Thankful Tree

This month we have been growing a gratititude tree in our house. Everyday leaves were added to our "thankful tree" until there were so many, leaves were really falling all over the floor.

It has been fun to see what everyone is thankful for. Our leaves have lots of Luke and family on them, as well as leaves that say things like BYU Football, milkshakes, smiles, & microwave (well, wouldn't you be thankful for one if yours caught on fire and you didn't have one for 2 months? The funny thing is it was Jake who made the microwave leaf, not me!).

Quick Trip

My brother Bob & his fun family came down from Dallas for 2 days to play. We had so much fun I forgot to take many pictures. We played, shopped, ate & watched Michael's basketball tournament....and of course, shared some lucky Luke lovin' time with the cousins! We love you guys!

Thanksgiving Festivities

We went to Don's parents house for Thanksgiving Dinner.

The food was scrumptous.

We feasted...and helped Luke feast too.

We conversed.

We chilled.

We ate pie.

We played.

Hayley & Michael breaking the wishbone.

The games were intense.

Thanksgiving Tag

The tree was trimmed.

A day of giving thanks with the ones we love.

Cherrio Luke!

At 7 months old, Luke is always doing new things.

He loves to stick everything in his mouth, so we decided to try his skills with a new food.

Luke loves being outside and watching everyone run around.

Jake left his toy bucket a little too close for Luke but Luke didn't mind at all!

He is on the move now, mainly stuck in reverse but he does a good circle too!

And of course, if you ever need to snuggle, Luke is the baby for the job!

Birthday Fun

Happy Birthday Don!

This month Don celebrated another birthday.
We had fun with his parents coming for fun the night before & partied again on his birthday.

Good food, fun and cake balls 2 nights in a row, what could be better?

Even the ice cream scoop was tasty....

We love you Dad!

Michael missed the 2nd party because of bball practice and young mens at church, but he caught up with Don at the end of the night for a little birthday root beer and NCIS. Life is good!

Playing Catch-Up

Where to start...

Well, a year ago Michael took the SAT's through Duke University and we got his scores in January. He scored 1040 and a 500 on the writing portion. While those scores are good enough to get into many colleges, we are proud to say Michael decided to stay in school and is doing great in the 8th grade :)

But why blog about this now you might ask? Apparently Michael did so great as a 12 year old that he got this fancy State level medal in the mail this fall. Being the modest boy he is, Michael didn't want a picture with the medal, so here it is.




Michael has also been busy this fall playing on the 8th grade basketball team. He is working hard and keeps getting taller, passing me up this summer. Here's a picture of him heading out to a tournament this week-end.

Trevor has wrapped up another season in soccer and did outstanding. He played goalie a lot this season and had the most saves for the team. He plays hard and loves the competition.

One of Hayley's favorite things is gymnastics. You could say it makes her flip out!



Jake is always on the run, playing games and keeping us laughing. He helped unpack boxes at his grandparents new house and found all the fun hiding places to show the rest of the kids on Thanksgiving. He sure keeps things lively around here!


We can't have a post without a picture of Luke! He is up to so much, he will get his own post, but here is a fun picture of him trying to crawl this week.

Surgeon General's New Warning

I'm not sure how he did it, but Trevor had more candy than all of the other kids combined...like 4 times as much candy. He went with the good ole' pillow case and said he weighed it when he came home and it was 10 pounds. I believe it! He was lovin' it...for about 24 hours.

Then came the groaning and the massive stomachache. As Trevor looked up at me with a pained face, he said:

"You know, you just shouldn't mix your candies. Tootsie Rolls and SweetTarts just don't mix well together!"

A week later, and I still don't think he has eaten another piece of candy. So a warning to all, read your labels and be careful mixing your candy!!

The After Party

One of the best parts of Halloween is the after party...the dumping and sorting of the loot after trick-or-treating is over. We stick on Charlie Brown's The Great Pumpkin and go to town, sorting, swapping and eating.

Hayley was pretty excited about her candy.

Tired Jake...

No candy for Luke but he did grab a loose skeleton and drooled on it for a while

Halloween Fun

Herimone Granger, Percy Jackson, Obi-Wan, a frog and a scary 8th grader

Pumpkin Time!

Cool Kids

2 weeks ago the school had basically a Just Say No to Drugs week, like the day they could wear sunglasses because they were too cool for drugs. That day was also the day Hayley's class had career day and she dressed up like a teacher. Check out these cool (& smart!) kids :)

International Night Out

Each year our elemetary school hosts an International Night Out where the kids get to march in a Parade of Nations, give performances on Taiko Drums & get to sample foods from all over the world. It is crazy but everyone loves it.

HAYLEY IN THE PARADE

TREVOR, THE ALL AMERICAN BOY, IN THE PARADE

JAKE DANCING TO THE TAIKO DRUMS

MICHAEL CHOWING DOWN ON THE SUSHI