Questions

Why does protein taste bad?
Will I ever get to the point where people tell me to be "less patient"?
Is that funny noise my car makes at 60 mph worth $300 to fix?
Why didn't I figure out a career path 7 years ago?
When I feel terrible, why do I avoid doing all the things that will make me feel better?
Why do I stink at being a 3rd month girlfriend?
Why do two year olds enjoy doing everything you tell them not to do?
Why is God so willing to give me just the right encouragement to make all the unanswered questions seem so much less important than I thought?

Disneyland and New Year's Eve

Justin and I spent a few days after Christmas in California, where the sunny weather greeted us. It even lasted long enough for us to enjoy a warm afternoon in Disneyland (though not long enough to keep me warm at night while we waited for the fireworks).




We spent New Year's Eve in Salt Lake City, where we enjoyed an evening of fine dining at the Roof Restaurant, music at the Assembly hall, and avoiding the cold air as much as possible, though not during the fireworks and showing Justin around the temple square Christmas lights for the first time.

We ended our holidays in Pocatello and Rexburg, Idaho, where we helped my little brother Eric get situated in his new apartment at BYU-Idaho! So glad that when I was a freshman up there, I moved in when it wasn't icy, windy, and freezing. All in all, Virginia, California, Utah, and Idaho treated us very well during the holidays.

Christmas 2009

After opening presents Christmas morning, we spent most of the day cooking. We invited the sister missionaries over for dinner, but one of them was sick with the stomach flu. So they got a delivery dinner, several hours later than the projected time. Who knew that stuffing, ham, and potatoes took so much work? All of it was delicious though! Justin was in the charge of the ham, which as you can see turned out very Martha Stewart-y with the cloves, honey glaze, etc.



Also exciting that day was a phone conversation with Sister Browning in London. Christmas won't be nearly as exciting when we no longer have missionary calls to expect.

Christmas Eve at Mount Vernon

This last Christmas Eve has to rank among the more memorable ones... right up there with driving with Charity and Josh around the neighborhood with our headlights off to see the luminaries. It started out with a yummy lunch at the Mount Vernon Inn, continued with a tour of George's Washington's home, and a stroll around the museum. Then a mad dash to find a grocery store before they closed so we would have food to bake for Christmas dinner. Funny thing, when you go shopping at 6 pm on December 24th your options for a good ham are rather limited. So we got creative and decided to buy all we need to make our own honey baked ham. Little did Justin know what he was getting himself into. We did get everything we needed and made it home in time to watch It's a Wonderful Life. Yep, I still love this Jimmy Stewart film, even the 24th time.

 

Weekend of the Blizzard

This last weekend was one of record setting snow on the East Coast. It also made for a good story:
Justin came down Friday night from New Jersey and took me to see the Fantastics in DC. By the time we made it to Arlington that night, the snow was starting to come down and the roads weren't that great. But I made it back to my apartment and parked safely in the garage.

By the next morning when I woke up at 10, the snow had covered everything. We had at least a half a foot by then, and by noon, close to a foot. Justin was only six miles away, but with the news telling us how horrible the roads were and the blizzard expected all day, there was no way for Justin to make over to my house. He even thought about braving the roads, but after several valiant efforts, his car was still stuck.

However, by the afternoon, we were so desperate to see each other (after all, we spend so much time apart as it is) we decided to pick a meeting point (my friend Lindy's house) and start walking. I had been walking for about 10 minutes when I got offered a ride about a mile down the road. I still had a mile to go, but found another ride from right there. So 15 minutes after I started out, I had made it t my destination, which to begin with was closer than Justin's "half". When I called Justin to report the great news, he said he hadn't gone very far at all, as he had stopped to try to help some stuck cars. Well... two hours later, Justin finally arrived, cold and exhausted, but having accumulated a nearly infinite amount of brownie points (and making one girl very happy). We spent the next day shoveling and watching movies, while I vowed to hate snow for the rest of my life. The end.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

Pictures of Christmas lights just don't cut it, especially the ones we took... but I put them on here anyway.
We had a great sunday evening at the DC temple and enjoyed the First Presidency Devotional too. I think I'm finally starting to enjoy Christmas.

 

Isabella in one of her very cute moments in front of the Christmas trees at Mount Vernon

In my mind this is "our Christmas tree", but it really should be labeled "Justin's Christmas tree at my house". Whatever you choose to call it, we decorated it last weekend. I leave the lights on 24/7, mostly because I'm too lazy to turn them off.