It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

As promised the Christmas tour of my house.......

The entryway featuring my prized possession my Christmas village.

Every year it's the one piece of decor that takes me the very longest to put together......we are talking almost a full days work from dawn until dusk.

Lots of effort......but so much joy.

Remember that Pottery Barn box I talked about here, well here is what was inside it.

My one splurge this year -- stockings for the kids.

I have had my eye on these for years, I love the classic velvet look.

I am loving them, just loving them.

We don't have a fireplace to hang stockings so we make do with the stairwell.

Just one more necessity to add to my dream house one day, a fireplace or two.

That little tree is also new this year, came home from Tai Pan with me.

It's cute and Charlie Brownish, also holds a double duty of hiding my cords for me.

Thank you little tree......

Village people they love their happy Christmasy home too!

Of course they do they get to sit around on log fences all day sipping cocoa from the cocoa shop and walking around town square in a perfect flurry of white snow.

I ask you what's not to love about the Christmas village?

My tree, I have a love hate with my tree.

I redid the whole thing last year, new ornaments, new ribbon, new bulbs.

I love the looks of it now.

Hate all the white flocking that gets everywhere.

I have to go after that tree skirt at least a few times a week with the lint brush.

And the vacuum gets pulled out multiple times a day.

Doesn't help that a little Miss K loves to grab a hold of those branches and give it a spin right on it's axis there.

One of these days I fully expect to find my tree completed toppled on it's side.

And then I will really have a fit about the flocking......

My Christmas collage pictures.

I love decorating with old Christmas photos for the season.

Makes me so happy to see Christmas pasts in all of my decor.

You should try this it's a mighty cheap way to decorate.

A few odds and ends in our living room.

And now we head on into the kitchen.....

Where this happy little fella greets us front and center.

I love my little snowman and that plate there is Jolly Old St. Nicks himself.

It gets the place of honor with our white fudge Oreo's on Christmas Eve for the big guy's treat.

This is on my to do for next year.

My hutch needs some serious holiday cheer.

Right now it holds my china but it needs some color over in that corner.

I did place an old photo of my sisters and I as little girls in there, but it looks a little forlorn.

Next year you will have some friends dear picture.

You want a closer look at little five year old me?

There you go.

Cute right?

I remember that sweatshirt.

I loved that sweatshirt.

I thought I was one cute little miss in that sweatshirt.

Oh the good old days of childhood, how I loved them!

Odds and ends in the kitchen.

You can't have Christmas without Bath and Body Works Twisted Peppermint soap.

And a pine scented Scentsy.

Oh pine is my weakness, I go weak in the knees over pine, it's delightful.

Maybe one of these days I will actually get a real live Christmas tree.

Instead of a fake flocked Christmas tree.

Except then instead of flocking, I would have pine needles all over the house.

And I wouldn't be able to decorate come November 1st.

Nope I will stick to my flocking I guess.

That pantry door is just waiting for the Christmas cards to come piling in.

Speaking of we got our first one today.

I have not even ordered mine yet, tell me you haven't either?

That's about it around here.

Hope your house is feeling a little merry right now too!

Thanksgiving 2011

I feel like I am so behind.

Everybody has been there done that with the whole Thanksgiving posts.

But hey better late than never!

It must be documented.

Our day started out with everybody pleasantly happy about posing for a family picture.

They were so well behaved, it was such a pleasant surprise.

Not.....why can't just one picture ever turn out right.

Oh well, we watched the parade and then headed off down the road for our day with family.

So this is the best picture you are getting but I had to show you I bought leggings.

I am dying that that word is even appearing in a post about myself.

I swore up and down I would never EVER own a pair.

They make me think of being 8 years old, neon units (please tell me you know what units are), maybe a high pony in my hair with a big old scunchie on top....oh and we can't forget the perm.

But I could say no, no longer to the fashion trend of leggings and bought me a pair.

I have to admit my outfit was spot on for Thanksgiving.

Elastic waist band pants -- check!

Slimming black -- check!

Sweater to cover up my over eating -- check!

Bring on that turkey!

We spent the day with our Smith family.

