mom’s the only one who isn’t ready…
So fun to wake up to rain this morning in San Diego…
(This picture was taken last January…probably the last time we saw rain!)
Happy Halloween everyone! We had a great one this year. Ellie was a Pumpkin Princess and Addison was a Ballerina Princess. These are some pictures I took at Kenny’s Law Firm. They have a Halloween party every year so the attorneys can show off their kiddos. Kenny had fun showing off his princesses. :)
Addison wanted to be a ballerina so badly and was in love with herself in this costume! She hasn’t taken if off all week and is constantly dancing and pointing her toes.
Climbing the rocks…wouldn’t want to be too lady like now would we???
The whole fam
TRUNK-OR-TREAT
As for Kenny and I…we came up with some last minute costumes for our Ward Trunk-or-Treat Party. We decided to go as “ourselves from High School.” I know – pretty scary, right?
I had a great time ratting my curly hair. My hair SO wants to look like this every day. It took me 10 minutes to do. As far as the dress goes…I bought it when I was fifteen and the waist was SO freakin‘ tight! I could hardly breath in it! I felt like Elizabeth Swan on Pirates of the Caribbean and told Kenny to not be at all surprised if I passed out. At least I got the thing zipped up (with amazing strength on Kenny’s part!). Babe – loved the pegged pants and Letterman’s Jacket (go Flyers!). I have a lot of great memories of you in that jacket. Most of which I won’t be mentioning on the blog. ;) The girls LOVED my hideous prom dress (the puffier the better) and thought it made me the most beautiful princess around. Only Addison was wise enough to mention “you have funny hair mommy!” Car – I know you’re loving this look since you teased us about the way we looked back in the day when we thought we were cool!
Girls with their daddy
Girls with their friend Cinderella
All four of us. Quite a random group!
Crazy Crew! My friend Angie is dressed in all black with “OIL” written on her cheeks. Very creative guys. :)
PARADE AT ELLIE’S PRE-SCHOOL
Ellie with her cute Pre-K friends
TRICK-OR-TREAT! HALLOWEEN NIGHT…
The girls LOVE LOVE LOVE our huge Frankenstein. They get seriously attached to this guy each year and want to hug him good night before bed and check on him first thing in the morning!
Ellie found Raggedy Ann (a neighborhood buddy) and the two of them were off! Addison stuck with mommy and at several houses that had a spooky feel would say “that’s too scary for me mommy!” We chose our houses wisely. :) Then after each house she’d hold out her candy and say “can you open this mommy?” Funny that she is SO into the candy. Ellie never was at age 2. She just wanted to organize it into piles (a girl after my own heart).
Assessing the loot. Another great Halloween! 
We took the girls to a local pumpkin patch Saturday and had a great time. It was like a mini carnival with a petting zoo and rides. The girls loved it! Bring on Halloween!
I love the excitement on Ellie’s face in these pictures…pure JOY!
I’m in a total post vacation FUNK. The last few days I’ve felt like I’m moving in slow motion! I am the worst at unpacking. Because of my perfectionist nature, something that should take a couple of hours ends up taking a week. I start to put my make-up back in my bathroom drawer and realize the drawer organizers could use a wipe down. Next thing you know I’ve torn apart all of my bathroom cupboards and drawers. Bathroom looks like a bomb went off. I start to put Addison’s p.j’s back in her drawer and think hmmm…might make more sense if I had the girls pajama’s in the same drawer in Ellie’s room since I always take them to her room after bath time. Next thing you know the girls’ clothes are everywhere and I’m completely re-organizing closets. Then of course life is busy and we’ve got places we need to constantly be so instead of getting things put away and finished, all I’ve been doing is creating messes and more work for myself. What’s wrong with me??? It’s a problem. Admitting it is the first step…right?
In other news, Ellie has been obsessed with “hot lava and bears” lately. Where she came up with this combo I’ll never know, but several times a day we all have to run and hide because of the hot lava and bears that are going to get us. While we hide, her imagination runs wild as she explains the danger that surrounds us all. Poor Addison’s eyes are wide as saucers as she clings to her blankie and repeats “hot lava coming mommy…bears coming mommy!” I think she actually believes everything Ellie says. It’s now the norm for Kenny to expect at least a twenty minute hide-out with the girls each night after work. He’s learned to take reading material with him. All in a day!
Last year for our ten year anniversary Kenny and I went to Italy. It was the first time since becoming parents that we’d planned a getaway without the girls. We had such a great time – yes, Italy is amazing – but what we really loved was just taking time out to be a couple again. (I don’t think we even realized how much we needed a break until we finally took one!) We decided on that trip that every year we need to go on one vacation together without the kids. Even if it is just for a weekend…even if it is just to Mesquite, Nevada! So this year when summer was coming to an end and we were getting excited for Fall we decided nothing sounded more fun then heading back to Virginia. We lived in Charlottesville, Virginia for three years while Kenny attended Law School. We made great memories, great friends and enjoyed unforgettable Falls. Living in San Diego is great, but the one thing I miss more than anything is a Virginia Fall. So that is where we escaped to this year. Virginia was as beautiful as I remembered it and we had a fabulous vacation.
