Well I decorated for Christmas yesterday. (Didn't I just put the decorations away? Time flies scarily fast)I guess Chloe didn't get the memo that this is a decorative Christmas village.

Dearest Santa,
I have been a very, very good girl this year.
I have brushed my teeth every morning. And even sometimes at night.
I have recycled a few things. And I have even washed some yogurt containers out when I recycle them.
I didn't even eat any pie on Thanksgiving.
I have been nice to my brother and sisters even when one sister in particular is not so nice to me and tells me things like, "That's it. I am never letting you take me out to eat again."

So you wouldn't mind getting me a 500 dollar vacuum would you? I know. What kind of a person wants a vacuum for Christmas? Well I do. I have had 2 vacuums in 4 and a half years and neither of them fluff my carpet like I'd like.

The Dyson "never loses suction."

And. It is yellow.

I realize it is a little pricey. But here is the good news. You will only have to put it down the chimney once. I hear these little babies last for the long haul.

I promise in the coming years to ask for smaller, more chimney friendly items.

Like diamonds.
Or tickets to exotic places.

Yours Truly Santa Dearest,
Melissa

Thanksgiving Reunion Part 2

Well unfortunately we lost the camera the first part of the day and the second part of the day I was too busy to take any pictures. The first part of the day was the highlight of the reunion. Don's relatives from Mexico City host a mexican breakfast every reunion. This time it was at "Arribas." We had the whole restaurant to ourselves, a Mariachi band and whole heck of a lot of awesome food. We ate enchiladas and Hueves Rancheros for breakfast along with some more traditional breakfast foods like eggs, bacon, french toast, and pancakes. And some people even ate fried ice cream. Could the day seriously start out any better. Oh, and they also raffled off tickets to Mexico City. I had a feeling I was going to win. But unfortunately...I was wrong. I never win anything. One time I put like a billion raffle tickets in a jar to win a haircut. I thought I had a pretty good chance because there was only like 5 other tickets in there. You would think a billion chances to 5 would be good odds. But...I lost. I don't think I have ever won anything in my life. Well except an awesome life. So I guess I should stop complaining.

After breakfast everyone went their separate ways. I went shopping and tried to find some cheap clothes. And I decided that my favorite stores are very mean to charge so much for their clothing. Also, that I ate too much.

Then there was an open house at Uncle Rudy's house...

And then finally another dinner and talent show.

I did 2 songs and am working on overcoming my fear of singing solos in public. A Norah Jones song and an oldie, "Love Me Tender." All in all it went okay. I was just proud of myself for getting up there. My legs started shaking and I thought they were going to crumble. Luckily I leaned up against the piano. And I think I figured out why singers often go sing by a piano. They are trying not to pass out. Being nervous about the talent show severely decreased my enjoyment of the food, which was a near tragedy. BBQ sandwiches and cole slaw. But the good news is I thoroughly enjoyed my Texas sheetcake after it was all over. Man Texas Sheetcake deserves a special medal of honor.

******May it hereby be known that Texas Sheetcake is officially the best bake in the universe*****

PS one time when we were driving through Texas on a family vacation, Chelsey later commented to a cousin "Texas SSSSSSSSSSSucks." Maybe you had to be there.
And that is one of my favorite memories from that vacation.

Chloe is really into The Little Mermaid these days. And I am really into this dress that my cousin handed down to me. It has mermaids on it.

Also:

********I hereby declare that The Little Mermaid is the best Disney movie of all time.*****

Thanksgiving Part 1

Well this is the first time the past few days I have had time to breathe. We have had a fabulous Thanksgiving. I am sad it is already over...but now on to Christmas. Don't you wish the holidays were split up a little bit? I could use a holiday in August. Because I don't like August that much. If you have been to Phoenix in August you understand.This year was the Mortensen family reunion. It happens every 3 years and this year the Zonies were in charge. The family is huge. Big families are great. I see the benefit of having lots of kids. Makes reunions fun. Someone snuck in our picture! This is Don's sister Janae.

And her husband!

Chloe found some toys. And the bowls of candy corn. And I am pretty sure that is the only thing she ate for Thanksgiving dinner. And I didn't even care. By the way. But I am not surprised. She finds the sugar bowl at my dad's house and eats sugar literally by the spoonful. I do care about that. That is is just weird, Chloe.
Don had a lot of his relatives come who live in Mexico city. I am so glad I married a Mexican.
There were about 130 people. This was a "smaller" reunion.
All Don's sisters and sister in laws made the food for the event. And we did a pretty fantastic job if I do say so myself, and I do. I am not good at false humility. Another benefit of marrying Don is everyone in the family makes tasty food.

