Whirlwind December

December is filled with good things. And family. And traveling...lots and lots of traveling.

And work:

My internship at Alphagraphics had been going incredibly well! But unfortunately (and yet fortunately), the main graphic designer for their business sneaked a really important project out from underneath them. She was promptly fired.

My boss asked if I would be willing to take her place and now become AlphaGraphics main graphic designer! I was flattered and honored and really intimidated. I felt like I had a lot to learn, but nothing makes you learn faster than actually doing the work itself! So I worked full days over the Christmas break! It was really nice to have something to do to keep me busy! The good news? I love it.

And my birthday:

Bill is finally married to an official, official adult. We can now go into a bar together instead of him leaving me outside leashed to the bike rack. ;)

My family came up to celebrate with us and treated Bill and I to some Cafe Sabor. Fiesta time!

Then Judy took me on a shopping trip around Layton for my birthday. We went everywhere! Thanks to Rodworks, a cute metal-craft store, Bill and I now have a fantastic piece of artwork hanging in our room. I had searched everywhere for the perfect thing to fill up all the white space on our wall. It could not have been more perfect in color or design!

And we went to Zupa's. I can die happy.

'Twas a great birthday.

And "Nikken Goodness":

We ordered product from Nikken in hopes that it would help Bill feel better about LIFE. But not only does the product benefit my dear husband, he has to share with me!

We LOVE our Nikken products! It's interesting how much better you can feel if you treat your body right! Our very most favorite things are our water filter (Bill will now drink water!) and our Nikken Sleep System. Our bed is truly amazing to sleep in. We have a comforter that utilizes the power of magnets and infrared technology as well as pillows with magnets that make for the best night's sleep you could possibly ask for. Bill can generally sleep through the night now. And I don't hear him snore. I'm always excited to get to go to sleep.

The Nikken Goodness has arrived!

Water filter.

In true Jessica fashion: a mustache made from the leftovers of Bill's magstep-insoles.

Taking turns playing in the biggest box I had ever seen!

And family parties:

We drove out to the annual Schroader family Christmas Party in Erda, Utah, at Uncle Paul and Aunt AnnMarie's home. Nothing but houses and farmland. It's beautiful out there!

And Bill and I made a pretty fantastic "Gingerbread House" made out of graham crackers. It even had gummy bears sitting around a campfire for a perfect holiday scene.

That night we went out to eat at the Spaghetti Factory and had some really quick and snappy service! This was really great news for Ben, who was trying so hard to stay positive during our family trip to Salt Lake. It was a miniature Christmas miracle for all of us. :)

Bill and I went to the Gateway and wandered the Lights around Temple Square that evening as well. We spent a good portion of our night lounging about in a high-end furniture store and pretending we led sophisticated lives. We also spent a lot of time waiting for Trax to come by and pick us up. It was a busy holiday evening in Salt Lake!

And a Christmas concert:

We had tried and tried to get tickets to the Mormon Tabernacle Christmas concert featuring singer, Nathan Gunn and actress, Jane Seymour. It is such a popular event that your name is put into a drawing and if your name is drawn, you get tickets. It's the only way they can fairly divvy out the tickets to the world-renowned concert. Both Judy and I were not so lucky to get tickets.

And then by some miracle, Greg and Judy received tickets from a neighbor who works with the Tabernacle Choir! We were going to go to the Sunday performance of Music and the Spoken Word with a mini-concert to follow! We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. I especially loved the story and music of Good King Wenceslas narrated by Jane Seymour. It was very powerful and so beautifully done. I can truly say it is one of my new favorite Christmas stories. Perhaps...it can become my tradition to read it each year.

And by crazy coincidence, we sat next to the Barker's, one of Bill's best friend's family! They also happen to be in my Grandma and Grandpa Sorenson's ward. It is such a small world! Out of the thousands of seats in the conference center and the four different concerts they could have gotten tickets to, we sat next to them. It still blows my mind!

