Thanksgiving in Placerville



We took a road trip to Placerville, California for Thanksgiving this year, a location a friend from Las Vegas recently told me was in an episode of Full House. They broke down there on their way from San Francisco to Tahoe - we're famous!

The kids were good in the car for the most part - as best as can be expected. They aren't old enough to fully appreciate my "when I was a kid road trips weren't about watching movies" speeches. I did get them to sing some Christmas carols on the way home but Miles is still not a big fan of singing so we only did a few. We had fun as usual, and the kids loved being with their cousins and playing basketball, volleyball and soccer at the church building. We reserved it for the family so we could all play games, ride bikes and have plenty of space.



Penelope loved Duke and my parents' other dog Porter from afar - she would smile every

time she saw one of them.

Angel baby with Papa and Kenny

 

Penelope and Beau hung out together while we cleaned up - they were rolling over in sync,

it was pretty funny.

All the kiddos after playing for hours - Claire's face gets so red, just like her mama.

 

At a park in Folsom

Thankful Thanksgiving Thursday

Happy Thanksgiving! We are so grateful for many things - and happy to be with family this year once again. We are taught to thank our Heavenly Father for all that we have in our prayers before we are to ask for any blessings that we might need. Sometimes our list is long as we thank Him, and I am so happy when Claire adds her own touches of gratitude in her prayers. She is grateful for her school, her bed, her blankets, her books, her friends, her cousins, and her family - she mentions all of us by name and also mentions herself, which I always like too.

Miles is thankful for prayers, trees, games, May and Papa, going to California, his blankets, Duke, and MeMa and Papa.

I am incredibly thankful for the health of my children and their physical, mental and spiritual development. And though I am working on my own fitness and finding motivation to lose weight, I am also grateful that I can walk, run, play sports, take the kids to the park, and have the independence to drive myself where I need to be each day. I am reading the book "Heaven is Here" by Stephanie Nielson about her near death in a small airplane accident. I cannot imagine how it would be to have your own health taken away so suddenly and not be able to care for your own children. I can't put this book down - it is helping me to appreciate parenting during times of frustration with my young family.

Baby Leg Warmers? Yes Please

Tooth Fairy Pillow

She came! She finally came!

 

Thankful Thursdays

This week I am especially thankful for:

The support of family, both here in Las Vegas and in California, and also in Utah, Idaho, Texas and Kansas. It is comforting to know there is someone to help us with our children, to provide advice, and to be a safety net for us should we ever fall.

The opportunities created by education, and the desire to achieve a higher education, no matter how long it can sometimes take... still working on Matt's degree.

Love notes from Claire, and her artwork that she gives to me almost every day. My Grandma Ray framed a drawing I did when I was about Claire's age and it was always on her wall when she lived in Sacramento. That always made me feel special, even as an adult when I visited her house. Here are a few of Claire's recent drawings:

Six Months!

Six months already! In a blink of an eye really. Penelope will only be a baby for six months more, then we will be in toddlerhood. She has her check up in a few weeks so I don't have her stats, but she is off the charts on the adorable scale. See below.

Surprise Visit!

Stephanie and I have been friends for going on 30 years - 30 years! Steph decided to come out to Vegas from LA for a last minute Veteran's Day weekend trip. We have only gotten our kids together one other time. Traveling with kids is so hard, so I admire her for being so brave to travel by herself. We didn't get to hang out as much as we'd hoped, and of course didn't take a picture of the two of us, but here are the cute kiddos.