ward party
neighborhood friend ugly sweater party
taking a walk in the zoo lights aka our neighbor's yard!
burton family party...these girls will forever love gordon
christmas was wonderful. we got to see most of our family members, extended included. my favorite part of christmas was when we were opening gifts at my mom's. she always makes sure to buy our dogs gifts. this year she went a step further and wrapped their gifts. she wanted to see if they would/could unwrap them. well she stuffed the inside with treats so of course they both ripped right in! my favorite part of all of this was how every camera and video recording device was on and lock in on our dogs! everyone was laughing and making all kinds of noises as we watched. i took a step back, smiled, and realized we need kids and my mom needs a grandbaby (or two)! skyler is almost 17 so he's no fun to watch open gifts (although we still do and make all the same noises for him that we did the dogs). we need more excitement...more than the dogs can give us.
jodi and trevor also had a gender reveal party this month. we're excited for little miss flint to join our family this may!
i will never forget this december. i have never been so exhausted, yet so uplifted. the way my neighborhood came together to help one another get through a life event that no one should ever have to go through. the shooting at sandy hook elementary in connecticut hit home for us. our dear neighbors' granddaughter died in the shooting. we had the opportunity to welcome this family home and help in celebrating emilie parker's life by hosting her funeral in our church. so many wonderful things happened all around me. our neighborhood looked like pepto bismol (covered in pink bows to remember emilie). people from all over were contacting me to see how they could help. i was overwhelmed with the gratitude and thoughtfulness from everyone around me. i would be lying if i said this experience didn't wear me down. it did. so much than i would have even imagined. tears were a constant. but the love all around me lifted me up. i am still amazed when i think of it all (and things are still happening for this family...the love hasn't stopped and it's beautiful).
yes, this december is one for the books. and i'm grateful for that.
