Darren's Dream Come True

Darren gives me a hard time every Halloween because we go to multiple parties, Trunk-or-Treating & the night is just crazy. Last year he made me promise that we'd stay home, build a fire in the driveway, and pass out candy.

By the time we got home from Rawhide & built a fire, we had a whopping 2 Trick-or-Treaters come to our house. I think we're going to party next year... Although it was fun & cozy to visit with Mom & Dad!

Doom Town @ Rawhide

We went to Rawhide {an old western theme town Darren was the engineer for} on Halloween night. As we entered the gate, out of the shadows came galloping a Headless Horseman!
The town was decked out in some super creepy decorations. The Undertaker would follow people around with his measuring stick. The kids were pretty freaked out!
Nobody messes with the Jedi. Lightsabers totally deflect bullets.
Our darling Trick-or-Treaters!
We also went to a show at the Six Gun Theatre. Pretty cheesy, although they tried to make it exciting with some pyrotechnics:)

Girl's Day @ the Spa

Darren's parents came down from Idaho to spend Halloween with us. It was so fun to have them here!

For Mother's Day this year, I gave Mom Roos a gift certificate for a pedicure @ a Spa here in AZ. Pretty sneaky way to get a visit, huh? I had to share one of my AZ addictions! Pedicures are so girly & pampering-- a bubbly spa, hot rock massage, chatting, relaxing in the massage chairs, choosing your "cala" {what the workers call the nail polish}-- what's not to love?Courtney came with us and got her nails painted. Sleeping Beauty pink, of course! Welcome to Arizona, Mom! Land of pedicured toenails & flip-flops!

New Year's Resolution...

Disclaimer: Okay, it seems to be Blogging feast or famine with me these days. We've been busy at our house this week with company, sick kids, and now I seem to have caught a cold. I'm blogging while my meds kick in {and I don't have my contacts in, either}, so please forgive me if I write anything alarming.

Last Christmas, I gave my Young Women a lesson on gifts. Gifts we can give to the Savior, gifts we can give to ourselves, and gifts we can give to our families. In preparing my talk, I found that if a person read 7 pages a day, they could have the entire standard works read within a year. I thought, "Someday, I'd really like to do that." Well, someday turned into THAT day, and I began to read.

I finished tonight! Finally a New Years resolution kept faithfully, every day {I wish I could say the same for my fitness goals:}. I have felt such blessings in my life as a result. I am so grateful that we have record of Prophets' voices, the Savior's deeds, and also the blessings of continued guidance from the Prophets of today.

Pinkalicious Party

We had to postpone Courtney's party last week, due to our unexpected trip up to Idaho. She wanted a Princess party {like all her friends}, but then we came across this book, and a new party theme was born! Courtney had seriously over 40 people she wanted to invite, but for my own sanity, I had to limit her to 10.

This book is about a little girl who loves everything pink-- especially pink cupcakes! After having too many, she winds up with a bad case of "Pinkititis."The girls were so darling, all decked out in pink fabulousness. They colored, had their nails painted, made wands, danced-- it was so girly & cute!
The guys were such gentlemen in helping out! Alexander was our nail-polish-dryer-man, the DJ for the dancing game, the Bingo caller-- such a good sport. Darren was awesome, too! My fav was his cameo performance as a dancer-- the girls thought he was hilarious:)
Pink Flamingo Bingo

Sweet friends sharing gifts
The only cure for Pinkititis is eating green foods. I must say, the pink foods were a much bigger hit than the green ones. The girls loved the Hot-Diggitys {Lil' Smokies wrapped in crescent rolls} and pink marshmallows the best!

The girls loved decorating their very own pinkalicious cupcakes. Sweetie, you're so beautiful & we're so glad you're our girl!
Thank you's were all pink--nail polish, gum, bracelets, wands & a flower clip {and yes, the french fry box was made by my Silhouette} What a fun party!

Boys will be boys

Too much of this...

requires replacing a lot of these!!
Alexander is always such a good sport when an extra hand is needed in the garage.

