Snowed-In (Kind of)

This morning we woke up and it was snowing. And it has snowed all day long. But to start at the beginning, Ellie woke up in the night and threw up a few more times, so we were up pretty late. She finally got to sleep for good at about 1 or so and slept until 9. She has been pretty well all day, just a little weak and hasn't eaten a ton. This morning we still couldn't get our hot water working (it has been an issue from the beginning), so they moved us to another room. That took a while, but we are glad for hot water and warm rooms. After we got into the new room, we got ready and Brian stayed with Ellie while she napped and I braved the cold with the girls and walked in the snow up Main Street. We dressed warm, so it wasn't very cold but the snow falling on our faces was cold. They had a great time though. They made and threw several snow balls, did snow angels and played a lot in the snow as we walked up the street. We only bought a treat at a candy shop and I was shocked when he told me the total. Eliza got a dipped pretzel, Libby got a chocolate/caramel turtle and I got two individually wrapped caramels. It was $7.50! It was good though. Luckily they have a trolley and we caught a ride back to our hotel.

This evening we ventured out hoping to go to the outlets, but we made it about a 1/2 mile and turned around and came back. It was just too wet, snowy and slippery. Maybe tomorrow. So now we are waiting for dinner to be delivered to our room from La Casita. Can't wait for Mexican food!

Pictures from Today

Here are pictures from today.

Trip Update Day 3

**It's not letting me upload photos, so that will be in another post. Ugh.

Today was a good day in theory. We drove to Salt Lake and decided to do the whole Temple Square thing. But before we even got out of the car, the girls were not behaving very well. After some stern talkings-to, we went first to the visitor's center, then took a brief tour of the Conference Center. Neither of us had been there, so it was fun to see and go on the roof. The artwork in there is sure amazing. Then we drove around a bit and drooled over the houses up on the mountain. Then we did a tour of the Brigham Young house. The girls seemed to enjoy seeing all the pioneer stuff and eating a lemon drop at the end. They used to give "horehound" candy, but they said that they would find them all over the place--like under couches, etc--because most people don't care for the taste. Finally we went to the church history museum and that was fun for a little bit, but there is only so much museum and "looking" that a 3 and 4 year old can handle. Brian and I are already wondering when we can go back just the two of us. We think it will be soon--or at least we would like it to be.

From downtown Salt Lake, we drove to Draper and killed some time looking around at houses. Oh my. There are some amazing ones up on the mountain. I included a picture that we hurried and took of one gigantic home. It took two camera frames--it didn't fit into one. Then we went to American Fork and visited my friend Margie that I met about 14 years ago at EFY. We have stayed in touch through letters and now e-mail ever since. We were at each others' weddings and have visited a couple other times, but it is mostly through e-mail. So it was great to see her, her husband and two boys. They had a family dinner with her siblings and families along with home evening. We watched a neat short film called Money or Mission. John Lyde who Margie was friends with growing up wrote and directed the film. It was a great movie with a good message. It was also fun to see/meet her brother-in-law, Sam Payne, who is a great folk singer. It was a fun time at her house.

On the way home, Ellie didn't seem to be feeling well and she threw up in her seat. Yuck. I am not sure if it is upset stomach or car sick (we came home through Provo Canyon). She threw up once more in the room (after we got her all bathed, of course), and she seems to be feeling better. I hope that is the end of it.

I guess that is all from today. I think tomorrow we'll spend in Park City so we can see how Ellie is feeling and so she can get some regular naps.

Pictures from Day 2

Day 2: Family Fun

This morning we got up, got ready and headed back towards West Jordan. We stopped at Wal-Mart in Park City to get a couple of items, then we stopped at Marie Callendar's to pick up our food for the reunion. We still had a little time, so we went to the Quilted Bear in Midvale (I think). Oh my. Talk about cute stuff. There was so much to look at and so much I wanted to look at. We are going to go back when we have more time. It was fun.

