we have a winner

well yesterday was our annual cookie day. it was good. getting 6 girls in the kitchen is a good thing and a bad thing. we got a lot (i mean a LOT) of cookies made yesterday. i disappeared for moments at a time, because i felt simply in the way. it was overall really a good time. my grandma came over and i think we are finally getting some of her good old fashion cookies down pat. we copied her recipe's yesterday that felt funny, like she wasn't going to be around next year. she is a precious gem who has a lot of cooking knowledge that needs to get out.

after cookies we celebrated my mom's birthday so all the boys came over then. my brother nick and brother-in-law paul brought pizza and my nephew. mark came and john my other bro-in-law. and joe came home from snowboarding just in time. it was good. i was nervous about having mark there because the last couple of times has been awkward. this was the first time he was there just us, the other times it has been grandparents and friends or extended family. we are different around them. we ate with my sister anna (with whom i had a heart to heart about relationships a couple of weeks ago, we went out to coffee...a first) and her husband john. it was good for mark and i, i think. we found things to talk about which is a challenge for me with my siblings some times.

we sat around and opened my mom's presents. then we went wanted to take joe (my little bro.) to see narnia. but he was sore and decided to lay on his bed and play video games instead. so we went with anna and john instead, this was fun. i didn't think about how out there the movie is spiritually. i never got into the books as a youth. i am glad i didn't think about it because i probably would have shied away from taking them. we all really enjoyed the movie and john actually brought up the spiritual factor in the car on the way home we didn't get into it but it was cool to have him acknowledge it. it was a really good movie and an incredible telling of the gospel.

when i got home john was in the house laughing about all the similarities he saw between anna and i. mark did the same as i said good night to him. we laugh the same, we shiver the same, our noses get cold. it was really good and mark got to hear lots of stories about me growing up, i guess they had to come out at some point. better sooner rather than later. he still has a chance to run.

mark got to see a little different side to my family. it was good. and my family got to know him better too, a little! we have a winner. it was a good day.