Once we were home from our travels, Christmas sure went into full swing. I got Chase to help me do the last of the decorating and hang up the lights outside, which was scary for both of us. Neither of us loves manipulating the huge ladder required. Troy makes it look so easy and effortless, but Chase and I were sweating a bit. But we did get the lights up!
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| We did make a few Christmas Vacation jokes.... |
It wasn't long after the lights were up that we started to get some December snow! All we needed then was a cozy fire in the fireplace. Or on the tv at least. We didn't build a single fire in our stove this year! And we all laughed at how the youtube version of the crackling fire really did add some cheer to our home. So funny.
The snow was lovely and festive, but did make clear to us that our minivan was in desperate need of new tires, as one morning when it was my turn to drive carpool I got stuck on our road, which is totally flat.
There were so many things we were able to do this year that were all totally cancelled last year. Our calendar wasn't quite as full as some other Christmases, but we had our fair share of events. Here were some of our favorites:
Romney's Choir Concert(s):
Romney is part of her Madrigal choir at her high school. They had a ton of performances over the season. Many were during the day, visiting other schools and nursing homes, but some were also in the evening. We didn't make it to all of them - I already mentioned the Zoo Lights fiasco. But we did get to a couple others. There was a formal "Winter Musicale" at the high school, with jazz band and orchestra performing as well as all the choirs. It was kind of long. But I did love hearing the madrigals sing - especially because the current director has resurrected a song that used to get performed by the madrigals choir every single year when I was going to the same high school. It's a darling version of Twas the Night Before Christmas - it has a lot of personality and funny parts. I love it. So that was fun to see.
Also, her choir performed at a light display at Liberty Park one chilly chilly evening. The kids were going to be singing outside for at least a half hour, plus would then be free to wander around the lights with their friends. I told Romney to dress warmly, especially that her converse sneakers would not be warm enough. This advice was not taken, and I'm glad that Troy, Emma and I went to hear them sing and were there to take her home again. She got so cold I could see tears freezing in her eyes as she was trying to be jolly with her friends. She could barely walk to the car, and we spent the ride home with me trying in vain to get feeling back into her toes. Once we got home, it took quite some time, as well as a heated corn bag and some serious blanket bundling before she felt better.
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| She's smiling but under that she was basically sobbing. |
I'll take this moment to say I TOLD YOU SO.
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| Here's Troy trying to warm up her little toe-sicles |
Choir at Tabernacle Square Christmas Concert:
I was so sad when last year's concert was cancelled! I am very spoiled, getting tickets from The Becky every year, and it was something I really missed. This year the choir was putting on their Christmas concert, but were going to give out only 4,000 tickets per evening instead of the usual 21,000. Becky wasn't going to have enough to give me any, which I totally understood. But then she told me that there ended up being a few up for grabs because not every church leader they were offered to were able to use them. So I ended up with tickets after all! And, because they had originally been offered to a church leader, they were great seats! Troy was happy to go with me this year, seeing as how there would be about one fifth as many people as usual. And it was so cool. Kind of different to experience the music and messages with so many fewer people there. It kind of made it more special.
Christmas In Color Light Display
As we got closer to the big day, we had arranged to meet up with Troy's brother Sam and his family for a repeat of what is becoming a tradition - going out for Mexican food and then heading to the Christmas in Color light and music show, where you all pile into (and on top of) one car, then drive slowly through this very loud and obnoxious and overwhelming light display. We love every second of it. It seemed like they upped their game this year. It was very...electric. And so fun.
Bucherts Sing-A-Long:
Our friends usually throw a birthday party for dad Martin in mid-December, and it always involves sipping soup and singing songs. Mom Becca has put together binders packed with sheet music for Christmas. We started joining them when they first moved into the neighborhood some 10 years ago now. (Can't believe it's been that long!) This year Martin was turning 50 and so Becca threw the party at a church gym instead of her home because she was trying to expand the party. She put a ton of effort into making the gym feel cozy and inviting, spending hours hanging lights, setting up a tree and bringing in a set of couches to gather around the piano. It was a really fun night. As always the singing was my favorite part. I didn't catch many photos of the host and birthday boy but here's one, as well as our dear friends the Behunins.
Christmas Movies Galore!
Last year I gave Troy the pink pajama Ralphie mug and he suggested that we start a collection of Christmas mugs that we could use each December. He didn't have to tell me twice! I tried to not buy any mugs I didn't love, but I was amazed at how quickly I found mugs that I adored! Collection complete in one year! We used the mugs to keep us filled with cozy drinks while we watched all our favorite movies. It's getting hard to find time to watch them all, especially as the kids get older. We pretty much made it though.
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