For the past three years our family has spent Christmas morning at the Salvation Army serving Christmas dinner to the homeless, needy, and under privledged. This year was no exception and having my parents and ten missionaries with us made it all the more special! Merry Christmas!
Our Christmas mornings always start bright and early! Opening gifts, quickly putting away all the wrapping paper, then cooking a huge breakfast for the 10 elders coming to our home for Christmas morning! Pancakes, ice cream waffles, eggs, and more always are a big hit with the elders. After our breakfast we pile into our big white van and head downtown to serve the homeless, needy and under privledged for lunch. Its a great way to spend the day together and to remember what Christmas is all about. 
This year Jessica really enjoyed helping out at the Salvation Army Christmas dinner on Christmas morning. She was old enough to pour drinks this year and to help serve them to the "guests" as they arrived. She loved being able to do more than just "assist" as in the past! Kenny too was thrilled when he was upgraded from drink duty last year to Dessert server this year! He said he liked that a lot better! Getting older does have its advantages! And serving others always brings a smile to our faces! 
Well we finally did it...we bought a new car to replace Arnold's trusty but rapidly aging Landcruiser. How we wish we could drive that thing another 200K miles but I guess its time to move on. After weeks...no wait months of research (you know how Arnold is...) we finally settled on a sporty Land Rover Range Rover. We're excited about our new purchase! Now if we could just find a humongous bright red bow to tie on the roof for Christmas morning! I'm not sure the kids would be as amused...
For Science class Kenny was asked to make a volcano. With a plastic milk carton, tin foil, and homemade clay this is what he ended up with! Add a little dish washing liquid to the baking soda and vinegar and there you have yourself a pretty good erupting volcano! Great job Kenny!
Jessica's class Christmas parties were held on Friday and each student was asked to bring in a stocking and 24 items to share with the class members. Jessica chose an Alabama football stocking and handed out 24 rubber placemats w/ foam stickers for each student to decorate for Christmas Eve. Along with the placemat was a note for Santa to be left with a plate of cookies!
Our Ward hosted the Stake Mini Youth Conference with Gulfport Mississippi Stake. We had workshops, dinner, and a dance! The fun part about this activity was the stake agreed to allow the 12-13 year olds attend but not the dance part! They were able to play games and participate in some other fun activities while the 14 and older youth were in the cultural hall for the dance! Lisa Emcee'd the event and had a fun time with all her "cute" friends!
Arnold and I attended the Chevron Annual Christmas Dinner and Dance at the Jackson County Civic Center in Pascagoula, MS. We had a fun time with our friends, Johnny and Christine Pak, and the rest of Arnold's crew from work! I even managed to get in a dance or two from Arnold! 
Elder Andrus from St. George, Utah returned home from his mission this week. Before leaving we hosted a dinner with all the elders in our ward and watched the First Presidency Christmas broadcast together in our home. We certainly couldn't send Elder Andrus home without first thanking him for teaching us all about Tim Tam Slams! Hot cocoa in our home will never be the same again! Thanks Elder Andrus for making your stay with us such a memorable one! (PS Directions: Tim Tam Pepperidge Farm cookies from Target. Hot cocoa in a cup. Bite off the ends of the Tim Tam cookie. Use it as a straw to drink up some cocoa. As the cocoa runs through the cookie the heat will melt the chocolate. The key is to suck up the cookie in your mouth as it is melting before it drops into your cocoa cup. Not only is this a fun way to drink cocoa...it is the best tasting combination I have ever had! Enjoy!)
Somehow Lisa Nicole managed to convince us that playing in the Powder Puff football game at school was an honor and not to be missed! With my fingers crossed I signed the health form waiver and sent her off to practice! I know its just a bunch of girls playing in pretty pink shirts and tights, but still...its a contact sport! I could just see her getting hurt and being sentenced to a life of pain and agony. Much to my surprise the game went well...no injuries were reported...and Lisa had the time of her life playing Pretty in Pink Powder Puff football! 
Having deep fried turkey for Thanksgiving has become a staple in our household. Having the elders and other friends and family join us is just one of the other perks! This year was no exception! We loved having the Nugents from Alaska and the Ramos's from down the street join us for the party! The deep fried turkey was amazing and the rest of the food was just icing on the cake!
