NOVEMBER

I thought that we had a boring November...until I started to look through our pictures and remembered just how busy we were.  We spent quite a bit of time enjoying the unseasonably warm weather this month.  We played in leaves and spent time at the local parks.  

Seth and I have been trying to spend more time at the gym.  He goes right after work and I go later in the evening after dinner.  One night we met Seth just after he worked out so that Phin could go swimming.  I wish I had a close up of Phin's smile when he comes down the slide.

Someone else started smiling a lot more in November as well.  

November 10th was a free day at Discovery Gateway.  We went later in the afternoon and it really wasn't too crowded.  Phin loved playing and we even walked away with 3 free books.

I also got to spend some time with my cousins in November.  My Aunt Sandy's mother passed away on November 5th. I knew Sandy's mom as Grandma Larsen.  She was incredibly kind to me while I was attending BYU.  I went down for her funeral and got to spend some time introducing Millie to my cousin Rachelle.  I also loved visiting with Rachelle's brothers York, Greg and Ryan.  It is times like this that make me wish that New Mexico, Texas, Georgia and Switzerland were a little closer.  

Seth spent some time getting our yard prepared for the winter.  I have to say it really isn't that bad to rake leaves when they are falling from your very own trees.

We also attended two International Gaming Days. The first one was held at Weber State University.  We got to chat with the creator of Burgle Bros and he even taught us how to play his game.  Burgle Bros was on Kickstarter last March.  This is a cooperative game where we had to act as burglars. Our friend Matt joined us for part of the day and Scott did as well.  We also played Splendor, Tsuro, Martian Dice, Cash N Guns and Viceroy.

We broke out Phin's Christmas PJ's.  This PJs make me think that the Polar Express may be pulling up to our door at any moment.  Phin is much more excited about Christmas this year.  Everytime he sees Christmas decorations he yells "Santa" just like Will Farrell does in Elf.  We are also learning how to get Phin to brush his teeth.  Seth is really good at giving Phin two choices...usually one of which he has no desire to do.  For example...do you want to brush your teeth or go to bed.  Brush your teeth it is.

We also got to spend some time with cousin Aaron.  I love how he and Phin mimic each other.  I don't think I had ever seen Phin lie down on his belly to watch TV...but since Aaron did it, Phin did as well.  Aaron also loves to hold Millie.  He is going to be a great Big Brother.

Costco has lots of fun things to look at right now.  I point out all of the Christmas decorations to Phin.  He didn't seem to mind that this castle was quite girly and begged to play inside of it.

Our second game day was out in West Jordan.  We found out about a yard sale that was only games and drove all the way down to Lehi before the game day.  We got some great deals and checked some wanted games off of our list.  We took Phin to the first part of the gaming day.  He is pretty good at Weykick...mostly because he blocks his own goals.  We also played Coconuts with him.  Collette and Bart were kind enough to watch him while we finished the day playing games with Scott, Kristi and Paul.  We played Eminent Domain, The Phantom Society, The Grasshopper and the Ant and Hanabi.

Phin helped me do some of the cooking for Thanksgiving.  He seemed to think my dough hook was a pirate hook.  Here he is saying RRRRR.

Amy, Zoey and Connor came over to make Oreo turkeys one day.  Phin learned how to unwrap Reece's Peanut Butter cups all on his own...we are in trouble.  Forget Hansel and Gretel and the bread crumbs...I can find Phin by following the candy wrappers.

We went to our local Chick-Fil-A the Tuesday before Thanksgiving for a Thanksgiving craft.  I think Phin's turkey turned out quite well.

There was a free day at the Hogle Zoo the day before Thanksgiving.  We went later in the afternoon hoping to avoid the crowds...but it was still packed.  We had a great time watching the lions, elephants and monkeys.  Millie was dressed up like a little polar bear to keep warm.

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving.  We decided to celebrate our first Thanksgiving as homeowners in our home.  We went to the gym early in the day and got a good workout in before we ate lots of yummy food.  We had Turkey, Sweet Potatoes A'Gratin, Raspberry Pretzel Jello, Cranberry Sauce, Sarah's Salad, Pineapple and Crusty Bread.  Scott and Kristi joined us later in the day for some Banana Creme pie, Pumpkin Dessert and games.

Since we were home we were able to set up our Christmas tree and put up some decorations.  As we pulled out decorations we found Santa Hats for the kids.

We also started a tradition of having soup and games at our house on Black Friday.  Scott and Kristi came as well as our friend Paul...little did he know he would be roped into helping to solve some of our plumbing problems.  On Thanksgiving I was in a hurry to clean up and foolishly put the sweet potato peelings down the disposal.  Well the disposal clogged.  I looked under the sink and thought I knew where the clog was and jiggled the pipe a little...well the whole thing came apart.  Since we were without a sink we served soup in paper bowls...well we put the bowls on our game table and they left a big white ring.  I have spent quite a bit of time since then searching solutions and ended up using olive oil, baking soda and vinegar to get most of the marks off the table.  

We spent quite a bit of time on Black Friday trying to get the sink back together.  My sweet parents came out and looked the situation over and then ran to the store to get parts.  We kept having leaks once we got the parts all together so we gave up for the night.  Seth went to Home Depot early the next morning and bought all the parts that we would possibly need since we would be gone most of the day Saturday.  

Saturday we headed up to Cache Valley for the baptism.  I wish I would have gotten a picture of our sweet niece, Hollie, she was positively radiant all day.  After a luncheon we headed out to play in the snow and do some skeet shooting.  Phin loved checking out Uncle Jotham's horses and chickens.  He also loved their little snow coaster and even got some tastes of snow.

Once we got back to our house, Seth stayed up fixing our sink.  He decided to take the whole thing apart and start over.  So we have a new disposal and a whole new configuration under the sink.

Phin loves playing with Seth.  Here he is playing with the goggles Seth built for him.

Monday, November 30th was a free day at the Loveland Living Planet Aquarium.   We apparently went with the rest of Utah.  Collette and Aaron met us out there for the madness. I think our favorite exhibit was the penguins...but Phin also loved the rope bridge.

Seth met us back at Collette's after the aquarium and we headed to the Draper Tree Lighting Ceremony.  We got there just in time for a hayride around the park.

We waited in line to see Father Christmas.  We also met an Elf, Frosty the Snowman and a real Reindeer while we waited.

Here is our little family in front of the "Tree of Life."

I have spent a lot of time pondering our blessings this month.  Here is a list of some of the things I am most grateful for...

turkey brine that spilled all over the fridge = forced me to have a clean fridge soon after
a clogged sink = a new disposal
piles of laundry = plenty of clothes to wear
leaves to rake = shade in the summer, a yard to play in and leaves to jump in
dirty diapers = money to buy diapers and functioning bowels...well functioning bowels.
a frequently messy house = focus on making memories rather than keeping everything perfect
loss = makes the time when a blessing comes that much more sweet
body = has brought two perfect little bodies into the world
trials = opportunity to draw close to and rely on our Savior

We are incredibly blessed!