All the things we're grateful for. (Lettuce...and more!)

If I had to pick a favorite holiday, I just might say it is Thanksgiving.

That could be because it marks the first real break in a school year, or maybe it is because we justifiably get to gorge ourselves with an insane amount of food, or perhaps it is because this season brings some of the loveliest sights and colors if the yeaar.

Whatever the reason, I love it!

The kids and I spent two nights at my sister in law (Rachel's) house.   She fed us an AMAZING turkey dinner, the kids played with their cousins, we explored the mall and had fun chats that last until midnight.  

The  next day we woke up early and left Rachel's to attend church in my brother's ward as my niece was speaking.  She is leaving soon for a 18 month mission.  We are so proud of the young woman that she is becoming and can't wait to hear updates from her throughout this adventure. 

We got home on Sunday evening and were able to enjoy Thanksgiving day with John and Max. 

We took a drive along the Chief Mountain Highway where we spotted a few rogure snowflakes, but precious little else.  

We got home in time to throw together a Turkey dinner consisting of turkey, stuffing, roasted potatoes and sweet potatoes, carmalized onion and feta beets, salad and of course - pumpkin pie!  We've had pumpkin pie every day for about a week and no one is sick of it yet.  

We added our final submissions to the gratitude pumpkin.  A few things of note as I reviewed our lists of things we are grateful for:

*Nate wrote his points in Elvish.  (Perhaps a sign that it is time to lay off Lord of the Rings?;)

* Sam set out to prove to me just how pointless he thought this activity was (hence his submissions of Fortnite...COVID...John Mayer...and lettuce.  I mean, how did LETTUCE make the list?!)

*John didn't initially care to add anything to the pumpkin, but then I got after him and accused him of being a "noncompliant."  He acted much more grateful after that.

* My girls played along beautifully adding some of the sweetest comments ever, making the whole activity so completely and utterly worth it.  (Thank goodness for daughters, you know?;)

We spent the remainder of the evening watching comedy and wishing we had more pumpkin pie. 

I sure feel blessed to have the family that I do and to live the life I get to live!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Family Pics - That time Sam had enough

Sam has grown tired of my constant need for family photos. 

I don't entirely understand what the big deal is, but he asks a lot of "whys" whenever I announce it is picture day.  

Why do I have to be in it?

Why do we have to go somewhere else to take it?

Why can't we just take it in our backyard?

Why do I have to wear something dumb?

Why do we have to do this every two months?

So many questions!

I'll be the first to admit, I am obsessed with taking family photos.  It isn't a vanity thing.  I wouldn't say any of us are particularly photogenic (well except John) and none of us enjoys having our picture taken. 

I just feel a deep desire to document my families life in photos, that's all. 

Actually, there is probably some deep-rooted reason that stems from the fact that I grew up without a Mom and have only ONE complete family photo from my childhood.

That might be why, but I don't want to burden Sam with that, so instead, I do my best to convince him that "this time around it will be more fun."

It's always a lie, and he and I both know it, but still, he comes.

This past weekend, while our family was still basking in the peaceful, sorta spiritual glow from General Conference, we whisked out to Waterton for one final attempt at a family photo and we were all hoping that perhaps, this time, we'd capture a shot that I would be happy with.  

Things weren't looking good, I'm not going to lie.  The girls were cooperative and John was willing (he knew better than to complain) but my boys...oh, my boys.  After one shot, they just weren't having it anymore.  Suddenly though, in a strange and unexpected turn of events ..SAM grabbed the camera, told me to go sit down, and took the whole matter into his own hands. 

He adjusted the camera, changed lenses, directed family members, set timers, and hit click before joining us in the shots, and he did it all while being incredibly entertaining.

What the what?  Did he forget that family photos are not supposed to be fun?

Look at him, going and making this an enjoyable experience for everyone! ;)

I feel satisfied.

And grateful.

And I wonder if he'd let us do this again sometime;)

 

Cameron Lake - Hello, my friend!

The road to Cameron Lake opened up last week for the first time in THREE years!  It is the last road in the park to open since the Kenow wildfire in 2017 ravaged the park and we were so excited to finally get to drive that beautiful road again.

We picked a beautiful day to go too, as the fall colors were all at a peak.  

We stopped along the way, taking pictures of some of my favorite spots!

             The lake was as beautiful as ever and you could see exactly where the firemen had focused their preventative measures, leaving a swath of healthy treeline right around the lake.  

This fall has given us some beautiful days and being up here felt like being reunited with an old friend.

A day at the Movies

My niece Ella works at a movie theatre and so graciously arranged a day in September when my whole family could gather to watch Mulan.  We had the whole theatre to ourselves!

How cool is that? 

             Popcorn, pop, candy, and pizza after the show. 

We could sit anywhere we wanted.  Talk as loud as we wanted and laugh, cheer, cry as loud as we wanted.

I mean, we didn't do those things, but just knowing that we could have made the experience of going to the movies that much more enjoyable. 

We were so spoiled and truly enjoyed the day with them all.

  

 (Photo taken by my brother, Chad)

I sure love this group and the fact that we live close enough to each other to enjoy adventures like this together!

Elk Rut - Annual Family Visit

Every year we look forward to watching the Elk who gather along the Blackiston fan in Waterton.  To me, Elk rutting season means hot chocolate, toques, binoculars, cameras, and family all happily squished in a vehicle as we listen to the bugling and watch as the bulls aggressively try to manage their herds.  

This year, we've only managed to get out there once so far to watch the rutting and for some reason, only Abby and Jess wanted to join John and I.  What gives?  Is this not our whole families favorite thing to do in the fall?  What is happening?

In my opinion, if you are too busy to watch the Elk rutting, you are quite frankly, just too busy.

September Days

Despite the return to school, and sports and schedules, we did our very best to enjoy our favorite summer things, just the same!

John tried to capitalize on every weekend/evening without volleyball to take the boat and paddleboards out for a "spin."  We rigged up a way to pull the paddleboards behind us to the furthest end of Payne lake, where John could fish, while Jess and I drifted away with our toes in the water.  

Our school division is one of the only divisions in the province allowing team sports to be played. It doesn't matter that there is only one other school for Sam's team to play against, he and Jess have spent a few days trying to work out the kinks in their serves and spikes!  

Jessica and I have been trying our best to go on as many drives as possible.  On one particular day, the forecast was calling for snow at the higher elevations, which had us feeling so excited.  I swear, we could smell it in the air.  We tried driving the Chief Mountain Highway because that is our favorite place to enjoy the first snowfall of the year but, no such luck. We were a couple of hours too early;)

Oh, how we love this time of year!

    

 Nate, Jess, John, and I found a new spot along Emerald Bay that I can't wait to enjoy more next summer!  It's got a rocky beach, a spot for our battle boards and trees for our hammocks for those of us who would rather just hang around and stare up at the sky.  

Life is just better with a hammock!

Sam and Nate have been wanting a dartboard for a long time now.  I had every intention of saving that idea for a future Christmas gift but darn them and their persistence!  

Turns out, our whole family has enjoyed having this around.  We hold tournaments some evenings before watching M*A*S*H or The Cosby Show, and more than once this board has provided the means for settling a dispute or making some of the important decisions in life.  

Question: "Mom, would you let me skip class today?"  

Answer: "Thros a bullseye and I'll let ya."

So far, this has been a win-win for me as a parent.

We harvested our garden and it feels so so good to have that all done for a season.  
Nate was more than happy to dig up the stalks of corn. 

We sure are loving these beautiful fall days!