Thanksgiving

We had such a nice relaxing Thanksgiving with just our little family.  We had a big "Pie party" the night before with our friends.  It was perfect, because I never get to enjoy my dessert because I eat too much turkey, and Thanksgiving day our house was still clean, so there was no pressure to do anything but enjoy the day.

We started by delivering food for the Meals on Wheels program in some not so nice places in Houston.  It was very good for my kids to see.

Lily made our pumpkin rolls this year from this site.  They had cute little notes under the nut saying what she was thankful for.

Friday we went to the science museum and the park.  It was a perfect day and we took full advantage of the weather and having daddy off work.

Rachel's wedding

We got to use our Southwest miles for the 1st airplane trip in several years and attend my little sister's wedding conference weekend in Salt Lake.  We played with cousins all weekend, went to BYU, visited with my grandparents in the mountains and fed their turkeys and deer, and got to take Lily to Conference for the first time.  It was very memorable. 

Rachel totally planned her wedding in 6 weeks around her 3 pregnant sisters travel schedules. Which was a little quick for her, but I am so glad we got to all be there.  It was a fun to have a wedding at temple square, because each of us has been married at a different temple. Reception was at the Joseph Smith Memorial building and luncheon was at the lion house.  The kids did really well and only broke 1 cup:) 

The highlight was that my dad got to seal her in this beautiful temple with all of our family around. We are excited to get to know Spencer better. 

Fall happenings

Random things from Fall 2014.

...when i fell asleep in the toddler bed

...when the reflection from the fireplace caused Grant to go outside looking for fire 

...breakfast snuggle before schools

...Halloween...Batman, ghost brothers, zombie princess, and smarty pants

Pizza with Picasso night as elementary school.  We got to all paint Cornucopias.

Faces of Pregnancy

Lily 2005- didn't quite learn to control the pregnancy cravings, especially bags of cheetos...puffed kind only. Definitely gained the most weight.  Didn't feel real until we brought her home. This pregnancy was a result of clomid.  Just as we were contemplating fertility treatments, I got mono....which stopped any sort of family planning. I think having to wait to be pregnant taught me to not take for granted the miracle of being able to carry a child and that I was not quite in charge like I imagined myself to be.  

 Gary Jr. - 2008 (smallest baby, smallest belly...probably from eating food storage beans as a poor med school widow.  This pregnancy was a very calculated decision, and even before I was pregnant, I felt like this little one was waiting to come. He made our family feel like a real family. )

 Ben- 2010- Biggest Baby (worst pregnancy, biggest head by far, if I ran at all (like to chase a two-year-old 2 steps, I had severe nerve pain for an hour afterward. Also my pregnancy weight came off too quickly in 3 months, and my poor baby had to be bottle fed because of this. This pregnancy taught me the importance of respecting my body and its limitations)

Grant- 2012 (our only surprise baby, easy pregnancy compared to Ben.  This pregnancy taught me the importance of making God in charge on my life, He knew this surprise would would bring my joy even when I didn't, and looking back it was the best timing for our family...What a blessing it was to have an easy pregnancy!)

And my current condition, about 6 weeks left. Yeah!!! Can't wait to meet this kicker. 

Soccer

We had three in soccer this fall.  It was a crazy schedule, no one's practices overlapped. 

Ben played for the first time.  Because some other team mates would just refuse to go on the field, he play pretty much the whole game, every game with no breaks. 

The high light of the season....the pizza party and trophy. His coach was an angel to deal with these kiddos. I helped most practices with my belly in tow.

Lily was was U10 this season and learned a lot about aggressive defense.  Her coach was from Africa, and really knew how to make the girls better.

Gary Jr. loved his team, lots of energetic boys and most of the dads were there each practice to help out.  Unfortunately I didn't get a picture of his team.