Happy Thanksgiving

May your stuffing be tasty
May your turkey plump,
May your potatoes and gravy
Have never a lump.
May your yams be delicious
And your pies take the prize,
And may your Thanksgiving dinner
Stay off your thighs!

(Thanks Shannon for the poem.) We hope everyone has a wonderful holiday. We're so lucky to be able to spend the day with most of our family members. We have been incredibly blessed this past year. Have a great day and eat lots of turkey!

High School Tag

I got "High School Tagged" from my aunt Shannon, so now you all get to read all about my exciting high school years. It was fun to read Shannon's memories from high school 30 years ago. We'll see if I can remember 1991-1995. Here goes!

1. Did you date someone from your school? Yes! I loved to have boyfriends (whoever tells Quincy that I did and that it's ok, is so in trouble)! Besides dating some fun boys, I ended up marrying one!

2. What kind of car did you drive? I had a pretty rockin' car. It was a 1976 Monte Carlo. We called it the "love machine" because it was big and red, inside and out.

3. Did y0u pass your Driver's License Test your first try? You betcha!

4. Were you a party animal? Most definitely not.

5. Were you considered a flirt? Hmmmm...

6. Were you in band, orchestra, or choir? I was in the orchestra and played the violin-something that I really miss.

7. Were you a nerd? I don't think so.

8. Were you on any Varsity teams? I was on the varsity softball team all four years of high school. I was also a cheerleader.

9. Did you ever get suspended or expelled? No way. I've always been a little scared of authority figures and have always hated getting in trouble.

10. Can you still sing the fight song? Of course! (See #8 above) When you sing it week in and week out for four years, it's hard to forget it.

11. Who were your favorite teachers? I loved my science teachers-Mr. Sorensen and Mr. Stephensen (even though those weren't my favorite classes.) I also liked Mrs. Roundy in English.

12. Where did you sit for lunch? Thank goodness for an open campus! Before we could drive we would walk up to KB Oil, Taco Time, or Subway. After we turned 16, we would usually head to Wendy's or somewhere like that. The dollar menu saved us!

13. What is your school's full name? Cedar High School

14. What is your school's mascot and colors? The Redmen (an indian) and the colors were maroon and gold.

15. Did you go to Homecoming and with who? Yes with Todd Garrett, one of my good friends.

16. If you could go back and do it again would you? No way. I loved my time in high school and had great friends and some very good memories, but I don't ever want to repeat the drama that high school girls are involved in (I'm dreading it with Q).

17. What do you remember about Graduation? Graduation was held in the Centrum (basketball arena at the SUU campus). My classmates had selected me to be a speaker as the girl representative. I remember being totally freaked out because the arena was huge and it was full! I also remember just being so happy and proud that I had made it through high school with no regrets. We also left for our senior trip to California that night, so we were all anxious to grab our bags and go!

18. Where did you go senior skip day? Ok, maybe I was kind of a nerd. I had an AP test scheduled on the same day as the senior sluff day, so I sat in a classroom and took a test that day.

19. Were you in any clubs? Yes...The German Club (total extra credit), the spirit club, and a club for girl athletes (can't remember the name).

20. Have you gained some weight since then? Do I really need to answer that? I'll just say that I have four beautiful kids.

21. Who was your Prom date? His name was Pat.

22. Are you planning on going to your 10 year reunion? Been there, done that. Our fifteen is in just over two years. I think that each one gets more fun as people change and continue to "grow up."

23. Did you have a job in High School? I worked for a little while at Godfather's Pizza. Life got too crazy with cheer and then softball to be able to spend much time making money!

Well, there you have it. I wish that I had a scanner to be able to share some lovely pictures from the mid-1990's. You'll just have to picture the big, permed hair.

Susy, Alayna, and Wendy...It's your turn to remember the good, old days!

