HELLO December!

1. Best childhood gift from Santa:
I can remember several gifts from my childhood Christmas'...but 3 stand out in my mind. The keyboard I got when I was like 11/12. The trampoline...because it snowed and we saw my dog Allie getting impregnated that morning. The play kitchen...cause that's the night I found out my parents weren't just "Santa's helpers". :( Good memories! haha.

2. Best childhood memories:

Christmas Eve dinners and caroling at Grandma Sargent's house....acting out the Nativity with my cousins and siblings.

3. Favorite Christmas cookies:

Traditional sugar cookies....mmm....especially with redhots on them!

4. Icky Christmas memory:

For several years in a row, I was ALWAYS sick on Christmas. There are several pictures of me lying on the couch surrounded by my sisters holding stockings. One of the worst ones was when I was 17 and I had just had my knee surgery to repair my miniscus...and I got a staph infection. So I was feeling sick, couldn't walk...and then by New Year's Eve I was in the hospital having another surgery. Total bummer.

5. It's not Christmas without:

FAMILY! (have I not whined about this enough?) Lots and LOTS of FAMILY!

6. Our Church Service:

Will be from 1-4...our ward will be having our Christmas program on the 20th....which we will be missing this year, because we will be in Minnesota for THEIR Christmas program. Only a tinge sad...I love the Farmington (?) ward...but I really enjoyed our family singing together last year. Bella STILL sings that song...Oh Hush Thee, My Baby. It's her favorite...and I'm hoping she gets to sing it as prelude sometime this month.

7. Christmas Pet Peeve:

Is there such a thing?? I guess there's the traditional pet peeve of crowded shopping...but that's just part of the season. I think my biggest pet peeve isn't with OTHER people, but with myself. For two reasons:
1. It bugs me that I have this insistent need to make things for people AND that I wait till the last.dang.minute. to complete said made things (you should see my office/craft room right now...total disaster area). I do it because I love to make stuff but also because our family is large and growing on both sides and it feels 'easier' to just make stuff. But then there's that feeling of what if they don't like it! Eeek. So my apologies to my family who get mostly handmade gifts every year! So selfish of me! :S
2. It bugs me that no matter how old I get I LOVE to get gifts. Just love it. Gah...can you believe it? Maybe it's because I've got a December birthday and usually get jipped. But I like to get specific gifts...and when my list isn't followed, I get sad...so pathetic, huh? But I'm getting over it...really, I am. This year will be a good one to prove that!

8. Favorite Christmas CD:
My favorite one is actually Noel by Josh Groban. But I have a special place in my heart for the Manheim Steamrollers....their music rocks! Gives me good memories of my parents playing it and my sisters & I dressing up and dancing around the living room.

9. Real or Fake:

I PREFER Real...but who doesn't? Last year was our first time our little family got a real tree...we did it and spent the money because we weren't going anywhere for Christmas...so it helped the holidays feel more special. This year we are in town for about 19 days in December, so we busted out the wimpy fake tree...and there is SUCH a difference. Poor little tree is so puny. Oh well. The girls loved putting on the "carols" yesterday (which is what Bella insists on calling ornaments, no matter how many times I correct her). }

10. I LOVE to spend Christmas Eve :

with FAMILY. When we lived in Las Vegas, my Aunt Karen would throw a fabulous Christmas Eve party for the entire family. It was always so much fun...the Christmas after Bella was born, we even had a 'program' where things were read, instruments were played and James & I sang "Baby It's Cold Outside". So fun! We'd always have a White Elephant present exchange, too. Uncle Larry and Grandpa would spend some time out finding rad gifts for us to pick from. The best year was when Uncle Larry got stuck with the curling iron ;).
I also loved listening to Grandpa Jones or my dad reading Luke 2 to us. And then of course...the traditional video-taping of us putting our stockings up and heading off to bed.
Of course...now with our own kiddo's...we try and keep those traditions alive. I'm especially excited to be spending Christmas with the Kirchmann side this year. Out of 9 years, we've only had 3 of them with James' family. And of course, we are hoping for a white Christmas!!

YOUR TURN.