From about lunch time until about 7:30 we were at the Trimble Family Reunion. It was held at a church building in West Jordan. It was fun to see Brian's grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins and all of their kids. I had seen most before, but it had been a while, so it was great to see them all again. We started with a turkey lunch with lots of sides. Then we had some games (trivia games about his grandparents, guess which grandchild is in which picture, and the kids "bobbed" for donuts. Eliza and Libby really enjoyed that. Libby was so good and cute to keep her hands down and to not touch her donut. She followed the rules perfectly! She was cute to watch. The guys played many, many games of bump out (basketball), then everyone played volleyball. I held my own for being 7 months pregnant! I guess it's a compliment when someone asks, "Did you play in college?" Makes me feel good. After it was over, we grabbed a bite to eat and came back to our room. Now all the girls are sleeping and I will relax for a little bit. Yay! (We left the camera in the car, so I will add pictures tonight.)

Hello from Park City

We made it to Park City. We left this morning at about 8:30 and got here at about 8:30. So it wasn't too bad. The girls did pretty well. There were a couple times that were a little hectic, but overall they did great. We borrowed a friend's TV/VCR for the car and that was heaven! They went through all the movies we brought, so I told Brian we are going to invest in about $30 worth at Wal-Mart for the way home. It will be worth it to me to have some peace. Along the way we stopped in Page for lunch at "Old McDonalds" where Ellie had her first French fry and seemed to like it. The girls all feel asleep at various times along the way with Ellie and Libby sleeping for the longest stretches. :) We took a little stop in Beaver at the Cache Valley Cheese Factory where we got some ice creams. Eliza had pumpkin, which she loved and Libby and Brian both had Chocolate Peanut Butter. And I enjoyed a little of each one. From there we drove to Park City. It is quite cold. We are going to have to bundle up. Brian said the forecast is like 16 degrees for the high with a snow storm. Great. I guess we'll do what we can do.

Our condo is very nice and will be very roomy for our stay this next week. The girls have their own room and Brian and I have our own room with a big living area and kitchen connecting them both. My favorite part is the huge jacuzzi tub in our room. It has like two seats in there. I can really spread out in there!

Bye for now--I need to get some sleep.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Today was a fun, full day. Brian went to the turkey bowl this morning and the girls and I hung out at home. They loved watching the Macy's parade and seeing the Little People, 12 Dancing Princesses, High School Musical, Hannah Montana, Jojo, etc. They also loved watching the dog show that came on after.

For lunch we went to my brother's house and had a nice Thanksgiving meal with my parents, too. The food was delicious and the pie turned out soooooo yummy. It is very rich, but I would definitely make it again. The kids had fun playing outside after. After being there a while, we came back home and got ready for my mom's side of the family to all come over for our annual get-together. We munched on some food and treats, played some games and had our ornament exchange. The food was great and the games were fun. The kids especially enjoyed playing BINGO. And we all got some very cute ornaments. Brian got a glass ball basketball and I got a so very cute decoration that my aunt Deb made. It's an assortment of found objects (bingo card, old greeting card, JOY letters, jingle bells and a vintage glass ball ornament and you put a glass dome on top of it. I will take a picture when my camera is done charging. Eliza got a very cute ladybug with jingle bells on it. Libby got a black high heel shoe and a glass-blown carousel horse ornament because of the Disney World trip and Ellie got a cute pig with high heels. Very memorable.

Now I am on to packing. Going into cold country is hard to pack for and it takes up a lot more suitcases!

Ellie is One!!!

Today was Ellie's birthday. She is a big one year old. Today for some reason she seemed all of a sudden older--just acted older--walked more, talked more, etc. She is growing up! Eliza did say sadly, "Ellie doesn't look one to me." I don't know what a one-year-old should look like, but I guess Ellie doesn't look one. She seemed to have a good day though. I didn't go to aerobics as I was trying to get some things done around the house. Eliza had preschool and Libby spent the afternoon with my parents. One-on-one she is a gem, but when she and Eliza or she and Ellie or even her and I have been together lately, it is not pretty. I think it's her terrible threes, but she is difficult. I hope it ends soon. Seems like I get through one thing and the next thing starts. My patience has been tried beyond measure lately and I am not doing well with it. I keep trying though.

Tonight after dinner my parents came over and Ellie got to open her presents. She got a Little People castle, pull along thing for the little plastic balls she has, a push walker thing that converts into a car you scoot on and some books. She was happiest though sitting on an empty box. ...doesn't take much to make her happy.

I just got finished making a pie for Thanksgiving lunch. I hope it tastes as good as it looked as I was making it.

I am excited for Thanksgiving. It ought to be a fun day. I am actually glad we will be traveling on Friday, so I don't feel like I have to be out shopping. I was at Bath and Body Works today splurging on Spicy Gingerbread 3-in-1 and they said they open at 4 AM on Friday. Insane. The toy store opens at 3. Even more insane. I for sure won't be there.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving.

