Thanksgiving

We had a great Thanksgiving! We spent Thanksgiving with Chad's family. It was fun to spend the day with everyone. We had tons of food (as usual), and great company.

The girls spent hours scouring the ads, and planning our shopping route for the next day. We even took a trip to Shop-Ko to start our shopping. I couldn't believe how many people were out shopping. It was nice for us to get out of the house for a little while.

We also made gingerbread houses that evening to get ready for Christmas. The kids had so much fun. Our house had to many little hands pushing candy on very hard, so it needed a little repair (more than we could give it). However, we still brought it home to display for everyone.

The day after Thanksgiving, Kerri, Shanna, and I left the house at 3:20 to head out for the big shopping day. We had so much fun. I decided that I was on a shopping high. I loved being the first person to get things - it was great. Thank you Trevor for watching the kids (although Owen had only been up about a minute when I got home). I can't wait for the next time that we all get to go shopping again!

Of course I had to make a slide show to show you all of our pictures. This is a long one, so grab some popcorn! We hope you all had a great Thanksgiving!

BSU Football

I just have to share a quick cute thing that Owen did tonight. Tonight Claire and I had a girls night out at our friends house were 5 grown girls, and 7 other girls watched Hairspray. It is a fun movie. So, the guys all went and watched the BSU game. I'm not sure how the game ends (although it wasn't looking to good for Boise), but Owen sure had a great time. I went to pick him up on my way home and the whole way home he said he "watched football," in his own cute way. When I just put him to bed his last word was "football." I think he is definitely all boy. It is so much fun to watch them grow and learn new things. I think Chad has a new football watching partner.

Gratitude Journal Day 10

Today I am grateful for . . .

1. My family. I have a wonderful family. Even though I don't see them much, we talk often and have so much fun when we are together. I won't get to see them this Thanksgiving, but am looking forward to Christmas. We will have so much fun. My parents are always willing to listen when I need them to, and they are wonderful grandparents. My kids just love them (although they are constantly bribing them!). My brothers and sisters are all great, and we all get along so well. I love you guys!!!

2. Chad's family. It is so much fun to get together with all of them, and we have so much fun. I am looking forward to spending Thanksgiving with them.

3. Christmas music. Yes, I am already listening to it. Chad tells me I can't listen to it until after Thanksgiving, but I am in full Christmas shopping mode, so I think it is time. My favorite right now - Brad Paisley Christmas - I promise you will love it!!

Gratitude Journal Day 9

Today I am thankful for . . .

1. My dishwasher. I could never live without that thing. My hands are dry enough as it is. I really don't like to empty it, but I love filling it!!

2. Helpful children. I had a few extra kids today, and they were so helpful. I put them to work helping me clean, and the job got done very quickly.

3. Haircuts. One of my friends actually came to my house today and cut my hair and Claire's. It needed to be done so bad, and I can never get away to get it done. Thank you!

Gratitude Journal Day 8

OK, here they are. I am going to steal a few. :-) I will try to catch up the last 2 that I owe.
I am thankful for. . .

1. A break! I just finished up my Thanksgiving Feast with all my preschoolers. That means they won't be back until next week! It was a lot of fun, and fun for them to have their parents come to school with them.

2. ABC.com. Yes, this sounds lame, but I never get a chance to watch TV at night, and I do have a few shows that I love to watch. So, I watch them when I get a chance on the computer. That is the nicest thing. I guess I could break down and buy a DVR, but why when I can watch them for free??

3. Pull-ups. Yes Tania, I too have a bed wetter. Those things have saved my washing machine.

4. Nap time. I just love having a quiet time that I can pretty much count on.

5. Caller ID. Ok so I'm a screener, not that much but some. I just hate answering the phones to telemarketers, and sometimes others (not that much I promise!). It is nice to know who is calling!!

Gratitude Journal Day 5 +

So, my weekend has been crazy, and is not over yet, but I had to take a few minutes to tell you a few things I'm grateful for. I know I owe about 9, but I will do my best, and make up the rest tomorrow. Promise!! :-)

1. Church. I love my church family. About a year ago we were put into a brand new ward, and I was so excited to meet new people. I can honesty say that I have not been let down, and I love all the people there.

