Happy Holidays!

Well, we hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving, and are gearing up for the wonderful Christmas Season. Sorry its been so long between posts. I had a little bit of computer issues, and last week class was canceled. This year we had a marvelous Thanksgiving. We went over to a friend's house and had dinner with them, another couple, and a Marine. The two couples were from our ward, and each of us made different parts of the dinner. Jenn made the famous eight layer Jell-O, the rolls, and helped make the mashed potatoes. The Marine, named Jake, is a family friend of Jenn's who is currently being trained at Camp Pendleton, and he was the largest force behind making the potatoes. Dinner went off without a hitch, and tasted great. We loved the company, and were happy to have Jake join us.

The next day of course was BLACK Friday, and we ran out the door practically at the crack of dawn to get all the best deals, or we leisurely left at around 10 am to go see what was on sale at the mall...you decided. We didn't really buy to much. A pair of shoes here and a shirt there, a few movies here, ect. It still amazes me that people are willing to get up at 3 am and go race from store to store to save a buck. The ones that really amaze me are the ones who camp out starting on Wen. What do they do during Thanksgiving? Just enjoy the view from the parking lot and gain an greater appreciation for central heating? Who knows. Anyway, we enjoyed our shopping.

Jake, the Marine, stayed with us till Saturday afternoon. We drove him back to Camp Pendleton, and got to go on base because he was with us. Supposedly, Camp Pendleton is larger than Rhode Island, and from what we saw, very east to get lost in. It was cool to be able to see the base. On our way to his living quarters we saw a sign which said TANK CROSSING, and also saw the NCIS building. NCIS is one of our favorite TV shows. When we dropped him off Marines were everywhere, and both Jenn and I were a little nervous to look around. When we left we were not sure what was the quickest way to get out, and decided to ask a Marine. I asked if we could get out by using this road. He slowly turned to me and said, "Yes," then quickly ignored me. Not the best at people skills, but I guess you don't need people skills in his line of work. It amazed me and Jenn how young these boys are. They give up so much to keep us free. We are definitely thankful for all that they do for their country.

Now as we enter the Christmas Season I want to encourage everyone to forget about the gifts and quit being commercialized. Who cares what you get for Johnny or Suzy Lu, it will be forgotten soon enough, but what lasts is the relationships and lives you change. So give the really gift of Christmas and lift the fallen, mend the broken, and guide the lost.

Now get to work,

JEM