Christmas in Harmony :-)

John and I had our first Christmas together! We had a great time!

I was introduced to Christmas three years ago and I've fallen in love with it ever since. The Christmas spirit of loving, sharing, and giving always fills my heart with warmth. John and I sent cookies and banana breads to our friends and neighbors in the ward; we gave away some of our stuff to some families in need; we sent out Christmas cards to family and friends; we got each other surprise presents; most important of all, we set a goal to be closer to Christ through constant prayers.

We checked out our apartment Dec 22 and came down to John's parents'. It was hard to leave all our families and friends behind. I am so glad I got to spend time with my brother and with Deanna before I had to leave. I was also glad that I spent time with Kate on John's presents, had lunch with Naisi in the MOA, had dinner with the Hardings, met up with the Mckays & Mckees in the Wilk, and happed to see many other friends. We'll miss all of you!

On Christmas Eve, a big herd of deer came into our backyard. I screamed as if the house was on fire. They were beautiful, especially the big buck. I asked John to take some pictures so my friends in China would believe me.

Buying and opening gifts are the main reasons I love Christmas. All the hiding, anticipating, and surprising is just too much fun! I made John two pairs of P.J. pants and he looked cute in both of them even though they are very much flawed! Hey I'm no sewer. But I'm proud of myself. So is John :-)

Among all the gifts, my favorite is the digital picture frame John got me. He knows how much I love pictures and how often I complain about not having enough frames for all my pictures. What a sweetheart! Now I don't have to try to decide which one to frame, I can display them all in a slideshow mode. So happy!

John's mom has this tradtion of sending him on a scavenger hunt for his best gift. This year, John had to run to the barn, the garden, the bird house, the storage room in the basement, the kitchen, and finally found a pack of gum in the living room. He was disappointed until he discovered the check in the gum :-) Surprise!!

I love Christmas and can't wait for the next one!