Christmas

Well, here I am. It's been a while... I was anticipating a few weeks of rest and relaxation (aka burnout recovery) when December hit, but alas, it was not so. The reason for this is... complicated. It all started with me taking a job in West Jordan, teaching middle school Tech (YAY! Benefits!) that would start up in January right after Christmas vacation. And then they surprised me by needing me immediately. I am tired. Every day. Even on vacation. But, I am so happy to have a job.

We left Utah and its 9 inches of snow in search of sunnier weather earlier this week. Christmas in California started out with zero visibility rainstorms complete with enormous amounts of flooding. We got stuck in Long Beach for the night because the rain was so bad. The Westin Hotel chain has this thing about everything being called Heavenly. The bed was indeed heavenly.

Aside from catching up on sleep and getting caught in the rain, we also saw our little niece for the first time. Her name is Maria Lucille and she is so tiny and cute.

Christmas was awesome, and it is so good to be with all the family. And, the food was awesome too. Pozole, mole, tamales, enchiladas... and of course, Grandma's won tons. Mario Kart tournaments, helicopter battles, and Hawaii 5-0 marathons (the old show, not the new one) have kept us pretty busy. It is good to be home.

It's back to pouring after days at the beach and warm sun... maybe it's time for some soup or the jacuzzi :)

[RACHEL]

PS. It's my first anniversary! It was a lovely first year :)

pictures to come... I'm working with sketchy 3g signals and internet service so it might be a while...