Thanksgiving weekend

We had a wonderful time celebrating Thanksgiving this year. We loved focusing on the things we love the most - our faith, family and friends. We enjoyed a visit from Allen's youngest brother, Jake and his wife Erica who spent their break in Seattle visiting with us and Erica's two siblings who live in the area. It was great fun to have them in our home for a couple days during their visit and they enjoyed taking a tour of MS with Allen, playing football together on Thanksgiving day and hanging out with us at night after their sightseeing. Unfortunately I didn't get any pictures of their visit but we loved having them with us. 

We joined Erica's family for dinner for Thanksgiving dinner and enjoyed getting to know them better. Our family before dinner:

 After dinner we drove down to Vancouver to spend the rest of the weekend with my sister and her family. As soon as we got to Vancouver (at about 10 p.m.) Allen dropped me off at Target to meet my sister and older nieces to start the black Friday shopping madness. I'm thoroughly disgusted that stores are starting their shopping earlier and earlier and encroaching on families spending the day together but there I was shopping anyway. It was fun to be together until the wee hours of the morning and we stood in line for nearly 2 hours to make our purchases but it is a fun memory.

On Friday the little kids stayed in their pjs for most of the day and played games together and generally ran amok. My sister and I braved the mall for some more shopping and I was amazed at the stamina of my teen nieces. We got some good deals and had fun. The Jackson's very graciously cooked a 2nd Thanksgiving dinner for us so we could enjoy the meal together. Seriously yummy food!

On Friday night Allen, Carter and I joined the Jackson's at the Forgotten Carols. I have seen it several times but it was new for Allen and Carter. We had a great time and loved the message of the play.

 Saturday morning we got up and took the little girls to see Pinaklicious, the Musical. I was so excited when I found out it was being performed in Portland because I had heard so many great things about it. It was DARLING and did not disappoint at all. It was a small cast and only about 1 hour long so it was a great length for a younger audience.

 At the performances on Thanksgiving weekend there was an all pink Santa that you could have your picture taken with after the performance. It was adorable. We went out for treats after the performance.

We had a wonderful, relaxing Thanksgiving weekend and enjoyed so much being together with both sides of our family during the week. We are grateful for the abundant blessings in our lives.

Allen's Half Marathon

One of Allen's resolutions for 2012 was to run a half marathon. Of course when he set this goal he had no idea what a crazy year we would have - moving, new job requiring LOTS of hours (70-80 per week), being the YM president both in ABQ and in our new ward in WA. You get the idea! But he was determined and was able to find a race scheduled for a Saturday (most are on Sundays).

The only race that worked for our schedule was a trail half marathon. Allen diligently trained over a few months but he always ran on paved roads and trails. He really had no idea what to expect running a trail race. Afterwards he said he thought he would be running on a groomed trail but it ended up being a very "rustic" run with no grooming - rocks, roots, mud, etc. It also took him quite a bit longer than he was expecting because of the rough trail and because it was only 1 runner wide. But he completed the race AND his goal and we couldn't be more proud of him!

I waited (and waited and waited) with the kids while Allen ran. We went to breakfast and ran a few errands while he was running. As we were waiting for him to cross the finish line I started snapping pictures of my kids. I think these turned out so great and GUESS WHAT? -  No one is in a matchy, darling outfit. No one has a cute hair accessory and I didn't preplan the location. Sometimes I forget that the circumstances don't have to be perfect to get great pictures. It is a good reminder for me to just take pictures and not worry so much about the details!

 In the end Allen said he will probably never run another trail race but he accomplished his goal and has gotten the running bug again! (I have more pictures coming from the race photographer but they won't be here until January)

Mom's 70th Birthday

My mom turned 70 in early November. Over the summer my siblings and I started to plan a surprise party for her. She had no idea we were coming to Colorado for her birthday and we caught her by total surprise when we showed up on the front porch singing "Happy Birthday" on November 1. Nicole and I flew in from the PNW and Teresa and Steve drove over from Utah and were able to pick us up at the airport.  I took a fun video of her reaction when she realized we were all there to celebrate her big day with her. 

The next day we spent the entire day getting ready for her birthday party that we hosted that evening. I did most of the planning from a distance with my mom's dear friend Kathy who helped me with the details.  We served a ton of different desserts and had about 50 of her friends attend. It was a really fun night and I loved seeing my mom's friends gather around her to help her feel loved. My parents are so blessed to have amazing friends in their area.

Mom with some of her guests:


The 6 of us at the party:

 

Mom with her darling friend Kathy who helped me plan the party:

 

 

We spent all day Saturday hanging out and playing together. It was honestly really strange to be together with no kids or schedules. All day long I kept worrying that I needed to go home to take care of someone or something. We cannot remember another occasion when we have all been together without any of our kids. It was so much fun! We were able to attend the temple together in the morning and spent the rest of the day shopping (so much shopping), eating out and going to the movies. It was glorious and went way too fast. We stayed up late chatting and had a great time together.

Sunday morning was spent at church before we all had to go our separate ways and head home. We took a few pictures together before we left.

 

 

 I am so grateful we were able to celebrate my mom's birthday with her. As I get older I realize how very lucky I am to have such wonderful parents and siblings that I love and am friends with. The weekend went so quickly but it was wonderful to be together if only for a short time!