Thanksgiving...what can I say about a holiday where you eat more than you think you possibly can and then chill out and veg the rest of the day. Talk about awesome. This was my first Thanksgiving where I had to actually cook something. My Grandma has cooked for over 30 years and due to various reasons, the Thanksgiving tradition of Grandma slaving away for weeks on end to give all of us a great Thanksgiving came to an end this year. What!? We have to cook for ourselves? We'll never compare to Grandma! Talk about terrifying. Luckily for me, the cooking part ended up not being too bad. My mom had the hard part(s) and cooked the majority of it and also hosted everyone. It ended up being a great time. It'll never be like Grandma's, but we'll sure try!

I realized I did not mention things I am thankful for on my blog, so I will do so right now.

- my husband & kids
- my mom & dad and sisters
- our extended family

- our church and its leaders
- our friends and neighbors
- our home
- our good health
- good food
- technology, including but not limited to computers, the Internet, and as a result, online shopping
- our employment which funds the aforementioned online shopping
- memory foam (if you don't have it, you won't understand!)

a tag from courtnie...

This one was a challenge for me. I have THE WORST MEMORY!! So here goes...

Five things I was doing ten years ago:
1. Preparing myself to meet my hubby-to-be
2. Living in Holladay, Utah
3. Working at my first "real" paralegal job
4. Living up the single life
5. Going to school at the U

Five things on my to-do list today:
1. Tackle the laundry
2. Tackle cleaning the rest of the house
3. Shop for thanksgiving
4. Play with the kiddies and tell them I love them
5. Get some work/photoshop time in on the computer

Five snacks I enjoy:
1. Crackers
2. String Cheese
3. Pretzels
4. Trail Mix
5. Granola bars
Yes, these might sound healthy, but the large quantities I consume equal my extra poundage!

Five things I would do if I were a millionaire:
1. Pay off my house
2. Pay off our relatives' houses
3. Pay off the rest of our bills
4. Save for a rainy day
5. Take a fun trip!

Five places I have lived:
1. Layton, Utah
2. Orem, Utah
3. Provo, Utah
4. Salt Lake City, Utah
5. North Ogden, Utah
(I'm a Utah gal through-and-through!)

Five jobs I have had: (this is where it gets embarrassing)
1. J.C. Penney
2. Vanity
3. Old Navy
4. Tanning Salon
5. Last but not least, the hot dog stand at Sam's Club!

Five people I tag:
1. Brooke S.
2. Sandra D.
3. Ellie R.
4. Lindsay B.
5. Candace T.
(In other words, the only people who look at my blog on occasion!!!)

I am thankful for ... Twilight
Had to quickly blog to tell the cyber-world that I LOVED this movie! I thought it was very well done. It was kind of creepy how a lot of it matched my imagination perfectly -- maybe that's why I thought it was so awesome. A few picks that were not my favorite were Jasper and Dr. Cullen. They both could have been a lot better looking, I think. But other than that, I thought the actors were great. I didn't know quite what I thought about Edward when I saw the previews and articles, but he was so perfect. As was Bella. Edward could have had a few more muscles because the book presents him as this statuesque being, but I'm over it.
I have to quickly mention that I was SO GLAD I did not take my husband to the movie! For one, there were like three guys in the entire theatre. But for two, he would have thought I was so weird! A sparkly vampire? Who flies through the forest? What the... I guess you've gotta read the book to understand. He would have been even more mystified about my obsession. But he did mention he wants to come with me when I go see it again. (Yes, I will be seeing this for a second time in the theatre. Told ya I'm obsessed.) So I guess that will be another blog post at another time...

So maybe this isn't particularly blog-worthy to some, but I was so excited today because I saved $109.00 at Smith's! Wahoo! It actually says that I saved $131.00, so I don't know where the $109.00 came from, but who cares! I'm still excited!

