ADVENTURES IN CONNECTICUT

Mike's brother Tim and his family live just outside of Hartford Connecticut.  Mike's parents and sister were flying to visit Tim and his family so we decided to drive over and crash the party.

After visiting the Priesthood Restoration Site we went to our hotel on the other side of the border in New York to stay the night.  The plan was to finish the trip the next morning since we only had about 3 hours left to drive to get to Mike's brother's place.  We decided that Mike would drop me and Maggie off at the hotel so we could check in and he would take the other two to get food and bring it back to the hotel.  On his way to get food the breaks went out and he ended up swerving around several cars stopped at a light and running a red light before being able to coast to a stop.  The kids thought it was exciting and didn't realize how dangerous the situation was.  We are VERY lucky nothing happened and no one got hurt.  We called a tow truck which gave Mike and the kids a ride to the hotel before dropping the Yukon off at a mechanic shop a mile away from the hotel.  We ordered pizza and tried to relax despite the situation.  The next morning we were informed that the entire break line needed to be replaced.  Unfortunately, they weren't able to start on it until 11 am and we had to check out by noon.  We spent 4 hours in the lobby waiting for the car to be fixed.  Finally I called and they said they just had to take it for a test drive so Mike and the older two kids walked to the shop.  Upon arrival they were informed that the calipers were freezing up and would also need to be replaced.  Mike took the kids to a nearby sandwich shop for dinner and finally got the Yukon at 6 pm.  He picked me up and $1000 and 9 hours later than expected we were on our way.  We got to the hotel in Hartford just after 9 pm, frustrated by the situation but also very, very grateful that it happened the way it did.  The breaks went out in a town where we had hotel reservations, no accidents, no one got hurt, and we had money in savings to pay for it.

Saturday we went to a nearby small town and looked in their quaint shops and ate at a yummy little cafe.  We went to the next town over and saw a real train.  The kids loved the whistle and to see it pull out of the station.  That night we ordered take out and ate in the hotel.  Nanna and Babba watched the kids while Tim, Audrey, McKayla, Mike, and I played a board game.

Sunday we went to church.  It was the last day for having the 3 hour block and I wanted to take advantage of being able to go to Relief Society.  Poor Maggie was sleep deprived and scared of all the new things and only wanted me.  Mike tried to take her during Relief Society but she just wailed in the hallway.  I took her into Relief Society with me but she wanted to just walk around.  At least I got a few minutes in Relief Society.  After church we went to Tim and Audrey's and had dinner.  After dinner we played another game before heading back to the hotel. 

Monday we woke up early and left before 7 am.  The kids slept a lot of the way home.  Maggie slept for all but a couple hours so we didn't have to stop much.  We made it home by 5:30 pm.  After eating and unpacking some we were all in bed by 8 pm and slept for 12 hours.  What a crazy trip.  We were on the go so much I forgot to get pictures.

PRIESTHOOD RESTORATION SITE

On our way to Connecticut to visit Mike's family we stopped at the Priesthood Restoration Site in Pennsylvania to help break up the trip.  It was a wonderful place and had a sweet spirit.  It was neat to have recently finished reading the Book of Mormon and then see the place where the majority of the Book of Mormon was translated.  After being in the car for so long the kids had a lot of energy and it was hard for them to be reverent.  By the end Shane was cold and hungry and refused to smile for the picture.  He outwardly showed how we all felt inside.

CHRISTMAS

We did Christmas type activities over several days.  We decorated sugar cookies, made graham cracker houses, ate too many cookies, acted out the Nativity with friends, watched Christmas movies, anticipated notes from our secret elf Joy (one of Santa's elves who visited the kids when they were good), enjoyed Church services focused on Christ's birth, fought over who could turn on the Christmas tree lights and which setting to have it on, opened way too many presents, and just enjoyed each others company.

Shane's cookies are on the left, Alex's cookies are on the right

MIKE'S BIRTHDAY

We are so grateful to have Mike in our lives.  He is a wonderful husband and a great dad.  We went to BJs for pizza on his birthday.  The day before he requested puerco con salsa verde.  I was nervous because I had never made it before but it turned out great and the birthday boy approved.  The kids loved celebrating and love their dad so much.