Happiness Post

Things that are making me happy lately:
--hearing the bell ring at Wal-Mart. It made me walk a few paces faster though thinking that Christmas is coming soon! And on Dec. 2nd Brian has to be the "bell-ringer" at the Safeway by his office to help out with Kiwanis Club. :)
--getting a ton knocked off my to-do list today
--a clean house
--getting Christmas decorations up
--channel 941
--getting some house decorations up (not Christmas related)
--Ellie turning one tomorrow
--Thanksgiving is this week!
--yummy smelling candles in the house
--an Auto Gold to make my car smell good
--being able to still wear my regular clothes
--York Peppermint Patties--seems like one jumps into my cart wherever I am
--the thought of getting Christmas cards in the coming weeks
--Eliza decorating the tree for me (I'm sure Libby will add to it tomorrow)

I'd better get back at it.
Happy Thanksgiving.

Slacking

I am slacking on my posts lately. So here is an update on what is going on.

I am sitting in the chair next to our Christmas tree as I type this and I am loving watching the glow of the lights. Now we just need to decorate the tree and put everything else out! That should happen this week.

First of all, I can't believe this Thursday is Thanksgiving. I am excited, but it has come so fast. And I also can't believe that on Wednesday Ellie will turn 1. It doesn't seem like a year ago that we were in the hospital having her. Time sure does fly.

I have been doing a lot of home projects lately--mostly with the girls' clothes. I went through all their closets and drawers and put away their summer stuff and got out the winter stuff. I boxed up all of Ellie's clothes that she is too big for and it won't be too long before we get them out again for baby girl! I told Brian it hasn't been long enough in between. Oh well--what do we do now? Only 3 more months and she'll be here. But it feels so great to have the clothes gone through and organized. I also went through and was very picky with what I kept. If it had a stain that I put up with while Ellie wore it and I still haven't been able to get it out, it went in the trash. And if I didn't really care for it or was a hassle to have her wear, it went into the DI pile. So I have a bunch more nice clothes for them that just didn't work for us. I got rid of a bunch of socks and newborn/infant shoes. I've kept them because they are so cute, but my girls just never wore them unless they were like those little Carter's cotton ones that velcro.

Libby finally earned her bike this week. She cruises on it around the neighborhood and loves riding it.

I feel like my patience has been tried lately by 2 cute girls, so one morning in family prayer Brian said, "Please bless Mom that she can be patient." Later that morning I must have been getting frustrated because Eliza said, "But Mom, Dad prayed that you would be patient and you are not being patient." Oops! I thought it was cute.

I have also done some photo shoots this past week, so I am including a couple images from those sessions.

This week will be big with Ellie's birthday, getting ready for and on the actual Thanksgiving Day, and then getting packed and heading to Utah. I hope I can get it all done. I have my to-do list written out and ready to go!

So here we go!!!

Season of Giving

Our ward is having a big Deseret Industries drive to fill their shelves by December 1st. I guess they are very low on items. so on Sunday night Brian and I went through our closets and made two huge piles to donate. Then for family home evening , I talked to the girls a little bit from the scriptures about helping the needy and being charitable. Then I said we were going to go into the toy room and choose some things that they think another little boy or girl would like to have and we would donate that to DI. At first Eliza put on a sad face and said she didn't want to choose anything, but when we got in there and started talking about it, she was finding things right and left. They were so cute and chose some Disney princess figures that they thought another little girl would enjoy. I loved it because Eliza picked her favorites and thought another girl would like it best because they had "sparklies" on it. I was proud of them for being so giving. Yesterday morning Libby came in with a little toy baby bottle and said, "Let's give this, too." I am glad they are thinking of others.

In other news:
I have a massive to-do list this week before Thanksgiving and on into December. We are trying to get ready for Ellie's birthday, Thanksgiving, our trip to Utah, Polar Express, my friend Amber's bridal shower and wedding and then Christmas!!! It is coming so quickly.

Campouts and Weddings

Brian got home this morning from the campout in Sedona. He had a fun time and got to do a little off-roading. After he got home, I had a little speaking engagement at Keepsake Trends. I spoke mostly about journaling and how important it is to write things down so we don't forget them and so the memories aren't lost.

