When we left for law school, my mom gave Grant the advice to take his "elephant" of a task ahead of him one bite at a time. So bite by bite, he's chomped away at his elephant. Well, that' elephant's now half-way gone! Grant has completed the first year and a half of his three years of school. Man are we glad to have swallowed all those big bites. Hope the rest goes down easily!
Half an elephant . . .
When we left for law school, my mom gave Grant the advice to take his "elephant" of a task ahead of him one bite at a time. So bite by bite, he's chomped away at his elephant. Well, that' elephant's now half-way gone! Grant has completed the first year and a half of his three years of school. Man are we glad to have swallowed all those big bites. Hope the rest goes down easily!
Disco Dancin' Dickinson Elves
These "Elf Yourself" movies made me laugh until I cried! So here's a little disco dancin' from our house to yours.
Comings and Goings
Our life over the past few weeks can best be summarized by one of my favorite quotes from Charles' Dickens' A Christmas Carol: "Life is full of comings and goings. That is the way of it." We've been experiencing both comings and goings in our family lately, along with the emotions, joyous and difficult, that come with each.
A couple weeks ago we learned that Grant's family will welcome a new brother-in-law in 2009 when his sister called and told us she's engaged. We are thrilled for Melissa and Justin and are so happy for them and the choices they've made. We look forward to getting to know Justin better and especially for their wedding in May.
Another of the joyous "comings" in our family this next year will be the arrival of my sister Mary's baby in March. I got to see Mary briefly before she flew out to spend time with her husband's family in Cincinnati for the holidays. Her tummy is beautifully round, she's glowing, and she and Louie could not be more visibly happy to welcome baby "Raffi" (his/her nickname for the time being since they're not going to find out the gender) into their home. They will be extraordinary parents, and it is a joyous thing to feel the excitement of awaiting a new little family member.
And as for the goings, we are saying goodbye, at least for a while, to Grant's grandmother this weekend. She passed away Tuesday evening after suffering from some serious strokes over the past couple weeks. Her health has been deteriorating over the last several months, and even when they came to visit this past summer, Grandma Moore was not quite her same old cheerful, boisterous self. Grant said the other night that he will miss her laugh most. She was (and is!) such a fun, kind woman, and we're glad she gets to be healthy and happy again and reunited with loved ones. Still, the "goings" are always hard for those of us left here.
Times like these make us all the more grateful to have the restored gospel of Jesus Christ in our lives to help us know that the "goings" are just temporary. In fact, I think Grant's typical goodbye he gives to me when leaves to go to school or work or hangs up the phone -- "Bye for now" -- might be the most appropriate thing he could say to bid farewell to his grandma. Because fortunately, we know it is just for now and that we'll see her again.
And thanks to the knowledge we do have, which allows us to know that there is life before and after death, and that family relationships perpetuate beyond the grave, it's interesting to consider that the "goings" here are "comings" there, and vice versa.
"Life is full of comings and goings. That is the way of it."
A couple weeks ago we learned that Grant's family will welcome a new brother-in-law in 2009 when his sister called and told us she's engaged. We are thrilled for Melissa and Justin and are so happy for them and the choices they've made. We look forward to getting to know Justin better and especially for their wedding in May.
Another of the joyous "comings" in our family this next year will be the arrival of my sister Mary's baby in March. I got to see Mary briefly before she flew out to spend time with her husband's family in Cincinnati for the holidays. Her tummy is beautifully round, she's glowing, and she and Louie could not be more visibly happy to welcome baby "Raffi" (his/her nickname for the time being since they're not going to find out the gender) into their home. They will be extraordinary parents, and it is a joyous thing to feel the excitement of awaiting a new little family member.
And as for the goings, we are saying goodbye, at least for a while, to Grant's grandmother this weekend. She passed away Tuesday evening after suffering from some serious strokes over the past couple weeks. Her health has been deteriorating over the last several months, and even when they came to visit this past summer, Grandma Moore was not quite her same old cheerful, boisterous self. Grant said the other night that he will miss her laugh most. She was (and is!) such a fun, kind woman, and we're glad she gets to be healthy and happy again and reunited with loved ones. Still, the "goings" are always hard for those of us left here.
Times like these make us all the more grateful to have the restored gospel of Jesus Christ in our lives to help us know that the "goings" are just temporary. In fact, I think Grant's typical goodbye he gives to me when leaves to go to school or work or hangs up the phone -- "Bye for now" -- might be the most appropriate thing he could say to bid farewell to his grandma. Because fortunately, we know it is just for now and that we'll see her again.
And thanks to the knowledge we do have, which allows us to know that there is life before and after death, and that family relationships perpetuate beyond the grave, it's interesting to consider that the "goings" here are "comings" there, and vice versa.
"Life is full of comings and goings. That is the way of it."
White Christmas Wisdom
Grant and I discovered a great "new" classic holiday movie -- White Christmas with Bing Crosby. It's new to us only because we've never watched it before, which surprises me because it's one of Grant's mom's favorites. I have to admit, I was expecting a pretty stale "old" movie, but it's really very fun. The dialog was surprisingly witty and humorous, the storyline pretty interesting, and the music was a mixture of super cheesy and wonderful. But even that wasn't too much of a distraction, because with Bing Crosby singing, almost anything sounds fantastic.
