A LETTER TO JOSEPH

Dear Joseph,


First off I want to thank you for the handsome nutcracker you gave Grandpa and me for Christmas. He is the finest of them all. I will be sure to put your name on the bottom so--when we are not here any more--he will come back to you.As you can see, he is the most handsome of them all.The nutcracker Christmas Tree Ornament you painted for us is hanging right next to one of the White Santa's.
Now Joseph, I'll tell you a secret...I think the ornaments have parties after we go to bed. I hear tiny noises in my bedroom and I wonder if all the ornaments are having a good time. I think the White Santa has been whispering to the little Nutcracker stories of Christmases past.This is what the tree looks like when we go to bed. In the morning, sometimes an odd ornament or two seem to be in different places. Cool Moose is near the top, I think he whizzes down and gives rides in his handsome pink Cadillac.Baby Jesus is the star of the tree. We all know he is the reason we celebrate Christmas.
Here's another Baby Jesus ornament. He is watched over by The Candy Cane Kid.
A good friend brought me this ornament from Jerusalem. When all the fun and games are over each night, Joseph and Mary tell the story of Baby Jesus and how the star shinned in the night and the angels sang and the wise men came to see Baby Jesus. The angel told the shepherds where to find the baby, wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.We have several Baby Jesus ornaments that look exactly the same because I love him so much. Here one of our gentle reindeer watch over him. Can you see the little glass bell, right next to Baby Jesus. I think I can hear all the bells tinkling and ringing in the night. There are all kinds of bells on the tree and they all sound different. If you bump into the tree it makes a tinkling sound. I think I hear that sound in my sleep. The bells are probably having ringing contests.

This little angel is one of the many we have on the tree. After we have gone to bed they have singing contests, I think. But, from what I hear from my bedroom, they all are beautiful singers. I would have to give them all blue ribbons.

This little ornament is 22 years old. It was Elizabeth's first ornament.

A Wise Man sits right next to a Mouse House.

One year your Aunt Hillary decided she didn't like this ornament that she picked out, I might add. So, I traded her. Ever since then the Merry-Go-Round has had fun spinning and playing music at night. Too bad for Aunt Hillary.Candy Canes are all over the tree. Houses too. I don't know what the Candy Canes and houses do at night but something, for sure.

This house has a lot of towers. Some of the houses on the tree have a hole in the back and when you put a tiny light inside the windows glow. Remind me to show you the next time you are here. There are birds all over the tree. You can see a few if you look closely.The little birds are as important as the big ones. They all sing.

The Eskimo's always have snow ball fights, I think.

The Snow Men probably even have snowball fights.The mouse in this little house have a squeaking good time.

This little "Jumping Jack" Dolly from Germany was given to Elizabeth along with a baby gift from a neighbor when Elizabeth was a brand new tiny baby. I saved it until Christmas and then I put her on the tree. So, actually, I guess this was her first ornament.

We have all kinds of balls. This one your Aunt Hillary and Uncle Taylor fought over one year and so they got different ornaments and I kept this one. Aunt Hillary was here today and she says she doesn't even like it any more and so I guess I will put Uncle Taylor's name on the bottom. Although, it seems Elizabeth may have a claim. She said she hid this ornament in her room for about ten years. I think those were ten lonely years for Snoopy and his Woodstock reindeer. Maybe even your Uncle Bentley and your Dad will decide this ornament really should be theirs. Who knows why this ornament has such charm. It's not my favorite. (Shhh. Don't tell Snoopy.)

This was Elizabeth's ornament this year. I thought it was very clever, with white beads inside the ball to represent Santa's beard. Elizabeth thinks I am lame. This ornament has the Salt Lake Temple inside. Remind me to tell you about the time I met a little old lady in the Salt Lake Temple. All the balls have races I think. Even the Salt Lake Temple one. He likes to have a good time too. No one really cares who wins, the fun is in the game.

This little lamb, who watches over another Baby Jesus sometimes joins the balls in races because he is made of a puffy white ball.This Santa has lost a ski. He manages fine without it and every year I find the ski in one of the ornament boxes but I never remember to give it to Santa.

We have more than one Candy Cane Kid. He overlooks bunches and bunches of "pencil" Santa's.