Then this afternoon was my friend's wedding who I went to high school with. It was an outdoor wedding/reception at a home and it was lovely. Summer looked beautiful and her dress was gorgeous. It was fun to see friends again that I got to see last week at my reunion. We had a fun time.

Now it's back to work!

Friday

It's been a busy day! This morning I ditched out on aerobics so I could be at Old Navy right when they opened. They were having 1/2 of their clearance, and I got some great deals. I found things mostly for the girls--shirts for $1.00 or $1.50 or maybe $2.00 or $3.00 if I splurged. I got a couple of things, too, but I got 41 items for $97.00. The girls are set for a while (until the next sale!) ha ha. But there were some great deals.

This afternoon we came home and the girls rode bikes outside while Ellie napped. Brian is gone on a campout, so we had a girls' night and ate dinner, played, cleaned the playroom, etc. Eliza and Libby did a funny thing. They said their babies needed to eat and they had bottles, but then I turned around and they both had dolls under their shirts. I tried not to laugh. Then I got busy cleaning and I turned around and Eliza had put two balls under her shirt. She said, "I am a mom." A couple of seconds later, she lifted up her shirt and said, "I am done with those." Wouldn't it be nice if it were that easy!?!? :) I got a chuckle out of that.

Tonight my parents brought over a surprise for the girls that my mom had worked on. It is a little teepee-type tent for the girls to play in. Brian has the camera, so when he gets home I'll share a picture. They will have fun with that.

The girls are sleeping and I am trying to finish up the text for a book to send off. Gotta go!

What's Been Going On?

--Eliza earned her bike. She picked out a pink and purple Barbie bike. She is loving it! They rode bikes outside for a combined total of 5 hours today. Insane. Eliza said her wrists hurt. I'm sure they do!
--Libby has been loving riding Eliza's "old" bike, although she is on her way to earn a new Big Wheel. It's a wonder what a little sticker chart will do for her listening skills and obedience!
--My mom's birthday was yesterday. We enjoyed some ice cream to celebrate (need I share what flavor I had again?!?).
--On Sunday, we went to my cousin's baby's blessing. I had to laugh (along with the rest of the congregation) when her husband went up to the front and had forgotten the baby. It was a good laugh for everyone.
--Cami--one of my YW--brought me some sugar cookies tonight. It was so thoughtful, not to mention sugar cookies are my favorite. I've eaten one too many already.
--Still loving channel 941--all Christmas music all the time!
--Ellie was so cute holding Brian's hand while drinking her bottle.

Lots to Report On!

Let's just go in order...

Friday ended up being a better day than Thursday, thank goodness! We went to aerobics in the morning, then I watched a friend's little boy for a couple of hours. While Eliza was at preschool, he and Libby played wonderfully. I was able to get the whole house vacuumed and the laundry done. It felt great to get so much done. After I got Eliza from preschool, the girls played out front for a while, then we grabbed McDonalds and we went to Brian's parents where Eliza and Libby had a little sleepover. Ellie and I did some errands, then we came home, Ellie went to bed and I worked on a book.

This morning I picked up the girls and we came home so Ellie could nap. I watched the girls play outside again, then we ate lunch and headed off to watch one of my young women run in the state cross country meet. I don't know what I was thinking when I thought I would take us all there. We survived just fine, but it was an experience. We had to "hike" about a 1/4+ mile to where the race was (and then back) and it was at a golf course, so it was very hilly grass mounds. And when you are pushing a double stroller, it is hard!!! My legs were hurting and I definitely got my workout for the day. The race went well and Cami did well, too. On the way back we decided to ride the shuttle to the parking lot, but getting on the bus was a sight. I had to hold Ellie, fold down the stroller and heft it onto the bus. Crazy! Good thing I don't look too pregnant or people might have thought I was crazier than I looked. But we survived and I am glad we went.

Then tonight was my big 10-year high school reunion. It was at Aunt Chilada's at the Point Squaw Peak. And we actually had a really good time. I was surprised that I remembered most everyone's names and recognized who everyone was. But it was pretty laid back and everyone interacted with everyone else, so that was fun. It was great to see my friends that I hung out with and played sports with. In the picture above, it's Summer and Sam. They, like most everyone else, look just the same. But it was fun to catch up. Summer is getting married next Saturday, so it will be fun to hang out with the same group again. They gave out "most likely" awards, and I actually got one. Ha ha! I got the "most likely to have the all-American family." I guess that is a compliment. ...better than "most likely to have had the most plastic surgeries" or "most likely to have the most tattoos." I got a little frame as my prize. Funny!