My favorite part (so far, anyway -- we haven't quite finished it yet -- it's a long one!) was the song "Count Your Blessings Instead of Sheep," which I've never heard before but just loved. It was a "warm fuzzy" moment for me as I listened to the words and wished I'd grown up knowing that song. I plan to add it to my lullaby repertoire and might even have a vinyl lettering board made up with some of the words to hang over my bed (seriously -- that good!). So here are the lyrics:
My favorite part (so far, anyway -- we haven't quite finished it yet -- it's a long one!) was the song "Count Your Blessings Instead of Sheep," which I've never heard before but just loved. It was a "warm fuzzy" moment for me as I listened to the words and wished I'd grown up knowing that song. I plan to add it to my lullaby repertoire and might even have a vinyl lettering board made up with some of the words to hang over my bed (seriously -- that good!). So here are the lyrics:
“Count Your Blessings Instead of Sheep” from White Christmas
I count my blessings instead of sheep,
And I fall asleep counting my blessings.
When my bankroll is getting small,
I think of when I had none at all,
and I fall asleep counting my blessings.
I think about a nursery,
And I picture curly heads,
And one by one I count them
As they slumber in their beds.
If you're worried and you can’t sleep,
Just count your blessings instead of sheep,
And you'll fall asleep counting your blessings.
If I'm worried and I can’t sleep,
I count my blessings instead of sheep,
And I fall asleep counting my blessings.
If you’re worried and you can't sleep,
Just count your blessings instead of sheep
And you'll fall asleep counting your blessings.
Mother-Son Double Date!
As soon as I discovered that my little boy was a pasta lover, I knew that we had many mommy-son dates to Olive Garden ahead of us! We got to enjoy the first of many such dates today, and not only that, but we got to "double" with our good friends Mary and her son Morgen! Mary's due in just a little over a month and will soon have her hands full with two little boys, so Eliot and I squeezed a quick trip to Portland into our week of trip preparations. We're so glad we did! Mary and I were so proud of our handsome little "dates." They behaved well, ate everything on their plates (and then some!) -- the perfect gentlemen! We hope this will be the first of many such dates . . . even if we have to grab it "to go" and eat at one of our apartments (which we almost did today!).
Mary and her "date" Morgen, and me with my date Eliot,
who looks a little worn out from the big event!
Me and handsome Eliot after our wonderful meal -- a shared plate of
lasagna, yummy bread sticks, and salad
(thanks, Eliot, for eating Mommy's tomatoes!).
Our bibbed boys! I love this picture of Eliot admiring Morgen and his
chocolaty face (after eating both of the mommies' after-dinner Andes
mints!). That's okay, Morgen, I definitely understand that when it
comes to anything mint-chocolate, there's no such thing as enough!
Mary and her "date" Morgen, and me with my date Eliot,who looks a little worn out from the big event!
Me and handsome Eliot after our wonderful meal -- a shared plate oflasagna, yummy bread sticks, and salad
(thanks, Eliot, for eating Mommy's tomatoes!).
Our bibbed boys! I love this picture of Eliot admiring Morgen and hischocolaty face (after eating both of the mommies' after-dinner Andes
mints!). That's okay, Morgen, I definitely understand that when it
comes to anything mint-chocolate, there's no such thing as enough!
Need something to make you smile?
Second only to my video of Eliot unloading the dryer, this is one of my favorites that can make me smile no matter how many times I watch it. Don't worry, be happy!
O Tannenbaum
I could see myself becoming a tree snob. Ever since we decided to come to Oregon for law school, I knew that at least once I wanted to get a fresh Christmas tree and preferably go cut one down ourselves. Well, my wish came true this last weekend when we went with my mom and dad and got a beautiful fresh tree, the first I've had in years. It's just perfect -- full and green, and the smell -- that smell!! -- is the best part of all. Except maybe the price -- $24 for a six-foot tree! I'm not a tree connoisseur, but my dad assured me that the same tree would cost well over $100 in Utah. And, they let us gather all the bows we wanted. So we decked our halls, set up our tree, and have a house that smells like Christmas! Even though we'll only have it for a couple weeks, it was worth every penny to have the scent, a gorgeous tree to gaze at, and to have the memory of picking out a live tree with our little family!
A view of the tree farm where we found our tree. The weather might not have felt Christmasy since it was sunny and gorgeous, but one whiff of those trees took my right back to every Christmas of my childhood!
My mom and dad were in town for Thanksgiving and got to join in the fun of picking out a fresh tree with us. Dad, who that very morning had tried to talk me out of my "impractical" idea, ended up being one of the most excited ones!
Our little family -- the proud owners of a beautiful six-foot Noble Fir.
Our hand-picked, wonderfully fragrant tree, all set to go with lights, ornaments, a brand new tree skirt (love Costco!).
The family photo in front of the tree. Only took 12 takes to get a good one.
A view of the tree farm where we found our tree. The weather might not have felt Christmasy since it was sunny and gorgeous, but one whiff of those trees took my right back to every Christmas of my childhood!
My mom and dad were in town for Thanksgiving and got to join in the fun of picking out a fresh tree with us. Dad, who that very morning had tried to talk me out of my "impractical" idea, ended up being one of the most excited ones! 
Our little family -- the proud owners of a beautiful six-foot Noble Fir.
Our hand-picked, wonderfully fragrant tree, all set to go with lights, ornaments, a brand new tree skirt (love Costco!). 
The family photo in front of the tree. Only took 12 takes to get a good one.
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