Happy 12th Wedding Anniversary, Kim and John!
(I don't have a current picture of you two... can somebody put one on???)

Example

I just have to pass this story along to all of you. I got a call from a good friend today who is currently jumping through the flaming hoops of law school applications. After he asked me a number of questions about my school and also for advice about applying to law school, we eventually got to talking about what we are each up to and the new things in our lives.

He started telling me about this job he's had for a few months as a runner for a law firm in downtown Salt Lake City and how difficult it can be at times. According to my friend, one of the most difficult things as a runner at a law firm is the bottom-of-the-totem-pole #1 peon status. Consequently, many people at his office were less than cordial to him when he started. He did say, however, one person in particular made all the difference. This person was always so kind and helpful and, in his words, was "amazing." At one point he said "Jennifer [was] one of the nicest people [he's] ever known."

Putting two-and-two together, I asked him which law firm he was working at and, sure enough, it was Fabian and Clendenin. This nice person named Jennifer who made such a difference to my friend was none other than my sister-in-law, Jennifer Dustin! It was an absolute honor to tell him I was related to her and how wonderful she really was.

I was grateful for this experience. Not only did it remind me of how lucky I am to know and be related to someone as awesome as Jennifer, it made me think how important it is for all of us to follow her example. You just never know who is watching you at any given time. Thanks for being such a great example, Jennifer. You've reminded me how important it is to treat everyone with respect and kindness. What a great lesson!

Black Friday, followed by Black Saturday

Well, after kicking everyone out of my house from Thanksgiving night pie at 1 a.m., I went to bed giving John strict instructions to wake me up at 4 a.m. Why? Black Friday, of course! I haven't shopped for a few years, but this year dawned amazing deals that were too good to pass up. Needless to say, when I arrived a full half-hour early at Shopko, there were already a good hundred or more people already in line. By the time the doors opened, I bet there were EASILY 500 eager and FREEZING shoppers ready to bust through those doors and get spending!

I kept phone contact with Tiffany...who had her own great time at Target with an equally large crowd...however, they opened an hour LATER, so the girl should have gotten an hour more beauty sleep, but alas...black Friday is aptly named. She woke up nauseated and threw up before she got dressed and headed out....armed with a zip-lock bag in case anything else should strike....and, waiting there in front of throngs of people as well, had to use said baggie in front of everyone (knowing full-well she was sick, but making "pregnancy" excuses :0 so as not to alarm the other customers.) Once inside she darted for the $20 1000 thread-count sheets (all gone) and some other treasures. Not 30 minutes later, and a cart full of goodies, again, in the check out line, it hit her again. Kindly saying to the other customers "could you please watch my stuff" she bolted past them all, grabbed one of the checkers' plastic Target bags and barely made it to the front of the store (more onlookers) to deposit more of last night's dinner in her "target toy" bag. What a trooper!!!

John, on the way to work later that morning almost threw up as well in his car, on the freeway with no shoulder....came home a few hours later and retired to bed...Nauseated, but not throwing up.

The next day...BYU vs. Utah, the most anticipated ball game for most Utah residents. With 5 tickets in hand, I woke up....and threw up. Twice. I wasn't sure what to do. I wasn't going to miss the game...so I grabbed 2 ziplocs (based on Tiffany's story) and headed down south. Before half-time, I could tell something was amiss, and with strict instructions to Andrew not to go anywhere, I started running down the stadium stairs, unwrapping my baggy as I went...and before I hit the bottom, it came....I quickly rounded the corner and it just kept coming and coming....and suddenly I was VERY aware that my baggie was clear...and everyone could see EXACTLY what I had eaten the day before. I finally made it to the restroom, threw myself on the (hopefully clean) floor, and continued to be sick for about 15-20 minutes.

I got home to Matthew who Jennifer reported threw up all afternoon, and through the night, Ashley who wasn't as fortunate as everyone else to make it to the restroom....let me just say that "fruit gushers" all over the carpet and sheet did NOT make for a holy sabbath day.

I stayed home with Ash and Matthew and Timothy...I'm praying that somehow the other kids don't get it. I've had my fill of carpet cleaning and laundry for the weekend.

The good news? BYU 17, Utes 10.Good Weekend after all.

how we gave thanks this year

Annual Thanksgiving Pie Pig-Out! Sorry. . .this was the best picture I had.

One of Jeff's girls threw up on him just as he was arriving, so we sent him home with a bunch of food. I think he made out like a bandit!

Waiting in line and freezing outside of Chuckarama (39 degrees). Optimistic Kim and Jennifer thought we'd get in quickly and didn't bring coats! It was cold. Not pictured: Mama Love, Grandma Love, Jeff, Jennifer, Michael, and some grandkids who were running around.