We left while everyone grabbed more drinks from the bar and we stopped for ice cream at Cold Stone. If you like dark chocolate, then you need to RUN down there and try their dark chocolate peppermint ice cream. Heavenly!!!! I loved it. I would've just had it without a mix-in, but the lady suggested adding Oreos, which I did and loved. But it is very good.

So that is it! I think I am caught up now.

What a Day!

Today was a crazy day. I wasn't extremely busy, but my girls--well Libby and Eliza--were just ornery!!! It was a hard day to say the least! Let's just say that Eliza lost one star on her chart and I think I lost two. Yikes--I still only have two!

This morning Eliza had a "field trip" for school and they went to Bashas. They saw someone decorate a cake, make bread, make a pizza, package meat and use a box crusher. It was quite interesting. Then it all went downhill from there when we got home. The girls seemed to argue all day and not listen to me at all. But tomorrow is a new day, right?!?! My mom came over for a little bit and hung out. Then I went over to my friend Kari's house and we made homemade bread. Brian has a meeting tonight, so we've just been hanging out at home.

In better news, only in AZ, will you see girls out in November in their swimming suits playing in the water. They had fun doing that. And I was so excited to learn that one of the music stations that we get through cable is all Christmas music. (Notice the picture at the top!). I am so excited to listen to that all day now.

Here's to a better day tomorrow!

Happy Halloween

Why don't we just call it what it is: begging! (Cliff Huxtable in The Cosby Show).

I love that quote about Halloween from Quote, Unquote Vol. 4. I mean, who really needs a bag full of candy? But it is fun to go around and "beg" for it! Tonight the girls got dressed up again and went around the neighborhood. After they had enough of that, we came back home and they are enjoying handing out handfuls of candy to the other goblins! Eliza and Libby ended up with a lot of good candy; I am especially enjoying the Nerds, Peanut Butter Cups and Twix.

Brian is so excited for tonight because it's the Suns' season opener game. I guess it's the "cable debut." He can't wait to watch it.

Tomorrow is November 1st, so that means Christmas music will start resonating around here, much to Brian's dismay! But I LOVE it. I started my Christmas gift list so we can plan what we will be getting for everyone this year. I love that planning!

Last night I made a chart for Eliza's quest to earn a bike. Well, today she made me a chart, numbered one to ten. She said I need to be nice and when I get it all filled up with stickers, she will give me a Tootsie Roll, Smarties and a back rub. I already have two stickers. Lucky me. :)

Look Ma...No Training Wheels

Look who can ride a bike now without training wheels! Thanks to the neighbor girl who worked with Eliza for a little bit, she can now do it! She is loving it. Now we have to get her a new bike. She learned on the little girl's bike who lives two doors down, so now I think it's time for Eliza to have a new bike. But she has to earn it by improving her listening, so I will be making her a chart to start tomorrow.

Ellie also said "mama" for the first time today.

It's a good start to an already full week. Tomorrow we will be crazy with Halloween festivities in the evening. Wednesday is mutual, and Friday and Saturday Brian has to go to fall regional meetings for work in Yuma, then we top it off by going to my 10-year high school reunion on Saturday night. I am a little nervous to go to that and don't know what to wear! I'm in the awful in between stage of not fitting into maternity clothes yet, but when I wear my regular clothes is looks like I enjoyed a few too many Hershey Kisses. So that will be one task for the week!

Happy Trick-or-Treating tomorrow!

While Mom is Away...

...Dad and the girls will play! On Saturday, I went to Time Out for Women at the Civic Plaza. It was a great time and I am glad I went. I loved each of the speakers for different reasons and heard some great things that I needed to hear and that will help me be a better person. I went with my friend Leslie and we had a fun time.

While I was at that, Brian took the girls on a mini trip around Arizona. They went to Camp Verde, Montezuma's Castle, Strawberry, Pine and a couple of other places. He figures it beats staying home and being bored! He had a fun time and the girls loved it, too. They ate lunch outside on their trip and went on a little walk in the forest. He is always so good to let me go to things and he takes good care of the girls while I am gone.