Your cousin, Kate, was here one day, helping me decorate the tree and she thought putting all the pencil Santa's together made a lot of sense. I think they visit all day, they are so close they can whisper when we are awake and we never hear them. At night I think they are like pole vaulters, jumping all over the place.

Mother Goose gives a ride to an elf and I think she zooms all over the living room. Grandpa and I both have a Mother Goose ornament and I think they have flying races. The cat jumping jack ornament has lost part of his "oomph." Maddy was here today and she pulled his string and only one arm went in the air. She called him the Disco Dancer. I think I will call him that too. He is one of the oldest ornaments on the tree.

Today was Mother Goose day. She brought Elizabeth a whole 5 pound tub of licorice. Honestly, what was Mother Goose thinking?

Christmas is officially over when Mother Goose comes, but our tree is still up and the house is still decorated and I want to sit in the darkened living room some more and look at all the lights and ornaments on the tree and think about why we have Christmas.

Your Daddy should have lots of ornaments that he got when he was a little boy and not such a little boy too. Are they hanging on your tree? I hope so. If not, they are in a box somewhere, whispering to each other and telling stories. Once they are packed away that is what they do. Tell stories to each other and laugh and have a good time all through the Spring, Summer, Fall and when Winter comes they know they will soon be on the tree. And when night comes...well, all I can say is I think they all have a good time.

SIX WORDS FOR EMBARRASSING MOMENT--BABY JESUS

Let me ignore your religious beliefs.

EMBARRASSING MOMENT NUMBER TWO--GIMMIE ME A BABY JESUS!

These are some of my favorite Christmas decorations. I think I am the only one in the family who adores these fellows. And how I got them is embarrassing, even now, all these years later.

Look at the lovely detail on Mr. Monty Dromedary. His dreamy eyes, his prickly topknot. He is regal if every any animal were. Don't mind the fact that he spits. The sheep are only interested in dinner. They've only been interested in dinner for years and years.

Okay, on to the story of my great insensitivity and even greater embarrassment:

Years and years ago when Kraut was age two we lived in Greensboro, North Carolina. I worked for a cosmetic company called Carté. One of my customers was a lovely Jewish woman a few years older than me.

One day she took me to her synagogue to show me her little "store." She was proud of the many beautiful things she had stocked. I fell in love with some of the handmade animals and people that had been made in Jerusalem. I bought two camels, two sheep, and a "barber." I thought he looked like a shepherd or maybe a camel driver.

"I want to buy more," I told her. She looked and looked for the catalog but couldn't find it.

"Just tell me what you want and when I find the catalog I'll give you a call."

"I want a baby Jesus and a Mary and Joseph," I said with sincere stupidity.

She didn't say anything. In fact she kind of hurried me out and I never heard from her again. I wonder why?

THE ABC'S OF GRATITUDE--H THROUGH K

H--Holy Ghost. I am so grateful that I know He exists, that I know He will never fail. I have had so many "whisperings" that have been warnings, comfort, witnesses of truth, uneasiness at falseness, and even tiny little things like, "go check the soup" two minutes before it was going to boil over. His whispering once saved Gilmore Girl's life. His whispering once saved The Brown Dot from freezing cold in the middle of the night--maybe saved his life, too. He is involved in my life daily and I am grateful I have this knowledge.

I--Ice Cream. I'm grateful I don't like it much. One of the few calorie laden things I don't want to eat. Let's hear it for not wanting to eat ice cream!

J--Jesus. I don't understand how it was done but I know He atoned for my sins and the sins of every human being. As I love my parents--who are gone--how grateful I am for the knowledge that I will be reunited with them--as I love my husband and children, probably more than any of them will ever know, I know, without a shadow of a doubt that Jesus loves more than I ever can. He loves all, not just the good, the pretty, the smart, the ones with good fashion sense. He not only loves me--and everyone else--but he experienced all my fears, pains, disappointments, tragedies, sorrows, etc. He KNOWS how I feel and he is there to give me comfort and acceptance. What a great gift he offers. I'm takin' it, I can tell you.

