Gobble. Gobble.

 Thanksgiving this year was in Ephraim at my uncle Marlin and aunt Cynthia's house.  There house is the perfect house to do it at because its SO big and theres enough room for everyone.  We were excited we got to see Michael and Katelyn and their kids as well as Marlins other kids but we missed seeing Matt and Britney (seems like forever since we saw them).  Neal and Krista had off years with their spouses so they were gone, and Brett and Mark didn't come so it was pretty small in numbers  but the food was SO yummy just the same.  I love Ephraim too, so it made it fun to go back there and visit.  My Grandma came over for lunch too from the assisted living home she lives in, in Ephraim.  It was neat to see her and sit close to her.  I remember childhood memories of hugging and cuddling with my grandma.  She was always a little larger woman but it made for the best cuddling and hugs.  I wouldn't have traded it for anything.  Her skin was always so soft that just sitting by her this weekend made me miss those days growing up with her listening to her spitfire sense of humor, spouting some outlandish comment towards my grandpa and making us all laugh.  She's quieter now and more withdrawn.  She probably misses my Grandpa.  I didn't have much to say to her and I knew her hearing was bad so she couldn't understand me most of the time anyways but I was glad she was there.
  Anyways, all in all, Thanksgiving was great!  Saw some family, ate a BUNCH, and stressed out a little about whether or not to go black Friday shopping.  Didn't.

 This is a hat that Katelyn made that I fell in love with and just had to get for Jaq.  Its so cute!  She is super talented.  It was fun to watch her in action this weekend crocheting her hands off and whipping out these in just a few hours.

 These pictures were actually after Thanksgiving.  I was putting our Christmas lights up on our house, (thats right I PUT THEM UP ALL BY MYSELF THIS YEAR, and didn't fall off the house or the ladder or get electrocuted....) Anyways I made her sit on the grass and watch me so she wouldn't wander up the ladder but she started to get cold and tired....obviously....that when I came down to look for her I found her like this on my kitchen floor.  I think she was sick cause she doesn't normally crash like this, but it did make for a super cute picture.

Friday night after Thanksgiving Cordelle's brother Cameron and his wife Lisa had offered to watch our kids over night so we could go on a over nighter date!  It was so fun!  It was really their Christmas gift to us last year but unfortunately it took us almost a whole year to work out.  The kids LOVED it though.  I am so glad they are able to get to know their family more.  They had a blast. So here is Jaquelle, Michelle, Anne, and Emily jumping in leaves. 

The rest of the weekend was very relaxing.  We sent Tallie to do our Black Friday shopping and she got some great things!  We were able to stop by and see our good friends Dave and Laura and I'll tell you it was way too long since we've seen them. Matter of fact we called them up because Cameron and Lisa live in the same town as they do but come to find out, they moved!  Like a year ago.  Sometimes we are ultra lame with keeping up with friends.  We miss them and it was so fun to catch up and see how big their kids have gotten. 

BREAKING DAWN partay!

As is tradition, every time a Twilight movie comes out my friends Krista and Tawna throw a party!  There are games and gift exchanges but this year it all had a wedding theme.  The whole party was like we were at Bella and Edwards reception! They went all out, it was great.  I even made some wedding announcements for it.  (Even though the real one in the movie was WAY more simple...it was fun to do).  Here's some pics from it!

Time out for Women!!

This year for Time out for women, the event was in St. George, so naturally I thought my mom and sisters would be going up to the salt lake TOFW like they normally do and I would go down here with some friends.  So I decided to ask some of my friends in the ward if they wanted to come and started getting a group together, booked a hotel room, bought their tickets etc.  Come to find out my mom, aunts, cousins, sister, everyone were not going to SL but were coming down to St. George too!  Bad communication I guess.  Long story short, I was kind of in a bind.  My mom really wanted me to come stay in their condo with everyone, but I couldn't exactly back out of the group I created of my friends.  Not to mention I had invited my little sister to come and go with me before either one of us knew my mom was coming down here too.  Well Tallie (my sister) wanted to stay with me and my friends and so now I felt added guilt that she should be with my mom too.  I ultimately was willing to cancel the hotel and have all of us stay in the condo with my mom and aunts.  However, they didn't let us know soon enough if there was room in the condo until it was too late to cancel the hotel.  So we ended up staying in separate places but I felt kind of torn to stay with my friends or my family the whole time.  It was kind of crazy!  Silly I know, but next time I am just going with the flow. :)
  The event itself was as awesome as always!  Hillary Weeks was hillarious.  Brad Wilcox and the other presenters were awesome!  I just love it!  Every talk this year was fantastic.  What a boost seriously.  My friend Krista ushered so she was able to get us some great seats near the front. Bonus!  Anyways as always it was such a treat!  And hey we made the TOFW facebook page!  This picture (left) was put on it! Sweet huh?
  Anyways I totally should have taken more pictures cause you get 5 crazy women in a hotel room and there are bound to be some great photo moments.  But I'm lame and only took some of us during the conference.  Here they are...

Brittlyn and Wendy

Wendy and Tallie

Krista, Tawna, and Lethe

  Tallie, Mom, Brittlyn, and Wendy

Halloween 2011

 Here they are: Anakin Skywalker and Queen Amadala!  What can I say the Star Wars is running strong around here.  Such a fun holiday with kids.  We trick or treated for 2 whole hours and most of the time they would have ran the entire time had I not been reigning them back in to keep up with the other neighborhood kids.   

