Hello!

You may be wondering where I have been. Shall I say obviously busy enough to not post since November. How shameful I know. So what have we been doing the last few months?

Thanksgiving was spent at our home with friends. Actually, Dave took the Boy Scouts on a backpacking trip Tuesday night and returned the morning of Thanksgiving. They had a blast and enjoyed the beautifully cool, 70 degree, weather!!

Our dear friends the Christensens and Mastroiannis came to our home to celebrate Thanksgiving. Dave fried a turkey and we served ham as well. The kids had a blast playing with friends while the adults enjoyed time to visit with each other!

The day after Thanksgiving, we were off to Orlando. We took the kids to Downtown Disney while Dave and I took turns attending the temple. It had been quite a while since we had been there. In fact, I don't think Steven has ever been. David, of course, loved the lego store. There was a trivia time and I think between David and Kierstin, they knew all the answers. We had to leave so the other kids could win a prize too! David's favorite place in the store was the wall of lego pieces! There were bins from floor to ceiling with little tiny lego pieces. He gleefully filled a cup to add to his collection at home.

Outside the Lego store, are some amazing art pieces. Here the kids are standing next to some pieces made completely from lego! Yes, the dogs and all the people shown are really legos.

Yes, even this dog is made completely from legos!

After spending time at the lego store, we went next door where Kierstin and Steven went to "Build a Dino!" This is the same as Build A Bear Workshop except here they build a dinosaur. If you have never done this, it is quite fun for the kids!

Jessica appeased her sweet tooth at the Candy Factory. There she bought the most decadent pretzel sticks I have ever seen! Hers were first dipped in caramel, then, chocolate, then a layer of M&M candy and Oreo cookie crumbles were literally affixed on top! WOW!!!! She graciously shared with us all! One small bite was a mouthful!

We could not leave Orlando without purchasing our Christmas tree. We were looking for a 9-10 foot tree and know they have a great selection here. Not to mention, trees are much cheaper up here than in Palm Beach. I am sure traveling the extra 300 miles adds to the price! We found this adorable Mom and Pop nursery that happened to have our perfect tree! After only 20 minutes, we had the tree selected and secured on our car! Our kids were truly amazed at our speed! HOWEVER...the nice young man that tied the tree to the car top was no Boy Scout. A few times, Dave had to pull over the side of the road and tie some new knots to truly secure the tree. Alas, we made it home many hours later!

With the tree purchased, my goal was to paint the entire family room and dining room and have the crown molding installed well before Christmas. Unfortunately, we could not schedule the crown molding until mid December. As a result, I had to scale back some decorations this year. I never hung up the pine garland and a few other items. The house looked a bit bare, but I could not see the men having to work around my decorations! The Christmas tree was enough! Sister missionaries that serve in our ward helped me complete a lot of the painting! What lifesavers they were too! Fortunately, I do enjoy painting. There is nothing to spice up a room than a fresh coat of paint!


Christmas was fantastic as we were able to have visitors! Jan, Mor Mor, and Big Dave drove all the way from Las Vegas! They left just in time as Henderson received a light dusting of snow a few days later. We had not seen them since last March so it sure was nice to see Mor Mor and Big Dave again. Christmas is always more magical with Jan around! She exudes the spirit of Christmas with her enthusiasm! The kids enjoy Big Dave's quiet gentleness! The kids had a few days off from school before Christmas day so it was nice to be able to unwind from the stresses of schoolwork before the big day! Best of all, term 2 ended before Christmas break so there were no projects or assignments during Christmas!

One evening, we drove to a street called, Florida Mango. The homes in this area decorate BIG TIME for Christmas. It is not uncommon for families to park their cars and walk the neighborhood to see the magical display of lights! My favorite home has the Christmas village laid out in their front yard. The village has every imaginable scene and home. Yes, it even has the ice skating rink and ski lift! Another one of my favorite homes has their light display synched to music you can tune into on the AM dial! Unfortunately, we could not find the home this year.