New York

We're back from the land of excitement. We had such a great time and thoroughly enjoyed our time together. We went with our good friends the Barricks and the Sumans and did a lot of laughing, eating, and walking. We were able to go to "Wicked," Regis and Kelly, The Rockettes, The Morning Show with Mike and Juliet, and the Today show. We also hit Ground Zero and Top of the Rock (top of the Rockefeller Center). We did lots of shopping (the men were very good sports) and found some incredible deals. I loved going to the American Girl store and doing some (secret) shopping for Quincy. She would be in heaven there! One of our very favorite things was going to Canal Street in Chinatown and bartering for purses. Right when we got off the subway a Chinese lady quickly asked us if we were looking for handbags and told us to follow her. We went down, over, and around to get to her secret hideout of purses. She told us to cross the street, and as we did, another lady stepped out of a windowless van. We told our husbands we loved them and to kiss our kids for us and stepped into the van. For a minute we thought she was going to drive off, but after successfully getting our things, we reunited with the guys. We went to a variety of "hidden" purse rooms (we definitely got a workout walking up all of those stairs!) and came home with some fun finds. I just wish that I would have had enough room to bring one home to everyone!

The kids loved their tenders and we are so grateful for the cute couple that stayed with them. I know they were exhausted when we got home and were glad to go back to a normal life. Max ended up with double ear infections while we were gone, so I'm extra grateful for the extra love that he was given. I'm glad to be home to my babies, but I have to admit, another kid-free vacation always sounds tempting!

Here are some of my favorite pics from the trip (sorry, there are a lot!):

Happy BD, Grandma!

Today is my sweet grandma's birthday. She's 87-years-young and we are so grateful that she is still with us and is still so strong! She still lives by herself and is extremely independent. She even drove herself to renew her license a couple of weeks ago! Anyone that knows this lovely lady, will agree with me that she is the kindest, sweetest lady you will ever meet. When Treyson was little (I think about two), he nicknamed her "Sweetheart Grandma," because she calls everyone "sweetheart." It fits her perfectly and each of the great-grandkids call her that. She's an avid SUU basketball fan and has had season tickets for years. She does have a feisty side and can get after the refs as well as anyone. She loves her children and grandchildren fiercely and would do anything for them. I'm so grateful to have this wonderful woman in my life and in the lives of my children. She is an amazing example and someone I hope to be like. Love you, Grandma! Here's to many more birthdays!

NY, NY Here I come!

Nate and I are off tomorrow to the Big Apple! He has a meeting on Tuesday out there, so I'm going along to play! Another couple from work, and two of our good friends are joining us on the adventure. The two of us went out six years ago and were able to see most of the big sights, so I think we'll be spending alot of time on Canal Street (can you say bargain?). We have tickets for "Wicked" and are hoping to get some same-day, half-price tickets for another show, as well as the Rockettes Christmas show. And, if you're not busy Tuesday morning at 9:00, tune into Regis and Kelly, because WE GOT TICKETS! I guess it's pretty hard to get them, so we are ecstatic! We'll see you in a week!

Trick or Treat

We had such a fun, but crazy, month of October. We have so many traditions during the month (which makes for easy FHE planning!). From looking at the fall leaves, to picking and carving/painting pumpkins, we always have a good time. Unfortunately, this year when we went to get our pumpkins, they were all either rotten or green. So the "patch" we ended up buying them from was Wal-Mart. Gotta love that!

The kids have been planning since the spring to dress up as the characters from the Wizard of Oz. They wanted the whole family to play. Their well thought-out plan didn't end up happening. Treyson ended having a baseball tournament Halloween night in Mesquite, and when Tanner's tin-man costume came, his head was too big for the hat it came with (surprise, surprise). I offered to improvise for Tanner, but he decided to bag that idea, and was instead, the skeleton pirate from "Pirates of the Caribbean." Quincy was still Dorothy and Max was the Cowardly Lion.

My good husband offered to stay home and trick-or-treat with the kids, while I took Trey to his tournament. I went down Friday with just Trey, and the rest of the family came down Saturday for the rest of the games. Can I just say, it was heaven to sit through the first two games with no kids! Treyson's team did great! They went 3-1, putting them as the number two seed for the championship. They ended up getting slaughtered in the final game, but they had fun and didn't seem to care that their trick-or-treating took place in the parking lot after the night's last game.

1st Birthday Celebration

We partied like rockstars for Max's first birthday! The family all came up that night for dinner and cake. Max really could have cared less about the wrapping paper or the cake, but had a fun night anyways. I'm sure he was wondering what all of the fuss was about. He would lightly touch his cake and then throw it onto the floor. Why is it that the one time you really don't care if they make a total mess, they decide to be neat and tidy? We're grateful that we have family in town that could come help us celebrate the big day. Here's to a happy second year!

Enjoying the new birthday toys!

"Helping" me make the cake!

"You cannot make me wear this STUPID hat!"