Month of Gratitude - Week 4

Day 22 - THANKSGIVING!  So much fun.  A full post on this coming soon.  We had lots of friends and some family over to share laughs, gratitude and of course lots of food!  Since my parents and all family moved away a year and a half ago, I have become even more grateful for the wonderful friends that we have.  They fill a place in our lives that is very important.  Thanks for spending the holiday with us!

My first helping of dinner

Day 23 - We were super blessed and thrilled to have my brother Jackson come for Thanksgiving this year.  I really love it when he comes for any visit, especially on a holiday.  I am the oldest of seven kids, and I am really grateful for all of my six younger siblings.  They are really awesome people!  I love being their big sister!

Jackson getting to know Theo better.  It went well. 

Day 24 - I am really grateful for scriptures.  We try to read them daily as a family, and that doesn't always go well.  When it does go well it is awesome.  Reading and studying scriptures in our home changes the atmosphere.  I love that.

Day 25 - Bennett.  Just like Max, he is extremely sweet.  I have really loved getting so much quality time with him this year since Harrison has started Kindergarten.  He is getting old enough now to have formed conversations, and they are delightful!

Day 26 - Temples.  Jason and I were married in a Holy Temple, and as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints this holds very special meaning to us.  We receive special blessings because of this.  I am always seeing evidence of those blessings, and I often feel gratitude for the blessings of the temple.

Day 27 - Glenn.  We could not have a more special firstborn.  He is amazing, and I adore this kid.

Helping make Thanksgiving Dinner.

Day 28 - My daddy.  He is truly one of my most favorite people.  I plan on sending my teenagers to him to raise.  He seriously performed miracles while raising me through those years.  He is wise and wonderful!  

Also, my kids really love him.  He is a really awesome grandpa.

Day 29 -  Family Fun.  I am grateful for all the fun we have together.  We aren't good at much, but we are good at having fun!  

At the "Doughnut Store" or as others call it, Krispy Kreme.

Day 30 -  The last day of November, a month of gratitude. 

I am so grateful for the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ, and for the Christmas season. 

Month of Gratitude - Week 3

Day 15 -On this day I am grateful for really cool talented friends and amazing food.  I am so blessed to be a part of a group that we call Gourmet Club.  After planning for a whole year it was finally time for my team turn to host the rest of the group at a really fun, themed dinner party that we held in my home.  It was tons of work, but all worth it.  We had SO much fun doing this for our friends.  I will be doing a post all about this dinner coming very soon!

Just a few pictures taken at our Diwali themed Indian Dinner party.

Day 16 - I really really love my baby.  I know that having six kids in this day and age is unusual, so let me say that I am really grateful that we chose to have six kids.  Number six is a special little person, and I am so grateful for his sweet personality.  He adds a lot of joy to our home.

Adorable Theo

Day 17 - Peanut M&M's... Enough said

Day 18 - Glasses.  I first needed glasses in fourth grade.  I started wearing contacts when I was about 12.  Since my desperate need for glasses is genetic, I have sometimes wondered about my ancestors.  For example, did my 3rd Great Grandmother, who walked across the plains on the Mormon trail, have good vision?  She would not have had access to glasses.  I hope she was able to see.  Maybe that is silly to think about, but it does make me feel thankful.

Day 19 - SUNSHINE!!!  There is Sunshine in my soul today!!!  It was cold, but sunny.  Jason took the boys to the park for the last time in 2012 on the day of my Gourmet Club Dinner.  I was awesome for them to be able to do that in Portland, in November!  A true miracle!

Day 20 - Maxwell.  The first word that comes to my mind when I think of Maxwell is Sweet.  He is a total sweetheart!  This year he was given these old 3D glasses, with the lenses popped out, from a girl in his class. I am sure she has a crush on him, but he is oblivious.  He is just so nice and sweet that I know he is going to be one of those guys that all the girls crush on, and all the guys are friends with.

Day 21 - I know that I've already said Jason several times, but on this day my gratitude is for Jason and that he is such a good, loveable, hands on daddy.  Our children adore him, and he cares so very much about each of them.

Month of Gratitude - Week 2

Day 8 - I am so grateful for my husband.  He is so kind, supportive and hard working.  On his days off from work he works extra hard around the house so I can have a day off.  Today he was home, and he cleaned like crazy without me even asking him to.  He knows that I have some big parties coming up this month, including Thanksgiving, and he wants to help me get ready for all of that.

