjflaskdjdf" as he rattles off some 90 words in 3 seconds. "Oh...okay," I manage to get out before being shuffled on to the next window.

Granted the burgers were better than McDonalds, Kristin and I both couldn't finish our pink and brown blubber shakes and our tasteless fries met the garbage before half-way gone. What followed was a lump of yuck in our stomachs and a fast food hangover for the next few hours.

Needless to say, our final verdict was easy to come by: IN-N-OUT N NEVER AGAIN!

Christmas Time Is Here

Well, from the look of our blog, you'd think we never did anything! On the contrary...

We started out our Christmas season by attending a Utah Grizzlies ice hockey game with a couple of my brothers and their dates. Ice hockey attracts quite an interesting crowd...we just kept our distance from the shirtless drunks. It turned out to be an exciting win over Las Vegas--complete with fist fights and all!



...We made gingerbread houses with my family (plus some dates). Please don't mistake the REAL gingerbread for graham crackers...we've prided ourselves in that for years. :)




...I got an urge for a sewing project, so I went to DI and found some old sweaters to make stockings out of...but don't look too close! The thick/bumpy fabric and shape of the sweaters made it a challenge to sew, but that just gives them a little personality, right?



...I threw a bridal shower (with a bunch of help from my mom) for one of my best friends since Junior High.




...I played flute in the Highland Children's Choir christmas concert (I have two brothers that sing in it and my mom is the accompanist) and my grandparents happened to be here from CA!



...and last but not least, we've been taking every opportunity to sip hot cocoa and listen to Christmas music!

Thankful...for the JOY that surrounds me