Ward Christmas Party

Every year people dread the church Christmas party- the bad food, tacky music, even tacky-er (if that’s even a word) decorations, kids running around (obviously an entire orphanage was invited- because it appears there are no parents) and then no one stays to clean up.

This year our ward Christmas party turned out great!! The decorations were so super cute. The music was kinda tacky BUT they had a dance floor and dancing- which was so much fun and right up my ally. Jesse (Ben’s brother) was in charge of the food and it was EXCELLENT. It was a full out turkey dinner, organized and served well. Well done Jesse!! There was a section of Christmas carols with guitar accompaniment. It was fun, short and entertaining. The kids were entertained with crafts in the back and just when things got a little too crazy, who showed up but the fat, jolly man himself- SANTA CLAUSE!! Some people even stayed to help clean up. It was a great night with friends, family, food, dancing, Santa…need I go on?

Maybe my Scrooge outlook on Ward Christmas parties is beginning to change.

The Festive Decor

Eric, Ben and Tim

Some of the Young Women with Santa

Attack of the Laugh

The other day Ben came upstairs laughing HISTERICALLY. He was trying to tell us why, a story about Nedra’s leg falling asleep, but he couldn’t get the story out without laughing. I tried to get it on camera but by the time I got the camera, got it on and shooting he made me stop. He laughed hard for over 5 straight minutes (none of us understanding why). It was so funny.


Here is the short clip I did manage to get…

Christmas Decorations

I love getting out the decorations for Christmas.  It helps me to get excited (like a little child) and really believe that Christmas is here.  This year I have had the chance to help decorate the Newson and the Stones houses for Christmas.  (The Pictures from the Newson's are when we were getting ready for Nedra's doll club- it turned out great!) Here are some of the beautiful decorations throughout these homes…

Christmas Music

Christmas is a time for tinsel, cookies, silver bells and…MUSIC. This year we had the chance to go to many wonderful Christmas Concerts; Starting with Andrew’s School Concert which was very festive and displayed holiday music from different perspectives. We also had the chance to attend the Fairview High School concert (this is Ben’s high school) and they always put on an extraordinary holiday concert. This year was a little different (due to a change of directors) but it was still great and Ben was invited (as a choir alumni) to join the choir for two numbers.


I also went to see the Colorado Mormon Chorale  perform their Christmas Favorites in Louisville. They were great with upbeat songs from all around to world to some soft spiritual pieces. They performed a humorous piece, which I had never heard before, with the 12 Days of Christmas (each sung in a different historical time period).

Rachel is a vocal performance teacher and had a recital at the beginning of Christmas that we all went to and got to help at. It was great to hear her students perform and to see their courage and hear their improvements. It was also great, as always, to hear Rachel perform at the end.

Ben and I also participate in our ward Choir and so we got to sing in a beautifully organized and arrange Christmas sacrament meeting. The songs were hard and some of them were very different but it turned out beautiful and the spirit was so strong. There was even a special children’s choir which brought the spirit so strong to our meeting.

I am so grateful for the wonderful holiday music that we have and the opportunity that we have to participate and watch it all around the holiday season.

December Birthdays

December is the month for Stones Birthdays, so as usual we all got together to celebrate the plethora of aged folk in our family. The day began with a choir concert from Andrew- it was marvelous and Andrew did a great job at NEVER looking at his family (who were constantly making crazy faces, trying to get him to laugh). He sang great and the choir sounded beautiful.

We then all trekked to the Lundgreen’s were we all partook in a glorified taco bar (complete with desserts galore), played games, and watched as the birthday folk opened presents. Ben’s birthday is in January (so since it close enough) the Dawson’s sent him a birthday gift to open with ‘da boys’. They were all so excited to get their…weapons that they immediately hooked them to their belts, posed with them, thought up a million ways to use them and planning a camping trip to do just that. Here are just a few pictures of their excitement. It was good to see everyone and spend a fun filled weekend together.