Ugly Christmas Sweaters

Josh and I bought these sweaters four years ago when we went to Walmart to buy a bunch of cake mixes for a "no cheesecake party" that he suggested we have. I found this boy slightly strange, but agreed to participate anyways. As we were walking to purchase our items, I noticed the rack of ugly Christmas sweaters. Of course, I had to stop and look at them. Spontaneously, Josh said: "We should buy one!" So, we each picked out our own sweaters and took them home to wear while we baked our cakes. We stuffed our faces with sugary, baked goodness and talked late into the night. 

Last night, we wore our sweaters again and I couldn't help but look back on this sweet (pun intended) memory. Although this boy is still a little odd (it's a good odd now), I'm so thankful that I kept getting to know him throughout the next few years that led up to us getting married. He is the greatest blessing in my life and absolutely my best friend. I love falling more and more head over heels for this boy every single day and am thankful for his kind heart and never-ending supply of patience. He helps me want to be a better person and inspires me to dream big. 

Maple Mountain had their Christmas concert last night and it was fun to sit right on the first row, in the middle chair, listening to their performance. Josh let the kids wear ugly Christmas sweaters and some even wore Santa hats with beards attached to them (I'm still not quite sure how they were able to play their instruments, but it looked pretty hilarious). 

The week of a band concert is usually pretty stressful for Josh. He worries about the performance and prays fervently that his kids will be able to play better than they ever have before. Since he's usually pretty tough on himself, he sometimes even rethinks his career choice ;). Of course, the students put on a wonderful show and played far better than he made it seem like they were going to. It's been such an enjoyable and rewarding experience for me to see students and parents come up to Josh and thank him for all of his hard work by saying things like, "The kids sound amazing!" or "They sound so much better than they did last year!" 

Josh always somehow manages to bring me up every time he's holding a microphone in his hand. He usually says the sweetest things that make me feel so special. But last night, he decided to embarrass me. He said, "Cambri and I don't have kids of our own, but working with these kids help us to see whether or not we really want them eventually. Just kidding, we have a little Mr. Hurst that is expected in February." My jaw dropped and my hand went straight to my mouth. Of course, he quickly fixed his BIG mistake and said, "Just kidding! No little ones yet." and turned around to conduct his last piece. Afterwards, a mom came up to me and said, "So... was that an announcement?" and no all I can think is, "Oh my gosh, people think I'm pregnant. And I certainly hope they don't think I look seven months pregnant!!"

Tonight we get to honor the kids and Josh for their hard work during the marching band season at the School District Office building. We're not quite sure what this will entail, but we are getting excited to celebrate these great kids again. Despite the (minor) challenges that come along with being the wife of a band director, I absolutely love my role as Josh's wife. Date nights to pep band or after concert runs to dinner have quickly become the "norm", but oh what a wonderful life it has created. It fills my heart with so much happiness to see someone that I love and care about so deeply be living his dream. 

We are loving our time here in Mapleton! We have some of the sweetest ward members who are so fun to see every week. Our ward chorister, Sister Bacon, is also the wife of a band director. She is now much older and her husband has since passed, but she is so much fun to talk to. She loves asking us about music and sharing stories and experiences from the time when she was actively participating in band next to her husband. The Brinkerhoff's, other teachers in our ward, sat and chatted with us about teaching and music last Sunday after ward choir. There have been so many people who have reached out to us and congratulated Josh and all his hard work with Maple Mountain. His administration has also been a huge help throughout the beginning of Josh's career at the high school. His principle has been nothing but supportive and it's been amazing to see all of the things they do for the program to help it get to where it could be. It's also been a joy getting to know some of his co-workers (cheer coach, dance company coach, choir & orchestra teachers) who are also so kind and supportive. 

We really couldn't have asked for a better start to a school year! Since it's gone so well, I can't wait to see where it will continue to go with Josh there as the band director. I have no doubt it will continue to grow and be successful.