Week 51-Decor & Celebration

Watching our sweet little Em get excited about decorating the Christmas tree tugs at my heart-strings! Especially since this year we only used ornaments from mine and Coup's childhood--brought back lots of great memories!

Tradition: Help dad finish of the tree with the star topper! Pure essence of the Christmas Spirit! We loved sharing the Nativity story with out two-year old and having her get so excited about Christ's birth.

We also enjoyed sharing other Christmas traditions like 'Rudolf', 'Frosty the Snowman,' and 'The Grinch.' Em was excited to have the light-up candy cane re-appear to decorate her room. The candy cane and the Rudolf were both Couper's favorite Christmas decorations as a kid...and I think it's safe to say they are now hers as well! (side note: she now calls 'eye crusties' "Crusty the snowmans"... there was a little confusion on words at some point, haha!!)

We enjoyed other Christmas traditions with extended family throughout the month as well. Making and decorating sugar cookies with Gramma Nec was a hit!

Gramma Nec and Papa Gregg also treated us to a Utah Symphony family Christmas performance that included Santa helping conduct. Favorite conversation of the night: "Who's that?" -It's Santa, he's a nice guy that comes around at Christmas time. Want to sit on his lap and talk to him? (Wide eyed, serious response:) "NO! No lap. He a nice guy. Noo lap, no lap."

Most large, Kartchner holiday family gatherings include loud, all inclusive rounds of rock-band. Em is hooked. Clearly her favorites are singing and the drums.

We definitely filled our month with happy memories! Glad Em is so comfortable around family so she could fully enjoy it all!

Week 49- Birthday Weekend

The hectic, yet looked forward to, tradition filled days of the Christmas season seemed to fill our calendar quite rapidly this year. Although we had many fun ideas and potential party plans for Miss Em's second birthday, this is what we decided on for this year:

A family retreat to Salt Lake City!

Complete with a visit to SLC LDS Temple Square Christmas Lights,

The great quality of pics you get from asking some random passerby to snap your photo with the temple and lights in the background...

a walk around City Creek; window shopping and enjoying holiday decor and fountains,

The fountains were a hit! And the adorable candy penguin ornament was our favorite.

out to eat, and swimming at our hotel,

a family movie night when we got home, and just lots and lots of attention and lovin' on our sweet Emelia. We can tell how much she loves family time when she smiles up at each of us and says, "Mommy, daddy, Emi!" Usually followed by hugs. I don't think she (or we) could have asked for a better birthday weekend celebration! Even if it was a couple of weeks early.

When we got home, we surprised her with her birthday gift all set up in her room. Dad made sure many of her 'friends' were there to greet her and join in on the surprise ;).

She's pretty in love with her rock-a-bye!

Happy Birthday our Emelia Noelle. How we love you!

Holiday Review in Collage(s)

 Kartchner Merry Thanksmas/Happy Christgiving Celebration: 

The only day all of my siblings could gather for a Christmas party (minus those in Oz) was the day before Thanksgiving. Mom didn't let that stop her from throwing a fun-filled party aboard the

Polar Express! 

                     Though we thought it possible on many instances, you'll be glad to hear nobody was seriously injured while aboard the train. I was extremely proud of the yellow-brick road leading to the front door of our gingerbread house. Em is in love with the life-size kangaroo that                                                                cousin Sky got for her!

Christmas Decor

First Presidency Christmas Devotional

Couper had to travel quite a bit in December with the USU women's basketball team. Em and I tried to stay very busy prepping for the holidays and building traditions while he was away. We sure miss him while he's gone!  I had some of my family over for homemade elk chili and pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, and do watch the devotional.  Emelia and I made a batch of Grandma Lucy's famous Christmas tarts to take down to share with Couper's family.

NICU Babies

Among other things, one of the projects Em and I worked on while Coup was away was a service project for the babies that have to be in the NICU during the holidays this year. We went to the hospital to get custom measurements and made soft and adorable crib sheets for the little NICU cribs. Em is signing "baby" in the picture on the left. Wonder if she understood? So glad we didn't have to be there this year! And hope these cheery, cozy fabrics brought some comfort to parents and babies alike.