I know there are MANY couponers who will outdo me by a long-shot, but this was my first "real" attempt at purchasing things with coupons, other than toothpaste and fruit snacks. That said, I'm obviously not very good at this whole coupon thing, but I thought I'd try it today. My husband asked, "Well, did you get anything we can REALLY eat?" I was so happy because I could respond, "Yes!" Check out my prized receipt, should I frame it? I sadly had to cut it apart so it would fit on one page.


Also, because it's on my mind, I wanted to quickly post that although I did not personally vote for Barack Obama, I am going to do my very best to honor and respect President Obama as the leader of our country. He is (or will be come January 20) the president of my country, and although I know I will disagree with a large number of his policies and opinions, the fact that he is my president deserves respect. I felt so much pride today as I listened to the election results, and I thought about how wonderful our democratic election process is. No matter if the candidates for whom I voted won or lost, and as corny as it might sound, I feel very proud to be an American today.

Even though Halloween is just a memory now, at least I still have pictures of my pumpkins... don't ask me why I like decorating pumpkins, just some weird fettish of mine I guess. The eyeball was the first prize winner in the neighborhood pumpkin contest!

Last year I also won first prize with this one - freaky, I know. I have issues.


Last night we went to the Jazz game, thanks to my sister's beau...it was so much fun! Have I mentioned how much I love this time of year? It's not only the cooler weather, but it's also so much fun to watch basketball and college football all at the same time. For some reason, I quite enjoy watching sports! Notice I said watching... Before the Jazz game started last night, we watched the end of the BYU game out in the hallway of the ESA, and then after the Jazz game ended we were able to catch a few minutes of the Utah game! What a night! Not to mention that all three of "our" teams won! Go Jazz and Utes! (And BYU for Shawn)

My boyfriend

Guess who!

Well, I guess it's about time I updated our October events since it's almost Halloween! We visited the Treehouse Museum to see the "Enchanted Woods." The kids dressed up - guess who!

We also visited the pumpkin patch, which was a prime-time photo opp but I had my camera settings all wrong so my ba-zillion photos turned out blurry!!! Oh well. Here's a couple...

don't ya love the expressions?

And last, but certainly not least (especially since this was one of our first October events), Shawn had a big birthday! Happy Birthday!!

It feels as if October has flown by. Maybe it's the beautiful weather, or maybe it's just there is so much to do as far as fall activities go...

Well, Chance had his sixth birthday. He had no idea what we had bought for him for his birthday, so earlier in the day I asked him to guess. He replies, "Do you know what I hate getting for my birthday? Clothes." And I said, "Well, that makes me feel really bad because Grandma and I bought you a big box of clothes for your birthday." He just sits there and doesn't respond. So the time comes for him to open his presents. He opens everything but the dreaded big box that he knows is chuck-full of clothes. He just stares at the big box. He slowly unwraps it and reluctantly lifts off of the lid. To his COMPLETE SURPRISE, there is a Nintendo Wii inside (thanks to his own contribution, ours, and Grandma & Grandpa's)! He was thrilled, to say the least, and asks, "Is this a dream?" Then he proceeds to do this... (yes, he is lying on the floor)

We had an "impromptu party" earlier in the day. All of the boys were over playing, so I decided we might as well sing Happy Birthday and have cake early while they were all here. I think I'll do that every year, because the boys thought it was Chance's party! And it was MUCH easier!
'Tis the season for photos! Meet cute little Josie...she wanted to be a "big girl" and walk around the grass while holding her mom's hands. If mommy let go, Josie was not happy! But, I think we caught a couple of good ones!
Here's my niece Mylee and her beautiful mother. If I was even a fraction this photogenic, I'd be THRILLED... I tried the whole "backlight/flare" thing that I see when I blog-stalk photographers' blogs - I think it turned out pretty cool! Even though we were sneezing and itching like crazy after being in this field!
Then, my family and I had our photos taken by this cute and talented gal I found online - Sara Boulter. She's only posted a picture of Hannah, but here's the link if you want to check out her site. After seeing Sara in action, I have total lens and camera envy. Sara's photos are so crisp and clear! I need an IS lens!! It's a "NEED!" not a "WANT!"