It was small this year compared to previous years.

Just one of the brothers were there, and an aunt of Eric's.

That's it, nice and quiet which is sometimes really nice and relaxing.

Dinner was fantastic.

My contribution was raspberry pretzel salad....it's a shame that only comes around once a year.

Would have been more fantastic had Katelynn been behaving herself.

She thought she was a big girl sitting at the big girl table.

Unfortunately she did not behave like a big girl.

Stealing rolls, standing on the table, and making mad dashes to the pantry for fruit snacks.

Oh and did I mention spilling about 8 glasses of water.

Trouble that girl with a capitol T!

Directly after this picture was spill number one.

Classic Lukey on Thanksgiving the last kid to leave the table.

He's a big fan of turkey day!

We had the most wonderful weather that day.

For Utah I could not believe our luck.

Considering it has snowed on and off all month long.

Frigid cold temps most days.

We had one glorious day of perfect weather.

We actually got to play outside after dinner for close to two hours, no jackets needed just nice warm sweaters.

Crazy, I can't remember the last time it wasn't freezing on Thanksgiving.

Of course it snowed the following day, but hey it was great while it lasted!

We were living it up...

Lots of basketball was played on Grandma and Grandpa's new court.

Poor K's pants kept falling off, here we are doing a little adjustment or two.

Hey look my leggings! Be honest can I pull this look off?

Lots of trips up and down the slide on the hill.

Taking a little rest in the rain gutter.

I know that's my resting spot of choice!

Lance starts up basketball in January.

Dad's been doing a little coaching.

A little leaf collecting, the colors are beautiful aren't they?

My new favorite picture of K......

She's too cute to stop at just a couple pictures.....

It was a great day.

And as tradition stands as the day goes on and I get progressively more stuffed to the gills.

I also get progressively more lazy with the camera.

We ended up at my mom's house with leftover turkey sandwiches.

Leftover sweet potato casserole.

And lots of lots of pies.

I had to be rolled on home.....it was so good.

It was a great day followed by a great weekend.

Highlights include:

--Black Friday shopping with my mom and sister at 10 am mind you, not 10 pm.

I don't do Thanksgiving Black Friday shopping, thank you.

I need my bed after all that food.

--Lunch at Zupa's with no kids and just the girls.

Okay I had K, but you know how it is, when minus two kids it feels like a vacation even if one is tagging along.

--Sleepovers with cousins Brevy and Elle.

--Sleepover with Ash (I have a really comfy couch, she told me so!)

--Late night movies we watched Thor and ate Dots, diet cokes, peppermint stick ice cream and hot chocolate.

Did I mention I ate good this weekend?

Thanksgiving Eve

Isn't Thanksgiving Eve fun?

Actually any Eve of any holiday is fun.

The excitement....

The anticipation.....

The joy in the air....

The preparations.

I kinda love it all.

This year we are having Thanksgiving with Eric's family.

I am excited my mother in law makes one heck of a turkey.

Then we will stop by my moms.

I am excited my mom makes one heck of a pie.

The one and only year I have ever hosted Thanksgiving was in Kentucky and I hosted it for four.

Myself, Eric, a two year old Lance and an eleven month old Luke.

It was one of my favorite years.

I have made a turkey! Not everybody can say that you know......

But I have to admit as thrilling as that was I am feeling so grateful to be spending the holiday with so many loved ones this year it will be good. I am sure of it.

I had a little scare today. I sat down at my computer to upload a few pictures for this blog post here. And all of a sudden just like that my blog was gone. Blogger had somehow deleted it. At first I was confused I kept thinking I was typing it in wrong. But come on after four years of blogging I think I know my own website. Then panic started setting in, I thought surely it was just my computer. So I called my go to fix it guy.....Eric. That's what I do whenever a problem arises, I call in a panic my voice ten octaves above what it should be. I screech and go into full panic mode, he tells me to calm down and then boom he fixes the problem. That's what works for us. So I called, he told me to calm down, he would look at it and call me back. So I sat......and waited......and cried.

