We enjoyed a quiet Christmas at home focused on the Savior and enjoying each other as a family. We kept our tradition of watching "A Muppet's Christmas Carol," and we also added a tradition and listened to the audiobook as a family. It was so inspirational! We leisurely opened presents Christmas morning, the boys were thrilled with Lego sets, and a lifetime membership to online piano lessons with www.hoffmanacademy.com, Seth's new smart TV, a new stainless steel kitchen set for me, and also the promise of a real live puppy for our family this summer!
*Seth surprisingly convinced me that we need a dog now because our kids are only going to be little once, and it will help our children learn to care for something that loves them and become more responsible. And that the dog will help us bond as a family when our foster child comes. He knew exactly how to melt my heart with that one! And now I might be more excited about it than Seth or the boys! We had a great time learning about different dogs and finding out which one would be best for our family. After so much deliberation, we decided on a Cavapoo. A mix between a King Charles Cavalier Spaniel and a Mini-Poodle. Hypo-allergenic and only gets to be about 15 pounds or so. The plan to get a dog this summer is very motivational for all of us to get things in order, and start following a more consitent routine. In December we went down to Ohio for a Shepard family gathering, and on the way, we went to visit a Cavapoo breeder, and we all fell in love! It's a good thing we weren't going right home, because we might not have been able to resist bringing one home right then! Here's a couple short videos of our visit: Part 1, Part 2 Notice how John looks like he is in Heaven!
We had the missionaries, Elders Whitaker and Kennedy, and a sister from our ward, Kristi Hamilton, over for Christmas dinner. Another tradition we started that I would like to continue is that we turned off all the lights except the Christmas Tree, and we each went around the table and said something we know/believe about Christ. John said, "Jesus loves us!" Henry said, "Jesus is kind." Kristi said, "Jesus Christ never gives up on us, no matter what we've done, He's still reaching out to us." It was touching for all of us. With each testimony, we lit one small candle (which was in a loaf of bread). The room got lighter and lighter the more we testified of Christ. Then, when all the candles were lit, we talked about how Jesus Christ is 'the light, the life, and the hope of the world." And we also talked about how Christ is the bread of life.
For our Christmas dessert, we had a delicious Chocolate Pie with bananas and strawberries, and it was a big hit again! It was quite a triumph when I invented it at Thanksgiving, so I thought I'd do a repeat. The crust is made of coconut, dates, pecans and oats, and the chocolate filling was made of roasted sweet potatoes, avovado, cocoa and honey.
My mom and dad, Terri and John Shepard, came to visit us for New Years. We enjoyed Seth's new TV, it's so nice that it connects to the internet, and it made it possible for us to get rid of our big bulky desk, 2 computer monitors and 2 computer towers! (Phew!) My parents took us to dinner at BD's Mongolian BBQ Grill which has something for all of us, which is nice since we like to eat different things. It was very accomodating! Of course, my parents and Seth and I played our customary games of Euker, which is a Shepard family tradition. And my parents were so kind to help us get a year-long membership to The Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village. We got to enjoy the Museum, and it is SO Cool! I know we are going to use the membership all the time!
I'm so thankful for special times we can spend with family Happy 2020!
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