merry christmas 2008!!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

For many years the Mesa Arizona Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has had exhibits on the temple grounds during the Easter season. This year, there was also a 'Reflections of Christ' photography exhibit in the Visitor's Center. The photographer was given permission to photograph Pageant cast members for the exhibit. They traveled to various locations in Arizona that the photographer felt looked like the places in Israel where the events took place and recreated the scenes. The photographer worked with a few other individuals to put together a 5 minute slideshow which includes every image from the exhibit set to the hymn 'Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing.'
Remember when you're watching the video that the photographs are real, they aren't paintings. Incredible!

Cozy, cozy

Life is good at Christmas time. This is the best Christmas present ever. I haven't been counting down the days until Christmas, anxious to open my presents. I'm enjoying each moment with my friends and family, enjoying the decorations, snow, movies, hot chocolate etc. so much more. All of the sudden, Christmas Day is almost here.

I've already been spoiled by Nick and his family with gifts. I love his family. I got a pair of aloe socks, a pair of socks from American Eagle, lotion, and a book from his grandma at their family Christmas party.

Nick already made me cd with my favorite songs, and a fleece blanket that he picked out the fabric himself and cut and tied the edges too. What a guy.

I'm at my grandma's now, and I fall asleep to the glowing Christmas tree and fire right next to me, wrapped in the blanket from Nick. It is very cozy.

I got to sing in the Messiah. 3 generations from the Limburg family got to sing in it. My grandma has let me lick the brownie bowl, snitch from her delicious cheeseballs, lick the frosting beaters, and eat homemade gingerbread that was extra from the gingerbread house we're making tonight. I'm stuffed to the rafters. She tried to give me hot chocolate too. I said no, because I would pop. I've been helping make the cheeseballs and deliver them to the neighbors, and practicing the duet I'm playing with my aunt Micaela at the family Christmas party on Chrismas Eve, and helping with the 3 little grandkids all day.

I'm going Christmas shopping tomorrow at the best mall in the world, and I get to see my first cousin once removed, Mariah at the Christmas party!!!

I hope your Christmas is just as cozy as mine.

Yay for Happy Day

Ooooh I'm in a good mood. I got an "A" in my college psychology class. I was so stressed to find out what my grade was today. I worked so stinking hard. And now I don't have to do the 5-page paper for extra credit like most of the other kids in my class. I got two of my finals back from Chemistry and American Literature and I got A's on both of those too. So my final grade will be an "A". And I'm done with my finals, and also my Christmas choir concert. So I was feeling rather jolly today.

And the fact that Christmas is almost here, I will be in Utah in 3 days, and I get to skip the last day and a half of school has me in good spirits. No more stressing over psych, no more studying all day after school, just packing up and getting giddy inside.

The only thing that dampered my mood was the last presentation in psych. (I did mine on Schizophrenia), this girl did hers on abortion. She was against it, just like me. But she had to show very very very graphic pictures of partial birth abortions. Like bloody babies in garbage cans. Um, let's just say I started silently crying and had to close my eyes. I'm already against it. This was not what I needed.
I didn't even know partial birth abortion existed until I knew Obama was for it. Just hearing about it made me cry and want to throw up. So just imagine what these pictures did to me. What is it with me and crying lately?!

But I tried to forget about it and it worked. Yay for the rest of my happy day.

Super Lexi

Yes. My very stressful week is finally over.

• I had final exams all week,
  
• a horrible cold,
• a 15 minute professional presentation on schizophrenia in my psychology class,
• taking care of the house while my mom is gone,
• and the ACT...

let me tell you. My brain is so stuffed full of information, it feels like a rock it's so hard. I could probably hurt somebody with it. So I've been studying and trying to take care of the house from the second I get home until I went to bed.

I went to take the ACT in Q-town, (I took Tashi with me) and stayed over at the Rodenberg's. Gloria and Mike always make sure we're comfortable. It's so cozy at their house. I watched "A Nativity Story" for the first time and I LOVED IT. I went to bed early, but of course I couldn't sleep from the stress of the next morning and had horrible dreams when I did fall asleep. The test was okay. There was a pregnant girl in my class, which seemed like an oxymoron to me.

And when I came home after the ACT, the house looked like...I don't want to use a word this horrible to describe it. Mia and Noah were still running around in their pajamas even though it was 2:30 in the afternoon. And they smelled bad. My dad was in the basement stressed out about the food storage shelves he was building. They were falling apart. So Tashi helped him for 3 hours (and they were successful), and I locked Mia and Noah in their bedrooms until they were spotless. I had to bathe them too. My original plan was to just clean the kitchen. But I did 2 loads of laundry, cleaned the living room, family room, the inside of the car, and finally the kitchen (keeping track of what Mia and Noah were doing at the same time). I felt like a mom. I was actually sweating from running around. It took me 3 hours. Then we finally realized that it was 5 pm, and the ward Christmas party started at 5:30. We didn't have a dessert, so we took the cake Rick gave me on Thursday. I didn't have time to shower. Loveliness.

After the party, Sarah came over, and we watched "It's a Wonderful Life" with our dad. It's a family tradition every Christmas. It's not Christmas without it. I cried at the end - the first time since age 4, since I've been watching it. I AM turning into my mom!!! Oh no!!!