I yelled at myself for a good ten minutes. Why did I procrastinate? Out of four years of blogging only one year has been backed up in the form of a blog book. What if 2009, 2010, and 2011 were gone just like that. What would become of my memory? My pictures? My babies? Katelynn's birth? Yup full panic mode.

Ten minutes later he called me back. "I have no idea what happened, but it's back, try pulling it up.". I gotta say when I saw Smith Squad above the top of the screen I cheered.

The funny thing is I have been burnt out on blogging lately. It feels like a chore. I am unmotivated. In a rut, you know the feeling. When all of a sudden it just hits you, you have nothing to share, everything feels kind of mundane and boring. Not bad, certainly not bad cause I am actually quite happy right now......just mellow if you know what I mean. This morning I actually even told my sister I am thinking of taking a blogging break. It feels like just one more to do at the end of the day.

Then I thought my blog was lost for twenty minutes.

And I realized just how much this space meant to me.

So we don't go on any exciting trips.

So my house is a work in progress.

So I can't seem to ever fit into my before Katelynn pants.

So I pull my hair back a lot.

So I spend the majority of my days cooking, cleaning and changing diapers.

The weekends we go to birthday parties of cousins, out to eat at...... oh Chili's or something equally exciting.

I blog about piano lessons, and new recipes, and lots of Christmas decor.

But the fact is this is MY life, and I am grateful for it.

The thought of not having it recorded for myself and my children well that is devastating for me.

I think for a minute there I forgot who I was blogging for.

I remember now..... it's not for my mom, or my sisters, or my dear friends.

It's for me, for my children so they will know I cherished every mundane moment of my days because truly it's in those mundane moments that the magic happens.

This is my life and I am thankful for it.

I am thankful for cleaning days spent in warm flannel jammies.

I am thankful for Katelynn's prayers, how she scrunches her eyes up, fold her arms, mumbles to herself and then and only then when she has all eyes on hers....she looks up smiles, claps and waits for it.......the adornment that surely comes from each and every one of her family members, we love our girl.

I am thankful for clean sheets, fluffy down pillows that cost a pretty penny at Costco but oh so worth it!

I am thankful for cold Cache Valley November nights because they make my bed feel that much better after a long day.

I am thankful I have a husband that calls me at least three times during the day just to say hi. I may joke that he calls me A LOT....but man I know I am loved.

I am thankful for Luke and the adorable way he gets your attention. Places his hands on each side of my face and says "mom, look at me, let me see your pretty eyes". I am thinking this is something Janet his teacher must say to him, cracks me up every time.

I am thankful for Sound Beginnings, I am grateful he can hear, I am grateful he can communicate, I am so grateful he is mine.

I am thankful my little boys have taught their baby sister that wrestling is not just for little men.

Sisters more than welcome.

I am thankful for the nights Eric is home to put the kids to bed.....man that thirty minutes to myself is enjoyable.

I am thankful for Harry Potter and the fact that once I hit publish on this post I will be cozying up on the couch with my favorite guy and watching The Deathly Hallows Part 2. And there will be lots of tissues involved.

I am thankful for no school days when all of my little ducks are here at home with me, toys and all.

I am thankful for Lance and how he informed me he is thankful for a hundred things but brussels sprouts is not one of them.

I am not thankful for brussels sprouts either little buddy!

I am thankful for Eric who has a twinkle in his eye each night I say I am going to bed to read for awhile. I have good intentions but five minutes into it and I am out like a light. Now he just smiles and says "sure you are, I guess I will say good night then."

I am thankful for my favorite Christmas album "The Oak Ridge Boys", sure makes cleaning days more enjoyable.

I am thankful K has finally learned the word daddy and is putting it to serious good use. No longer is mommy the only thing I hear all day long.

At the same time I am thankful to hear mommy all day long, cause it means I am here living the moment with each and every one of them, hitting every milestone with them. I am so thankful to be a mom.

I am thankful for a clean and happy home going into this holiday season.

I am thankful for the spirit that resides here, we try hard to make our home a place where the savior can come to.

Most of all I am thankful for the four other people that live within these walls. You are my whole world.

Thanks for reminding this life is a good one.

And hey happy Thanksgiving out there!