Christmas Joy!

We just returned from a weeklong visit to our homeland, North Dakota. Our dreams of a white Christmas definitely came true this year since a blizzard hit on Christmas Day. SO much snow which was an absolute blast for sledding. We were snowed in for a few days which was kind of a treat and super cozy.

On Christmas Eve, we went to the Children's Mass and LTD got to go up front for the sermon. Dylan was super loud, as usual, when the priest asked all the children questions about the Christmas story. He was really into it! Taylor was a big hit with the lady who sat behind us. Taylor gave her a picture she colored in church and the woman grabbed my arm with tears in her eyes and said, "this is the best Christmas gift I have received this year! I will make sure to put it on my fridge. I don't have any children and this means alot to me!" Just one small act of kindness and a sweet little smile brightened a stranger's Christmas - how wonderful!

We enjoyed sharing time with Papa & Grandma Good, Papa & Grandma Kemmet, cousins, aunts & uncles, friends and each other. Grandma and Papa Good made Christmas especially joyful with all the decorations, home-baked treats, thoughtful gifts, TLC, making LTD's favorite meals, letting mom and dad sleep in, etc. Thank you, mom, for the extra care and fond memories - we love you so much and sincerely appreciate you and Egg!! We also got to sled, play in the snow, make Christmas cookies with Grandma, listen to loads of Christmas music, watch a few family movies ("Christmas Shoes" was a a tearjerker; "Sound of Music" is still an all-time favorite), share some adult beverages with dear friends (mom and dad's night out), play at the indoor playground with Aunt Heidi and the girls, and go out for pizza with Papa & Grandma Kemmet. We missed Papa & Grandma Clark since they are in Texas already but they were in our hearts. Aunt Heidi invited us over so we did get to play at their house which is a favorite of LTD's. Don't worry Grandma Clark, we patched up the walls pretty good after our play fest :)

Zoe was a special guest this year at Christmas which added some fun flair to our activities. She is a cute little fluffy white dog that we watched for 2 weeks for a friend. Not only is she hypoallergenic (Dave's saving grace), but she is so sweet, cuddles with everybody, never bites and travels well. LTD enjoyed taking care of her, taking her sledding and snuggling-in with her. She left today and we miss her already. Such a sweet pup!! I guess that means a dog may be in our future come this summer since Dave liked her and LTD passed the "care" test. Yeah!!

Christmas is now a quaint memory and our focus is on the new year ahead of us: so much promise, so many changes ahead, and SO much to do to prepare for it all! If we can survive the next several months, we can survive any storm. Please pray for us! May God bless you and may the new year bring many blessings. The Best is yet to come!!

PS - Stay tuned for a December KodakGallery Update - LOTS of photos and memories. Check out a few below for now.