Living Through It

Christmas

We didn't have Jackson on Christmas morning this year, so we did our Christmas on Christmas Eve morning instead. We woke up and opened gifts together, then had a fancy Christmas breakfast. Jackson got lots of Lego people, which he was very excited about.

He also got a fish tank, which he was not as excited about at first. He was pretty confused, actually, because Brandon had taken him to look at fish at the pet store, pretending like it was for our cousin Noah. So when he opened it, he thought it was for Noah. He was also pretty sick over Christmas (strep throat and an ear infection), so his energy was pretty low to start with. Once we sorted everything out, though, he was excited to get the fish. Brandon set the tank up and they chose a few catfish and one beta fish. They're all set up in his room now, and the tank looks beautiful!

Unknowingly, Brandon and I got each other the same gift - black puffy jackets! We both love them and wear them all the time. Great minds think alike!

That afternoon, we took Jackson back to his mom's then headed to my mom's for our Shoaf family Christmas Eve. We had everyone home this year, which was so fun. We were just missing Jackson at dinner!

Not surprisingly, these two babies were the stars of the show. They're just a week apart in age - they were about 5 months old at Christmas.

Cooper helped set the table and poured the sparkling juice with perfect maitre d' form.

Love these sisters of mine!

And these cute nieces and nephews of mine!

After dinner, we had a short program focused on Christ and all the different roles he plays in our lives. Nalon performed on his flute and I sang with my mom accompanying.

Then it was present time! We followed our standard youngest-to-oldest pattern so by the time the older people were opening their presents, the younger ones had gone off to play with their new toys. It's pretty chaotic at first, but it makes it much more enjoyable by the end. It's getting to be a pretty full room with all of us in there!

Annual sisters pic - the first time we've had Madison in it! Now we're complete!

And the ones who started it all - what great parents, I have. I'm so grateful for them.

Since we'd already opened presents with Jackson on Christmas Eve, on Christmas morning Brandon and I slept in, ate breakfast nachos, and just hung out. We played the new Sonic the Hedgehog game we got for Jackson for Christmas and then headed to Brandon's mom's for Christmas celebrations.

I got to snuggle Nova and Jackson got tons of presents!

Merry Christmas!

Holiday Season

December 2018 was busy and fun, as usual!

We took Jackson to see the new Grinch movie at the theater. We really liked it and it was so fun to be in a theater full of children - they're all so actively engaged in the movie!

My work team had our annual retreat in Chicago. We had a great time working and playing together, including a white elephant gift exchange, escape room, and lots of delicious food. I really have the best co-workers! Pictured below in our matching EVERFI track jackets, going clockwise from me: Erica Hart, Heather Miller, Ben Gwynne, Lauren Pingul, Stephanie Stokes, Holly Holt, Tim Convey, Meaghan Joyce, and Noah Doppelt.

Jackson got his school pictures back. Cutest kindergartner there ever was!

After 23 months, Brandon and I paid off our last debt! We paid off $25,592 total and it feels so good to be done!

Our first semester of seminary came to a close. This calling has been incredibly challenging for me. I am NOT a morning person and it has been really hard to get myself mentally and physically on board. Fortunately, I have a great group of strong, humble, dedicated kids that teach me a lot about faith and diligence. I'm lucky to learn from them! Left to right: Leah Wright, Johnny Craddock, Jason Black, Enya Lund, Kali Adams, me, Alyssa Hightower. Not pictured: Jaden Limbrock, Summer Paris.

Jackson and I made sugar cookies for our neighbors and family. Well, I made the cookies and he helped me decorate some of them. Frosted sugar cookies are my favorite Christmas treat so I decided to go all out and take them to our family Christmas Eve dinner, too. I made A LOT of cookies and it took forever, but they were totally worth it!

Business Casual

Brandon started a new job this fall at Village Realty. They buy houses at tax sales and then sell them on contract. Brandon's title is office manager and he handles most of the paperwork for everything they do. He enjoys it and it's right along the lines of what he wants to do long-term, so it's been a huge blessing!

He is supposed to wear business casual to work, and one day we realized that he and Jackson were accidentally matching in their blue quarter-zip pullovers. What a cute business casual duo!

Thanksgiving 2018

We had two Thanksgivings this year. We first went to Tessa's to celebrate with my family - we had all the locals there for a delicious late lunch, then we played some games afterwards.

Brandon and I beat Tessa and my dad in Euchre, which is always cause for celebration.

Afterwards, we headed to Brandon's grandma's for round two. Jackson met us there and we spent time with Brandon's family.

Jackson got tormented by Elexis and Bentley. :)

The next day, we decorated for Christmas. It only took two trips to get more lights, but we got the tree, banister, and bookcase all decked out. Brandon found us a new tree at an auction - it was much smaller so it fit better in our small living room. My mom also gave me a few new decorations for my birthday. I loved how it all turned out!

My Birthday 2018

I turned 33 this year! I took my birthday off work, but Brandon had to work so we started celebrating the night before with his and hers pizzas.

Then the day of my birthday, I went down to my mom's and had lunch and cake with my sister, mom, and grandma. My sister helped my grandma with a scrapbook of pictures of her old farmhouse and I helped my mom pull pictures out of her old photo albums in preparation for scrapbooking them.