Getting Ready for Christmas....

Now that Thanksgiving is over, the only thing left to do is enjoy the month of December and begin the countdown until Christmas. I love this time of year, the weather is freezing, yet in Boise we NEVER get snow and it's a great time to enjoy with family. Brad and I found these huge stockings in the office so we thought it would be funny to take some crazy pictures wearing them, so freakin' funny!!!

This year I decided that I would send out Christmas cards since I have never before done them. I had always wanted to, but just never found the time or motivation. So to all of you out there, the cards are on their way.

Got to get back to work, I will post later!!!!

The puffy face...

I woke up this morning to a swollen face!!!! It frightened me and made me laugh all at once. About a year ago I was experiencing some type of allergic reaction to some unknown substance. I went to two skin and allergy specialists here in Boise but to no avail, they found NOTHING! I would go to bed perfectly healthy and wake up a few hours later covered in hives and a puffy face. So begins the trend for the second time, atleast I hope not.

Life has been sort of hectic and crazy these days. Family, WORK, friends and my spiritual self are all struggling right now. Maybe all of the stress and unknowns in my life are contributing to my allergic reactions? I slept in this morning in hopes that a little rest would make it better, not so easy. I drug myself into work with big lips and a double chin, so funny even for me to say.

For Thanksgiving me, my mom and dad are all driving to Rexburg to be with Reg, Ava and Jason. Melissa, Lance and the boys are going to Utah to be with the Snyders. It should be fun and adventurous, six of us in a tiny apartment in Rexburg for five days!

HAPPY TURKEY DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The topic of Religion.....

Why is religion such a sensitive subject? Why is it that religion is the center of so much controversy? Lately I have begun to ask myself this very same question. It seems as if so many people are concerned with "what" religion or church they belong to. Why does this matter? We need to remember that we all have the right to worship freely and as we see fit. We are to consumed with the idea and belief that it matters where you go to church and what religion you belong to.

I have some really close friends that are not LDS, yet they are some of the VERY best people and friends that I have ever had. They don't judge and they love unconditionally despite our difference in religion. I feel so safe around their family and I love the peace I feel when I am in their home. So why would someone care that I am spending much of my free time with them and learning from them? This is the idea that I am having the most difficulty understanding. We become so preoccupied with what others believe or don't believe that we loose sight of who that person really is and the potential they have.

I understand that our beliefs differ, yet I also realize that these same differences have made us the best of friends. Who really does care if your neighbor is Catholic, Baptist, Methodist, Christian, does it really matter? I am beginning to believe that it's not what church we belong to that matters, it's what's in our heart and the person we truly are. I am in no way saying that what I believe to be untrue. Each of us has the freedom and right to believe and worship how we choose.