Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you. Happy birthday Elder
Smiiiiiiiiiiiith, happy birthday to you!! Ahh, happy birthday, my
son!! At 3:50 this afternoon you will officially be 19-years-old! And
I'm sure it will be the most unusual birthday you have ever had. Who
would have ever guessed that you would spend this day in a foreign land,
preaching the gospel in a foreign language! We are planning to
celebrate your birthday for FHE this evening, Rachel and George are
coming over and we will eat cake and ice cream in your honor.
So how was your New Year's Eve? Did the missionaries get to celebrate? Ours was fun and typical, lots of food and games and watching the ball drop on Times Square. On New Year's Day we slept in til noon and took down all the Christmas decorations. Holly was happy to have her couch back by the window so she can sit and gaze out the window all day.
Today is the first day back to school, the Christmas break is officially over. I don't think any of us were ready, but so it goes. Back to the routine. Bleh.
It has been a busy week for me in primary, getting ready for the first Sunday of the New Year. New teachers, new classrooms, new classmates, new seating in Sharing Time. It all takes a lot of time to get it organized! Saturday we had a little "Meet & Greet" activity for all the primary children to meet their new teachers. We sang some primary songs and served ice cream sundaes. Our theme was, "Come get the SCOOP on your new primary class!" Haha. It was cute, and Sunday couldn't have gone smoother. Our ward was just moved to the 11:00-2:00 block, it was great to have a little extra time to get ready on Sunday morning.
Yesterday we went to Sarah & Derek's new home in Pleasant Grove for Anna's 1st birthday party. It was fun, Billy & Josette and family, Trevor and Maggie were all there. We loved visiting with them and hearing all about their Christmas break. Maggie just completed her mission papers, she should get her call very soon, so exciting! Josette is expecting again, due in April. They just found out it is a baby girl. Anyway, Anna was adorable, she dug her little hands into the cake and icing, it was all over her face and hair before it was over. Haha, I love first birthday parties.
My sister Tami is going through a hard time, she slipped and fell the day after Christmas and dislocated her knee and tore her ACL. She needs surgery, but because she is pregnant the doctors can't operate until after the baby is born. So until then her leg is in a brace and she is on crutches. Brady took Tami and Shane to Preston for a couple of weeks so my mom can can take care of them, and Brady had to go home to work. Poor family, this is not a fun time for them. Say a few extra prayers for them!
Lehi basketball update...Friday night the varsity team had a game against Provo and lost by two points. Ugh! It was a tough one! The pre-season is now over, and region play begins this week.
So that is all our news for this week. We love you! We are so proud of you! We will be thinking of you all day today and hoping you are having a happy birthday.
Love, Mom