Something About Christmas Time

I love this time of year. I love love love getting Christmas Cards, maybe I should actually send some?!?!?! I love the excitement in the air. I love Christmas music. The Christmas Devotional. The opportunities to serve. The parties, visiting, and eating. I mean really what is not to love. This last weekend was no exception it was full of fun activities.

Saturday we headed to my Aunt Loralie's to help set-up Christmas and to bake. I was baking three huge batches of cookies for the Wassail party. I recruited Kylie to help me and I think I spent a good 4 and 1/2 hours baking cookies.

In between batches I wrapped Christmas presents for my cousin Heather, another thing I love about this time of year wrapping presents. I only wrapped the easy ones though, sorry. Dan read and played with his new phone, in case you were wondering.

Then we went to my Sister in law Amanda's Orchestra Concert. So fun. I love Christmas music. Then to top it all off we went to eat after. I just love my family and it was so fun to visit and to laugh after a super long day.

Sunday I hosted Dan and Joel's Wassail party. I am not going to lie the night after I agreed I had a nightmare that someone spilled Grandma Robertson's punch on my couch. I know so stupid. It is just a couch. I hate that I care so much but at the same time I just want to keep my stuff nice. I have to find a balance. The good news was no spills and the party was a success. Don't worry my camera spent the evening on the stairs I got it out but never took a picture. There were a ton of people that came through my house. So fun, so crowded, so hot. I loved it though and am so glad I got to host.

Ok so does anyone else feel so busy at this time of year that they are just stressed? That is me. I want to serve and do things for others. I also still have to work and coach...oh and clean and do my Saturday chores. I have just been stressed the past two Saturdays and I hate that. It is the one thing that puts a damper on the season for me. There is so much to do and I don't even really have to buy any presents...pathetic. I am trying to find a balance. I am exhausted by the time the weekend gets here and then I go go go and never recover. I have to work on that.

I saw on Shauna's blog that she is doing the grateful list from the Ensign and I decided I am going to copy her and do it as well. If nothing else it will be great to look back on and see what things I was grateful for in 2011. I may or may not do a list everyday but before the New Year I will do all 10 lists.

10 Physical Abilities I am Grateful For

1. My ability to participate in activities I love: basketball, soccer, hiking, biking, snowshoeing
2. My ability to stand on my feet and move all day long while I work. It gets harder every year but I can still do it. My feet ache at night but I am still grateful.
3. My ability see. In one of my grad school classes we talked about the hardest disability and all of us has been athletes thought it was the ability to walk and then they talked to us about why sight is the biggest blessing of all. Ever since then I have been so grateful to be able to see all of Heavenly Father's beautiful creations.
4. The ability to hear. Especially uplifting music.
5. The ability to hug and be hugged. I don't love to hug in general but there is a time and a place where a hug (physical contact) can by really important.
6. The ability to eat most food. My body does really well with all different kinds of food and I can usually eat most anything.
7. My ability to fight sickness. Bodies are seriously so amazing. I rarely get sick. This machine of mine is a fighter. There are many days when I will feel like I am getting sick but my body seems to fight infection and little bugs well. Too well sometimes, I have so many sick days (just kidding).
8. My ability to laugh. I seriously love to laugh. And the ability to smile. They kind of go together but both are important. I should do both more!
   
9. The ability to sleep at night. As long as I exercise I pretty much get a good nights sleep every single night.
10. My ability to feel the effects of exercise. I love to exercise mainly because of the benefits it provides and just not as far as calories are concerned. I love that I can think and work out at the same time and life just seems better when I am done. Something is to be said for all of those endorphins that are released.