Fall Fun

I think the reward for surviving the blazing HOT Texas summers is getting to enjoy the mild Texas falls and winters! We really love playing outside! The other day, Lili, Simon and I went on a walk/bike ride over to a neighborhood park while Julia was at school. We had the best time! The kids loved swinging and climbing. They climbed up so high at one point that it actually made me rather nervous!

My favorite moment while we were there was when
Lili helped Simon climb into the upper tree house.
So sweet!
{Notice her tape measure? No? It's attached to her hip. She bought that with some of her birthday money and adores it. So, of course she brought it along. It came in handy when she wanted to measure things.}
On our way home, we stopped and picked up acorns and beautiful Fall leaves. When we got home, we came up with some fun things to do with them.

That evening, the kids had the best time jumping in the pile of raked leaves.
I remember those days!

Nate found and HAD to buy a chocolate orange at the store the other day. We all enjoyed it together while having a movie night! Ah, the delights of this time of year!

The girls had their last games of the Fall season. Not that they keep score at their ages, but if they did, you might be interested to know...THEY WON (which was in keeping with most of their games this season)!
Julia's favorite position is the "sweeper." (The one who hangs back at half-field and helps as a defender). She's quite good at it too!
Lili also had a great season! We're proud of our soccer girls!

Just this last week, Liliana had a "Thanksgiving Feast" at her preschool. Simon and I stopped by and got to take pictures and spend a little time with her there. Her class made chicken noodle soup and cookies. They enjoyed that along with the other treats (cornbread, applesauce, little cheese or jelly sandwiches, & chocolate pudding). I was proud that Lili tried the soup! Even if she didn't like it...she TRIED it! The first picture in the collage shows the look on her face at that exact moment. Too funny!

I wasn't able to make it to Julia's Thanksgiving party at school, but she said it went well. I talked to one of the other parents who said the kids made their plates (consisting of popcorn, pretzels, cereals, and other treats), sat down, and ate...that was it. So, although I still would've liked to have been there with Julia, I think it'll be okay this one time.


I'm excited for this time of year. The leaves changing, the cooler weather, and the holidays. I can't believe we celebrate Thanksgiving this week! I have so much to be grateful for! My family, my home, my friends...I am truly blessed. Thank you for being part of my life!

It was a wonderful weekend!

Having family in town is always a treat. This was the first time we've had my family and Nate's family here at the same time. We enjoyed it thoroughly!


Highlights:
*Having a house full of people you love.
*Nate cooked on the Egg twice (we had burritos one night and brisket another).
*Bob made donuts.
*We took nice long walks together, around the neighborhood.
*Seeing the kids love on all their grandparents, Aunt KK, Uncle Thabo & Aunt Pam!
*We had a special Family Home Evening the night before Nate's fam had to leave, where Julia read the book G'ma Wright gave to her.
*I got to go to lunch with my family before they left (only Andrew was missing - he couldn't come).
*Home-made stove-top popcorn.
*Celebrating a very special day together.

Thank you again for being here! We love you all to pieces!

An amazing day...

{I wrote this on November 7th}...

Julia was baptized today. Can you believe it? I'm having a hard time believing it myself. It was so special to have her Grandpa & Grandma Wright and Uncle Thabo, Papa and Grandma Leeth and Aunt Kara, as well as her Aunt Pam here to be a part of such a memorable day. We are so thankful that they were all able to come and took time out of their busy lives to be here for Julia. It is such a delight to be surrounded by family! We've been enjoying them thoroughly.

This morning, we got up early, started getting showers and had a fruit/cereal "bar" set up in the kitchen that people could come and eat from as they pleased. It was peaceful and calm and everything went rather smoothly. I must admit though, as the time drew closer and closer, I seemed to get more and more emotional. I teared up several times.
Once we were there, and the program started, they introduced each child and told a little about them. There were eight children to be baptized today in our Stake. (Actually there were probably twice as many because we were the second group for that day). We prepared a musical number for the program. Julia played "When I am Baptized" on the piano and Liliana, my Mom, sister and I had prepared to sing "Baptism." Julia played her song first and did such a beautiful job! She didn't make one mistake! Then, my friend Beth played for us on the piano while Lili sang the first verse all by herself. Awww! It was so pure and sweet! She did such a great job! I'm so proud of her for doing that! Then, Beth played through another time while my Mom and sister sang the third verse. I was supposed to sing, but...did I mention that I don't have a voice? I've been sick since Thursday and my voice just kind of went away. It figures, doesn't it? I felt bad about that. Of course, Mom and Kara did beautifully.

