I decided that if I cant get to sleep after laying in bed for an hour I might as well get up and catch up on the blog. So here it is, a month late, but better late than never.

HALLOWEEN!!!


Can I just say again how much I love halloween. Especially making costumes for my kiddos. After seeing all the clowns in the Pioneer Day Parade, Claire decided that is what she wanted to be for halloween. The funny thing is that she is actually TERRIFIED of clowns.

Claire had a halloween parade at school and I think I was more excited for it than she was. At the end of the parade all the kids stood on the steps of the schoolhouse and sang us some halloween songs.



She really wanted to take orange soda as her treat for the Halloween party and I surprised her by turning them into ghosts.


On Halloween we had the perfect halloween dinner and I think I might just make it a tradition.


And then we went trick-or-treating. Claire was so excited until we ran into two clowns and of course it was at the first and second houses that we went to. Then she was a little hesitant to go up to the door at any of the houses unless her daddy went with her. Poor girl!



Our little pirate was just as good as could be. And as cute as could be. He is such a good sport.

Day 18

I am thankful for youtube. Watching this video put me in the best mood this morning. So Funny!!!

Day 17

Today I am thankful for a warm house to live in. Everything outside is covered in frost but my kiddos and I are nice and warm. And to make my morning even better, Claire didn't wake up at five in the morning like she has been doing lately, Crue is still sleeping, and I am all caught up on my Thankful Days (even if they are totally out of order). I think it is going to be great day!! The only way it could be better is if Luke was home with us instead of at work.

Day 16

Crazy as this may sound, seeing my kiddos in their jammies just puts a smile on my face. Especially if they happen to be wearing the one piece pajamas. Claire and Crue's Christmas pajamas are hidden up in the closet and I am so excited to see them on that I am not be able to wait until Christmas Eve.

Day 12

I am thankful for all the little things....Claire calling me into the room just to tell me she loves me, watching Crue give Luke a slobbery open mouthed kiss, Luke bringing me home a treat from the store just because, and many more.



Smile on my face...
Nothing makes my girl happier than a warm afternoon, a couple of rakes, and a ton of leaves in the backyard. It made me pretty happy too.

Day 11

I am so grateful that we live in such a great country and especially for all those that have fought for our freedom and continue to fight for us. A big thanks to all the veterans and their families and also for those that have given their life for us. We love you dearly.



I was so happy to hear about all the different restaurants that were giving free meals to the veterans on Veterans Day. I am glad that they are supporting and honoring our veterans. And my husband sure loved his free meal from Applebees!

Day 10

Today I am thankful for my mom and all that she does for me. She makes me happy when I am sad, listens when I just need someone to talk to, and is always willing to help out. Yesterday I had to run into Salt Lake and she was able to meet me and the kids for lunch and spending an hour with her was just what I was needing.

Day 14

I am thankful for all the great friends that I have. A bunch of us try to get together several times a week to go walking together and being with them just makes me happy. And as much as I am not a big fan of facebook, I am glad that it makes it easier to keep in contact with old friends that live far away.

Day 15

I am grateful that for the opportunities to get an education. I am also grateful for the amazing teachers that Claire has at her preschool. She loves them so much and would probably go to school everyday if she had the choice.




Smile on my face...
Today was Native American Day at school. I told Claire that her daddy was part Native American and she could tell her class if she wanted. So after school as we are driving home she lets out a frustrated sigh. I asked her what was wrong and she said "I forgot to tell my class and my teachers that my daddy is not an american".

Day 13

I am grateful that we live so close to our church building and so many temples. Sometimes I will hear stories about the people that drive an hour or more to get to church or about the members that have to do their visiting teaching over the phone because it would literally be an all day trip to visit someone. And I know I take it for granted that we live two blocks away from a chapel and have eight temples within about an hour of driving distance.

Seeing groups of children walking home after church totally put a smile on my face.

Day 9

I am so grateful for our family and that we are able to live so close to them. I grew up with most of my cousins nearby and I am glad that my kids get to as well. They are the best!!

Day 8

I am thankful for the talents that Heavenly Father has given me. Sure, I wish I could sing, dance, or play a musical instrument. But Heavenly Father has given me other talents that I am grateful for. And I am thankful that I can turn the music up loud enough so I can't hear my own voice as I sing along and nobody can see as me and my kiddos dance around the kitchen as we make dinner. And most importantly, my kiddos don't mind one bit that I sing totally off key when I sing them a primary song at bedtime.

Watching Claire and her daddy dance around the house put a smile on my face today. She likes to dance with me but her daddy is definately her favorite.

Day 8

I have a plaque at our house that says, "The laughter of a child is the light of a home." It is so true. Some of my favorite sounds include the kiddos laughing and Claire's little feet running around the house. I am so grateful that I am able to stay home with Claire and Crue. Soon after Claire was born we realized we needed to make a decision about whether I would go back to work. We felt that it was important for me to stay home with her but it was a definatley a leap of faith when I put in my two weeks notice at work. In the end it has been such a blessing to all of us.

Watch this video...

