THANKS

We had a great Thanksgiving! My good friend Audrey and her mother Helen were good enough to drive all the way from Washington D.C. to join us for the holiday!

Audrey and I have been friends since our freshman year of college when we were the only two freshman on study abroad at the BYU Jerusalem Center. We were inseperable and had a great time exploring the city and falling in love with the culture and people. Audrey's love affair with the Middle East has continued and she is now living in D.C. where she interprets in sign language and teaches Arabic. She is brilliant! We have kept in touch through the years and our friendship has spaned several continents. We bumped into each other in the MTC where we were both headed for Asian missions and then when we returned I went to visit her in England where she was in graduate school. She stretches my mind and understands my heart.

It was a pleasure to get to know Audrey's mom Helen better. I was so glad she could come. She was so helpful with the meal and so much fun to talk to. The apple didn't fall far from the tree and Helen is super smart and interesting just like her duaghter. It was nice to have them here as our sudo family for the holiday. We look forward to visiting them in Washington D.C. sometime soon.

Brian took charge of the Thanksgiving meal and it was a complete success! I was so proud and impressed. I am so grateful to have married such a terrific cook. His biggest successes this year were the stuffing, the turkey (so moist and tasty) and the rolls, which he slaved over for several days. Yummy! I am trying not to regret the pounds I put on over the holiday and focus on how delicious it all was.

The best part of all was that Samuel learned to say "Thank You". It was so sweet that my baby learned those words on Thanksgiving. He says it for every thing....changing a diaper, giving him a kiss, turning on the TV. I just love it!!!!

I feel especially grateful this year. I have such a terrific life! A warm and safe place to live, all the food we need and more, a fantastic husband who loves me so well and a sweet little son who wins my heart a little more everyday. So there you have it...Thanks! Thanks A Lot!!!