Halloween pics

Here are the pictures Tiffany took of Sarah and her friends at Wheeler Farm.



Here are our Halloween pics for the last three years.

Halloween Fun

I didn't want my Halloween blog to be too overloaded, so I'm reporting on what we've done so far.

Sarah is finally old enough to appreciate carving pumpkins, so we've been collecting them for a few weeks. (she loves "baby" pumpkins) Her friends came over for the festivities and she asked me to take pictures of them and then turned her head each time. Stinker!



Mike decided to get really creative and carve the kids faces into the pumpkins. Here is Steven's, and he'll do Sarah's as soon as he has time to breathe. :-)



We decided to go to Hogle Zoo's "Boo at the Zoo" this year and unfortunately they had an additional 5k OVER their all time record attendance. It was a mad house, and Sarah didn't even care about the candy, but she always loves the zoo. If any of you wonder what Steven is, he's Happy Dwarf. I couldn't find a dwarf costume for under $100, so I had to make it by hand. It's falling apart already, but only needs to last one more day. :-)





My friend Tiffany took some pictures of Sarah, Steven and friends in their Halloween costumes and you can see a preview on Tiffany's Photography Blog

A Sunday for me

Most parents can attest to the fact that when we have little ones at church, the Spirit sometimes needs a hammer to hit us. :-) Keeping our children behaved in sacrament meeting and infants quiet in class can prove to be difficult at times, but it's all about helping our kids to form a good base and if we feel the Spirit, Fantastic.

These last couple weeks have been those times when you know that the lesson's/talks were meant just for you. Last week while trying to rock Steven to sleep in the mother's lounge a woman gave a talk in another wards sacrament on what is now one of my favorite talks called "The Tongue of Angels." I have an excerpt of the talk on my mirror to remind me to relax, but it's always nice to hear things over and over again. (when you need to hear them) One of my favorite quotes from the talk is "Yes, life has its problems, and yes, there are negative things to face, but please accept one of Elder Holland's maxims for living—no misfortune is so bad that whining about it won't make it worse." Amen :-) Now if I could just put that into practice every day. ;-)

Today in Relief Society I had an unusual break. Mike took Steven home for a nap and Sarah stayed in her class, so I got to attend the whole class. The teacher based her talk on Elder Uchtdorf's talk "Happiness, Your Heritage." When I heard him give it in the RS broadcast I was so appreciative to hear a man talk about how hard we women can be on ourselves, and the lesson today went even deeper into the great power for good we can be when we realize our great potential. I don't think I'm a perfect mom or wife, but I also know I'm my own worst critic, and this talk brings a peaceful spirit of comfort. Through our work in creating and being compassionate, we can grasp more fully the happiness God wants for all of us.

A scripture I really like is Mosiah 4:27 "And see that all these things are done in wisdom and order; for it is not requisite that a man should run faster than he has strength...." Or time, or energy... :-) In one of President Monson's talks in conference called "Finding Joy in the Journey," he said "we should make the most of today, of the here and now, doing all we can to provide pleasant memories for the future.If you are still in the process of raising children, be aware that the tiny fingerprints that show up on almost every newly cleaned surface, the toys scattered about the house, the piles and piles of laundry to be tackled will disappear all too soon and that you will—to your surprise—miss them profoundly." I don't know about the piles of laundry, but I know I should not be so OCD sometimes and let my 2 yr old be 2 even if it means following her around all day cleaning. :-)

I just thought I'd share these talks and some thoughts since next week I may come home without any idea of what the talks or testimonies were about. :-)

Cute Family Pics

We just had our family pictures and I wanted to share them. My friend Tiffany does professional photography and did a great job. Now I just have to decide how to hang 50 pics in my house. hmmm... I'm sorry for the picture overload, but it's too hard to choose a couple and I even left out a bunch.

Here are some of the family



Here's princess Sarah (yes, Kanga and Roo HAD to come with us)








My sweet smiley boy Steven





I have a REALLY annoying habit of throwing my head back in pictures if I'm not conscious of it, and wouldn't you know it, I botched mine and Mike's couple photo. (no, please don't reassure me I don't look dumb)


And I almost forgot the hottest picture of them all. (lets see how long it takes before he demands I take it off) :-) (He has now threatened to break into my blog multiple times, but I'm leaving it on.:-)


You can look at Tiffany's photography blog here

Bunco Rocks!!!

Last night I had my second ever Bunco night, and it was a blast. Our host, Miranda, decided to make it a Halloween theme because of the impending holiday so we all dressed up. I had never really heard of bunco before I was invited to this group, but I highly suggest it to any group of friends that wants a fun girls night once a month. We don't bet, but we do pitch in money for food and prizes for the top winners and losers. I'm always right in the middle. :-)

I wanted to dress up as a Harley chick, but Mike thought it was too "poser-ish" so I opted to be a Springvillian. (their mascot is the Mighty Red Devil)

Here is a group picture of the ladies. We were missing three of our "regulars", but had subs fill in. (I'm crouching down to not block the view of the babe behind me)


Bunco is SO much fun that Sarah Palin took time off from her campaign to hang out with us. :-) (it's kind of weird that she's voting for Obama) ;-)


Here is the winner of our costume contest. I think we make a lovely pair.


My friend Amber isn't part of the "Bunco Bella's", but came as a sub with me. Thanks Amber!


You can look at more pictures and comments about our fun bunco times at the Bunco Bella's link on my page. Fun times!

How well do you know me?

Here is a fun little quiz on me. (Thanks for the tag Tiff) :-)

http://www.quizyourfriends.com/take-quiz.php?id=0810152304457737&a=1&

I tag- Kristal, Crystal, Miranda(double tagged), Larra

If Sarah were Father Adam and other Bible gems

I think Sarah is pretty funny kid. In Genesis, Adam gives names to all the creatures, which is why a bee isn't an elephant and a seagull isn't an ant. Adam got to name things whatever came to his mind.

Sarah has taken it upon herself to not only name her animals, but she makes up the names herself. Most of the names have a strange throaty gurgle sound in the middle, so I'll spell them phonetically as best as I can. :-) We have Kirshten the Iguana, Kirkton the walrus, Mawkdaw, Mirtawk, Kirk (she likes that beginning) and a bunch more amusing names. She even remembers them if you ask her later. She named her "family" of six pumpkins yesterday, and I wish I'd written them down right away. (darn my early signs of Alzheimer's)

More Bible fun. The other night while Mike and I were reading the OT (he reads I listen) his eternal child, which I love about him, was still awake although it was midnight when we read. We were reading Gen 22 when Abraham is commanded to sacrifice Isaac, but he couldn't get past the parts when Abraham, "saddled his ass," told the men with him to abide "with the ass," and laughed that anyone would name brothers Huz and Buz. (Miranda, they are both boy names if you're interested) :-) The Old Testament really is crazy. (but great of course) :-)