i just put out my measly but well loved christmas decorations. it's not the same without karey's tree and lights, but elicia has some lights that she might put out later. archie and izzy were very interested and excited at all the christmas goodies to get into. they kept lunging at the dangling metal angels on my angel chain. and archie kept sticking his cute little annoying paw in the handle slot of the box, clawing at the ribbons on my ornaments and thus piercing my grasping fingers as they try to shield and protect.

i had big plans for today. i wanted to get a lot of christmas stuff done. but i ended up getting none of them done, except for the decorating. linda came home from japan today. heather picked her up and they came over and linda gave me some yummy and interesting japanese candies. then i got ready and we went to london drugs and then to commercial because i needed to look for a store and i didn't find it, or i did and it's not as great as i was hoping. and then i came home and had a nap. and my nose was cold because the kitchen window was open and only a pillow was covering me for warmth. then heather came over and we watched shall we dance the japanese version.

bethany has a rather perplexing aversion to the words 'stomacher' and 'fingie', and is liable to fly of the handle at any mention of them. she is the most singular girl.

the christmas creche was really good. i actually fit into my graduation pants and using yarn, i could zip up my one boot, and i wore my red lip glass and didn't even dampen it's fierceness. the music was really beautiful. i especially liked the last song sung by erin roberts and i guess composed by shelley murley, and a spirtual sung by five moms. it was really pretty. our choir didn't do too badly. there wasn't enough room for us on the stand so olaysia and kathy had to sit on the floor in between numbers. they kept telling us over and over to come up to the stand during the congregational hymn joy to the world and to leave during the congregational hymn o little town of bethlehem. well plans changed but no one told us. so elicia and i and the women around us got up to go only to have everyone telling us to sit down.

archie just sliced my forearm. he was trying to clamber up but he slipped and my good flesh gave him something to hang on to.

after the musical program was over we walked around and looked at all the nativities. i want a nativity of my own. we saw tania and her cronie wendy. but we didn't talk long. on the way out we stopped by the kitchen and stole some goodies. i was just reaching under some seran wrap to steal a brownie when president murley walks in. i smiled my most friendly smile and tried to look innocent. "that's the reason i'm here too." he confessed. and so we laughed and snatched up some goodie goods. the last thing i ate was something lemony and gooey. i sent heather back in to get some because i know she loves lemon.

we went to tinsel town and saw the nativity story. and i loved it a lot. it was sooo good. the kind of good that i didn't want it to be over. so it didn't feel like same old same old, like you could tune out because you knew all the parts, and yet it was told very traditionally. i'm not going to say too much about it but i loved it. i was touched, i felt the spirit of christmas, i loved mary and joseph, i loved the wise men, the shepherd and everything! i liked the themes. i liked how i thought about new and meaningful things that i never saw or thought about before. i'd watch it again and again and i would hope that every time would be as special.

it was a good combo going to the christmas creche and then the movie. a good combo indeed.