Well, it's not really possible to MAX out Christmas. But every day the kids are adding to my already very expanded Christmas decor.
Here, Jarom's snowmen complement the cutest vintage Christmas angels, along with our new green friends from the dollar bin at Target. We adore them. They are about due for a haircut.
The classic Christmas countdown.
Out of all of our nativities, this one is our favorite. (Yes, we have more than one. Quite a few.) Gifted from my mom. She had found it at a thrift store and had it on display at her house. I guess Matt and I were the only ones who complimented her on it because a few days later we opened our Christmas gift from her and lo and behind - it's ours!!
Our tree has started to bear gifts. The kids have been eagerly finding and wrapping the perfect gifts for each other. Which I LOVE!!! It sounds weird, but that is something we NEVER did in my family. It wasn't really possible. I have 7 brothers and 5 sisters. Don't worry though. Our Christmases were all very merry!! And I can remember the first time I had a sibling "rich" enough to buy one for all of his siblings. We all had tears streaming down our faces and we were jumping up and down. I love that memory, and the best part, I was like 17 or 18. I was definitely crying tears of joy and overwhelming love.
This year's new ornaments - by Bella
Jarom did the star of Bethlehem.
and he watched a Family Fun how-to video online to make this beauty
Another favorite nativity. It's a wall hanging. Gifted one year from my sis-in-law Heather.
The kids are desperate for their daddy to magically turn this ginger into gingerbread.
Bella made a list for O and herself. Orion's is pretty easy to figure out. Bella's may be a little difficult for you to decipher: A princess dress, a dolly, and a crown. I think the rest is clear though.
Bella yesterday morning all ready for her Christmas program!!
hint hint - don't forget to notice my new thrifted table cloth.
My stars
Upon waking yesterday. Matt informed me by starting with, I have really bad news, you are not going to like this. Boy, was he right. Our beautiful Tabernacle had caught fire early that morning. And even though it had immediate attention, it continued to burn all day and all night. The heart of Provo, our precious gem. It was a sad day to say the least. It has been a day of mourning. Everyone all about town HAD to come see it, to witness it. It is a full blown funeral. Everyone feels as though they have lost a dear friend. Matt and I have been here for almost five years now. Our first visit to church was in that building. We were blown away. How magical it was to be there. Built in the 1800's by our pioneers. This building is one of a kind, so unique. It even had a flare of gothic architecture, rare for our area.
This is our first sight of it on the way to school. Shocking. The roof had collapsed at 6 am bringing down some parts of the walls with it. Orion and I stopped and walked around after dropping the kids off at school. He was saddened because he thought that the animals had burned. Poor guy. This is where they have the live nativity, where we were playing with the animals just two weeks ago.
This is from the afternoon. They never stopped blasting water into her and yet she continued to burn. By this time I had all the kids again. Jarom kept saying, "This is the last thing I ever wanted to happen to Provo," or "Today was supposed to be a happy day." It was, in its own right though. It was the kids' last day of school. It is going to be a very memorable one. Bella kept making up songs. I should have Matt post one. They have a theme of loving the tabernacle and never crying again. Jarom, at one point got all huffed up and said - what are they going to do? Can't grandpa come and fix it right now? and to that Orion says - No! I'm going to fix it! We all - and by all I mean not just my little family but the whole community - stand firm in wanting to rebuild or restore. The kids want to donate all their money to it. I'm sure everyone does. Sunday night we are joining a singalong from 6pm - 8pm for the tabernacle across the street from it. Please all come. Let's unite in love and song.
11 pm, still burning, Mr. Fix-it catching snowflakes on his tongue
haunting
This morning the fire's out. They're assessing it and trying to figure out if anything can be done to save it.
6 comments:
I am so sad about the tabernacle. One of my favorite memories from Provo is going to the tabernacle with my grandma and seeing the Army band perform. We all stood and sang the national anthem together. I hope they rebuild that precious gem. So sad.
well, this started out with tears of delight and joy (their sweeet SWEETTTT ornaments) and now has turned to a little sadness and nostalgia. luckily provo is a proud and loving city and a good restoration is in order. didn't the library building get resored really beautifully and it used to be part of the university or something...i seem to remember that bit of history? anyway i am so sorry to see these haunting photos and it breaks my heart to think of the intense labor that went into this building so long ago. at least that same love has existed in those walls and bricks for soooo long and touched so many lives. now it will just be new love.
hopefully we'll see you SOOON! do you guys have anything planned for the 28 to the 31? LOVE YOU.
i am just floored by the fire. i can't believe it. those pics you took are priceless.
Im sooo sad about the Tabernacle- I grew up in the provo area- I hep they can restore a lot of it.
It looks like your christmas will rock- I love the childrens gifts they made and your cute decorations!
You guys are so cute! I love all your Christmas decor. I want to do some holiday partying at your place with your cute kiddos!
I was so sick to my stomach when I heard the news. That is a huge part of Provo. It needs to be rebuilt!
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