2. Good medicine. I have not been sleeping that well, and my kids have the worst cough ever, so last night we all got drugged up, and slept very well. Thank you!!

3. My bank. Yes, this sounds funny, but I go to the bank all the time!!! I know the ladies at the drive up teller very well, and they are so nice. They always give us suckers (for the kids), and are so much fun to talk to. My mom said she was happy to know that I have another mom here in Pocatello.

4. Great family. I am lucky to have many sister-in-laws, and sisters, whom I love dearly. We have so much fun when I am with any of them.

5. Nieces and nephews. I am happy to be an aunt, and love all of my nieces and nephews. We just had a new addition to the Clayson side a few weeks ago (can't wait to meet McKell), and found out today that we will have another new addition in June (Jess, I had a good feeling). I am also getting a new nephew on my side around Christmas. It will be fun to have babies around again.

6. On-line bill pay. (I'm stealing this from Tania). I don't know how I ever found the time before to pay bills. I love technology!!!

7. New windows. When you buy an old house, you get old things - like windows. We lived with them through 1 1/2 winters, and decided we couldn't do it again. We broke down and bought new windows, and I love them!!! My house is staying much warmer, and I don't have to worry about the kids as much.

FHE at the library

We had so much fun for FHE on Monday night. Our sister-in-law Jessica, invited us to come to their library for a family night entitled "Tractors and Treats." (I hope that is right Jess). Anyways, we drove down to Snake River, and had a great time. They have a beautiful library, well decorated, and the kids had a blast. We started with story time with Clifford. Claire was very excited about him, but she feel asleep on the way there, so she wasn't fully awake once it was time to meet Clifford. Owen loved him, and kept giving him high 5's and hugs. I had to pull him away.

After Clifford, we made some crafts with the kids, and then went to see the tractors and have "treats." We had a lot of fun. Thanks for dinner Jess, it was yummy! It is always fun to hang out with everyone!

One of the many hugs that Clifford got from Owen.
Kerry and Kate joined in on the fun.

Annie and Jessica working on their fairy catcher.

Claire and Mommy showing off our artwork.

Kate, Annie, Claire and Owen in front of a tractor. Owen loves tractors!!!

Gratitude Journal Day 4

Today I am grateful for . . .

1. Good friends. I just have some great friends, who are always willing to help me, and listen when I need them. I am so lucky to have friends who know what it is like to be in my shoes, and who take the time to be here for me. Thank you.

2. My kitchen. Yes, it may be old, but it can fit many. I actually had 10 kids here for lunch today - long complicated story. Anyways, I didn't know where I was going to put them all, but with my counter and table, they all fit and we had room to spare.

3. The gospel. I just love having a membership in the church, and the opportunity I have to share that with my kids. I hope that I can portray the love I have of the gospel to them, and my commitment to live by its standards. I know my life would not be better off without it.

Gratitude Journal Day 3

Today I am grateful for . . .

1. Speedy lunches. You know the kind you can just whip up in 5 minutes for the kids. I hate to make lunch. Dinner, I don't mind, but lunch is just something else I have to clean up after. I wish they didn't have to eat!! But, I am grateful there are things that the kids love, that only take a few minutes to make.

2. My Young Women. They are so great! We don't have very many in our ward, but we have so much fun. Last night we made pies with them, and it was a blast. They were so funny, and loved to sample. I just love seeing them smile, and how good they all are. I hope my daughter turns out half as good as some of them.

3. Quiet time. I have a ton of kids at my house every day, but without fail we have at least 1 hour of quiet time, where I get to do my thing, and they get some rest. I love knowing that every day there is a little break in there somewhere. It makes my day a lot more tolerable.

Gratitude Journal Day 2

I am thankful for . . .

1. Owen. He keeps me very busy, but I don't know what I would do without him. He is just so much fun to have around. The other night when we went to dinner, Owen would just go around to all the people waiting, and give them 5. It was so cute. He made a lot of people smile, including myself. He has a wonderful personality, and a great temperament. You can't help buy smile at him when he comes around.

2. Claire. She is a handful, and keeps me on my toes, but she is so smart! We have to keep our computer logged off with a password so she doesn't play it all day. She knows how to navigate Disney well, and knows how to get to the website to print her own pictures to color. She amazes me every day! We have so much fun together, especially when we are creating something that she can share with others.

