Pumpkin Carving

It has been FOREVER since I've carved pumpkins. I think it's one of those activities that I want to do for Halloween, but never end up getting around to it. Well, thanks to some free pumpkins from my parents, we decided to make sure we carved pumpkins this year. Cali was also good to not let us forget :). So, for FHE this week we carved pumpkins. I felt bad because there wasn't much Cali could do when we got started. It would have been a little tricky for her to cut the pumpkin, but she did pick out the face she wanted and was still excited watching JR and I carve, so all in all it was a really fun activity for everyone (well, except for maybe Isaac who I'm sure felt neglected :). Enjoy the pics of our creations!

This is the face Cali picked out: a scary scream face. I think it's a great likeness, don't you? :D I carved this one for her and she enjoyed watching me.

Here's Isaac with his Isaac inspired pumpkin. JR drew this one based off of Isaac. I think it turned out great! Look at that resemblance! JR has a gift for carving pumpkins :).

Here's me with my pumpkin of choice: StrongBad. Yeah for homestarrunner pumpkin pencil sketches!

Here's JR's pumpkin of choice: Homsar from homestarrunner. It's pretty funny if you're familiar with the website :).

Here's a better look at the Isaac pumpkin. Kinda creepy, but still cute :).

Here's my sexy husband and all the pumpkins. I think his face is a mixture of Homsar and the scream face from Cali's pumpkin...nice :D. JR and I each did two, and it didn't even take as long as I thought! We're definitely going to make this a yearly tradition.

Happy Halloween everyone!

Primary Program Sunday

For those of you who don't know, I'm the first counselor in my ward's primary presidency. I just got called a few months ago. My first main order of business: write the October primary program. Needless to say, I put it off as long as I could. I didn't know how to be in the primary presidency, let alone put together a compilation of things the children have learned throughout the year in a meaningful yet 'simple enough for the kids to memorize' way.

This month has been focused on practicing with the kids and fine tuning everything. I have to admit, I was more stressed and nervous that I expected. But deep down I knew that the kids would pull it off. And, of course, they did - and then some. It went so well and I was so proud of the kids. People kept telling me what a great job I did, but I know it wasn't me. I couldn't have done it without the kids! :) Almost all of the kids had their parts memorized and everything went smoothly. I have to say my favorite part, without being biased of course :), was Cali. She's a little sunbeam and the only one in her class that would have been willing to sing a solo. That's right, Cali stood up at the very beginning of our program and sang "I Am a Child of God" a capella. She sang the first few lines and then the rest of the primary sang along with her. It was really beautiful and Cali did a perfect job. I loved that the kids sang it without accompaniment. They really sounded great and it was a perfect start to our program. Cali had both sets of grandparents watching her, as well as many aunts and uncles. They couldn't have been prouder :). Cali also did really well with her speaking part. She had a whole scripture memorized, reference and all.

It was fun being involved with the primary program this year. I've gotten to know the kids in primary more, and hopefully they've gotten to know me. They really brought a special spirit to our sacrament meeting, and I felt privileged to be a small part of that. It was really fun working with Cali and JR too. JR is over the senior primary music, and he was a HUGE help with the kids. So, thanks JR! I couldn't have done it without you! I also have to thank the amazing women who are in the primary presidency with me. They're so much fun to work with and it made doing the primary program that much easier. Thank you thank you!

Thanks also to mom and dad Weeks and family, and mom and dad Peterson and family for coming and supporting me and my family. Cali loved it, and it really meant a lot to me :).

Here's pics of my kids yesterday, sporting their new outfits for the special day :).

Cali looked so big in her new outfit :). I was so proud of her!

Isaac looked so big and handsome in his new church outfit - tie and all!

Say CHEESE!

Isaac handed me my camera today, after much effort picking it up off the floor :), and said, "cheese". It took only a second to figure out what he meant. So, of course I had to take a picture of his cute self - messy hair, jammies, and all :). Love that kid!

"Cheese!"

Too cute, even with drool on his chin :).

PS- Yes, I know he needs a haircut :). Poor kid won't be able to see soon!

Happy Birthday Angelica!!!

So, since I didn't get to talk to my friend Angelica today to wish her a happy b-day (because she's off having fun at Disneyland! - I know, jealous) I though I'd send her birthday wishes via the www. And with that, I had to dig out my old photos of us from way back when to add. Ok, so it's only from about ten years ago because the rest of the pics are still at my mom's house. But I could get a pic from like 25 years ago if I found my old picture box... What I'm trying to say is that we've been friends FOREVER. We grew up across the street from each other and have been best friends since we were basically born. It was so nice growing up and being able to just run across the street if I needed someone to talk to. So much better in person than on the phone. Not to mention all the sleepovers, breakfast/lunch/dinners, late night talks, tanning in her backyard, double dates, getting ready together before school, help with boyfriend troubles, riding our tricycles, eating popsicles in the rain.... you get the idea :). We always said when we got older that we'd be next door neighbors. Too bad that hasn't happened...yet :). With marriage, work, family, and everything else we don't get to chat or see each other as often as we'd like. But we still try to make some time, even if it's a quick phone call, or catching up over old pictures on my blog :D. Enjoy!