And more family parties:

On a particular Sunday night, we had dinner with the Schroader's and got to chat with the cousins. This year Aunt Bonnie came up from Arizona with a few of her kids (while Uncle Bill and the other boys stayed home for work and school). This is especially good because Bill got to see his favorite cousin Cassie. She's a definite keeper! And I got to play with glow sticks with Quentin and Josh! It was so much fun!

And Christmas Eve:

Greg and Judy host a family Christmas Eve Dinner every year and we get to eat some delicious food. This also involved chatting with the cousins and having some family bonding time.

Since Bill and I had plans to share Christmas morning with my family, the Kiefers all got to open our Christmas presents early! It was fun to watch Ben race through and open all his presents with a giant smile on his face. :)

Judy's perfume gift from Ben.

Judy and Greg

What could it be?

Ben's Deer/Camouflage Pajamas...where did he go?

Ben

Judy's very own pair of amazing bowling shoes!

Bill with our emergency preparedness items!

And Christmas Day:

We left from Greg and Judy's a little bit later and showed up at my parent's late Christmas Eve. We all stayed up talking until at least midnight. If we didn't rush off to bed soon...there was no way Santa was coming!

Christmas morning was a particularly special experience because Bill got to spend it with "little kids." Each of our families do Christmas a little bit different, so it was fun to share my holiday traditions with my husband.

Bill got a Nook. He can die happy.

And we got Nerf Guns. I told my mom that Bill wanted Nerf guns, but then I proceeded to buy some for him as well. Come Christmas morning, Bill was ecstatic with joy to see that he got three Nerf guns for Christmas...because I failed to communicate with my mom. It was a good mistake. This is just the beginning of Bill's dream to one day have an armory full of Nerf. I'm married to a ten-year-old. :)

Marie got a fluffy bowl chair from Santa. She promptly tipped over into the Christmas Tree. Twice.

That afternoon, we went off to Grandma Sorenson's and had a luncheon and opened a few more presents. Everyone got to play with their new gadgets and toys all day long! It was just the way Christmas should be.

Madre and Pops

Bill got a classy man-scarf!

Jord opening his very own iTouch.

Stan is almost just as excited as mom is about her new laptop.

Freddy doing the "Smoothie Girl" dance when she got a new set of Magic Bullets!

The beautiful mess of Christmas.

Jord and Bill are so excited!

Val Gal opening her very own iTouch. Frown be gone!

And ice-skating:

Bill and I really wanted to go ice-skating because it had almost been a year since we had done so.

We invited our friends, the Allred's, to come a long with us.

I thought I could ice-skate (it's always my idea to go). And yet? I'm very wobbly and quick to lose my balance. Bill tried to teaching my how to skate properly...but old habits die really hard. But we had fun anyway!

My Caddy-boy and I

Kyle and Kristi

That night the Allred's came back over to our place and we stayed up talking for hours and hours around the kitchen table...like we usually do.

During the middle of our sit-and-chat, our friend Chris Roche came over to our apartment to introduce us to his new fiance, Linda! Whoot! They met early in December singing together on Sundays at the Senior Citizen centers in town. Linda felt like Chris really needed to meet her family. They got engaged over Christmas. They planned to get sealed January 28, 2012. It was a quick courtship and a short engagement, but it was the right thing to do. They are perfect for each other! We were so happy that they stopped by to tell us the good news!

And a New Year's Eve Party:

The Higley New Year's Eve Party always involves a pot-luck and a white-elephant gift exchange.

I scored some Christmas Lights. :)

Bill's first gift of Snickers.

Erin, Madre, Oakley, and Savannah

Maddi picking out a gift.

Erin's "Kraft Kit."

Maddi, Carson, and Jeff

Bill's Night Vision Goggles!

Todd, M.J. Sophie, Val Gal, Oakley, and Nan.

Oakley got some Angry Bird Band-Aids

And then we always play some sort of game. This year, we played a game called, "Would You Rather." We made up our own rules in true Higley-fashion and had a blast asking each other questions, debating, and laughing until we cried.

And before you could blink - - - "Happy New Year!"

December was a whirlwind! But I'm glad I had a husband to share it with.

Merry Christmas Darling, Happy New Year too. :)