We spent Christmas this year with my family in Oregon. It was so much fun to have everyone together. It was the first time we've spent Christmas with my Grandma Hammond since we were in elementary school.
Bonnie took our spur of the moment Christmas photo after opening presents on Christmas Day. It turned out quite well.
I discovered that I am allergic to cats over the break which was so sad because my parents have the cutest kitten. I'm also worried that I may be allergic to dogs and that it would prevent us from getting one this month.
Adam has been to Oregon so often that it's hard to come up with things he hasn't done yet. Due to traffic, we were taking the back roads home from Costco with my brother Jared and drove right by Mission Mill. As we toured the mill and the mission homes, we were filled with a sense of gratitude for our current work. None of us could imagine working in dangerous and hazardous condition day after day.
As we were driving back to Utah from Oregon, I was so remorseful to leave my family and the mild weather. I didn't help that we drove past 9 visible waterfalls in the Columbia River Gorge. As I was reflecting on how sad I was to be leaving, I decided that one of my goals for the New Year is to find ways to enjoy the winter and not just endure it. I plan to do activities each week that will help me enjoy the winter weather. So far, I've noticed that getting a warmer winter coat for Christmas has really helped.
On New Year's Day we planned to snowshoe Big Springs with our friends the Cottrell's. I need to get a group picture from them.
