Christmas to be posted soon

I have loved all the Christmas letters and emails we've received during the past few weeks. Many have asked for updates from us. One word can sum us up - Busy. All of our family on both sides have been in town. I was heavily involved in our ward Christmas party, hosted choir practice at our house for the sacrament meeting program, organized our neighborhood Luminaria night, tried my best to get our ward Secret Santa program underway before handing it off when we left for Prescott. It was wonderful to start to relax until I came down with the flu... only to get better in time to hurt my back. Katherine had played with the control to the Sleep Number mattress and turned it down to 15... the softest it can go... I did not check it, so it serves me right that I ended up at the chiropractor, unable to move without utter pain. It took a priesthood blessing, naproxen, magnesium and a couple of nights sleeping on my face before I felt better. It makes me all the more grateful for Geoff's gifts to me for Christmas and my birthday - the opulent escape massage package at a day spa and a membership at the gym... I love him for knowing exactly what I need. He had to work through the holidays and never complained. I am grateful that he has been safe and protected. I am also grateful we could spend so much time with our families. But more of that lata...

Reading

Usually it's not a good sign when the house gets quiet, but lately we've been finding Katherine pretending that she read. Note that she's not reading to a baby doll...

This is an pretty good imitation of me every Sunday... Geoff teases me that I'm the only one who finds the comics so funny that I laugh out loud... It's more fun to be amused...

Bumming around at home

Katherine loves to cook more than anything else. It gets a little messy. I stripped her down to her skivvies and then documented the first time Katherine helped me make chocolate chip cookies.
I love that Katherine loves to cuddle with me. The night this picture was taken, she was singing "If You're Happy and You Know It"... This is a girl who KNOWS it. If you're ever having a down day, you just need to hang out with Katherine for a while and you'll be laughing and entertained in no time.
We have moved into a neighborhood with wonderful neighbors. This picture was taken at a Thanksgiving brunch on our cul-de-sac where everyone brought a peaceful pot luck, away from the craziness of preparing for the big meal. Katherine has fallen in love with the dogs of our neighbor, Jason. From sun up to sun down, every request Katherine made began with "Jason dogs?" Fortunately, Jason is very good natured about it and allows her to come over often. She orders those dogs into their kennels, feeds them dinner and makes do tricks for their cookies... It all feeds into her need for control...

Revolution

Ron Paul came to ASU on a book signing tour, so Geoff and I and a few friends decided to hear what he had to say. We were only 15+ ft away from him. It was fun to be around people who care about the country. A lot of their views were a bit extreme for me, but it's always interesting to hear ideas.

We took the light rail to Tempe and made a day of it. We had gorgeous weather. I spent most of the time following Katherine, trying to keep her off the stage, and making sure the dogs she introduced herself to were safe... There wasn't one on the entire green that she hadn't met...

Future lobbyist for canines asleep in my arms.