Hello friends. I am a no-good, rotten blogger this month. And I have no excuses so let just move on...

Before I share a few photos from Christmas festivities I wanted to tell you all about the band I went to see a little while ago. RailYard. They rock! You can listen for free to a few of their songs on their blog. '10 Feet Under' is my favorite song. Check them out!

http://railyard.wordpress.com/

Ok... Christmas.

I spent Christmas in Washington this year. I missed my family, but B, William & I are going to Utah for New Years in a few days so it all will work out well. I can't wait to see you guys!!

I introduced William to my 'Elf on the Shelf' this year. For those who have no idea who this creepy looking elf is, I shall tell you. The Elf appears sometime in November or so and starts keeping an eye on the kids behavior for Santa. Then each night he reports back to the North Pole with the good OR bad marks :). Then each morning, he reappears in a new spot in the house, for the little one(s) to go on a hunt for when they wake up. The kiddos can talk to the elf, but he can't talk back. I had SO much fun watching Will talk to the elf about what he wanted for Christmas. And I will admit, it is quite a helpful tool "The elf is watching, remember to be nice!"

The boys were VERY excited to open their Wii from me! Maybe too excited. Speaking of them... I haven't seen either of them since I gave it to them. It wouldn't surprise me if they were still exactly like this:Okay, I'm kidding. But not much.


I've never really gotten to experience Christmas morning with a little kiddo before, at least as an adult :) SO it was a lot of fun... Aside from having to get up at 6am to be sure I was over at B's house before Will woke up!
Will left after we opened presents to spend the rest of the day with his Mom, so B & I went to his parents for lunch & then to my Aunts for a little Beatles Rockband! It was a great Christmas.


Of course I got a Diet Coke mousepad... Didn't you?

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Well... It's true. I'm gonna be a step-mom.

WHA? Oh dear.

Don't step-moms have horns and fangs and giant warts? Aren't they old and wrinkly and mean? (Or at least older than 23?) Don't they slap aprons on their step-children and give them orders with threats of boarding school?

Wait... I guess MY step-mom didn't do any of that. I guess I'm just thinking of 'It Takes Two'... & 'Cinderella' & my nightmares.

But what about the MOM part of step-mom...

Aren't moms REALLY smart? Don't they have eyes in the back of their head? Don't they have a vast knowledge of baking, and keeping house, and cleaning scrapes, and curing ailments, and chasing monsters?

Aren't they responsible? Don't they always remember where their keys are? And never leave things on the tops of their cars when they drive away? And aren't totally scatterbrained? And wear shoes when they run outside in the dead of winter?

Or do they just really love their children? And the rest just works itself out?

I hope so...Because I REALLY love this little guy. I love being his buddy. I love diving for make-believe turtles off the side of B's bed, and baking cookies, and learning about every insect we pass by, and watching Berenstein Bears, and hearing little prayers. And I love that he lets me be a part of it all.

:)

thats all...

:(

I'm ENGAGED!!!!!!



Saturday afternoon Will's mom, took Will for a few hours to have some pictures done. The second they left I said "Let's eat, I am STARVED!" I began shouting at B to hurry and slip into his boots so we could go only to find him cleaning out the closet. WHA??? "Why are you cleaning out the closet right now? This is not the time... I am sooooo hungry!" I have never seen him clean the closet before and simply could not understand why it had suddenly become such a priority. I continued to state how hungry I was as I grabbed the handle of the front door to usher him out. I whipped around to find my honey down on one knee with the most beautiful ring I had ever seen.

In a shocked voice and at a totally unlady-like volume I believe I shouted: "ARE YOU ASKING ME TO MARRY YOU?"
To which he responded: "Lisa Nicole Best, will you marry me?"

I immediately burst into tears and tackled him to the floor with kisses. :)

He later mentioned that in my excitement at the moment, I had not actually answered him, but don't worry, I said YES!

That was Saturday. On Monday I was heading to B's after the gym. When I got there all the lights were off. Hmmmm. I unlocked the door and opened it up to find a homemade meal and tealight candles in the shape of arrows leading me back to Brett's room where he was on one knee, yet again. He said "This is how I was going to ask you" I asked why he had done it Saturday if he already had this planned for Monday and he said "I just couldn't wait"

And I cried.

Even cuter than the romantic evening of candles and dinner, was that simple statement. That he couldn't wait.

I love you Brett Edward Hodson. Thanks for choosing me. I can't wait to be your wife :)

We let William decorate the Christmas tree and ended up with several little bunches of ornaments throughout :) It was just too cute to redo.

Generally I feel I am somewhat of a laid-back person. I didn't use to handle stress well, so I have taught myself to not let things irritate me, especially things out of my control. I try to deal with things in the moment, then close the file and be done with it. Sometimes I am successful, sometimes I cry for a while, then I am fine. So most situations of stress in my life are quickly diffused. But of course, there are still those little silly, stupid things that bug me for no apparent reason. Things like: people who don't open doors or are disrespectful to their elders, being shushed, socks with sandals, etc. Silly things to let bug me, yes, but I suppose they are just little things my mind uses to release my frustrations and help me keep balanced :)

But wanna know the silliest one?

When I make a left or right turn in my car sharp enough that a blinker is necessary... But not quite sharp enough that the blinker turns off by itself once the turn is made. I find myself jerking my wheel way harder than is necessary to make the small turn, to trigger the automatic shut-off... As if it would be much too difficult to just lift one finger and shift it up and off manually.

Does anyone else have any silly OCD-like things in their life? Please share to make me feel better about myself. :)