How can it not put a smile on your face!!

Day 7

I am so grateful to have the gospel in my life and for the peace, happiness and direction it brings.


Listening to Claire say her prayers put a big smile on my face today. "And please bless the snow that it wont get melty"

Day 6

I am thankful for my church calling. I admit that I wasn't exactly happy (bawled like a baby is more like it) when I was taken out of Young Womens and put in the primary presidency but I have learned and grown so much this past year in my new calling and I truly do love working with the children in our ward. We also have the best ward and I have never felt more at home in a ward than I do in this one.


What put on a smile on my face today was watching several of my young women (yes, they will always by my young women) bear there testimonies today at church. They are absolutely amazing girls and I hope Claire grows up to be just like them. They are kind, funny, helpful, righteous, friendly, and I better add great cooks to the list as well. They have brought me Italian Chicken at ten at night just because I mentioned it sounded good. And I can't even count how many times they have brought over yummy cookies straight out of the oven. AND I truly love the sassy text messages I still get from them. They are the best!!

Day 5

I am thankful that my family doesn't ever go hungry especially when there are so many in this world that do.

Also thankful for all the copycat recipes on that can be found on the internet. Our Olive Garden's Zuppa Toscana and homemade breadsticks was absolutely delish for dinner tonight



What put a smile on my face today was walking in the kitchen to find Luke and Claire making breakfast....Macaroni & Cheese and bacon...and some licorice to go along with it.

A little more of October

We had a great October and enjoyed the cooler air and all the fall activities. Here is little sneak peek...

I took the kids to the Pumpkin Walk out at the Benson Grist Mill





Played outside on the days that were warm



My friend Amy talked me into doing a booth at a craft fair with her and we had a great time. Luke even made some really great birdhouses for us to sell. Now I need to talk him into making one for me.




Went to see the witches at Gardner Village.





One morning Claire told she had a great idea, "Lets go get dad from work and then go play at Chuck-E-Cheese all day. Well we didn't pick dad up from work just hours after he got there but dad decided to surprise Claire with a trip to Chuck-E-Cheese the next week.


After 3 1/2 years of wanting nothing to do with tv, cartoons, disney movies, etc. Claire sat down at watched a movie. Yep, we were quite shocked!


Getting into mischief



And just played around

Day 4

I am so incredibly thankful for my hubby. Luke is such a great husband and father - hard-working, funny, respectful, loves playing with the kids, helps me out with different projects I am working on, and so much more. I don't even want to think about where I would be if I didn't have him in my life.



And today we put a smile on my face when we called me up during his lunch break and asked me out on a date. I got me a hot date my with hot man!!!

Day 3 Smile on my face

Today as we were walking into Walmart Claire reached up and held my hand...

Me: Claire, I like holding your hand.
Claire: Yep, it makes me happy too.

I am so thankful that I am her mommy.

Thankful Day #2

This little boogie man puts a smile on my face each and everyday. This is what I see every morning when I walk into his room to get him out of the crib. He is just standing there and bouncing away with a huge smile on his face and a nose that really needs to be wiped - and I just love it.

What makes me smile...

I realize that I still have alot of October updating I need to do but I also just realized that it is November 1st. And yes, I realize I am a little slow since I should know that Nov. 1st is the day after Halloween. And just to prove how slow I am, I also realized a little late that Claire had school today. (Halloween on a monday totally messed me up) So the mother of the day award goes to me....I took Claire to school late AFTER she ate tons of candy this morning and BEFORE I could feed her a decent breakfast. And she also had a little bit of clown paint smeared on her face that of course I didn't notice until we were walking up the steps to her school and there was nothing I could do about it. Man, I am doing good today!! But back to why I was blogging, last year I tried to do a grateful post everyday leading up to Thanksgiving and I kinda failed miserably. So this year I am doing a "What put a smile on my face today" post each day.

And today is this....




Yep, a shelf dedicated to sippy cups and baby bottles just makes me smile. Especially when several years ago we weren't sure we would ever have the need for sippies or bottles.

Halloween Party

Several weeks ago we had a Halloween party with all the cousins at Grandma and Grandpa's house. Look how cool my moms house looks...and this picture doesn't even do it justice. She has these spiders all over her house and in the trees. It seriously looks so cool. I wish I could get into decorating as much as she does and I am hoping that I will when the kiddos get older and want to help me.

All the grandkids getting their pics taken. Claire has been in a "I don't want my picture taken" mood lately so I am hiding behind her and holding her in place. The little rascal.

But our little pirate was all smiles when it came to geting his picture taken

We played lots of fun games like musical pumpkins



And had gunnysack races. Yep, I "borrowed" some gunnysacks from my stepmom (some lady randomly dropped them off to her) a few years ago and they have been quite handy and nope, I don't think she will be getting them back anytime soon.






And had a root beer chugging contest.




And don't forget the pie eating contest.




And you can't forget the kiss after the contest


And of course the ongoing game was "See how many leaves Crue can stuff in his mouth when mom isn't watching". Or at least Crue thought it was a game


Thanks Mom and Ron for the great party!!