Dear famlings,
This week granted us many happy visits with relatives and friends. On Sunday (18th), we attended church with Brad and Sharon and enjoyed their participation in the choir. Later that evening, we were able to see some of Kirk’s Nordfelt relatives. It was especially wonderful to see his uncle Greg, who is recovering beautifully from a serious motorcycle accident. Our kids really enjoyed playing with their second cousins.
On Monday, we visited David and Kris Kryscynski, some special friends that we knew in Michigan (2001-2003). David recently finished his PhD in Business Management at Emory University and is now teaching at BYU’s Marriott School of Management. It was good to see them finally out of the schooling phase of life and to get to know their cute kids.
Monday evening, Andrew and Kristen invited us and Eileen to dinner. We feasted on tasty soup and caught up. Carlos (5) and Asher (2) were mutually excited to see each other. We were particularly relieved to see Noah (8 months), who suffered a near fatal brain injury in November. He still has a pretty gnarly Darth Vader scar on half of his head, but he is responsive, wiggly, and “talkative.”
Tuesday morning, we went to the dinosaur museum at Thanksgiving Point (it’s one of our favorite places in Utah). Later that afternoon, we visited with our buddies from Pennsylvania, the Oertles. We got to see Virgil Tyler (“Tygil”), a professional sculptor, deliver an 8.5 foot statue to a bronze casting foundry. In a few months that statue will greet hockey fans outside Philadelphia’s Wachovia Center. Arianna was in awe of the many porcelain and marble sculptures in the premises—so much so that one of the owners presented her with a beautiful statuette of the Wings of Victory.
Tuesday evening, we joined Brad and Sharon in a visit to Craig and Karen Monson. Karen treated us to yummy pizza and salad, and our kids had SO MUCH FUN with Ishmael, Angeline, Stephanique, and Thaeddus—their adopted cousins from Liberia.
Wednesday morning, we took the kids to see Santa, convey their wish lists, and get a picture with the jolly old guy. We then satisfied the family tradition by lunching with Sharon at Los Hermanos—yummy! In the afternoon, we rocked the house with Christmas carols. It’s such a treat to have Sharon in the family, for a number of reasons, but we particularly appreciate her musicality.
Wednesday evening, we visited my roommate from the French dorm at BYU (11 years ago). Elodie and Serge Petelo treated us to a delicious dinner, and their kids went on a rampage with our kids. It was especially fun to hold baby Océane (1 month) and to hear news about BYU’s French department, where Elodie teaches.
Thursday morning, we treated Brad and Sharon to a tummy filling breakfast at IHOP in honor of their 7th anniversary (this coming week). We were fortunate to spend so many days with them during this special season. We spent the rest of the day driving to Las Vegas.
Friday morning, we took family pictures (our first in a few years). For some inexplicable reason, my “solo” siblings Greg and Maren refused to humor us with a couples’ shot. :-D
Since then we’ve spent the time together playing board games, jumping on the trampoline, watching movies (including the new Tin Tin), singing carols, playing video games, and watching the little kids run around like crazies.
Last night and then again tonight, Carlos presented his adorable solo performance of “Away in a Manger.”
This morning, we opened stockings at 7 and then rushed to 9 a.m. church. After church, we opened presents, moaned about sleep deprivation, and ate a yummy Christmas dinner. We just finished a mini nativity play, which Carlos liked so much that he insisted on three versions (so he could be Joseph, a Magi, and then a shepherd).
It has been a very happy and blessed Christmas for us, as we hope it has been for you.
Much love,
Lauren and company
fun fun times!
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