They actually seated everyone together (22 of us), with one long table and two adjacent booths. It was noisy, crowded, and fun! Not the homey Thanksgiving we all prefer, but it was fun to try just this once! Besides, has anyone EVER brought slushies and soft-serve to Thanksgiving? The kids loved it.

I myself ate heartily, loading up on mashed potatoes, turkey, and hot scones with honey butter! Despite the nutritious meal I placed before her, Elizabeth's Thanksgiving meal consisted entirely of rootbeer.

-Tiffany

fhe fun

We had a family home evening lesson on weather and seasons, and then had fun making artificial snow! -Tiffany

the ghost of Christmas Past

So, LAST year a desperate attempt to buy John something he actually DIDN'T know about ended in a purchase of a remote control airplane. I don't know why my unrealistic expectations allowed me to believe he would actually USE the thing. After all, just last week, he put on clothes and ripped the TAGS off, that were purchased last Christmas as well. However, with 20 minutes of daylight left, and one day before a sharp downward spiral in temperature is predicted for Utah, he put the thing together, took us all out in the twilight, and FLEW the thing. Today will now be celebrated as "Second Solo". Here's a pic.

sisters

I just got pictures of Ava and Lauren... I thought they turned out great and I wanted to share them! --- Amy

What are YOU doing Christmas Eve?

The preliminary Holiday schedule is out, but it looks like things are still in the planning stages... Because we have so many fun family Christmas Eve traditions, it's seeming like we won't be able to do it all that night!

So, I thought that maybe if we took this poll and had everyone vote for their TOP 4 favorite things (yes, you've gotta choose! and yes it's on your word of honor that you only vote for 4), then it would give us a better idea of what the majority wants... And if we have additional time, we can add more to the agenda...

Anyway, just thought this would help in the decision making! And, maybe if we can't fit it all into Christmas Eve, we could do some of these things at the Christmas FHE! Let us know what you think! --- Amy

holiday plans 2007

It's the most wonderful time of the year! Mark your calendars and

please feel free to add additional items you'd like everyone to know about.

Wednesday, November 21: Annual Loveridge Pie Pig-Out!

6:30 p.m. Hosted by Tim and Tiffany. Please bring your favorite pie and a simple hors d'oeuvre to share.

Thanksgiving Day:

8:00 Guys Golfing

9:30 Stake Thanksgiving Devotional (Mom is for sure planning to go if anyone wants to join her)

2:00 Thanksgiving Dinner at Chuck-a-Rama. Tiffany will go at 1:00 to wait in line.

4:00 Pie/movies/hanging out at Kim and John's that afternoon and evening!

Day After Thanksgiving:
Fun with the girls (brunch or some movie marathon-Pride & Prejudice, Anne of Green Gables)

Misc. December:

• Sunday, December 2: First Presidency Christmas Devotional 6:00 p.m.
• Monday, December 17: Family Home Evening, hosted by Kim and John. Don't forget about Santa!
• Monday/Tuesday, December 17-18: Jeff's Octappella Concert. Tickets will be available through Arttix...if it's reserved seating, let's buy our tickets all together.
• Saturday, December 22: Lollipops concert at Abravanel Hall, 12:30 p.m. If you want to ride Trax downtown, here is the link: http://www.rideuta.com/ . Family pass is $10/round-trip.
  

Christmas Eve:

9:00 Breakfast...Bowling? (optional...whoever wants to go)

4:00-7:00 Loveridge Festivities!

Christmas Day!
Open arrival: if you'd like, come to Mom and Dad's any time of day. Adult/grandchildren gifts will be exchanged as each family arrives, instead of all at once. This means adults and their kids exchanging gifts to/from Mom and Dad Loveridge only. This is NOT cousins giving to each other. Take gifts to cars.
4:00 Everyone try to arrive by this time to get ready for dinner (have your dish already prepared).
5:00 Dinner: Mom will determine menu later.
No agenda: adult siblings will exchange gifts to each other at some point (ie. the family/couple exchange) and we'll just hang out and have fun! If this doesn't work out with your Christmas Day plans, feel free to come to the Loveridge house any time you can make it.

Post-Christmas:
December 27th: Carrie and Natalie B.'s Birthdays
End of December: Somewhere around here, Kim's baby is due!
Monday, December 31: New Year's Eve

Looking ahead:
January 2. 2008: Thomas' 5th Birthday (FYI: Tim's parents come home from their mission at 11:00 p.m)!
January 4, 2008: Joshua's 7th Birthday
January 6, 2008: Roger & Carol's homecoming in Logan

-Tiffany

elizabeth's 3rd birthday

I wanted to post Elizabeth's birthday cake because, let's just face it-cake decorating is not my forte and this was something to be proud of! Didn't it turn out cute? Personally, I like how the candy strategically disguises the messy purple sludge attempting to pass as frosting. And if you were wondering, the six of us finished off the cake in two days.