Decorating the house.

On Friday Mike and I were emailing back and forth at work about what to do that night. It was date night and it was a chance to be together. We enjoy those moments even more since he is gone almost all day Sunday, Tuesday, Thursdays. We talked about bringing out the Christmas stuff on Saturday. It is exhausting to do that. I didn't really want to spend a whole Saturday putting things up and out. So we decided to jump on it Friday night. Bryan and Michelle came over for chile and hot dogs. Bryan then helped Mike get the boxes from the attic down. The festivities had begun!

The tree went up quickly and the decorations for the tree as well but it was late and we couldn't finish it in one night. Bryan and Michelle left late and we sat all alone amongst the boxes bushed!

We got up the next morning and proceeded to finish the tree. I opened more boxes and to my great surprise I found a whole new bunch of wreaths to put out. They all look wonderful and I was thrilled for last years after Christmas clearances. Mom loved wreaths and I have come to as well so I try to put them everywhere in my house. Mike never says anything to me if I want to buy something he just says... is there anything else you wanted to get as well? I love that about him.

Mike left to go help Devin take his stuff down and then they came back to put our empty boxes back up in the attic. At some point Bryan had brought over Glenn Beck's Christmas DVD thinking we would like to watch it so we popped that into the machine. We laughed as we watched it. It was pretty funny and brought back some of my own memories as a kid with my family. His DVD is divided up into 2 sections. Part 1 is funny stories about growing up and part 2 is about the reason for Christmas. He kind of reminds me of a preacher on TV when he got going but hey, he was driving home a great message.

He talks about a Christmas sweater his mom gave him. How he careless threw it on the floor and perhaps stepped on it. It was the last Christmas gift his Mom gave him because she died after that. But he talked about the Savior and his Atonement and do we do the same thing with the gift He gave to us? It touched my heart as I reflected on my life and how I am need to change my life in so many ways.. so I can one day stand in front of the Savior and not be ashamed that I threw his precious gift, He worked so hard to make happen for me, down on the ground only to be casually walked around.

I always acknowledge the many things we have been blessed with as a family and I know they come from ONE Source. I think I shall make my New Years Resolution to pick up the gift of the Atonement next year. To learn about it, to understand what that means for me.

I think I understand better this statement by Pres. Hinckley " There would be no Christmas if there had not been Easter. The babe Jesus of Bethlehem would be but another baby without the redeeming Christ of Gethsemane and Calvary, and the triumphant fact of the Resurrection."

Pres. Hinckley also said "Everything we do is done in the name of Christ. ....We worship Christ; we believe in Christ; we accept him. And he's our savior; he's our redeemer. He's the Son of God; he's the great creator; he's the word made flesh as spoken of by John. He's the savior of the world, Jesus Christ, the Son of God."

The only thing I have left to say is BRING ON THE NEW YEAR!