That night we had our date night and we started out by eating dinner at Babbo's Italian Eatery. The one we went to is out in Surprise at about Bell and Reems. It was so, so good. I want to go back and get the other dishes I was considering ordering. I opted for the Steak Blue Salad, which was divine. I also considered a calzone and a pizza. They serve a soft, flat bread of sorts throughout the meal with an olive oil and balsamic vinaigrette dip. YUM! And the prices were so great. After dinner, we did some errands--Target to get stuff to "boo" others (P.S. In the pictures, Eliza and Libby are wearing the shirts they got from that), Best Buy to get some plugs for Brian's receiver/stereo, etc., and Fry's for ice cream toppings for the fireside we had tonight. Then the rest of our date was spent chaperoning the Saturday Night Dance. So it was a late night, but we had a good time.

This morning I didn't have any meetings before church, so that was nice. Brian let me sleep in. Wonderful! And church went well, then I went to a youth fireside in the evening. The Laurels were in charge, so we served ice cream sundaes for refreshments.

Now it's on to a new, fresh week! Enjoy it!

I Be Trippin'

I finally got an iTrip so I can use my iPod in the car. We originally bought one at Best Buy, but before we opened it I checked on-line to see if we could get it cheaper. Best Buy was $70 and Amazon had the same thing for $40. Score! But I hooked it up today and it works great. I am going to love it!

Tonight was our ward's Trunk or Treat, and it was a fun time. Libby actually dressed up this year. Last year she wouldn't have anything to do with wearing a costume, but this year she was so excited and loved being Cinderella. She looked like a natural Cinderella. Eliza made a very cute cowgirl and Ellie was a cute basketball player. They each got their fair share of candy and are already enjoying it.

Tonight we also got "boo"-ed by one of our neighbors. Someone gave us a Halloween treat, then we are supposed to do it to someone else within two days. And it wasn't just a food treat. Along with the caramel Hershey kisses, they gave Eliza, Libby and Ellie their own Halloween t-shirts. They are adorable. That was so nice of whoever did it. Now I need to think of what to do in return!

Tomorrow I get to go to Time Out for Women with my friend Leslie. I am looking forward to it.

P.S. That picture of Ellie is her new favorite thing to do--getting on her head and feet with her hands up. It is a hoot!

Here She is...

Miss America. I was so excited to learn that one of my former students is going to be a contestant in January's Miss America pageant. Her name is Hilary Griffith. I am so excited to watch it now! Tune in and cheer her on! If you happen to get the magazine Arrowhead Life, there is an article about her in there, too (she is on the cover).

I am so tired tonight. This morning I woke up before the birds and helped my friend Natalie on a wedding photo shoot. I want to be her apprentice! I figure if I can watch her in action, then maybe I'll learn a thing or two and get better.

Let's see...what else:
--Trunk or Treat is tomorrow night at the church...Eliza and Libby are getting excited. Libby said she needed a prince so she could dance. She asked Brian to be her prince. Too bad we don't have a costume for him.
--I am so out of it...I had NO idea that the World Series is going on. Brian had a baseball game on the other night and I asked, "What's so big about this game?" (he doesn't usually watch too much baseball). And, well, it was game three of the World Series. Hello!
--It is getting so nippy outside in the mornings and at night. I definitely need a sweatshirt.
--Got to go to the temple tonight with Brian. Ate at Cafe Rio after.

OK--I need to go to bed!

Expensive Holiday

Halloween is an expensive holiday. I didn't spend too much on the girls' costumes, but it's the Halloween candy that got me! I bought some to hand out at Trunk or Treat on Friday and then more to hand out Tuesday night on Halloween. It was probably over $20! I guess the benefit will be going through the girls' bags and getting some yummy treats! Shhh! Don't tell--but I know you do it, too!!!

I am still on a search to find an outfit for a wedding of a high school friend that Brian and I are going to in November. I can't find anything (unless I want to spend a boat-load of money). I can find a shirt but no skirt or vice versa. I would really like a dress though. So if you have any suggestions of places I can look, I would love it!

And while we are on the topic of money, we had to get new tires on the van today. For a while, the steering wheel would shake a little bit, which was quite annoying. We tried a couple of things, but it came down to new tires. Luckily, Brian has a friend who works at Discount and he got a smokin' deal. Yeah-hoo! At least we'll have new tires for the trip!

