The Last and Best of the Birthdays...

This one turned out OK...hmm Alex or Tanner?

Not sure who took this one . . . lovely, isn't it?

The last birthday we celebrated this month was the most important... that being the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ! It was a different Christmas for us this year because we made the decision to not travel anywhere and just stay home. We had just driven home for Thanksgiving and for Grandpa Glazier's birthday, so the thoughts of spending another 2 days on the road and in the car felt overwhelming. In some ways it was a bitter sweet. Sweet, because it was nice to be able to spend time with our own little family to create our own traditions and not having to add the stress of traveling to our schedule. Bitter, because we love to be with our extended family and love to celebrate and share this wonderful season with them. We really felt like we were missing out on so many family events. On Christmas Eve, we decided to drive up to the Mesa Temple to see the lights and nativities. The crowds were light and considering it was the end of December it was pretty warm. I always associate seeing the temple lights with being completely bundled up - I think I went in flip flops, but I have digressed! The boys decided to be photographers and took turns taking pictures with the camera. We've got some lovely shots! Pictures of legs, sidewalks, Mary and Joseph with their heads missing, half a donkey...you get the picture. But, they had fun! After the temple, we thought we'd find a restaurant and sit down for a nice dinner before heading home. And truthfully, I was not in the mood nor prepared to cook a big dinner for basically two and then 3 separate short orders! So, we searched high and low for a restaurant with it's doors open - no luck, not even the local Chinese food joint! Good thing for Albertsons! I madly dashed in grabbed a few things and we headed back home. So much for having somebody else make dinner! The remainder of our evening consisted of making a quick, last-minute, not memorable Christmas Eve dinner, baking cookies for Santa, sprinkling reindeer dust on the lawn and deciding to read and act out the nativity on Christmas Day because the mother was exhausted and there were still hours of wrapping ahead! Even though the day ended a little chaotic and tiring, I hope the kids will have good memories of being near the temple and understanding it's importance and understanding the significance of Christ's birth. This is truly a great birthday to celebrate!