We were then able to go watch Julia's baptism. Nate baptized her and my Dad and Nate's Dad were the witnesses (they make sure the one being baptized goes all the way under the water). I met her in the bathroom and we got her changed into her beautiful white dress, with her white flower hair "bow" to complete the outfit.
Once we were in the Relief Society room, we sang an opening song, heard a few words from our bishopric, then Julia was confirmed, by her Daddy, as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Then, the primary president welcomed Julia (and her friend Cassidy who was also baptized today) into the primary "officially." Then, any grandparents were invited to share a few words for their granddaughters. My Mom spoke up and shared with Julia how proud she is of her and how much she loved her. Ali also spoke of how proud she is of Julia and how neat it is, as a Grandma, to watch her son, as a father, baptize his own child. Bob also took a moment to speak and mentioned that he knew, although they couldn't be here, he'd be remiss not to mention Grandma and Grandpa Tanner and their love for Julia. He talked about how Grandpa had made sure to send a gift to Julia...pears and apples from his special orchard. He then compared that to Heavenly Father's love being just like that, and that He had given Julia the gift of the Holy Ghost. They were beautiful words and testimonies shared with us all. Julia had picked the closing song, "Love is Spoken Here" and she and I helped (our friend Angi) lead it (while Beth played on the piano). There weren't many dry eyes, that's for sure! It was so touching!
We took pictures afterward (which Julia really would have rather not been a part of - that turkey!), then went to lunch at Julia's favorite restaurant - Macaroni Grill, with all the family. It has been such a special day for my special girl and I am just so very proud of her.



{Questions about our faith? Click here.}

October was a blur

They say, "time flies when you're having fun." Well, I, for one, agree! I cannot believe how quickly October flew! What a whirlwind!

As you know, Lili had her birthday on October 8th. The day before her birthday, she got to take cupcakes to her preschool class. She chose yellow cake with chocolate frosting and candy corn pumpkins on top - all cooked in an ice cream cone, of course. It was fun to see her excitement and anticipation of sharing it with her friends at school.

On her special day, I had a friend watch Simon and took her to the much requested Rainforest Cafe. It was so fun! She loved every minute of it! Nate even joined us, shortly, to wish her a happy birthday and give her lots of loves. She and I continued with our lunch (she had "Python pasta"). They even brought her a complimentary ice cream sundae and sang to her!

That night, we celebrated as a family. We made her whatever she wanted for dinner (wagon wheel pasta, mangoes, and a fruit smoothie). Since she had cupcakes the day before, her "cake" was simple, but she LOVED it! It was made of stacked zebra cakes. We had it with ice cream. She, then, got to open presents from the family. She got books from us and miniature animals from Simon. Julia got her a Shrinky Dinks jewelry kit. She was pleased as punch! I still can't believe she's five!

{Remember: you can click on any collage to see it larger.}

October had the BEST weather! It actually felt like fall! We even lit the fire one night and had a family movie night. The kids all snuggled together next to the fire. Lili used some birthday money to buy a candy-making machine. She loves it!

I know I've been terrible about posting "preggo" shots of myself, but, I have taken one or two. This was me at about 27 weeks.

We don't do birthday parties every year, but since the girls were both turning ages that are kind of a big deal (8 & 5), we decided it was a good year to celebrate. Julia and Lili decided it would be fun to have their parties together! They had fun making plans.
They wanted:
*it to be at the park
*it to be "spooky"
*for people to come in costumes if they liked
*to have pinatas
Nate and I also planned some fun activities. We think it turned out fun and the girls deemed it a success!

Of course, they all chose to dress up. We had a witch, Cleopatra, and Spiderman.

Nate gathered the children and we split them into two groups. I started with the older group, at the "pumpkin-decorating station"...

...while Nate started with the younger kids at the "doughnut-eating station." Aw, man! Was that ever funny!
When they finished their doughnuts, they went immediately to the "mummy race." We split them into two teams and had them race relay-style as "mummies."
Then, we switched stations.
Then it was time for the pinatas! We started with the Jack-O-Lantern one, but it got knocked off its hook! So, we switched to the black cat. That thing must have been made out of reinforced steel with how long it took to bust it open! We even had Nate take a few whacks at it (after all the kids had each had at least four turns) and it still did not break. We ended up just ripping in to it.
Everyone ate snacks (fruit & "Pirate's Booty"). Then, sang "Happy birthday" to the girls, while Nate brought out the cupcakes (with orange and purple frosting- the girls thought those were the perfect colors for a Halloween-themed party. Nate frosted them and they decorated them with the sprinkles). It truly was a fun party. Everyone seemed to have lots of fun. I'm so glad!
October weekends have stayed busy with two soccer players. Nate even helped coach one of Lili's games when her coach was out of town.
Simon enjoyed being Spiderman almost all month (Nate joined in on the fun too). He and I chaperoned a youth dance at church the night before my birthday. We made a whole date night of it. He surprised me with dinner at an Indian restaurant we hadn't tried before. We love Indian food and had yet to find one close-by. Well, it was so yummy! Thank you Nate! We found out that the dance dress was costumes. So, we made a trip to Target. He bought and wore the Spiderman shirt under his regular clothes and went as Peter Parker. It was perfect. I wore a red cape and called myself red-riding-hood. I just had fun being with him!
As I mentioned above, I also had a birthday in October. It fell on Sunday this year and I had the nicest day! We still had to get up early for church, but, once we got home, I got to take a nap! So nice! I was awakened by my whole family. They brought in their adorable homemade gifts that I love! Julia made me "my favorite things" out of clay. A flower pot, full of flowers, wrapped with a snake, a cell phone (hahaha - that made me smile), and a shark. Lili made me a book of coupons. Simon drew me a picture. The girls also made "What I love about Mom" books. I just absolutely cherish stuff like that! They were so sweet!
Then, I had choir practice to go to, but when I returned home, dinner was waiting for me, complete with my family all seated and singing "Happy birthday." Nate grilled chicken and pineapple on "the Egg" and served it with broccoli, fruit salad, saffron rice, and salad. It was all delicious! I loved my "cake" so much! Nate and the children made chocolate-covered strawberries! Oh-so-good!
I even got cupcakes too! My sweet friend Christine made and delivered them. They were delicious! Coconut. Yum. I've told you about her before...she's gourmet!
Julia's book and clay creations...
Lili's coupon book and book about Mom...

