It's never too early for this...

I've been listening to The Gatlin's Brothers Christmas album.
It's what I grew up on and I still love it. Look at them. How could you not... especially you Micah, how could you not love these guys' voices?

Anyway, here's a playlist of all the Tiger Fire Christmas recordings (except for a potential 2009 track...) to help you get in the mood.

Yes, some of the songs or parts of some songs are extremely embarrassing to me. Like maybe even everything after the 7th song....

I have nothing to say for those parts.

Turn it up for "Let it Snow." I think it's my favorite, but for some reason it's really quiet.

Also, I'm taking Christmas Music recommendations. I need to expand beyond The Gatlin Brothers, The Carpenters, and Anne Murray :)

Can I please be in love with these pictures even thought it was SO COLD that day?

Back in the beginning of October we got to help out with Film Is Not Dead version 4.0. These workshops are the best thing ever. Micah and I have been to Oahu (twice), San Francisco, and Park City for every single one.

We got to model as bride and groom in Hawaii and then as an engaged couple in Park City. Having fantastic photos of Micah and I from 30 photographers has been fun to say the least, but the thing I love about these workshops is the people and experiences.

I love making new friends. I love being able to help Callie in the kitchen. Her food always puts a smile on people's faces-and this time I got to make the shoyu chicken all by-by-my-myself, as Ruby would say. I love being able to listen to Jon talk about his work. He is good at what he does and he is passionate about it and he's good at sharing those skills and passion.

These images remind me of working together with family and friends. And eating together. Generosity. Love. Friendship. Success. Fun.

I can't get this kind of funny image out of my head, but it's what these images and all the Film Is Not Dead workshops remind me of. A big group of people in a circle holding hands, running in a circle and working so well together and running so fast that they actually start lifting off the ground when no one knew that was possible.

Film Is Not Dead always inspires me even though I'm not a photographer. I always have a renewed hope and faith in my own dreams for myself and my family. I'm a dreamer and it always helps to have my dreams nurtured instead of laughed at or just not believed in.

So in conclusion, film is not dead and let's all do what we can to help each other reach our goals.

The toilets are clean at our house!

Come visit while it lasts :)

Lesson learned... again.

Don't let his smiles fool you. He absolutely hated the "Max-King-of-the-wild-things" costume I made for him. He screamed and cried when I was putting it on him and was mostly rotten the whole time he was wearing it. Just the usual 2 year old on sugar stuff: "No!" "Mine!" and loud sudden outbursts into heaving tears over the smallest little things.

So the lesson I learned (again) in making this costume and the way it was received is about the way people express love vs. the way they feel loved.

I love Nigel.

I wanted him to have a fantastic costume for his 3rd Halloween.

That's about where my expression of love for him stopped. I didn't ever ask him what he wanted to be, because I didn't want to know the answer. I wanted him to wear something that I made him and that I thought was cool.

But in the name of loving my son I made my own pattern for a Max costume. Sure everyone who saw it (mostly on a hanger because Nigel only actually wore it for 20 minutes) loved it, but who cares? Nigel probably would have been absolutely ecstatic to be dressed up like a football, or basketball... "any kind of [ball]" and it wouldn't have cost as much or taken up as much time as Max-King-of-the-wild-things.

I forgot that it's important to put my energy for expressing love into things that will send and actually deliver the intended message. Lots of time in life I spend time, money, energy, and other resources on things that I care about, but don't mean anything to the person it's for. I just do it because I like it and subconsciously wish that they would like it.

To me, part of love means knowing a person well enough to really understand how they feel loved and delivering that kind of love as much as possible.

Next year Nigel can be whatever he wants for Halloween. Even if it's from Costco like every other kid on the streets.

Don't worry. Nigel is still cute.

Or maybe you should worry because he is as cute as he is. This kid cracks me up. I wish we had personal cinematographers capturing every second of his life. Like today when he had been in his bed for 2 hours for a nap that he never took because he was too busy singing and talking and chanting, "BYU! BYU! BYU! BYU! BYU! Kick the football BYU! BYU! BYU! BYU!" over and over and over again.

That's when I got him up to play again because I missed his cute fun-ness.


Also, Nigel LOVES to watch himself run. He's content to watch his shadow or his reflection. He runs in place in front of a really big mirror in our family room and he runs back and forth in front of the big mirror in our bedroom. I don't think it's narcism really. I think he's in awe of the human body.

This is him running across BYU campus holding on to a calzone from the Cougar Eat, checking out his shadow on the way to meet Uncle Ceddie while Grandma Anderson was here to visit. I think this was his first time on campus...
This is a little corner of Beal's School, or what I like to call heaven.
Scout and Lulu never hold still long enough for me to take a good picture so here are shots of all the Beal's School kids minus them.

Nohnny doing his favorite work. Doggies.

Laurel, hard at work spooning little beads from cup to cup and back again.
Nigel. His favorite letter is d, and he really does know what it is.
Maisy, concentrating on spooning marbles into an ice tray. By the way, she carried that tray to the table herself! These little Stevenson twins are the little babies who could. Seriously, there so petite and fragile, but they keep surprising me with their capabilities in Beal's School.
One day when I have more time I'll write more about Beal's School and everything else going on in life. So much is happening and it's all GOOD. I love my life. I love my family. I love my friends. I don't know why I got the best life ever. Now if only Micah would come home so I can go to bed...

PS I found my camera! And then the battery died and now I can't find the charger. Of course.
PPS Nigel really is cute. We aren't kidding.
PPPS

If you're in the market for a used RED MICROFIBER couch

Check it out.

Little Garcon