 We spent the day carving pumpkins and painting angry birds, then Neal and Britlyn came over to see the kids and gave them each a big candy bar.  We cooked pumpkin seeds just like my mom used to do and then, as is tradition for us, we got pappa murphy's pizza shaped like a jack-o-lantern and stayed up eating all the peanut candy Seth can't.  This is one of my favorite holidays.  

SUU football game

Cordelle got free tickets to go to a SUU football game and a private tailgate party so we thought, ahh why not?  Turns out it was the MOST perfect day for it! Especially for the last few days of October.  We had a very yummy lunch of pulled pork sponsored by the people who gave the Leavitt Group the tickets and then we watched the game with the kids and they were great and loved it!  They spent most of the time looking for Thor the thunderbird which was fine by me cause they weren't whining.  Jaq even laid down at half time with her blankets and fell asleep right there on the bleachers.  Maybe that's why it seemed like such a well mannered outing?  I even got to sneak over while she was sleeping and watch the last half of the SUU girls soccer team play their last game (SUU football was winning and it started to get boring).  Right when I got there a girl kicked a long ball from the half and scored!  It was really cool.  They were actually really good.  It was a lot of fun watching them.  Made me miss soccer.  I've really got to start playing more than just once a year at summer games.  Even then though, there's nothing like playing on a big field where you can shoot on a real size goal or cross a ball over the field.  Just the sound of them kicking the ball solidly made me nostalgic.  Isn't that weird?

 Every year we go to the Haag's for their infamous halloween party!  Here were some of our friends.

The Walkers...Tain- Happy Camper

                        Ann- The golf of mexico

 Krista and Dayne as Edward and Bella at the prom from the end of Twilight.  She even made him get gold contacts and of course the wig (he's naturally bald.).  She is so funny.

Lisa and Rick Haag as Marge and Homer Simpson.   It was the joke all night that her hair needed some hair viagra cause it was falling over all night.

Matt and Tawna Marriott as The Russian Roulette couple

and us. As Wendy and Dave Thomas.

Witches night out!

 Angela (you would never guess what this girl really looks like from this!!  Fantastic witch costume)

First of all I have to say, I have the funnest friends ever!  My friend Angela decided to throw a witches party and man alive, it was a partay!.  She is SO fun!  Everyone dressed up like witches and they had this whole dinner and treats where all the food was named some ghoulish name.  We had a cackling contest, made up spells etc.  It was funny.  Angela and her sister were the only ones that talked like witches the WHOLE evening but just listening to them was a riot.  I was so glad I went, they seriously went over board with the decor but it was fantastic!  So fun to kick off halloween that way. 

The secret campaign

Cordelle's famous.

Well kind of.

So the company Cordelle works for decided to make some commercials for their personal lines insurance.  Only when Cordelle and the marketing department did the mock ups for the commercials the big wigs decided they did a great job and they didn't need to hire professional actors they could just use the marketing department.  So Cordelle had to quickly discover his inner actor.  You can see the commercials here.  They are mostly playing on the radio and before the movies at the theatres in Cedar City and St. George. People are always commenting on it and telling him they saw him in it....its funny.  He loves it!  They call it the "Secret Campaign." (as you will see from the commercials and is evident from this picture).  He sent this still shot to me one day from the campaign and it made me laugh so I thought I'd share it.

Love these kids

We are doing away with naps because bed time is just not happening with them....needless to say this is how we find her come 6:00 at night.  Poor girl.  How is she even staying on that chair?

 Can you say dear in the headlights look? or CAUGHT!

Our pumpkin lot for the year!

Miss Jaq turns 3!!

My little princess is three years old! Jaq, right now is so fun, I really try all the time to get into serious conversations with her because her face expressions are HILLARIOUS.  She loves her brother and is his little shadow.  Hence she probably knows more about Star Wars than most boys her age.  But she is fine as long as she gets to be princess Leia or Queen Amadalla.  Jaq loves hugs and kisses and gives them out freely by walking up to you and saying "hugs" while motioning you toward her.   She is constantly complimenting me and says things like, "Mom your shirt is really cute" or "Your hair is so pretty." She is all about matching her outfits and I usually can convince her to wear a weather appropriate outfit if I can convince her it matches and it would look REALLY cute.  I honestly don't know where she gets this. But it is very important that she looks pretty or cute every day and she does.  Her hair is SO long right now and probably goes to the middle of her back.  But she thinks she looks like Rapunzel so any hope for me cutting it to make life easier for me is out of the question.  When I do take the time to do up her massive amounts of hair for a 3 year old, she usually  chooses a princess she wants to look like for the day and I am under strict orders to do her hair accordingly.  But honestly, I have to pay her a nickel every time she lets me do it cause its usually tears and screaming! She does love to see herself in the mirror all dolled up though and once I even saw her kissing herself in the mirror?  :)  She loves most girly things like dolls and dress-ups.  But she's well balanced with a brother so she spends a lot of time playing soccer and riding her bike as well. When she's not letting the 3 year old scream demons out, we really do enjoy her sweet company.  What a darling little girl!   We Love you Jaquelle!

The Rapunzel Bike....formally known as the spiderman bike.  But with a new coat of paint and a seat cover made out of a broken "Tangled" umbrella, I saved myself about 40 buckaroos.   Turned out okay....(because you can't see an up close detailed pic) but Jaq was ecstatic to get her own bike! 

 Birthday Cheese ball

 The "very homemade" princess cake (minus the princesses which were a steal from the dollar store)

I love this smug little face!

love it.