I just had to include this picture of Simon with his gifts to me. I think he's going to be a swimmer, don't you? And a backstroker at that! He has the streamline position down so well, he's doing it in his sleep! :)


Julia was so lucky this year. Her birthday was a half-day of school. But, we still took cupcakes in for her friends. She wanted yellow cake with green frosting and fruit snacks on top. They were a hit. She and her friend Cassidy share the same birthday and are in the same class! Cassidy brought cookies. Their classmates had a great day, too!

After her short day at school, Julia got to open a couple presents at home (the soap factory from Lili in particular), then we promptly left for our October get-away to Galveston. There's nothing any of the birthday girls wanted more!

Once we arrived in Galveston, we continued with Julia's birthday celebration. We ate dinner (Nate made a brisket before we left - not that our vegetarian Julia ate that, but we all enjoyed it), sang to her, ate cake, and, of course, she opened more presents. It was so fun to get to celebrate with Aunt Pam and Uncle Mike! Julia loved the Roald Dahl collection and new Leven Thumps book she got! She got a neat little crab ornament from Pam and Mike that she loves!
I know I've said this before, but Galveston is...HEAVEN. The next morning, the kids hit the dock straight away and started catching creatures of all kinds with their nets (minnows, shrimp, crabs, and even a caterpillar)! They enjoyed fishing too! Both the girls caught (and released, of course) many fish. You should ask Nate how many he caught. {tee-hee-hee}
Howie loved lying in the sun. The weather was so nice! The kids (and Nate) even swam a bit. They said the water was cold, but they had fun anyway. One of the kids' favorite things? Wrestling with Uncle Mike. Did you see? Nate even fished with live shrimp! Did that help, Nate?

Dinner on the upper-deck of the dock was a delight. We dined on fine food and enjoyed each other's company, then the mosquitoes started dining on us, so we went in.
We took a 2.5 mile ride on the free ferry (for cars and walkers) over to Port Bolivar. It was so fun to see all the dolphins jumping! We got so wet on the way back when the ferry hit a wave and we were right in front! It was fun and the kids loved it! We all did!
Aunt Pam showed us how to catch a crab and "put it to sleep." Yeah, she's the crab whisperer.
The beach! Need I say more?

Lili had a Halloween "Fall Festival" at her school. They got to dress up and parade around the school in their costumes when they got there that morning, then they changed into regular clothes, had a normal-ish day, until the last hour or so. During that time, they had their party. I was one of the volunteers. It turned out cute. They decorated pumpkins, played "pin the wart on the witch," "pass the pumpkin," and "pumpkin, pumpkin, ghost," and enjoyed yummy treats of all kinds. Lili enjoyed it all!
Halloween festivities continued. We had our "trunk-or-treat" party at church the night before Halloween itself. The kids had already mastered their costumes by that point. I came up with one for myself. I was a soccer player, with a built-in ball - or a "Soccer Mom." I love Halloween and dressing up! It's still fun, even now! As you know, Nate was Spiderman, like Simon. He took the kids around to all the cars while I walked around talking and visiting with friends passed out candy.
Once the the trunk-or-treating part was over, everyone went inside for a chili/soup dinner, desserts and dancing to the tunes of the band "7-Car Pileup." It was so much fun! I loved that I got to be a part of the spontaneous, surprise "Thriller" dance too! It was a fun night!

Halloween fell on a Saturday this year. I loved that! We decorated pumpkins that day, had our "normal" Saturday routine of soccer games (well, actually only one, as Julia's was so late, they rescheduled it), cleaning and such, then got ready for trick-or-treating.

We went with our cute neighbors again this year. The kids raked it in! Let me tell you! Candy galore! We had a fantastic time!

We have such great friends! After trick-or-treating, we were invited to go to a friends house for food, and fun. They even had a fire pit set up for roasting marshmallows. The kids wore themselves out jumping on the trampoline and running around with their friends. So, it was a fun way to end the night. And, a good thing they got some of that sugar out of their systems! (Sorry, no good pictures from that part).

What a month! Now you can see why I'm so bad about blogging. There's just so much sometimes that I get overwhelmed! But, hey, that's a good thing! I hope you all had a great October too! It happens to be one of my most favorite months!