A Happy Thanksgiving

We enjoyed our first Thanksgiving at home, and it was nice to have Chris' grandpa and uncle join us for dinner. The kids spent the day watching Christmas movies, decorating, making name tags for the table, and playing with/eating marzipan. The marzipan was a huge hit, and I'm sure it will become a tradition.

Hungry kids eager to feast

Seth's marzipan creations, including turkey fingers, a teepee, pumpkins, a turkey head, applesauce in a bowl, and mashed potatoes & gravy on a plate.

Josh's marzipan turkeys and pumpkins


You can buy marzipan in the baking aisle of the grocery store. Simply knead in food color paste or gel (optional) and have fun shaping this yummy almond candy. I made a million little marzipan pumpkins for Seth's Thanksgiving multi-cultural feast at school this week (his request), and gratefully I had some left over to keep the kids occupied while Chris and I were busy preparing our Thanksgiving dinner. It turned out pretty well, and in addition to our countless blessings, we are also thankful we had such a nice day.

Feeling Guilty

I feel like such a traitor. I bought pies for our first ever Thanksgiving dinner at home tomorrow. My three sisters each inherited my mother's perfect pie-making gene, but me? I don't think so. I was planning to try making pies today, but I broke down at Costco and bought a pumpkin and an apple pie. I did "make" a chocolate pie, but it doesn't count since all I did was mix instant pudding with milk and cool whip and spoon it into a store-bought Oreo crust. I'm such a cheater and a disgrace to the family!

My mother seriously made the best pies I've ever, ever had. Seriously. She would've totally put Marie out of business if she had ever sold her pies. Mom's pies were perfect and absolutely amazing. Maybe some day I'll take up pie-making, but it won't be this year. Now wish me luck with my first turkey!

The Birthday Boy

When I married Chris, I had no idea how lucky I was. If you don't know how wonderful he is, then you just don't know him well enough. I'm tremendously blessed to spend my life with him.

Happy Birthday to the man . . .

. . . who makes me want to be a better person.

. . . who is absolutely adored by his kids.

. . . who is always striving to improve himself.

. . . who puts God and family first.

. . . who is patient, friendly, forgiving, nonjudgemental, and fun.

. . . who is easy to please.

. . . who isn't afraid to figure things out or learn something new.

. . . who is easy-going and doesn't stress out.

. . . who has tremendous faith and a fantastic attitude.

. . . who is reasonable, practical, and realistic.

. . . who has an impeccable memory and is impeccably honest.
. . . who is obedient and faithful.
. . . who dreams big and is a goal-setter.
. . . who is super-dad to his kids and super-man to me.
. . . who is out of town today :(, but we'll be thinking of you all day!


HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHRIS! WE LOVE YOU!

Handle With Care

It's amazing how entertaining a cardboard box can be. Somehow my boys got their hands on a good-sized box the other day and devised a plan. While Seth was at gymnastics, I noticed Josh putting things in the box, apparently "packing" for Seth. When Seth returned, they finished up together. I had no idea what they were up to but soon found out. They were going to mail Seth to his friend's house in Provo, Utah. They even punched "air holes" around the box. Now, I'm not sure if they were serious about this or just having a good time playing around. But I did learn that they thought the mail carrier would pick up the box if they left it out by the mailbox.

Now I'm left to wonder about Seth's reasons for wanting to be shipped to his friend's house. And what about Josh's motive--was he just trying to be nice and help Seth out, was he having fun playing along, or was he trying to get rid of his brother by shipping him off? Hmmm.

This is what I found inside the box:

• Seth (good thing he's flexible), with his pillow and blanket
• Portable DVD player with several DVDs
• Books
• Legos and other smalls toys
• The Book of Mormon
• A framed picture of Josh (Seth said that Josh included this in case he never came back)
• Two small stuffed animals
• Candy wrappers
• Snacks
• A water bottle

Sure it's been a little crazy around here lately with a new baby and all, but it can't be that bad, can it?

One Month Already

Blake is one month old today!

Happy Birthday!

Watch Out

I put this little guy on his stomach for some tummy time yesterday, and within about 60 seconds he rolled over! Each of our other children rolled over from stomach to back by 5 weeks, but as the fourth child (and 26 days old), Blake has outdone his siblings and will not be left behind.

I Love This Country

I've never been so excited to vote! This election I've been much more concerned, educated, and involved with propositions and candidates on the ballot. Even the kids are aware of the election and its significance. As Californians, we've been especially focused on Proposition 8. We, along with the rest of the country, are eager to hear whether it passes or not since it's ramifications are huge. No matter what the results are, I am so grateful to live in this great country and have the opportunity to vote.

Every vote counts--get out and vote!