Branch Christmas party!

Friday night was our branch Christmas party. It was absolutely amazing! We invited a ward from Herriman- which recently had been split from the branch- and had a wonderful dinner, program, and dancing. The young men/women were in charge of the decorations, and we had a lot of fun setting up! Zane spent a lot of time in the kitchen helping out. He is really good at keeping things organized... and I know it was greatly appreciated. Santa Clause even came. He must be the REAL santa, because you could see in his eyes that he loved every child that sat on his lap. He even spoke English and Spanish! I had the opportunity to take all the kids' pictures with santa. The magic in the air was absolutely electrifying!

The dinner started at 7:00. I would say we had over 300 people come. It was amazing! What was really incredible to me is the bond that all the members have with each other. The Hispanic culture is different from the culture I grew up in. When a sister greets a sister, she gives her a gentle kiss on the cheek. Each person entering the event Friday seemed to make it a point to greet all those who were already there. It really was like a huge family reunion - where everyone really wanted to see each member of the family. Zane and I felt so loved and welcomed it was just amazing!

There was music and dancing all night. Zane even joined in the fun and asked one of the young women to get me to dance with him. He actually smiled and laughed! It was a lot of fun. By about 11:30 we were actually coming home. I am convinced it would have been later, had members from another ward not shown up to set up for a wedding reception. One thing I will say about the Hispanic community is they know how to have a party!!

I took more than 200 pictures with Santa. Here are 4 of my favorites!