Nate and Christiana

Nate’s parents, Bob and Nancy, graciously decided to use some of the inheritance money from Grandpa Wells to take everyone on a fabulous trip to sunny Mexico! It was a celebration of his God-glorifying life as well as a thank you to the kids, who were very attentive to their grandfather during his final years. On January 5th, Nate and I headed to LAX (thanks, Jerry!) and flew the approximate 3 hours to Puerto Vallarta, where we met the rest of his family (excluding the two newlyweds, who were on their way to Ohio). We stayed at Melia, an all inclusive resort. We enjoyed a wonderful week of relaxation, while spending quality time with Nate’s family, including his parents and two of his siblings and their families. It was a marvelous location, and we couldn’t have asked for better weather. It was fun to stay at an all inclusive resort too, especially with all of the “free” food and drinks. It was initially strange to eat, and then leave without paying a bill, but by the end of the week, we were wondering if we could adjust back to normal life. There were plenty of activities for everyone at the resort, as well as the lovely town of PuertoVallarta to explore. One of the highlights was a trip with Vallarta Adventures which included a cruise to the island of Las Caletas, where we enjoyed a beautiful tropical beach. We kayaked, played with the “wildlife”, and also enjoyed a delicious meal. Nate’s favorite part of the cruise was the whale sightings. We saw three or more Humpback whales and several dolphins. It was truly an amazing vacation – thanks, Mom and Dad Wells!

On December 28th, my brother David proposed to his wonderful girlfriend, Shannon. They met in high school, at The King’s Academy, and have been dating for the last six years or so. She has been such an intricate part of our family for such a long time that she already felt like a sister-in-law, but it was nice to make it official. It was such a blessing to be present for this momentous event. It was fun to watch as David meticulously prepared every intricate detail of the elaborate engagement, and then to be present for the post-engagement party. They are planning on getting married sometime this summer, and we are so excited for them!

David’s Engagement “To-Do List”. It was sweet to see how carefully he planned everything. He’s definitely a romanitic guy, and my mom says that he reminds her of our dad.

David cutting out the clues for the scavenger hunt

Johnny and Nate polishing David’s shoes for the big night

Some of the essentials for the elaborate scavenger hunt. The stops included a Mexican restaurant with a fake burrito containing the clue (since they met at TKA’s Mexico trip), the park where Shannon denied David their first kiss (the kissing stuffed animals–David’s lion and Shannon’s bear), a locker at TKA (where their relationship blossomed) and the tree where they had carved their names. This is where David proposed, after Shannon’s last name initial and been crossed out and an “N” placed there instead. I’m sure that I’m forgetting something, but you can tell that a lot of thought and effort was put into this event. David had Johnny and several other friends helping–to hide the clues, decorate the tree and photograph the event. The guys pulled it off with great success! The only unplanned part of the big event was that a cop pulled David over at one point because he had blindfolded Shannon (blindfolded so she wouldn’t know that he was taking her to the post-engagement party). After a few convincing words, the cop let them go and they drove to the engagement party, where we were all waiting to smother them with hugs and congratulations.

The Ring

David had tried to convince Shannon that her favorite ring had been discontinued

Mom saying goodbye to her second-born son as he heads off to propose to the love of his life.

The tree where the proposal occurred

Preparing the desserts while waiting for the newly-engaged couple. The party was held at the Tompane’s lovely home in Los Altos – good friends of both David and Shannon. David had planned the dessert menu with some of Shannon’s favorites – fondue, cheesecake with various toppings, taramisu etc…

The happy couple arriving

A big hug from a soon-to-be father-in-law

Celebrating their joy

There were some toasts given

David told the engagement story…including the kidnapping incident

Family and friends enjoying the food and sharing in the couple’s excitement

December has come and gone, and with it, many wonderful and random memories! We wanted to share some of those moments with you…

Decorating our mini tree. Nate carried it the easy 2 blocks from
the local tree lot.

My prized nutcrackers and our two new stockings,
which Santa neglected to fill.

Our nativity set, purchased at a steep price of $3.00. It is framed by a Christmas card made in the early 1900′s by my great-great aunt.

A closer look at the intricate details of both her penmanship and artistry.

Christmas Party for our Bible Study. The host apparently loves Christmas decorations. It made for a very festive and fun venue!

Our Bible study – everyone has been so welcoming and friendly! We meet every other Thursday in Santa Clarita, about 30-min away.

We unintentionally matched two of our good friends, Matt and Rachel. Matt was our wedding photographer and he and Rachel are moving to Malawi, Africa, as missionaries in March 2009. They’ve been such an encouragement to us, especially since our situations are somewhat similar. We will greatly miss them! You can check out their website at http://www.africastories.com

Driving to my dental hygiene job in West Hollywood. Tinseltown is definitely a unique place…especially with all of the billboards and unnaturally beautiful people. Though this is a temporary job (until February – a maternity leave situation), the office staff have been so kind and friendly. It has been a blessing.

The spectacular annual Christmas Concert at Grace Community Church. It far exceeded all of my expectations.

Well, I did mention that these would be random December moments! This was the lovely dinner that awaited me when I arrived home from a long day at work. I have such a wonderful husband, I must say!

Lydia, Nate’s sister, and her then fiance (now husband!) Xidong came for a nice visit. They’re living in Ohio now, and we miss them greatly!

We decided to make cookies for our neighbors this year, so I spent several fun hours baking and decorating dozens of sweet treats. I hadn’t done this for years, so I thoroughly enjoyed the entire experience. We were humbled at our neighbors’ grateful responses, including several gifts and cards slipped under our door. We hand-delivered the baked goods and were able to meet several of our otherwise never-seen neighbors.

Christmas trees!

A gingerbread army

A very messy post-baking kitchen. Nate was a huge help in cleaning up. Thanks, Babe!

The 23 boxes for our apartment neighbors filled with various holiday treats. I found the “Chinese take-out” boxes at Michaels.

My goofy brothers in their matching valet uniforms. They worked as valets at the Plumed Horse during the holiday break.

This is my sister, Bethany, immensely excited about Christmas.

This is Joe, her husband, even more excited about Christmas.

I love my family!