We had Thanksgiving with the Monsons this past week and it was wonderful! It was delightful to spend time with family, make and eat yummy food, and remember all the blessings we have!
And so I just wanted to share some things for which I am most thankful. This whole Thanksgiving season the same two things have consistently hit me as being such enormous blessings:
The first is my Savior, Jesus Christ. I have had the privilege to again come to know Him in my trials this autumn. And though the frustration of this trial is something I would NEVER ask for (ever.) it truly is a blessing to learn anew just how much Jesus Christ loves me and how He is here for me no matter what. I am so thankful that I was raised in a home whose center truly was and is Christ. I am thankful that I continue to grow in my knowledge, understanding, appreciation, and love of Him. Jesus Christ truly is the greatest blessing in my life.
Thankful for these cuties!
But very close behind is the other blessing I can’t get out of my head: my wonderful family! I am so thankful that I came from a happy home where I was loved. I am thankful that Josh also came from a happy, loving home. And I am so thankful that I am able to give a happy, loving home to my children! None of these families are/have ever professed to be remotely close to perfect. But love and joy can still happen even in the imperfection. And so even though it isn’t and can’t ever be actually perfect, it basically is perfect. And I am so thankful!
And this cutie! And thankful to be their mommy!
Being thankful is fun! I think I’ll try and do it all year round!
So thankful for this fabulous man I get to call my own forever!
Halloween is such a big thing to cover! I’m going to to try and do everything justice without making this post 100 years long; we’ll see how I do. 🙂
Let’s start with Josh’s haunt! He decided he was going to make it different this year and not have a game. This was in the name of going trick-or-treating with the kids and me. But alas, we couldn’t find somebody who wanted to skip Halloween and sit with our house while people went through our garage; so he ended up being there the whole time anyway. Oh well.
Let’s begin with the yard. As you approach the house, you see a skeleton pirate captain manning his ship with a stormy sea behind him. There was also all manner of pirate music playing!
On the other side of the driveway, you see a lonely pirate rowing his rowboat.
Also, lest there were any troublemakers…
Josh built this cannon as well as the ship, the rowboat, the stocks, the barrels, and basically any prop that looks piratey. He’s pretty cool. 🙂
Then you enter the pirates’ grotto via the grand entrance. That is, if you dared go in. 🙂
What you see to the left of the entrance is what we gave instead of candy this year: balloon swords! Josh said that by the end of the night, he could make them with his eyes closed!
Within the grotto there were many spooky things like skeletons in cages and spiders galore!
I made the cage. 🙂
But the highlight of everything was definitely the pirate treasure room!
It was really fun to make and arrange the treasure!
And that was the haunt! It was so detail oriented (like everything Josh does) and just a fun experience! But people have definitely become accustomed to the games, because Josh said a good number of kids just ran through, not taking any time to really look at stuff, and then upon emerging looked at Josh and asked “Is that it?”
But I’ll tell you, I was around the neighborhood that night, and even went to “the” houses, and Josh’s was still something extra special even sans game. We went to one house that the kids had been asking about because it was super decorated; and people were genuinely trying to scare the kids who came by. I find that really dumb, because the kids who are out on Halloween are frequently really little kids, like mine, just trying to be a princess and simultaneously get candy. Why would you want to be the house to traumatize toddlers?! But as we made our way home, we heard fun pirate music, saw all of Josh’s cool props, and the fabulously rugged pirate himself, and everything just felt fun and inviting.
Yes, yes. I know I am significantly biased. But really; Josh always makes the best haunt.
Anyway, here’s some more of Halloween!
Carter’s preschool! Carter dressed as the Incredible Hulk! He LOVED every minute being Hulk!
Fay marching in her Halloween parade at school. Cutest witch ever (with lots of sun in her eyes)!
The family at the beginning of the night. Josh–Pirate Captain, Elisabeth–Butterfly, Fay–Witch, Carter–Hulk, Portia–Bumble Bee, Helen–Lady Bug
The trick-or-treating group! We have a tradition of going with some friends in the ward. When we first started, we each had two kids: a girl and a boy. Now we each have four kids! 3 girls and a boy for us, 3 boys and a girl for them. (The babies are behind the camera) It was a little more manageable back when there were only 2 kids apiece; but it is still lots of fun!
Then, the aftermath! The kids had permission to eat all the candy they wanted for about a half hour. So they each got a sucker and spent most of their time on that single sucker. It cracked me up! So, I let them enjoy their suckers while I shamelessly ate all their Kit-Kats!
Nobody made it to the table this year. But the floor was probably more fun anyway. 🙂
Ahhh!! She’s so cute!
Also, here is our adorable niece, Lucy, in her old-lady costume! It was too cute not to share!
I know it’s not quite in focus; but her face is just too perfect!!!!
And now that we have had a marvelous Halloween, we are back to having just a marvelous autumn! Here are some goings on, and most importantly, my mantel display! I am basically THRILLED with how it turned out! It might be my favorite mantel display ever!
So many things came together so perfectly! The sweater pumpkin was a gift from Josh and Carter! They chose it all by themselves! And the wheat business on the right that perfects the symmetry of the display is just some dead weeds from the front yard! I knew it was a good idea to let all our flower beds overgrow!
The Saturday after Halloween was Super Saturday for the ward. This is what the kids did while I was gone.
Josh built a “magic castle”/”hotel room” fort in the basement and had lunch and playing with the kids down there.
And now it is officially the Thanksgiving season! I LOVE Thanksgiving time! It is so fun to have an extra excuse to be grateful for all the wonderful blessings we have!
We had our traditional “Family Party” of writing down as many blessings as we have sticky notes for. This time, instead of scattering them all over the house, we consolidated them onto the back of the “Summer of Adventure” poster.
It really is such a delight to be thankful!
Yesterday, Josh made pretend camping for the kids. That body pillow is the “log” they sit on around the “fire.” This is one of the MANY times I just have to say “This is why kids have dads!”
Helen in the highchair for the first time (at home). I think she likes having a place of her own.
Portia sharing her peanut-butter on a spoon with Helen.