So I guess one of the problems with blogging is that once in awhile you get "tagged." Tagged? Hmm...thanks Brooke! haha Normally I would ignore something like this, but the tag was actually kind of a funny one. I am supposed to list six quirks about myself. My disclaimer to the following quirks is as follows: Almost all of my quirks can be blamed on my mother! haha! (I love you Mom.)

1. Number one is definitely the fact that I CANNOT STAND to smell like food! Especially breakfast food or anything fried. Bacon, toast, and anything else that could possibly make my hair or clothes smell like food must be cooked outside on the grill.

2. Related to number one, I CANNOT STAND to smell like a campfire! While I'm camping it's fine, but as soon as we walk in the door to home sweet home, anything and everything that was near a campfire while camping is immediately washed!!

3. I do not like misspelled words or poor grammar, and I am not afraid to correct it so watch out!

4. I do not like to be late, and I would almost rather not show up at all than be late.

5. I love Sudoku. The more I think about this one I wonder - is it quirky, or just nerdy?

6. I truly love and still sleep with my baby blankie. Should I really admit that?

7. Oh, and a bonus one. I do not like when fruit has been cooked. Fruit is meant to be served in it's natural state, preferably chilled. Not warmed and served as some dessert or poultry topping.

I tag Lindsay, Courtnie, Ellie, and Jill!

So my husband is a soccer-hater, but I happen to think it's great for a six-year-old! Qualities gained from soccer include learning to play on a team, exercise, practice...what's wrong with soccer? Plus, the uniforms are so cute!

Hannah started taking dancing lessons this week with her best buddies from the neighborhood. She was SOOO excited! It is too cute to watch a class full of three and four-year-olds dance! She started to cry when we had to leave, but I promised her she could return next week. For a few months now, she has been telling me that when she grows up she wants to be a "real ballerina," so to say the least, dance class is like a dream come true for her!

Chance's first day of kindergarten has finally arrived! "Excited" is an understatement - he was absolutely thrilled to go to school! Last night before bed I asked him, "Now, what do you do when your teacher asks you a question?" He replies, "I raise my hand." And I said, "Right. Don't shout out the answer if you know it." Then you could just see the wheels turning in his head, and he exclaims, "I'd better start practicing my math!" Then he mutters to himself, "2+2 is 4. 4+4 is 8." He wanted to be sure he knew all of the answers. I assured him that on his first day of kindergarten there probably weren't going to be too many difficult questions, but leave it to Chance to be as prepared as possible!

new school shoes!
it was like torture for him to wait to wear these until today...

These two cuties came with me to walk Chance into school on his first day...

Shawn's cute "baby" sister Sarah left for Utah State yesterday! What a milestone - moving away from home for the first time! She is a smarty-pants and is attending USU on a scholarship. I am so excited for her. I had to take a picture of her with all of her stuff loaded up in her car, leaving town. I have such fun memories of college - I'm sure she will too... Have fun, Sar!

Well, I'm finally posting some pictures from our trip to Island Park. We all had such a fun time! It was my first trip there, and it is just as beautiful as everyone says it is. On the way home we stopped at Bear World to fulfill Hannah's trip-long request to see a baby bear. I highly suggest Bear World - it was a lot of fun!! I took a TON of pictures so family members, if you're wondering where the millions of pictures I took of each of you are, check out the family website and I'll post the best ones of ya on there...

A classic Chance face...

Me, Porter, Hannah, Shawn

The Redd Kids

Us

My goofy hubby

Aren't we a scary looking family?

A REAL, LIVE BEAR!

Cousins!

I just loved this picture and had to post it. More to come.

So let me know what you think about a topic I've entitled "blogging etiquette." Is "lurking" on someone's blog such a terrible thing?