I am thankful for a clean bathroom.  I hate cleaning bathrooms more than anything.  Jason cleaned our bathroom really well today.  I felt so loved!

Day 9 - I am thankful for my husbands great job.  I am thankful for a good vehicle.  I ran a ton of errands today, and was able to pay bills.  I'm so grateful.

I am really grateful for Harrison.  As I ran errands all day, he talked my ear off.  He said one funny thing after another.  I wish I could remember every little thing he said.  Every word was a gem!  He fills my life with laughter.  He has totally earned the nickname "Crazy Harry."

 Harry and his egg nog.

Day 10 - I love good books!  I am so thankful that I can read, that I have an imagination and can be transported.  I love it when I read a book and my mind opens up and my perspective changes.  This book that I'm reading right now for book club is really good.  It's perfect to be reading over Veteran's Day weekend.

Day 11 - Happy Veteran's Day!  I am so grateful for our Veteran's.  We especially are aware of it in our home as my husband cares daily for aging and ailing Vet's.  The men and women who have fought for our freedom's are very special people.

Day 12 - I am thankful for my life.  I was home today alone with all six kids.  They played outside for a little bit, in the rain, but we were in the house together the rest of the day.  A few days ago my brother said to me, "You really like kids a lot.  It's a good thing considering you have so many."  Made me laugh.  Yes, my life is crazy.  Yes, I am usually overwhelmed.  Yes, I am SO grateful for the fullness of my experiences as a mother.  I have a good life.  I love my life. 

Day 13 - I am grateful that I can cook.  It gives me so much satisfaction watching my family really enjoy a meal that I worked hard on for them.  I learned how to cook from my mom, and she is an amazing cook.

Black bean chili and cornbread.

Day 14 - I have the best mother!  I am so grateful for her!  She is really one of my best friends, and I feel so blessed because most of my friends get along with their mothers, but are often annoyed with them etc.  I really truly can count my mom as one of my best friends.  We talk on the phone almost daily, we can tell each other anything and everything.  She is loyal and trustworthy, and gives the best advice.  Yep, I have the best mom.  I am really grateful that our relationship has evolved over the years to become what it is today.

My mom and dad.

Month of Gratitude - Week 1

Several years ago most of my extended family (my parents and siblings) were meeting at my home for Thanksgiving.  Several members of the family were going through some very difficult trials at the time.  I wanted Thanksgiving to really be about giving thanks, and thinking of all of our blessings.  

I made this poster, and cut out leaves for family members to write down what they were thankful for and add to our tree daily.  This year we started on November 1st.  Each day I have asked the kids and Jason to each add another leaf.  I am tracking here for you what I thought about each day.

Day 1 - After a late night Trick or Treating, playing with friends and general merriment, we had a rough morning!  Bennett took his first nap in months!  I am SO grateful that he laid down so easily.  I think he was grateful that I laid him down!  He looked so relieved!

Day 2 - I am so grateful for my favorite, sassy, smart, wise, lovely, kind, gorgeous, daughter.  I cannot believe she turned 12 on this day.  I often feel that I am the luckiest mom in the world to be so blessed with the children that I've been given.

 Taken on the Fourth of July 2011 at the Rodeo.

Day 3 - I am grateful that my kids have good friends.  Lily had a slumber party for her 12th birthday, and the girls she invited were so wonderful.  The thing I appreciated the most was how nice they were to our whole family, including all of Lily's brother's.  So far all of my kids have done really well at choosing good friends.

 Fifteen years ago Jason and I went on our first date.  I am so grateful that I had the guts to ask him out!  That's right, I asked him out on our first date.  Don't worry, he stepped up after that.   It was a great date, and all of my greatest blessings have come to me as a result.

Day 4 - We had a conference today at church, so no Sunday School, just a general meeting.  We had to drag Bennett out kicking and screaming, "MY CLASS! MY CLASS!!!!"  I am so grateful that my 2 year old loves church, loves Sunday School and loves his teachers.

Happy Birthday to my Brother's wife, Kristin.  I could not be more grateful that my brother married such an awesome woman!  I love her to bits!

Day 5 - "I'm glad that I live in this beautiful world, Heavenly Father created for me."  The words to one of my favorite songs came to my mind today as I looked at the gorgeous Autumn colors out my window.

Day 6 - Election Day!  I am so grateful that I live in this wonderful country.  I am also very grateful for the women who came before me, including my own ancestors, who worked hard to get the vote for women!

