Christmas Letter

(Alisha's latest craft project)


Hey everyone, we just sent out our Christmas letter for the year via email. If you didn't get a copy, it's because we don't have your email address so leave a comment or send it to us and we'll send you our card. Thanks and have a Merry Christmas!

Snow-venturing

Alisha says: Rather than be hermits all day, couped up inside, Dave and I decided to get outside, breathe some crisp cold air and go on a snow adventure or snow-venture (thanks to yesterday's huge storm). We did a short little hike to the top of Ensign Peak where we enjoyed a nice view of the snowy city.

This last year Dave and I have been Primary teachers. At first we both started out teaching the CTR 5 class and then about half way through the year I got switched to the Sunbeams. The Sunbeams have a hard time sitting still, mostly talk about princesses, and respond "Jesus" to ALL questions. The CTR 5's also have a hard time sitting still, can remember and recall some scripture stories, and respond "Jesus" to MOST questions. We both had fun and laughed a lot. I took some pictures last week and that was a challenge.

Crunch Time

Dave says: Finals week is finally here. Fortunately so is some bad winter weather which makes studying inside for eight hours at a time a little more bearable. In fact, I never made it out of my pajamas on a couple days last week. By the weekend I was ready to get out of the house. On Saturday night we walked around the Gateway for a bit before watching the Jazz blow a ten point lead to lose to the Magic.

The snow had finally stopped by Sunday afternoon and we went up to Mountain Dell to check out the skate skiing. Unfortunately it was freezing and even with double gloves on we couldn't keep our hands warm. Today it's back to full day study sessions as I prepare for comprehensive tests in Administrative Law and Trusts and Estates before finishing a final paper for International Law examining how human rights laws impact the sovereignty of nations.

Putting Up the Christmas Tree

Four Thanksgivings

Dave says: This past week we had four turkey dinners. It all started when Alisha saw 18 lbs. turkeys for only $8 at Smiths. We didn't even know how to cook a turkey but we got a turkey bag, put it in the oven for a couple hours, and had a pretty delicious meal with lots of leftovers.

On Thanksgiving we woke up ready to go on a long bike ride only to discover that it was raining outside. Instead, we watched the Macy's Day Parade and rode the indoor trainer for three hours. Then, it was time to head over to Richard and Britney's for Thanksgiving dinner number two where we enjoyed a variety of tasty dishes and desserts.

Then, we went to the movie theater to see Twilight. Alisha has been reading the series over the past couple months and I've been pretty skeptical of "vampire romance." However, I gotta admit that I enjoyed the show, perhaps even enough to read the book sometime in the future.

Alisha had to work the day after Thanksgiving and I got to spend a day catching up on homework and working on my big human rights paper for international law. We headed down in the evening and stayed at the newly remodeled Bezanson family house (nice countertops!) with the entire family.

On Saturday it was time for Thanksgiving number three with Debbie's delicious cooking. Then it was time for some sweet mountain biking with Brian on the rocky trails at Three Peaks while Alisha, Debbie, Amber, Mandy, and Shane made some good looking ginger bread houses.

We went to church with my family on Sunday morning. Then it was time for Thanksgiving dinner number four with my family and grandparents. Finally, it was time to head home on a jam-packed road. It was a quick trip but a great holiday weekend where we got to spend some quality time with both our families and remember all the things that we are grateful for.

Go Jazz!!

Alisha says: Wednesday I got to go with my sister to the Utah Jazz vs. Milwaukee Bucks basketball game. My sister's boss gave her their company's 2nd row VIP tickets. Lucky for me her husband was sick so she took me. It was so much fun, before the game we got to eat dinner in the dining room and at half time we got to go back to the dining room and have treats. The best part though was the seats, we were 2nd row right behind the Buck's bench. It was really cool to be that close. The Jazz won 105-94! Thanks Amber!!

Halloween

Alisha says: On Halloween my work had a costume/pumpkin contest and although I did not dress up I did decorate a pumpkin with lots of different kinds of candy. There were lots of neat pumpkins (I forgot to take my camera to work so the only pic I have is of mine) but I won first place!!

Saturday I put on my Kuhl kit for the last time in a race (next year I will be riding for PCIM!!) and participated in the City Creek Bike Sprint that was suppose to be a couple of weeks ago but because of bad weather was rescheduled. It was actually really nice weather for it being November 1st. The race went really well for me, I had a good start was able to hang onto the fast train for a little bit. I finished 7th overall and was the first female. I won some cash for breaking the women's record with my time of 24:24. We also made a quick trip down to Cedar City to see Parker and Christine bless their second little one (Rachel). Today it snowed all day long and it made me feel sad.

Dave says: Two and a half hours on the trainer indoors watching the snow fall made me sad too, but not as sad as my semi-lame race performance on Saturday in the four-inch deep gravel at RMR. Here's some 'cross pics that make me look faster than I actually was:

Check out SlyFox in his womanly Halloween garb handing out dollar bills (by this time in the race I think he was down to quarters though).