Let's say, hypothetically, you located a blog of a long, lost friend. Let's also say, hypothetically, this female friend is pregnant with twins, recently had a close relative from California die, and they also have a new cat at home. About week after you "lurked" on the blog, or, let's say, the next day even, while shopping you run into the same person you've been "lurking" on! Do you:

A. Ask her, "What's new with you?" then politely listen to her repeat to you what you already know about her life, trying very hard not to comment with, "Oh, I know. Your new cat is so adorable with those bright green eyes!";

B. Ask her, "What's new with you?" then once she begins telling you about what is new in her life, shyly interrupt and admit that you found and glanced through her blog so you already know that her cat's name is Fluffy and he's adorable; or

C. Strike up a conversation with her by saying, "Good to see you again! Hey, I'm really sorry about your grandpa. Are you getting excited for the arrival of Jack and Jill on May 22nd?" and make her wonder how in the heck you know all about her personal life when you haven't seen or talked to her in fifteen years.

I'm serious!! I'd love to hear what you have to say!!

If anyone asks who my hero is, I am going to reply "any stay-at-home mom."

I've decided to go back to work part-time. My former employer called me and asked if I'd be interested in coming back to work, and probably a little TOO cheerfully, I accepted! I originally quit my job in order to become a full-time, stay-at-home mom. I've been doing it for a little over a year, and unfortunately, I was not very good at it. I always felt like something was missing. It was a weird feeling. I started working this week, and it feels so good to get out and be in the workforce again.

I can honestly say, being a stay-at-home mom is the hardest job in the world!! The funny part is, my kids were SO excited for me to go back to work. I was flattering myself when I thought they would be sad, but they were really happy to go to grandma's! Maybe we were all ready for a break from each other... We'll see how it goes, I guess.

So another random hobby of mine is to play with this really cool keyboard and music editing software that my sweet mommy bought! She lets me keep it at my house so I can mess around with it, even though it is technically hers. Chance wanted to play "I Hope They Call Me On A Mission", but he only knows from G to G on the piano. So, I thought I'd edit it to a simple version without 8th notes so he could play it. He gives it his own little flair with the timing, but he's at least reading the music! I'm going to upload a copy if anyone would like one to try out. Keep in mind - it's EASY! But the nice thing is, once it's learned, they can play it pretty fast. I think it sounds similar, even without the weird timing. I'm pretty sure you can just click on the music below to make it large, and then print it from there...
Speaking of Chance and the piano, he played "Scripture Power" in a duet with me today in Primary. He did not make ONE mistake! I was so proud of him! He does so well under pressure. When he reached the piano he whispered to me, "I'm embarrassed." I told him just to do his best, and I think he played it better than he had ever practiced it at home! Way to go, pal!!

In honor of Pioneer Day, I thought I'd quickly express how grateful I am for the Pioneers. I CAN NOT IMAGINE what they must have suffered to finally arrive in our great state. I am so proud of them, and I am so glad we have a day to honor them. And as my mom and I often discuss, we know that we were not born at that time because we would have been WAY too wimpy!! No central air? How did anyone survive? :) Happy Pioneer Day!

No, Chance didn't get into a fight and have his tooth knocked out - I pulled it out last night because it was loose! His first missing tooth! Can you believe it? The sweet tooth fairy left him four whole quarters! I was told by my sister-in-law Laura that this is the current going rate for the tooth fairy at their house... The other scrapes on his nose are from a bike accident that happened earlier in the week. Believe it or not, he looks a lot better than he did...that's an entirely different story that is too embarrassing to share. Let's just say that Chance does not have a very good mom.

Anyway, Chance made this cute tooth box out of a matchbox in preschool, and has had it carefully tucked away in his top drawer for a few months. He has been patiently awaiting the day that he would actually have a tooth to put inside of it!

I just keep thinking, how can I possibly be old enough to have a kid that is losing teeth??? Time flies!

I have been messing around in Photoshop today and edited this picture of my sister-in-law's graduation. I thought I'd post it just for fun because it's a little different...hope you don't mind Sarah! I took this with my zoom lens so it's not as clear as I had hoped, but I guess it's okay considering I was so far away...