Christmas Pictures

Christmas pictures as promised. It was a glorious week at home staying inside and spending time with the family. Everyone was home except Carolyn and Nathan. The weather was even nice to me and the first couple of days it didn't rain. Susan so kindly cleaned out the hot tub which kept me warm all week long.

 The Christmas tree was a little late going up this year due to the house remodel. But it was all beautiful by the time I got home.

 Apparently you can make your own vanilla extract by using vanilla beans and vodka in some contraption Carolyn gave Mom and John for Christmas. John looks a little too excited about that bottle of vodka though.

 Mom and Dad with the blanket I crocheted for them.

 David before his basketball game. He still hasn't learned how to smile for pictures.

 Kitchen remodel is complete. It looks really nice. I guess the mice thought it was nicer in there than outside in the rain because we had a couple of them join us in the kitchen one night. Good thing we have mouse traps handy all the time.

After Christmas I got together with some old friends from Loma Rica that all live up in the Northwest now. It was so fun to see them and catch up.

Christmas came and went. New Years came and went. And somehow it's almost February already. Where does the time go? I got to spend some time at home in Oregon for Christmas. I'll have to put some pictures up when I have more time (don't hold your breath, it might be a while). Work has kept me really busy during January. There seems to be a never ending supply of children who need occupational therapy services.
A couple of weeks ago I was pretty excited when the 1st counselor in the bishopric told me they were releasing me from 2 of my 3 callings. For three whole days I was just the Mid-singles rep in the ward. Then I got a call from the stake presidency that immediately started my brain racing. I'm sure just about every calling I could have been called to went through my mind. Luckily I was only in suspense for 1 day as I went and talked with President Vargas the next day. So just when I thought I was getting the hang of everything I got called as the 1st Counselor in the Stake Young Women's Presidency. I'm excited to work with the girls and get to know them but I'm sure it will be a lot of work. For now they threw me right into things and I'm in charge of the Service Auction, the fundraiser for Girl's Camp and the Pioneer Trek (yes I get to go to both this year). So never a dull moment in my life.

Creative Wardrobe

This winter weather (60 degrees or less) has been tough on me. Not only does our lovely Greenfield not have functional heating but my office is freezing. While we've all taken to wearing our snuggies and turning on the fireplace while at home I can't exactly do that at work. This week I've spent a lot more time than usual at the office since the schools are closed. When I get there in the morning it is about 55 degrees outside and even colder than that inside. It's pretty bad when you open the doors and windows to let the heat in from outside during December at 9:00am. So I've taken to wearing t-shirts, long sleeved shirts, sweatshirts, vests, jackets, gloves, ski hats, and bringing a blanket to work. And when we're lucky no one is in the waiting room and we can steal our 1 space heater and bring it upstairs to the office. It gives me a whole new appreciation for the sunshine and the warmth it provides. I'd take the 90 degree heat over the 50 degree ice any day!

Martini has a new owner

As of this week I officially own Martini, my 2009 Corolla. It'll be wonderful to finally have her fixed after the rainy day mishap where the Escalade hit me. Then I can really celebrate Martini being all mine!

Last weekend after a couple of weeks off from all physical activity (except work) I thought it would be a good idea to get moving again. Karen, Ali, Allison, Chelsea and I went back to the archery range and man was it ugly. I was even worse the second time around than the first day. But after some one-on-one refreshers I was able to hit the badger with one of my arrows (never mind that I wasn't aiming for it). After archery was over I got out and played a little tennis. It was so good to get out there again. I've been neglecting the court for several months but I think it's time to put a renewed effort in. I do love playing tennis. I think that if I'd just done archery and tennis I would have been fine but to top it all off Ali and I went running when I got back from tennis. It was only about 2.5 miles but combine it all together and I think my body is warning me that I better take a little more care of it. Right knee is still yelling at me, right and left shins are stabbing me and my upper back is a dull reminder that I haven't used those muscles in far too long. Moral of the story: I must do all these things more often.

New hobby

As a Relief Society activity last weekend we went to the archery range and I think I found a new hobby. I'm really not good at it at all, but it was a lot of fun. Somehow I managed to hit myself with the bow string twice in the arm which left me with a bruise about the size of a tennis ball. But despite the injuries I think I'll be going back again.

Halloween

For Halloween this year a group of us decided to be a foosball team. We quickly ditched the PVC pipe after taking pictures because it was way too hard to dance with all of us connected. Our ward was responsible for setting up a lounge area at the dance which is pictured below. It turned out really cool. I didn't get a picture with all of the apothecary jars full of slimy stuff and body parts sadly, but everyone seemed to love it.

Gotta love my girls!