Of course when we lived in Virginia we got our fair share of Washington, D.C. time. Kenny and I drove there often to tour the various museums and monuments. Then when friends and family would come to visit, they’d all want to see D.C. too. By the end of our time there I was actually getting burned out of D.C. and didn’t think I’d ever need to go again in this life time! But two years ago they added the WWII Monument and we never did get to see the Holocaust Museum (I think I avoided this one knowing how sad it would be). So…we spent the first day of our vacation in Washington D.C. seeing what we hadn’t before. Making sure we have now covered every square inch of the place!
I learned so much in the Holocaust Museum. It’s hard to believe that something like that actually happened. It’s simply heartbreaking. Impossible to take it all in without tears streaming down your cheeks.
The WWII Monument was beautiful and I was so glad we got to see it. What a neat dedication to all the men who served in that war. **Kenny and I laughed about this picture. We waited forever for the little old man to move so we could take our picture. Wasn’t going to happen! :)
So after a fun day in downtown D.C. we headed to our home away from home … Charlottesville,Virginia. Kenny and I are planners and we wanted to try really hard to have a relaxing vacation. The plan: to have no plan. This proved to be harder for us than we thought so we finally decided that we would just make a list of things we for sure wanted to do while in Virginia (not a planned itinerary, just a low key list!). The first thing on our list was to go on “our walk” each morning. In Virginia we lived in beautiful apartments (I worked three jobs to pay for rent!) that were five minutes away from Thomas Jefferson’s home, Monticello. There is a gorgeous trail through the trees that ends at Monticello that Kenny and I used to walk on several times a week. It was simply beautiful, especially in the Fall, and we couldn’t wait to take a walk on it again. Funny – because I remember walking on this trail, holding hands and planning our future…thinking about when we would someday have kids. Now we were walking on this trail, holding hands talking about how nice it was to have a break from them!
The end of our trail. The bridge takes you through the trees to Monticello!
Fun to visit the Law School! The grounds are so beautiful right now. I love the smell of this building. Does smart have a smell? :)
Another thing on our “not an itinerary to-do list” was to eat at Bodo’s Bagels. This place is famous and it is only in Charlottesville. Best turkey bagel sandwich I have ever eaten. Plus it’s cheap. You can get an amazing bagel sandwich for only three bucks. Kenny and I used to eat here all the time because aside from loving the food it was all we could afford. Thankfully, that isn’t the case anymore and we wondered if it would still taste as good as it did when we were on a strict budget. Absolutely delicious! We ate there four times on this trip alone!
Aside from so many fun spots to visit, I also had to visit my favorite people in Virginia. While Kenny was going to Law school I taught 4th grade at Central Elementary. The staff and students there were the best and quickly became my family while I was away from home. We had some really fun times together and I couldn’t wait to see everyone again. I stopped by the school to say hi and was greeted with a pretty warm welcome. It was the best! Love and miss you guys so much!!
As a teacher, I loved all of my students but I bonded with a couple of sisters who I will never forget. I taught the older sister, Chasity, my first year at Central and then I taught her little sister, Kristen, my third and last year at Central. Something about these girls…smart, kind, funny, completely adorable. I loved them so much and still do. We have kept in touch and e-mail each other all the time. They lost their mom two years ago to cancer and my heart just broke for them. They are so strong and have ended up being such neat examples to me. I just love them! The pictures above are of my little Kristen when she was in fourth grade (the one to the right of me in both pics). Kenny and I went by to visit her and had so much fun catching up. (Chasity is away at her first year of college…how old does that make me!!??)
I just LOVE this girl!
One of my favorite things about Virginia. Beautiful red barns pop up all over the place. I love the way they look against all the greenery. So country. Kenny always says he is going to buy one for me someday. (Don’t ask me what I’d do with it!?) I have so many pictures of red barns from Virginia I could do a scrapbook of just barns. Hmm – maybe I will someday.
Next thing on to-do list…Carters Mountain (just past Monticello). Perfect place to spend a day during the Fall. Red barn, apple orchards, pumpkin patch, homemade treats, hay rides and amazing panoramic views. Nothing says Fall like Carter’s Mountain!
Enjoyed dinner Friday night with my best friends from Virginia, Kim and Kristin. So much fun catching up with you guys. Miss you both so much! Thank goodness for face book and blogging! ;)
Last day of our trip we took the scenic Skyline drive to the airport. It was beautiful. Our goal on this trip was to feel Fall. Mission Accomplished!