K--Kids. Not the goat kind. The human kind. Without them this world would be so empty. I am grateful that Heavenly Father let me raise five of them. Each one was/is different. Each one is cherished by Phil and me. I love the sound of children's voices--well, except when they are screaming. Their sing-song-ing up and down voices, how unique that sound is. Some lisp and we are just a little bit sorry when they learn to speak properly. They say hilarious things, do hilarious things, love without motives, forgive almost instantly and throw themselves into life with joy. I wish I had the confidence I had when I was a little child. All children are born with confidence and then they learn fear. So, I'm grateful for kids and for their confidence and pure love and hope this world always has a plethora of them.

Also, it seem to me that when children are born with handicaps that they don't seem to feel sorry for themselves. Adults rant and rail if something happens to them to diminish their abilities but kids seem to take it in their stride. They must have special spirits to be given disabilities and to make the most of what they can do.

A friend of mine saw a child at a doctor's office that had the most debilitating handicap imaginable. He was cheerful and happy. I doubt that he will grow up to be bitter and sad. I think he will grow up to be a great human being and my friend will never forget him. She is a better person for observing his attitude and I am also, for simply hearing about him.

DO THINGS WELL, LIKE KATE, WHO IS GOOD AT BEING GOOD...AND HUNGRY

This is Kate, my hungry four-year-old granddaughter. She's the one who somersaulted onto the cat and catapulted (ha!) her off the sofa the other day.





We tended Kate today and it's always entertaining to see how soon she is going to be hungry and all the things she is going to find in the cupboards to ask about. Here she is eating carrots in her tent we constructed in the family room.

Here's what she ate:

a banana

carrots

crackers

mac and cheese

a chocolate truffle

more carrots

Valentine conversation hearts

a cherry bagel

She was here a little more than three hours.

When Ruby--age 2--is here she puts everyone in the Children's Nativity set to bed, they all lie down. Kate put them all to bed, too. Even Baby Jesus got taken out of his real bed to make a bed on the cold hard ground. Poor baby Jesus.

This cabinet is one I had when I was a child. It now holds markers, paper and coloring books.

After Kate left I went outside to take a picture of the mountain but it's too hazy to get a decent one so I took a picture of my cheesy birdhouses. This is the one that started my collection--the one on the right.

Deverl--a real Mormon name--made this for us when he was our home teacher. You can tell who Deverl home taught because we all have one of his birdhouses. This one and the one you can see part of are the only ones that aren't falling apart.

I remember where I bought all the ones that are falling apart and, in some cases, I remember talking to the people who made them. One woman was so proud that she and her dad had built birdhouses together. The problem is, they stapled them, didn't even use nails. Every time her birdhouses fall apart in a new, creative way I see her face and make that noise in the back of my throat. As You can see, Deverl screwed his birdhouse together. It will still be standing after the mutants run amok.

I have told my children that one day the mutants will be marauding and I will watch from the front porch and tend the kiddies while they are off fighting the battles. My front porch will hold me and about four kids, if we snuggle. I must campaign for a bigger porch. Or less mutants. Or less me.

The rest of the cheesy birdhouses and the snow shovel, thrown in just because I forgot it was there.

This is my welcome angel. Her welcome sign now just says...well, nothing. So she's holding a sign up for all the world to see with no message. She is not representative of her owner. I always have an opinion, even if it's wrong.

And last of all, here is the big mouthed frog, hiding under the chair made of tree branches, that my children's-book-writer niece, Lezlie Evans gave me.

When she was a preteen, or in her early teenage years, she used to tell me the Big Mouthed Frog joke. I loved it. She was so dramatic. (She has more personality than should be allowed--she should have to share with someone who doesn't have enough.)

I loved her joke and made her tell it over and over. Last year, for my birthday--which is one day shy of five months away--get those presents ready--she brought me a big mouthed frog to remember her by. As if I could ever forget Lezlie.

I don't know that this post really has a purpose other than to say that if you are going to do something, do it as well as possible unless it's to be a non-lasting thing. Like dinner. You're going to eat it up and forget it tomorrow so if you make a mess of it, its no big deal. If you are going to build something like a house, even a bird house, it ought to be made well.

Although, make enough lousy dinners and one of two things will happen. You will get sick and die of malnutrition or some horrible disease attributed to your food choices or you will get taken out to dinner.

Well now.