OSSO Reunion

I was blessed with a very unexpected and very much appreciated Christmas gift. My Ecuadorian parents, the Roseros, came to Utah! It was a dream come true for them and for hundreds of volunteer alum. The memories and emotions that surfaced at seeing them were empowering. I am so grateful for the experience I had in Ecuador, and have the Roseros to thank for a large part of it.  A family I served with decided to adopt 2 of "our kids" shortly after they returned to the states. Loved chatting with these witty kids and telling them stories from when they were preschool age. Extremely glad for the people I saw, and longed to re-connect with all of the alum I served with. Merry Christmas to me!

Chirstmas in Erda

We spent Christmas in Erda this year and kept ourselves very busy! Em loved listening to/playing music with Gramma Nec. We sang Happy Birthday to Jesus and learned more about His birth through the adults in Coup's family who got to travel to Israel earlier this year. Em loved unloading her stocking and seemed to get the idea of presents pretty good. Coup and I enjoyed making and eating Denise's famous sugar cookies!

Christmas Card

We are kind of poor this year and did a Christmas card electronically..and kind of late. So if you didn't catch it on FB, here it is again :).

Hope you all had a very Merry Christmas! I know we did. May you all carry the Spirit of Christ with you all year long in 2014; I know we're going to try!

pics of Christmas Past

For those of you who don't know...I'm a fairly reminiscent person...and..."there hasn't been an instrument created that can measure" (a common phrase used by my dad) the love and admiration I have for my family.

(My ... second Christmas I believe.)

The last few weeks I have been searching through old scrapbooks to find the perfect Christmas pictures of Couper and me from when we were little. I need them for a decoration I'm working on. While searching through said books, the mind wanders, the memories surface, and it always ends up taking much longer than you anticipate...however, well worth it. Memories of Christmas' past filled my mind and reminded me how blessed I have been and am, to have been taught the true meaning of Christmas my whole life!

The following two pictures are the ones I have chosen for my craft. They make me smile!

(My family as it was up to this point in my life. I'm the shy one in the back eating my hands.)

(Couper and his sisters. Isn't he the cutest little boy! Pretty sure our little boys are going to be ADORABLE!)

I am so grateful for family year round. I'm really grateful for the holidays and the way families come together. Nothing compares to a relationship with a father, mother, sister or brother.

If you don't have a parent living, or have grown up in a split home, you have other father and mother figures that have touched your life, reach out to them this holiday season. If you are an only child, or have lost a sibling; you have dear friends, or cousins whom you have adopted as your brothers or sisters, let them know how much you love them and what they mean to you.

(Sorry mom and dad, no more room in your bed...)

I feel very blessed to have an incredible mother and father and many siblings to call friends, teachers, counselors, playmates, etc. And in addition I have so many friends, cousins, and others who have touched my life in countless ways. Thank you to each of you for maybe going out of your comfort zone or listening the to the Spirit to be a friend at my time of need.

(Everything about this picture screams memories! Dad's mustache, my poofy bangs, Shantel's Christmas sweater, Tosh's face ;), the wall paper! love.)

Although there are many commercial aspects of Christmas that have their place and can be meaningful. Christmas to me is reaching out to others through service, showing love, and helping someone else understand the true meaning of Christmas.

Every Christmas Eve my dad read from Luke 2 as me and my siblings acted out the Nativity scene. Even as a young child I was SOO excited to play the part of Mary, the mother of the Christ child. Even children understand the importance of Christ in Christmas as long as they are taught and shown. I was reminded of this yet again as we acted out the Nativity and talked of Christ with our sunbeams today.

Let us all remember Christ this holiday season, and give and love as He did. May we not only focus on His birth, but on His life, and choose a way each day to strive to be more like him.

If you would like to be uplifted this holiday season and learn of Christ, and what it means to keep His Spirit in Christmas, here is a link to the LDS Christmas Devotional, 2011.

“You can give a great and wonderful Christmas if you remember the gifts God has given you and, as best you can, offer them to others as He would.” --President Eyring (Christmas devotional, 2011)