Christmas in our home 2011

The PJ fairy mde her annual voyage to our house.  Each of the children found their new PJ's on their beds.  With excitement in the air, the Christmas story was read, carols were sung, reindeer were fed and Santa's plate was filled with yummy hand made cookies.  Christmas morning started at 6:00am.  We always come down the stairs in age order, youngest to oldest.  We wished Jesus a Happy Birthday then we went down the stairs to see the bounty left behind.  We had church at 10 am, so we dressed for the occasion and enjoyed a beautiful Sacrament Service to further remind us about the reason for the season.  

Hadley's Christmas Program 2011

This year Hadley was an angel for the Christmas program at her church. She worked hard to know her parts by heart. She was so proud of herself. She had been singing bits of songs for weeks. When she would catch me listening to her, she would be quiet. She wanted it to be a surprise. Her most impressive song was Keep Christmas With You. She came home one day from school and instructed me that we had to get on the internet. She explained that there was a Sesame Street song that we needed to Google. So reluctantly I did. We watched as Bob did the sign language and words for this very meaningful song. I still have the melody in my head. I love Hadley's experiences growing educationally as well as spiritually.

Ward Christmas Party

This year our Ward did a theme of "The Polar Express". I must say they did a fabulous job. I didn't get pictures of all the work but it was great. Upon entering the building, in our PJ;S, we were greeted by the conductor. We filled in our tickets for prizes to be given out throughout the night. The prizes were candid pictures of temples or the prophet or other LDS depicted sayings. I loved it. Two of my kiddos won something. After a pot luck meal, the conductor read the story to the kids. They planted themselves around his feet and listened so intently. The guest of honor arrived right on time. Jenna was the first one in line to tell him exactly what she wanted. Hadley proudly climbed upon his knee. This was a momentous year because both of my girls were looking forward to Santa instead of being afraid of him.

Sevice anyone ?

Over the Thanksgiving break, many, many hands helped create a leak free environment for some of our ward members. Their roof was completely falling in. In some of the pictures you can see that a couple of our guys actually fell through the roof. Needless to say, not only did this family get new shingles on their roof, but they also got new plywood. The whole structure is now sound and safe. They should not be having anymore leaks. As a side note, our friends, The Carpenter's were visiting for Thanksgiving and Jordyn and Scott volunteered to spend their vacation serving others. How awesome is that?

Baptism of Eris Nicole Kincaid

Jared has had the privilege of baptizing 2 different people. These girls are sisters and they kindly asked Jared to perform their baptisms. Sadly I do not have a picture of Jared and Ella Grace, the first he baptized. She was baptized in February of 2011. I was sure to get a picture of Jared and Eris. She was baptized in November 2011. In the Kincaid Family, Jared is known as Big Jared. They have a cousin named Jared and he is shorter than our Jared. In this picture you can see that Jared is indeed big. We had him kneel down so we could get them both in the shot.

. When Jared was dressing for Eris' baptism, none of the pants in the baptism closet would fit again. This time they were all TOOOOO BIIIIG. In the picture showing, Jared's pants are actually taken in by a safety pin in the back. Jared rehearsed with each girl prior to their baptism. We held a special FHE with the Kincaids. Jared successfully performed these ordinances and each girl was baptized. He did hit a stumbling block with Eris but he started again and finished strong. I was so proud of my son.

As I viewed my son all in white, ready to perform in the Aaronic Priesthood, my eyes filled with tears. Tears of joy and sadness. Joy because I can see that he is ready to serve the Lord. Sad because my baby boy is growing up so quickly. Isn't there an easy button out there to keep my kids at a good age, so I can enjoy them just a little longer.

Fall in the Bluegrass State 2011

This year we went for a family day trip to Bernheim forest . The intent was for the boys to go riding together. Unfortunately the bike path was closed. So after all the prep work to ride, they ended up being on foot. They joined us girls and wandered the beautiful grounds. It ended up being a very nice morning.

Happy 18th Birthday Jared

I didn't feel old turning 30. I didn't feel old turning 40. Suddenly I feel old now that my first born is 18! The day of his birthday we celebrated with a family dinner and cake. Andy and I had planned a surprise for Jared for the weekend. Andy invited Jared's closest friends and they met at China Buffet, one of Jared's favoite restaurants. Andy brought Jared and Krysta into the restaurant where we were all waiting to yell "Surprise". I know he was not expecting that and it was fun to see his face. His friends were very kind and got him some nice gifts. After everyone had filled their bellies, it is a buffet afterall, we brought everyone to our house. They hung out, played games and shared another cake. These moments are fleeting. All too soon my baby boy will be out on his own. I treasure these moments more and more.