Day 7 - I am so grateful for music!  Very few things in my life have brought as much joy and satisfaction as much as music has.  I am so blessed to be a member of the Portland Ensign Choir and Orchestra.  We are working hard on our Christmas concert right now.

Day of Graditude

I usually forget to take pictures on Thanksgiving because I am so dang busy in the kitchen!  But this year I was determined to take many.  I don't know if I achieved that, but there is definite improvement from years past.  

 I was kinda dreading this Thanksgiving.  For me the day is about gathering together with those you love and feasting in celebration for all the blessings we've been given.  Sadly our family has all moved away in the last few months, and we couldn't travel this year.  We invited 3 family's and none could come!  We ended up begging one of them to PLEASE come!  It was super nice of them to come and be with us, even though they had to leave and go eat dinner with their family before coming back for pie.

We started the day off with Jason taking Glenn and Max the our ward (church congregation) turkey shoot.  In other words they were "shootin' skeet."  Lily stayed here to help me.  She helped me by not getting dressed, watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and sneaking into the kitchen for Muddy Buddies. 

Our friends the Phair's came over with their adorable 3 daughter's.  Alyssa brought rolls.  She went way out, and they were delicious!  Jason carved the turkey.

The table, minus the corn pudding.

The Turkey

Harrison with his girls, Peryn and Amelia.

 Feasting.

Of course, there has to be drama at some point.  He's crying because he doesn't want to wait for pie!

Glenn with his beloved coconut cream pie.  It was my favorite pie this year!  Glenn did a GREAT job with it!

PIES!  I post the Thanksgiving menu on the fridge, and each kid has to sign up to make a dish for the feast, and a pie for dessert.  Harrison signed up for pumpkin, Maxwell did cherry and Lily made the Chocolate Chess pie

 Our friends brought a super yummy double layer pumpkin pie.  Other pies we had were Pear, Peach and Washington Nut pies.

So our day ended up being quite wonderful.  It was really wonderful.  The best way to end the day was a Skype call with my sister in Australia as she was prepping her Thanksgiving food for their big dinner on Saturday.  Harrison and Bennett really liked talking to her.

Thanksgiving BABY!!!!

Thanksgiving was at my house this year.  There were 12 people all together.  That is relatively small.  Last time I hosted Thanksgiving dinner we had 19 guests.  It was an awesome day!!!  It was also Harrison's fourth birthday, so we had candles in the pie and opened presents after dinner.

Bennett was so fussy and tired when the crowd arrived.  So grandpa gave him a pen, and for some reason that put him to sleep.





For some reason, I have no pictures of the actual dinner.  I know it's because I was running around like a turkey with his head cut off, pun intended.  Anyways, we had Harrison open his presents after dinner.

He is opening some John Deere tractors that Jason got years ago, when he worked John Deere.  Jason finally decided that this was the time and child to give them too.  Harrison was thrilled!!!

Opening his Buzz Light Year Snuggie - that's right, a blanket with sleeves!!!  Needless to say, He LOVES it!

His favorite present by far was the big one.  It was a Star Wars Clone Trooper Blaster aka GUN!  He LOVES it.  The problem is that Max really loves it too, so they spent the next 3 days fighting over it.  It was a lovely end to the Holiday weekend.

Mom, Bailey and Garrett (Bailey's fiance) skyping with Brooke, who is in Australia.  Bailey got to show off her ring to the Aussie's.

THE PIES!!!!

Maybe the most important part of the day!



blueberry sour cream - made by Corinne Decorated by Kylie



Dutch Apple and Pear Custard - made by Corinne



Chocolate Chess and Blackberry  - made by Corinne



Close up the pretty blackberry pie



Cherry Pie  - made by Corinne

Washington Nut and Pumpkin Pies - made by mom (Cindy)

All the lovely pies!!!

After Dinner and Dessert play time on the Wii with Uncle Jackson.

Benny getting some cream from Aunt Kylie's finger.  He really liked this!

Getting Drunker...

Smacking his delicious lips...hmmmm...

In a blinding sugar coma at this point.  I think she fed him a whole container of whipped cream.

At one particularly stressed out point I found Harrison stuck in the baby swing.  I will admit that I left him stuck in there for about 10 minutes before getting him out.  You can tell by his face that he was bummed to find himself stuck.

I told him I wouldn't get him out unless he would smile.  So he gave me this great smile.