Holiday Update

Let me just start by saying it's five days until our wedding...FIVE DAYS! We're only a tiny bit ashamed to admit that this holiday season seemed to fly by - we've got our eye on January 7th! This year we tried to do Christmas with both families. Christmas Eve Day we spent at Kyle's Grandma Eva's house. The highlight of the afternoon was the Christmas program: scripture reading mixed in with singing. There were four generations of family in the room which made for a lot of noise, laughter and love! Secretly, my favorite part of the afternoon was spending time with my soon to be niece :)

We call this napping position "La Faceplante"

Christmas Eve night Kyle and I went to the night service at Bethany Community Church in Greenlake with my dad and sister. It was a great service and a really nice little church.

Outside of Bethany...Our first Christmas!

Then, we went back to my dad's house and opened our presents to each other. We also decided no holiday is complete without the obligatory photo in front of the tree...

Prom Pose never gets old!

Brooke, me and Kyle

Dad, me, Chandler and Kyle

Christmas morning we headed up to my Grandma and Grandpa's house at Warm Beach - something I have done every single year that I can remember. I won the gift exchange jackpot by having my (extremely generous) cousin Adam draw my name this year. Here is a picture of Kyle and I with the loot:

Thanks Adam!!!

The week after Christmas flew by as we tried to continue to check projects off the list. In the hustle of all the projects, I didn't do a good job taking pictures. So, here is a list (I love lists):

• Our couch came from Ikea. It was broken in one place, but it was too much work to return it so Kyle just came up with his own repair job for it. Worked liked a charm.

Definitely NOT interested in re-packing all of that!

• We got a light fixture that fronts like track lighting and installed that above the fireplace. We thought we turned off the power to the socket but found out afterwards that Kyle had replaced the whole thing hot. Such a pro!

Before - that light fixture was broken...

After - let there be light! 

• We picked up knobs for all the cabinet doors in the kitchen. They look great and I already can't remember not having them.
• We bought a rack for the storage shed outside. The rack got the best of Kyle (he will tell you adamantly that the rack itself was poorly made). To be fair, it was incredibly poorly made (shame on you Home Depot!). All it needed in the end was my tiny girl fingers to be able to hold the bolts in place while Kyle screwed them in. I still give it a thumbs down as far as craftsmanship goes, but it will get the job done.

Taking my turn at things...

This shed is hard to photograph, but trust me - it is
organizational perfection with the new rack (on the right)!

New Year's Eve we spent watching a movie at Kyle's sister's house, and then headed out to an 80's themed party that a friend was hosting. No pics from that night - and we we're totally "that couple" that left at 12:10 AM to head home because we were SO tired. 

Giving it grace: With so much going on, it's hard not to remember every little detail. I've been forgetting things left and right. I'm trying to remember that God is in control, and He is not surprised by how fast things are moving for us. I know that for those who love God, all things work together for good - I'm just learning that what I consider "good" is subject to my tiny little understanding of the world. Knowing that our God is a good God who loves us allows us to (try to) rest in His grace and just enjoy this time in our lives. Kyle is better at it than I am, but watching him be so calm during all this change is very encouraging!

PS. We may not post again for a few weeks, but Kyle had the opportunity to taste "the best beer in the whole world" and can't wait to share his thoughts about it when we get back from our honeymoon!