Thanksgiving Fun Day 4- The Big Day

 The kids were great about entertaining themselves while we finished our preparations.

They went for a tea party,

 and licorice mustaches

 and playing outside!

 The taekwondo school had a Thanksgiving morning workout and Brady was a good sport and tagged along. He had no idea what he had gotten himself in to. Peter said it was a rough workout. 

We all got  some exercise in that day- Kelsey and Anthony went for a walk and Lindsay and I went for a great run!

And then it was time to eat!

 And then play some more!

 Oh, this man that I love! This picture captures so much! That smile makes my heart race and fills me with eternal joy and peace!

 The food (Lindsay's super nice camera captured it much better)!

 Our eyes were bigger than all of our stomachs but we sure did enjoy having leftovers.

Also, we were only about 30 minutes off of our planned time to eat- I think that is some really good planning. 

Rainbow jello has become our family's tradition for Thanksgiving.

The turkey aftermath!

Thanksgiving Fun Day 3

Okay these are from the day before but were too cute.

We spent a little time at the park since the weather was nice. 

 Wednesday did not get documented well, at least not by me but Lindsay saved the day!

The Wood family arrived about 5:30 am after a little confusion with the GPS (who know our house number and street existed in Tyler, TX?!).

We exercised with most of the kids and grown ups and then we ladies after getting ready headed to Central Market to get a turkey and some pies that Kelsey ordered.

It was so fun to walk through that store and be amazed by all of the foods including the octopus pictured below.

 The rest of the day for we ladies was spent doing prep work for the big Thanksgiving day.

 Peter helped keep the kids occupied for awhile with go kart rides.

Also, Brady and Peter took the kids to Sonic and the park at the elementary school. They were in heaven! By this point of the week, poor Anthony was in the middle of a full blown case of influenza. He was such a trooper and tried to participate when he felt up to it. He did a lot of sleeping which was the best thing he could have done. 

It was a great day to remember how wonderful family is and why I am so thankful for my family!

Thanksgiving Fun Day 2

Arabella wanted her cousins to be at her birthday party and so we held it on Tuesday morning.

She wanted a pajama party and so we did our best to make it fun!

She had a lot of friends come.

 Peter out did himself again and created this cake that looks like a really tall bed. 

Each layer of cake matches the frosting on the edge. See below. 

 Each girl decorated a pillow with some jewels.

We played a few games.

 And of course we ate some brunch foods: muffins, bagels, fruit. 

And lets not forget presents.

She had a great day and I was really thankful to have Kelsey there to help out with food, pictures, and keeping me sane in general. 

Thanksgiving Fun Day 1

We were so blessed to have family come and visit us for Thanksgiving.

Two of Peter's sisters and their families came to town.

Monday, the Booth family from Chicago arrived and we met them at the zoo to start things off since the weather was gorgeous that day!

 Checking out the okapi. Such a fascinating creature. 

We walked, we laughed, we saw great animals and active snakes, we soaked up the sun, Samantha did not scream when Anthony held her for this picture. It was a great day! 

Jon turns 10!

I can not believe he is 10! 

Jon rushed into this life and has been soaking it in ever since.

Jon is a people person and is always good for a laugh.

He likes to joke and play and be a bit of a class clown.  But, don't let that fool you, he is smart, inquisitive, a problem solver and likes reading more than he lets on. 

Jon is really good with his little sisters and has a natural love for babies.

 

 Jon really wanted a screaming death dragon from How to Train Your Dragon 2 on his cake and again, Peter delivered. Apparently, this white dragon is a digger, hence the dirt and rocks as the base of the cake. 

 Being a birthday party year, Jon had his heart set on a laser tag party.

We have not always had great luck with parties for Jon due to his birthday being so near Christmas. 

We thought about having his party in January but he thought waiting would be too much. 

So, on Saturday we made it happen. It was just as easy and an equally great deal to have the facility host the party. He is one lucky kid, I hope he knows that.

Since Lily and Samantha are too little and we had a few other things set for Saturday, I stayed home with the girls and Peter hosted the party!  

 They loved laser tag and Jon was a total ham and wild man.

Jon is always making faces when it is time to take pictures. 

 He really wanted nerf guns for his birthday and so it is great that his friends fulfilled his wishes. 

There will be pictures from Jon's big day and but for now enjoy our amazing second child, the one and only Jon! 

Arabella turns 7

(I missed a week or two and then blogger was giving me issues so now I am way behind. But, I will catch up by Christmas-at least that is my goal.)

Arabella had a great birthday and she was her usual sweet and loving self and shared her day with our dear friend Sister Jo Troxell. She turned 90 a few days after Arabella's birthday and  we through her an open house party for ward members past and present to come and honor her. 

She is an amazing person who always shows so much love, kindness, acceptance, wisdom, joy, compassion, service, and thoughtfulness.I want to be like her when I grow up!

 Anyway, on to the birthday girl!

She was so happy all day! 

We had famous pancakes for breakfast and then started prepping for our other party.

She was super helpful and let everyone know how excited she was for her party that was going to be on Tuesday when her cousins were in town for Thanksgiving. 

 When things calmed down after the first party, we opened presents and then went to dinner at the restaurant of her choice. She chose Cici's Pizza because "you pay for one thing and everything else is free," that is how she sees it anyway. 

 Tradition in our family is that you get your scriptures for your 7th birthday to give you some time to hopefully read some of them before you turn 8 and are baptized. She was really excited for them. She loved the case that Grandma and Grandpa Bird sent her (pink with owls). She also received several chapter books and was quick to dive into those and finished the first one less than 24 hours later. Her teacher told me that she is reading at nearly a 3rd grade level though she is in 1st grade. What a smarty pants!

The day was a great one and even with the craziness, I think she felt loved and special! 

This girls has taught me so much in her short 7 years! I am a better person for being her mother and I hope that she continues to be a bright light to all of those around her.

And as a side note, November 21st was also the day we left Las Vegas 6 years ago. That seems like yesterday and yet it has been such a journey of ups and downs all of which I am thankful for. We have now lived here longer than any other place and do not see ourselves leaving anytime soon.