Finally!

For the past few months, Ellie would eat small bits of food, but only if we put it in her mouth. She wouldn't grab it and put it in her own mouth. She would grab it, but drop it on the floor or in her seat, etc. But today at lunch I put some morsels of bread on her tray and she reached down and put it right in her mouth. Hallelujah! It was so nice to have her gain that little bit of independence.

I mentioned that I got Becky's new book...well, I finished reading it today. (Mom--now you can borrow it for a little bit). It is very good. It is full of great ideas for preserving family history from organizing to gathering to presenting, etc. It has me motivated!! I am totally excited to get back into it.

I'm excited it's almost Friday. Yay! I have a doctor's appointment in the morning, then Eliza has preschool. Brian gets to pick her up from school and I get to go for a pedicure with a couple of friends. Then I am taking pictures for my friend Leslie and her family. They are such a cute family, so I will have to post a couple if she gives me the okay! :) Then Brian and I will head out on our date. I am thinking he would love to go to Cabela's and look around for a while. And they have a restaurant there, so it might be fun to eat there, too.

Getting in the Christmas Mood

I am in the Christmas mood! I just got some new candles from Gold Canyon and they make me and my house so cheerful! I got a Cozy Christmas, Days of Christmas, Pumpkin Pie, Cranberry Orange and my all-time favorite, I think, which is Strudel and Spice. I absolutely LOVE that one. I also went into Bath and Body Works yesterday and they have their holiday scents out. Yum, yum. If you go there, be sure to check out the Cinnamon Bun, Vanilla Bean Noel and Very Festive pomegranate. They also had small-ish bottles of Three-in-One, which is body wash, bubble bath and shampoo all in one. The girls and I decided on Spice Gingerbread and it is amazing. It smells so good and we love it.

Let's see...what else has been going on? The weather is really cooling off at night. I will be needing a sweater soon. Did I mention that I am going to freeze in Utah? I will be able to handle it for a week though!

Last night Becky and I did our scrapbook night for the people who won it at the service action a couple of months ago. It was Becky and me and seven others. We first talked about "why we scrapbook", and I showed a journal/scrapbook of sorts that my great-grandma started and kept when she was over 80 years old. It just shows how important it is to get things written down and how much we treasure it now. Becky showed a little movie that she does in some of her classes and it was equally as touching and motivating. Then we talked the rest of the night about organization, chronological vs. big picture system, what pages/albums to do for each child, etc. It was very informative and fun. Becky also surprised us each with a copy of her newest book that isn't even out yet: Family History Scrapbooking. I was so excited to get an idea book that I hadn't worked on and seen too much of already! What a treat--thanks, Becky!!

Today has already been full of aerobics, taking Eliza to preschool, and soon we will be off to pick her up. Then I am going to watch four of my young women run in a cross-country meet. I have never been to a cross-country race before, so it will be interesting...I am not sure the proper etiquette, so I'll have to pay close attention! Then it's off to mutual. Whoosh!

I also have the completed spreads for the Look Book that I need to proof, so that will keep me busy. That book is close to going to the printer!

Bye for now.

Yummy Stuff

I went to Costco yesterday and picked up a couple of yummy things. They were giving out samples of some beef enchiladas, so we picked up some of those for dinner. They were good and the girls loved them, too. They were also selling those delicious caramel apples, so we had to buy a set of three. I don't think I've ever bought them there--only salivated or gotten one from my parents if they bought some. The girls picked out one with M&Ms, one plain caramel and one with mini white and dark chocolate chips. Let's just say that 1 and a 1/2 are gone. Yum!

Eliza and Libby are going to my parents tonight for a grandkids' sleepover. They should have fun! I hope Libby sleeps though. She always gives them trouble going to sleep. We got a sitter for Ellie and will be going out to dinner with some friends. Excited!

Note to Self

Remind me not to go back to aerobics for the first time in a few months AND play football at mutual in the same day. I was sooooo sore last night and today. I am doing better tonight, but wow! That was too much for me. We ended up playing football in the cultural hall last night instead of basketball and I guess the little bit of running I did combined with the aerobics in the morning added up to soreness and pain.

Tonight Eliza and I went to the Sunrise Mountain volleyball game and I also got to see one of my young women in her choir concert. I lucked out that they were on the same night! Eliza enjoyed the music and recognized quite a few songs, so that was fun.