President Hinckley said, "Without Easter, there would be no Christmas."
How true that is.
I've always admired the beauty of Easter Sunday. It seems like the perfect time of year. New growth, new baby animals, and a new hope. There's something rejuvenating about making it through the bitterness of winter to the freshness of Spring. It's healing.
And it's very fitting that Easter is always on a Sunday. Sunday also represents a day of renewal and growth. And for that reason, I love Sundays. Sundays give me the hope to make it through the week, as every Spring gives me the hope to make it through the year.
Hope is such a strengthening power. Yesterday, I had a prompting that I should use this gift of hope to help others not only to make it through the weeks, and years, but through life. One of the speakers in church said that if we treat others as they are, then we are doing them a disservice, but if we treat them as they may become, we could change their lives. What inspires hope more, than looking for the potential in all of the people of this world, and treating them as the inspiring and noble children of God that they are? This earth would truly be a new and beautiful place.
So on this beautiful Easter day, and in the following days this Spring, I hope that you take the time to rejuvenate your spirit
and
share your hope
with the world.
My response: "Mom!... Why is the Sprite taped?" Her reply: "I'm saving it for New Years!" I should have known. And so last night, with much thanks to her, we had soda for the New Year. And it was delicious. Then today, Dad surprised us all with a picnik. We went to an area a couple of blocks from our house. It was right by the huge mesa, also by our house. Here is the view from our table.
The weather is lovely, as you can see. And although I'm excited to be back in Provo, nothing compares to being out in the 50 degree, sunny, outdoors with my family.
Throughout the month it's the normal shopping and baking that most families do, but 10 days before Christmas we begin our yearly ding-dong-ditch. Every year we pick one family who we secretly give a Christmas nativity set to and we do it in a series of nine days, one day for every letter of the word 'Christmas'. Each letter has a little poem that explains the gift. My favorite has, and always will be 'R'. This is why: "R's Rambunctious donkey, with Mary on his back. While carrying his burden, Never did he slack." Cute, huh? We had to get a little creative with our poetry, but it works. Because I like it so much, I get to deliver the donkey every year. We also have an advent calendar with 25 pieces that we put up every day of December until Christmas and I get to do the donkey on that one to. I don't know when this donkey-connection was actually established, and who it was established by, but I'll just say it's a good thing I like donkeys. 
Another favorite tradition of mine is driving around to look at the lights on Christmas Eve. Even though we see them throughout the month, it's a different feeling when we go deliberately to look at them and I love it. We have another tradition that my family probably isn't even aware of. It is that of Christmas stockings and what happens to the contents of those stockings. Every year, Santa fills our stockings with a real orange, a chocolate orange, and almonds, cashews, pecans, and other nuts still in the shells. Everyone takes their oranges, but the nuts go in a big bowl, all together. Everyone's chocolate orange is usually gone first, because it's chocolate, then the regular orange, because it's easier to eat than the nuts which have to be cracked open. Then we always realize after our oranges are gone, that Santa (e-hem, Dad) has been eating all of the almonds and walnuts and pecans that were in our stocking. It happens every year and it's just as funny to me every year. (I'm being smart this year and made Ben hide my chocolate orange so I wouldn't miss out on the almonds.) 
One last tradition we have isn't official, but has been happening throughout the years. Each year we think of a gift we'll give to Christ. Some years we'll write it in a letter, or sometimes we'll just make a mental note, but it seems that in one way or another, it's become a tradition. And that is really what the season is about.
They look good, huh? After dinner we went outside because the weather is beautiful, and so I could show off the swingset and pole on the front porch. I showed Tegan and Kelli how to swing around it, which is always an adventure in a skirt. Here are the videos of each of us.