MAGGIE IS 6 MONTHS OLD

How is Maggie 6 months old already?  I tried three different times to get a good smile from her but only got little smirks.  I promise she smiles and even laughs sometimes even though we couldn't get it on camera.  She is still cute and we love her to bits.  We started giving her some solid foods and she isn't quite sure about it.  She also started recently to refuse everyone, including Mike, and only wants Mommy.  If someone else is holding her she constantly has her Mommy-radar on, as Mike likes to call it.  She is reaching and grabbing for everything and especially loves hair.  Maggie loves her siblings.  Alex can really get her laughing.

TOAST TO PAPA

December 2 is my Dad's birthday.  In remembrance of him my siblings and I went to Dairy Queen, his favorite dessert, and shared photos of our various blizzards.  It was very fun to remember him and do something special despite us all being so far from each other.

Note Shane doing his super thumbs up: two thumbs up, a wink, and crooked smile.

THANKSGIVING

Because Shane's birthday was the day before Thanksgiving I didn't have much time to prep the day before.  As a result I spent most of the day in the kitchen.  I was able to take some time out to make some fun crafts with the kids.  Most of our friends were out of town but we did have the Philips over for pie in the evening.  The Elder missionaries came over for dinner and the Sister missionaries came for pie.  Unfortunately I didn't get many pictures.

SHANE TURNS 4

It seems every year gets shorter and shorter.  It's hard to believe this cute guy is 4 years old.  For his birthday restaurant he wanted steak so we went to Texas Roadhouse.  On his birthday he wanted English muffins with red egg and bacon.  He got cars, Superman ties, a BYU sweatshirt (from Mimi), and a book.  In the afternoon we went to see Wreck It Ralph 2 with some friends.  After the movie we had a special dinner of hotdogs picked by Shane.  After dinner we had his requested strawberry cake with him and Daddy fishing on top.  He was so happy all day.

Here are some pictures of his photo shoot.  Of course he wanted some in his BYU sweatshirt.

CUTE KIDS

Because sometimes you just have to share some really cute pictures of your kids.  They grow so fast you don't want to miss anything.

SILLY SALLY

For Halloween, Alex's school asked that the kids pick a favorite book character and dress up as them instead of dressing up as other Halloween type characters.  Alex chose Silly Sally.  She happened to have a purple dress similar to Sally.  I went to a thrift store and happened to find a white apron and bloomers (Raggedy Anne costume) that were the right size for Alex.  Lastly, I tied her hair in rags to make it curly like Silly Sally.  It turned out quite well if I do say so myself.  Alex LOVED the curls and kept shaking her head and making them bounce.  I guess we'll have to tie her hair in rags more often.

HALLOWEEN

This year for Halloween Shane wanted to be Superman and Alex wanted to be Rapunzel.  The weather was cold and rainy on the day of our ward's trunk or treat so it was moved inside.  They made it a trick AND treat where it was similar to a carnival.  Those giving out candy made the kids do some kind of game to "earn" the candy.  They loved all the games and then later enjoyed all the candy. 

For Halloween I made some speacial Halloween food.  For a snack I made cups of dirt and worms (chocolate pudding, oreo crumbles, gummy worms).  For dinner I made mozzarella stick fingers with blood dipping sauce and spider pizzas (olives).  The kids loved it but it grossed Mike out and he had a hard time eating it.  It was drizzling on Halloween night but we went out anyway.  We were some of the only kids out so people gave us tons of candy.  We only went to a couple dozen houses and ended up with so much candy!  Even Maggie didn't mind being out in the drizzling rain.  Maybe next year she will dress up and participate in the festivities.

BUEN GAUCHO

At Alex's school they have an award, the Buen Gaucho award, for students who are exemplary examples of someone who displays one of four different qualities: respectful, responsible, friendly, and helpful.  Alex received the award for respectful.  They had a little award assembly and gave her a certificate.  She also got a t-shirt that says, "Soy un buen gaucho."  We are so proud of her!