Don't you just love old photo booth pics. These are from '97, so of course we thought we were hot stuff :D. Well, I thought, Angelica succeeded :D. Raaar.

Ah, nothing like bonding moments at Girls Camp :).

I took this pic on the day we did our Dance Company photos.

I love this picture of Angelica! You're gorgeous Gel!

Angelica and Bryan in the early dating years :). We took this when JR and I were out on a double date with Angelica and Bryan. We had so much fun that night!

After Angelica got her endowments at the Jordan River Temple. I got to be her escort. How cool is that!

Angelica and Bryan's wedding day. I loved being your bridesmaid :).

The last pic of us together. I need to bring my camera more when we hang out! That last time at JR's parent's home was the best!

Love you Gel!!! I hope you had a great birthday. Miss you :)

Starting to Feel the Holiday Spirit...

I know it's only mid October (which I'm still in denial about) but there are certain smells that tend to get me excited about the holidays. Today JR was in the mood for cookies. I had seen an easy pumpkin chocolate chip cookie recipe on my friend Sharla's blog and, since we had a leftover can of pumpkin from last season, we thought we'd give it a try. Oh, and by 'we' I mean JR (but in my defence I was getting some dinner ready). So JR started whipping the cookies together and before I knew it my home smelled like pumpkin spice. It gave me this warm and cozy feeling, like I needed some peppermint hot chocolate and a fire place. And it made me excited for snow and all the holidays that are associated with this time of year. Now, don't get me wrong, I can go a few weeks or longer without having to deal with the cold, and snow. But all of the other things associated with this time of year I'm starting to really get excited about. Either that, or those cookies were just really really good :).

For those of you wishing to join me in this moment of holiday spirit, here's the cookie recipe (thanks Sharla!):

Easy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 Spice Cake Mix (or white/yellow cake mix plus cinnamon & pumpkin pie spice)

1 (15 oz) can pumpkin

1 cup chocolate chips (or more if you like :)

Mix & bake at 350 for 13-15 minutes.

Again, these were super easy and super yummy. Just make sure you have a glass of milk handy. You're definitely going to need it!

Girls Weekend

Last weekend my girlfriends from high school and I all got together for a fun over-nighter. We ate at Cheesecake Factory (yum!), we watched improv comedy at the Off Broadway Theatre in Salt Lake, and we stayed overnight at the Hilton Suites hotel. We never get to see each other, so every little while we try to get together for some bonding time. This weekend was so much fun I think we definitely need to make it an annual event.

As my friend Jenny and I were waiting to get into the Cheesecake Factory (we waited for over an hour and a half! But it was worth it :) we ran into another friend from high school, Lisz. How lucky are we! We had a great time catching up, and it made the wait go by much quicker :).

Us girls at Cheesecake Factory. Melisa, Jenny, Tiffany, and me.

Hanging out before the improv comedy show.

We got Melisa and Tiffany up on stage. They did such a great job!

Enjoying our cheesecake after the improv show. Shannon couldn't do dinner or the show with us, but she joined us at the hotel. Melisa, me, Tiffany, and Shannon (with Jenny taking the pic :).

Out hotel was so nice! It had a kitchen, living room, and a separate room for the bedroom and bathroom. We had a blast there. We stayed up until after 4 am before we decided to crash. We had a lot to catch up on!

Jenny and I being our usual cool selves :).

On Monday we ended up going out to lunch with another high school friend Jessica. She had to work over the weekend and couldn't come, so we had lunch with her instead :).

All of us enjoying lunch at Ruby Tuesday. Tiffany, Jenny, Isaac with the sippy cup :), me, Jessica, Shannon, and her daughter Hailey. Cali was there too, but she was probably under the table or something. Crazy girl :).

A Beautiful Fall Night

I love this time of year. I love the changing of the leaves and needing a light jacket. The only down side of Fall is that it's over so quickly. Some years I don't even get a chance to take a drive to see the leaves. So this year I made sure my family and I got to enjoy this beautiful season fully. We took a drive for FHE up Hobble Creek Canyon this week. It was a short drive, but gorgeous. It was so fun being outside in nature with JR and my kids. Cali and Isaac loved being outside. Especially Isaac, who, since turning 17 months, has decided to be even that much more independent. He just took off on the trail without a backward glance. Stinker :). It was so nice spending time together as a family, and getting to enjoy nature as well. I really need to do that more often!

This picture makes me smile. Isaac was totally being a boy - stomping around and loving his freedom. He looked so cute in his new jacket too :).