3. My mom. I know I totally talked about her in my last post, but she is the greatest. It is so much fun to be around her, and she makes me feel like I'm not so crazy! She is always willing to help me out, and will come any time I need her. Thanks mom - I love you!!

Gratitude Journal Day 1

Well, I have enjoyed reading Tania and Kim's journals so much, that I decided to start my own. I will try to do it everyday until Thanksgiving, but no promises!

Today I am grateful for . . .

1. My washing machine. This may sound lame, but I am doing laundry and I was thinking about the pioneers and how they had to do it all by hand. I can tell you my kids would only have 2 outfits if that was the case. I can't believe how much laundry I have with 2 kids, I could only imagine what 4 must be like! Now if they would just invent a machine that would fold it and put it away too!!

2. My preschool. I have to say that I just love working with those kids. They are so cute! Today we were making pilgrims and I showed them an example, but they were mosaic pilgrims by the time most of them were done, but I didn't care. The kids were so proud of their work, and I just love seeing them learn.

3. My husband, he is the greatest! He calls me every day after preschool to see how my class went, and how my day is going. It is nice to know that he cares. He is so helpful, and so handy to have around - thank you Chad!

Update

So, I have been slacking, and for that I apologize. We have been crazy busy (not sure doing what, but you know). The kids got a little cold/cough, and then I didn't feel well for a couple of days, but I think we are moving out of that. We also had a visit from Grandma Farmer, and Aunt Amber. We haven't seen them in awhile, and it was so much fun! Amber stayed with Heather and Aaron, they are more fun than me! :) Mom stayed with us, and the kids loved it. Claire would only let memaw give her a bath and put her to bed (I can't say that Chad and I were to sad about that!). We didn't do anything to exciting, but we had a great time.

On Saturday night, she took us all to dinner, and we had to wait for an hour and a half to get a table big enough for all of us. I can not believe how good the kids were. It was awesome! Then once we got to our table, I was so afraid that they were going to be horrible, but they were great. Owen decided that he wanted to play with the peanuts. Needless to say, I hope they dumped them out when we left. He was putting sauce, and salt and pepper all over them, and then stirring them with a spoon. It was so cute! We decided that he is going to be a chemist when he grows up. Claire was so patient when she waited for her food, and I was so proud of them.

Mom also helped me get my office put together. We have a room downstairs that we have used for storage for 2 years. I had been working on all my preschool stuff upstairs in the dinning room, and it was looking horrible (I can really make a mess). So, we cleaned out the bedroom downstairs, moved my desk, and now I just have to finish putting everything away. It is so nice to have that done. Thank you mom! We were so glad to have you visit, and we can't wait for you to come again!!

Halloween 2007!

We had such a great Halloween! I was so excited for the kids. Claire has been looking forward to this for weeks. I made her costume (not really my choice), but she has been so good to just look at it and not touch it for weeks! It was great. I had it downstairs to wash today, and she brought it back upstairs and put it on the chair that it sat for 2 weeks! So cute. Claire started her day with a party at preschool (crazy!), and then we went to our friends house for some homemade pizza and playtime with the kids. We wanted them to keep busy so they wouldn't think about trick or treating. Around 3:00 we headed to downtown where they had trick or treating. It was crazy. There were a ton of kids, but the kids had a great time. Claire was on auto pilot after the first couple of stores. So funny! Owen decided he didn't like the stroller and was walking all by himself. By the end of the day he was saying trick or treat.

After that we went home and got ready for our ward trunk or treat. They had a dinner and then of course tons of candy. There were kids everywhere, but it was a lot of fun. We hit a few of our neighbors houses after that, and then called it a night. I couldn't believe that Claire could trick or treat that long. I think that Chad gave up first! We had a great time, and it is so much fun now that the kids understand what Halloween is. I can't wait until next year - although I do hate being asked for candy every few minutes. Owen is an addict, so we hid the candy in our room (that might not be the best place for me!).

FHE Cookie Decorating

For FHE we decorated Halloween cookies with some of the neighbors. It was so much fun. Claire could hardly wait for Ellie to come over. It is so great that they are becoming good friends. We were so glad to have everyone visit, and will have to do it again on the next holiday!