Emily had her first (with this teacher) dance recital last night. Sophie, Hannah, Elise, Caroline, and Anna take dance at the same place but everyone is in different classes.
These three are of Emily's leaps and bounds. She's an elegant little thing when she needs to be. I realized last night how glad I am that she is in dance and what a strange place for our family to be. Our time is spent on the court or on the field so it's nice to spend some time supporting Emily in dance.
Excuse the tummy shot. No one in Utah sells a red leotard. Believe me...I checked!!!
Anna and Emily. Caroline and Emily.
Little John took a picture of the Christmas tree. I thought I'd show off his photography skills. :)
The Christmas party was at the Utah State Fairgrounds this year. The bottom floor was set up for an hour mingle before the dinner. The favorite is the yearly cold shrimp. There is also cheese and crackers and fruits and drinks. There were live statues on platforms in the middle of the the food tables (top picture). If you've ever seen Cullinary Creations with Mary Craft; she was the caterer. I watch her sometimes and I was so excited. I wanted to meet her but missed my chance.
Dinner was upstairs. It was beautiful. We had a buffet of halibut, roast beef, rice pilaf, potatoes, asparagus, and two salads. For dessert, each table was given a large tray with small desserts to choose from.
The second picture is my place setting. Every guest or spouse of the employee is given a gift every year. This year it was a nice crystal candle with a star design and the words "you shine" engraved on it.
The next picture is an attempt at getting a picture of the room and the third is John at our table. These pictures were taken with John's phone so they aren't that great but better than nothing.
The next picture is Elton John. He was our entertainment. Okay okay...Elton John impersonator. He actually did an hour worth of celebrity impersonations. He did a wonderful job. It was truly entertaining. We had a good time.
In the last picture, we were lucky enough to bring home part of the centerpiece on our table.
The Kimball Family Christmas Party was last night at my aunt and uncles house, Peggy and Marvin. We look forward to this party every year. We almost always have Christmas lasagna with salad, garlic bread, and desserts. My grandma made pistachio jello salad...above. It was all yummy. I made two bundt cakes for dessert...chocolate and apricot. We had dinner, did the Nativity, Santa came, and we played the white elephant game. We had a good turnout. It is fun to get to see all my cousins who were my best friends when I was little. Now our kids (the great grandchildren) are the majority of the group.
We were sitting around visiting when Santa jovialy came through the front door. It was so exciting. He brought a wrapped box of cereal for all of the kids.
Levi, John, and Thomas are patiently waiting for their turn with Santa.
Sam wasn't quite sure about Santa. John, Emily, Thomas, and Jack were so excited but shy when it was their turn.
My mom had a turn with Santa too but my camera died as soon as it was her turn. She whispered in his ear what she wanted. I'm hoping her wish was for a great guy to come into her life and sweep her off her feet. And I'm praying it happens!!! I love you Mom.
During dinner tonight, John asked little John to put away the cereal boxes. Little John complained and kept saying he shouldn't have to do it because he didn't get them out. During this exchange between the John's, Thomas got up from the table and without a word, went straight to the cereals and started to put them away.
John and I were taken back and watched him in amazement. When he got back to his seat I asked him: "Thomas, why did you get up to do that?" His response: "Because I didn't want the Holy Ghost to leave me."
What a great learning experience for everyone in our family. I think we all stopped to think about what he did and how happy it made all of us.
We love you Thomas! You sure are a sweet spirit in our home!
"Old World Santa"
"Candleman"
Isn't Leslie beautiful?! At the end of the funeral, the kids all released balloons. Little Aaron kept a hold of his.
Here are just a few pictures of the day. Aaron's casket was beautiful. Everyone commented that it is one he would have made himself. It was a beautiful day in rememberance of Aaron. Aaron's parents and siblings, his best friend, Rob, his former bishop (and member of the stake presidency) John Robison, and Leslie spoke at the funeral. Richard, Nairn, Robert, Scott, John R., John, Spencer, Dad, and Mark sang "Be Still, My Soul". It was beautiful.
At the viewing the day of the funeral, Leslie put a picture of little Aaron into Aaron's shirt pocket. It was so sweet.
Leslie, we love you!
"Knowledge speaks and wisdom listens"
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"Feelings are everywhere. Be gentle."