How beautiful is that?! It really was a perfect night to look at the leaves... and to take pictures :).

So cute. Too bad we couldn't get them each to look at the same time...

Look at those leaves! JR's not bad looking either :).

Cali busied herself with gathering leaves. They were so pretty she held on to them the whole way home and I put them on our counter for decoration.

Cali just gave him back the rock he threw. Look how happy he is!

I had to include this pic. He was so mad that JR wouldn't let him wander wherever he wanted when it was time to go home. He's a stinker, but he's cute :).

It was getting dark when we left, but it was still beautiful. We need to go back there again soon!!!

More About Me

This is a fun tag I got from my friend Jenny's blog:

Write what you were doing 10 years ago, 5 years ago, and 2 years ago. Then write what you hope to be doing 2 years from now. Then tag a few friends if you want to.

Ten years ago I was in my senior year of high school. I was way into the drama of high school life (i.e. boys... stupid boys :). Luckily, I involved myself with activities that brought me out of the drama and into something I truly loved - dance. My senior year was my second year on our high school Dance Company and I was the historian. Some of my best high school memories are because of Dance Co. and the friends I had there. Luckily I've been able to keep up with some of my Dance Co. friends and we still enjoy time together every once in a while.

Luckily this picture is too small to notice how drunk I look! Not a good picture of me, but everyone else looks good :).

Here's me and my friend Jenny. Don't we just look sexy :). Oh, and btw Jenny, as I was looking through all my old pictures I realized again how many blackmail pics I have of you. Sweet :D. Maybe one day if I get bored I'll post some... :D.

My senior year dance portrait.

All my good high school girl friends at graduation.
L to R: Melisa, Jenny, Me, Tiffany, Jennifer, Jessica, and Shannon.

Another fun thing I did ten years ago was go to Europe... twice! I went the summer before my senior year with a school group and then I got to go again towards the end of my senior year with my family. It was so much fun! My dream is to go back to Paris again. I absolutely loved it there!


Here's me by the Neuschwanstein castle in Germany.

Me (on the far left) and my tour buddies by the Eiffel Tower.

I want to go back there so bad!!!

I kept dancing into my first two years of college. I was on the drill team at Snow College and I loved it even more than I loved dancing in high school. So even though it wasn't technically ten years ago I still had to include pics from that. It brings back such great memories!!! Plus, my first year at college was really a great year for me. I learned a lot about myself being on my own that first year. There's a lot of nostalgia for me at Snow College. Plus, my second year at Snow I met JR, so that was pretty great too :).


The girls on my second year of drill at Snow. That year was the best ever!!!

Ok, so these next two pics are from my first and second year on drill. I think I grew up a lot from the first one to the next. Maybe the 'not having braces' thing helped a little... :). Thank goodness I didn't meet JR until my second year! I looked much better that year :).

My first year on drill.

My second year on drill. Much better :).

Sorry, that was a lot for my 'ten years ago' part. Luckily for you, the rest isn't going to be that long :). Five years ago I was starting my last year of college at Southern Utah University. I had been married for just over two years. I got pregnant with Cali just about the time school started, so I was eight months pregnant when I graduated. It worked out great timing wise :). I was really glad I got to finish school before I had kids. I graduated Summa Cum Laude with a Psychology major, Communications minor, and a 3.95 GPA. I was in the Alpha Chi National Honor Society, Psi Chi National Honor Society in Psychology, and was on the National Deans List. I never thought I'd finish college, so this was a really cool achievement for me. Sometimes I think about going back to school and getting my masters in psychology or counseling, but I think I'll wait on that for a bit.


Here's me and JR at the beginning of my senior year at SUU.
Yeah, I know, my hair was dark!

Here's me in my large eight month pregnant glory. My feet got so swollen during graduation! Oh well, much easier finishing school with Cali still in my tummy :). Oh, and look at how long my hair was! I don't think it's ever been as long as it was when I was pregnant with Cali.

Two years ago TODAY actually, JR and I moved into our first official home. We bought a town home in Spanish Fork and have been here longer than anywhere else. Stability has been nice, especially now that Cali's getting older and going to school. Two years ago I was also pregnant with Isaac. I was only a couple months along so the move wasn't bad, but feeling nauseous wasn't fun :). Luckily I had unpacking to keep me distracted from feeling sick.

Two years from now... I'm not exactly sure where I want to be. I've never been much of a planner or goal setter, but I can say that I hope to be happily married and enjoying my kids as they grow up. I haven't decided yet about baby number three. I'm playing that by ear - any by my sanity :). I do hope to be more out of debt and in a better financial situation. But I guess that's everyone's dream right :). Just like Jenny said, I hope I'm rich by then :D. As long as I'm happy and with my family, I guess nothing else really matters.

Now, I tag anyone who wants to take the time to dig out your old photos and scan them for this blog post. Trust me, it's not for the faint of heart going back to "pre-digital". Scary!