I made 5, yes 5 huge pans of yams. I do not want to eat yams for a very, very long time. Only 2 got eaten at Thanksgiving dinner. Luckily there was another day of feasting so I think they all got disposed of. It was basically a big pie. I love that we can eat pie for dinner and really believe we are eating a vegetable.
Crafts for the kids...

First night of the reunion went off without too much of a hitch!

I lied.

I said I wasn't going to blog for a few days.

But you see I can't help myself.

Today I was driving by myself noticing the beautiful day and I was overcome thinking about all the things I am thankful for.

And so I said to myself, I must blog.

Because I think when you are feeling spurts of gratitude you should write it down for the days you put a "free" sign on your child.

This is probably one of my favorite quotes. President Hinckley often gets misquoted as saying this, but he actually was quoting someone else.

Anyone who imagines that bliss is normal is going to waste a lot of time running around shouting that he's been robbed.
The fact is that most putts don't drop, most beef is tough, most children grow up to be just people, most successful marriages require a high degree of mutual toleration, most jobs are more often dull than otherwise.
Life is like an old-time rail journey--delays, sidetracks, smoke, dust, cinders, and jolts, interspersed only occasionally by beautiful vistas and thrilling bursts of speed. The trick is to thank the Lord for letting you have the ride.- Jenkin Lloyd Jones

So I am thankful this year for (not in order of importance):
Friends. Friends who make me laugh. Friends who pick up my slack. Friends who help me peel 14 pounds of yams. Friends who encourage me to try things that scare me. Friends who comment on my blog. Friends who make this big old world a much smaller and nicer place.

Family. The more I look around the more I realize how lucky I was to have 2 parents. Who loved me. For a mom who made me do things I didn't want to do. Like piano lessons, and dance lessons. And Brownies. And lots of other things that made me highly uncomfortable. But she knew I was shy and I needed some pushing. I was so shy I peed my pants in 1st grade because I was too shy to ask the teacher if I could go to the bathroom. I am grateful she knew what was best for me and I am sure put up with a lot of complaining.
For family that fed me, clothed me, schooled me, colleged me, and helped me get married off.
For a dad that diligently tries to be both mother and father.

For a large support system. Through family, friends, and church. Someone has always got my back. Or sending over a casserole.

For faith in Jesus Christ. I do not like that I am not in control. In fact that is my number one complaint about life in general. But I am grounded in my knowledge that there is a God who is in control. And that makes me feel really, really good. Especially when I am scared.

To live in this country.

For a husband that lives up to what a man should be and will teach his children to not be, or accept any less.

For a healthy, busy, red headed daughter.

For delicious and plentiful amounts of food.

I am blessed with all my needs and most of my wants. (I mean, I always want more throw pillows.)
And that makes me a very, very lucky girl indeed.

I thank God.

Well little blog of mine. I might be neglecting you for a few days.
I will be making sweet potato casserole for 130 people.
Amid other Holiday things.
And I WILL thwart off this cold.
Hope everyone has a fulFILLING Thanksgiving.
Emphasis on FILLING.

Debunking Myths

You know. I was watching my favorite show the other day. And it got me thinking. There are a lot of myths that go around via media. And I feel it is my duty to clue everybody in on the truth. Because I am very smart. And have pretty much figured everything out. I noticed that I knew the answers to most things by the time I was 16. I told my mom that. She liked when I said stuff like that.

Anyway.

During "Glee" the teacher says to a romantically challenged student something to the effect of, "Don't worry...I know there are a lot of things you don't like about yourself. But there will be be a boy that will like you because of all those things you don't like about yourself."

This might be true in some cases, but it entirely depends on the faults.
For example.
Does my husband giggle every time I am late? No.
Does my husband say "oh shucks" every time I leave the light on in the car and kill the car battery? No.
Does my husband think I am cute when I forget to deposit checks? No.
Does my husband like my man laugh? No.

My husband puts up with my flaws but I am pretty sure he doesn't love me because of them. In fact, I am sure I can kind of annoying.

Second myth.
Be true to your self and all your dreams will come true.

Do I believe in being true to yourself? Of course.
Do I believe that you can be a rock star if you just believe in yourself? No.

I mean I believed I could be an Olympic ice skater but that didn't happen. I guess it probably would have helped if I took ice skating lessons. And lived someplace cold.

Third myth.
Recent college graduates have lame-o jobs but somehow live in swanky New York apartments decorated entirely with Pottery Barn merchandise.
Oh and only dress in Banana Republic.

Most apartments are just lucky if they have some candles to cover up icky smells.

Fourth myth.
You can turn a jerky guy into Prince Charming just because they love you so much. And they think all your annoying habits are just so darn cute (see myth number one).

Fifth myth.
Childbirth takes 5 minutes.
From start to finish.

Oh how I wish this were true.

Well there are many more. I will do a second installment later.
You're welcome.