For My Sister

I have been thinking about my sister a lot the last little while...so naturally, I am going to blog about it :)  I started this post on Sunday and I wrote things and then deleted them and wanted to think some more about it.  Then I read her blog and decided, I should really get my thoughts out there in blogger land and hopefully she will get them!  So here we go:

Dear Sister,
I just want you to know that I love you.  I know you worry about our family growing apart since we are all living farther away from each other.  There is a saying that I love and I wanted to share it with you.  It says: 

Family like branches on a tree; we all grow in different directions, yet our roots remain as one.

 I know it is hard to be away from your family, but no matter where we go or what we do, it all comes back to family.  We are forever.  We will always be there for each other and no amount of distance can take that away.

And since I am the older sister, I am going to get kind of bossy, opinionated, pushy whatever you want to call it!  Ready?  Here I go, don't let other peoples opinions (including mine) determine your course in life.  I read about Christmas and you being worried that someone would leave a rude comment about what you did or didn't get for your family.  If I may be so blunt, screw them.  Who cares what anyone else thinks.  Now I know this is easier said then done, cause from time to time I struggle with it too.  DON'T LET THEM WIN.  Ready for another quote?  Christopher Robin said this on Winnie the Pooh :)  

Promise me you will always remember:  You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, smarter than you think and twice as beautiful as you'd ever imagined.      

Cling to those that truly matter.  You are loved, you are a Daughter of our Heavenly Father.  You have your earthly family that cares and prays for you and a spiritual family that is rooting you on! 

 

Love,

Your Sister            

Change

Times, they are a changin'!  Last week I was released from my calling in the Young Women.  It is the only calling I had that I cried when I was called and I cried when I was released.  When I was called, I thought "The president must not have prayed about this too well, I am NOT the right person for this job"  But oh, how I loved it! I loved (almost) everything about it.  I am going to miss those beautiful little ladies. It will be an interesting transition.  I was wondering what I would do with myself on Wednesday's and Sunday's.  I still don't know yet!  Last Wednesday, I still went to YW and Sunday I subbed in the primary (oh I hope that subbing doesn't become permanent). 
Ted was released from the primary and was called to the YM, he will be teaching the lessons to the Priests.  He is thrilled with this calling, I have never seen him so excited!  When he got to church on Sunday he found out he gets to do more than just teach, which made him even happier.  They are going to have him involved with some of the activities too.  Guess what they have planned....snowmobiling, boating, working on vehicles.  No wonder he is so excited!!

Christmas Break

It is a bitter sweet day for me (can you tell I am feeling dramatic)!  I got off work at Noon on December 22nd for Chrismas Break.  The kids got out of school a at 1:00 on the 23rd.  We have relaxed, lounged, traveled, gorged ourselves and had absolutley NO SCHEDULE!  Well it came to an end today.  I had to return to work and the kids had to go back to school.  I have mixed feelings about it.  I am so glad that we are back to a normal schedule and have some structure again.  But with that schedule and structure comes the end of our "stay in our pj's until noon (or all day...)" way of life.  (poor me!)  So on the 22nd, I ended up running to Logan as soon as I got off work.  I needed to pick up our Prime Rib for Christmas Eve dinner from Lowers Food in Richmond.  I also needed to do some Christmas shopping, because of course I wasn't ready!  Ted was working, so Paige and Dax went with me and Chris.  We had a great visit on our drive.  Friday, the 23rd, I volunteerd at Mica's school helping them learn everything they possibly could about Gingerbread!  When I got home I had to hurry wrap everything I could while the kids were still in school.  After getting the kids, we cleaned up the house a bit and let them relax while I started making stuff for our Christmas Eve dinner!  Christmas Eve found me doing more shopping (in K-town), more cleaning, more cooking and less relaxing!  We had Ted's Mom and Dad, Our Aunt Viv, Ted's brother Dugan, The Phillips' Family including Grandma and Grandpa Phillips' over for Christmas Eve Dinner.  We feasted on Prime Rib, Crab Legs (I didn't eat those....), Rolls, Stuffing, Potatoes, Salad, Pasta, Cake Balls, Gingerbread Cake, Pies and Sparkling Cider!  We opened some presents and just had a good visit.  I had woke the kids up pretty early that morning hoping they would go to bed at a decent hour, so Santa could come.  BUT NO!  They were still running around like mad at 11:30!  I went to bed leaving them up hoping that Santa would make it.  That sly guy, he was able to slip in and out when the kids finally sat still long enough to fall asleep.  Christmas morning brought with it gifts from loved ones and Santa.  We enjoyed our morning and then went off to church.  We were able to go to Christmas Dinner at the Phillips' that evening and had a wonderful time.  The rest of the week I kind of lost track of time, I read 7 books all of which I had read before, but still it was nice just to be able to read.  I went back to Logan (twice), we went sledding down a hill of ICE, I SLEPT IN, We watched some movies, I cooked and baked and loved it.  We went back to the Phillips' for New Year's Eve and enjoyed their company!  The next morning found us at Chuch at 9 am!  We were able to listen to a Missionary just returned home give his report.  It was wonderful.  When we got home I finaly took down our Christmas decor and made a Cheese Stuffed Pork Roast and we had Ted's parents over for dinner.  Monday (yesterday) we got down to business.  We cleaned our rooms, did mountains of laundry, spent some time with Ted's family and got ready for today.  Now we are back to our regular routines and I am hoping that I remember to fit some down time and relaxation into my routine. 

So there it is, a pretty long post, thanks for hanging in there!  I hope you all have a very wonderful New Year!