In Virgina right now. Enjoying this…
WEDDING DAY! The happy couple coming out of the temple. Married for time and all eternity. What a special day for Austin, Dayna and everyone who loves them!
Some of Austin’s cute friends waiting to see the new married couple!
Dayna with the little girls before the reception (my Ellie and Addison, Carly’s little Claire, and Dayna’s niece Macy). These shots were fun to get! Just seconds after these pictures were taken Addison pulled up her dress and both babies started bawling. I think Dayna will be waiting a while before having children! ;)
MOM & DAD
ERIN & KENNY
CARLY & SHAWN
FUN TO SEE THESE PEOPLE…
My cousin Jason and his cute wife Marci. So fun catching up with you two!
Me and Doc. Booth. Dr. Booth delivered me into this world and has always been our family doctor. If you live in St. George you know and love Doc. Booth! He taught my biology class in college (that was an experience I’ll never forget!) and teased me the whole semester. He pretty much says and does whatever he wants…and gets away with it! He’s so much fun and is loved by the whole community.
Mom and I with the happy couple…happy because the reception is almost over and the honeymoon is about to begin!
Cutting the cake.
Congrats you two! We love you so much and loved being a part of your special day!
MOMS & DAUGHTERS
Car and I with the chefs…they know better than to leave the food up to us!
Happy Birthday Claire! My sweet niece turned one on September 28th. What a little doll! Love the homemade butterfly cake Car. Very impressive. Can I hire you for Ellie’s birthday in January? MONDAY – spent all day running last minute errands and packing…packing our whole house and then some. I have developed a finely tuned skill for over packing. Really – I’m famous for it.
TUESDAY – regular morning of running the girls around to dance/gymnastics, etc. and then headed to St. George, UT. Arrived at 3:00 am Wednesday. Sleep deprivation now begins.
WEDNESDAY – fun day with family. Kenny and I went through the temple with Austin and Dayna for their first time. It was a special day and I’m so glad we were there with them. Late night hanging out with family.
THURSDAY – Threw a wedding shower for Dayna at my mom’s house. Fun girls night!
FRIDAY – Lots of last minute wedding preparations. Dinner that evening at Dayna’s with her cute family. Addison had an allergic reaction and broke out in a rash. Note to self: no eggs for Addie.
Also enjoyed lots of cousin time.
Love spending time with little Claire. Love that Addison is past this busy stage. 
Happy October everyone! My pumpkin lights are up and glowing! One thing I absolutely love about having little ones is that I now have others to share my excitement for holidays and lights. I love holiday lights. I’m always the first one in my neighborhood to put up Halloween and Christmas lights. I do it early because I love the lights so much and want to enjoy them as long as possible. I like to add a little something each year to the outdoor decorations too. My goal for Christmas is to someday seriously resemble the Griswolds. (I drive Kenny nuts with this goal since he ends up helping install the plethora of lights) So now the girls are into lights too and this week we started a fun tradition. After baths the girls put on princess dresses like always and then run outside in the dark to turn on the lights and twirl around them. They look so happy and carefree spinning around the lights laughing and singing. I love watching them. Happy October. Happy lights.
I found this today when I went to walk up my stairs during Addison’s nap. Apparently Ellie decided to put all of her “friends” down for a nap too. Each stair does make a perfect little bed…doesn’t it.
So this week Kenny has been spouting off a few of his own “good things.” His list for the week includes: his Chargers season tickets, his NFL Sunday Ticket on DirecTV (complete with the “Super Fan” package that makes all his games in HD), the “red zone” channel that instantly takes him to the most exciting football game on at any given moment, the “Game Mix” channel that let’s him watch eight games at the same time, the MountainWest Sports Network that finally lets him watch all the BYU and Utah games (yes, he’s a fan of both teams), his DVR that records all his games so that he can be an attorney, dad and husband during the waking hours, the sleep he was able to get during the offseason to build up enough stamina to stay up late every night to watch his games, oh… and let’s not forget his incredibly cool wife who still tolerates his football addiction (the season is still young). He is a happy man.
So You Think You Can Dance live!!! What a total blast! Kenny and I went with our friends Angie and Eliot (also major fans of the show) to see the dancers on tour. The show was INCREDIBLE! The crowd was going crazy, the music was so loud, and the dancing was AMAZING! I LOVED IT! It was hard sitting to watch the show without wanting to jump up on stage and start dancing! The dances were even more fun to see in person and I loved the dancers this year. They have such fun personalities and are so talented. We had a great time and I’m already looking forward to doing it again next year! It was “buck y’all…for real!”
Finally good stuff on TV! Fall line-up has begun and our DVR is smokin‘! Wasn’t Office the best? Love that show.
The best way for us to stay in touch! Sign up for my newsletter so you’ll never miss a post! You’ll also gain access to all of my home and organization printables.