On the Way Home

We had such a great trip. A funeral is never a fun excuse to get together, but it was such a blessing to be together with my family. I could never have fathomed the heartbreak, tragedy & sadness that my family has endured over the past few years. It is miraculous that we were even able to be together again, if for only a few short days. My heartfelt thanks goes out to all those that have been there in supporting us & showing their love. Ahh, the homework... one bummer about traveling during the school year. Alexander did 90 math story problems on the trip back home.
Courtney crashed on the way home! She slept for probably 6 hours, so she was amazed at how quickly the time went by. Her GramZ gave her these gloves {because she was cold} and she wouldn't take them off the entire trip.We are so lucky the kids are such fantastic travelers. I'm not sure where this pic was taken. It all blends together...
Another pic in the middle of nowhere. Darren says he's documenting history here. His favorite part of watching old slide shows is looking @ old cars. So.... future generations, here is a car for your viewing pleasure.

At the Roos House

We had a fun 2-week vacation this past summer at the Roos house. It was great to see them again on Sunday night. Dad Roos is always talking up his new big screen, so we had to watch the last Red Sox game (boo!) with our favorite Boston fans! Darren's brother Josh, and his darling little boy Tyler. He is hilarious, and was being such a good sport staying up way past bedtime to watch the Sox game and playing with cousins!
What a darling family! Darren's sister, Melisa, her hubby Jordan, and their three beautiful girls, Madelyn, Abby & Catelyn. They are all so fun. The girls keep us entertained with their fun giggles & amazing feats on the stairs & furniture.
Oh my GOSH how they grow up! Camryn, Josh & Jamie's baby {sorry, Jamie, I didn't get a pic of you or Dad} is the smiliest baby. It was so fun to hold & enjoy a little one! She was a tiny newborn the last time we saw her.

Fun @ My Parents' House

Great-Grandpa Bob challenged Alexander to his 1st arm wrestle. Don't ask me how he managed to go 9 years without an arm wrestle..?!
Courtney playing with my old doll house

Grandma Kathie had a tea party {homemade root beer} with the kids out on her balcony. She had ALL the goods. M&Ms, sugar, cookies, donuts-- you name it, it was there. Talk about a sugar high:)

The kids were in absolute heaven!

She also made some darling little Halloween crafts with them. Thanks, Grandma Kathie!

The Montana Smiths

My brother, Adam, his wife Tyana & their cute kiddos

Adam finished up Med school in Iowa & Ohio, and they've settled down in a beautiful little town in Montana. We loved seeing them!

Miss Katie being very obliging when we told her to pull funny faces for the camera:)Michael is such a smartie! He loved showing us his satchel and Indiana Jones whip.
This was the most darling game & the kids had fun playing together. It is fun to see Alexander being "the oldest" cousin. His little cousins sure look up to him & he loves them, too!

Family Halloween Party

First, we started off with a fun family dinner. Alexander, Michael, Katie & Courtney
Grandma Kathie had lots of fun activities for the kids to do. They played Halloween Pictionary, balloon pop, roll the pencil, and showed off their awesome costumes!
Next, we had a spooky visitor. The younger kids weren't sure about this witch-- until her nose fell off and they realized it was GramZ! She brewed up some "Gob-L-dee Gorp" {which is a concoction of coconut, raisins, peanuts, candy corn, etc} that nobody likes to eat, but it's tradition. She is such an awesome Grandma & Great-Grandma!
The Sleeping Beauties dancing {we love Auntie Rebecca!}

After we put the kids to bed, the grown-ups stayed up and talked and laughed until we cried. Somehow the conversation turned to the baseball play-offs, and Grandpa Adams disappeared for a minute. He came back and read us all "Casey at the Bat," an old but classic poem. We love staying with my Grandparents. They are always so welcoming and fun!

All Together Again

This is the 1st time in 8+ years that my siblings & I have all been together. Getting this family photo together brought me back to long trips in the station wagon, where pinching, elbowing & wet-willies abounded! That being said, it was the BEST to be all together again. I love you all so much! Ryan, Rebecca, Natalie & Adam
The whole family {remember what I said about wet-willies?}

(and that's the chair sticking out on the side)

Wishing Flowers

Courtney kept collecting and blowing "wishing flowers" at the cemetary. It was beautiful to watch the white seeds being carried by the wind. We wish you well, Grandma!
My Father, saying goodbye.

Making Cookies @ Grandmother's House

My Mom always has fun activities for the kids to do. First on the list: Cookies! The kids got totally spoiled with treats @ Grandma's house. Every time I turned around, they had chocolate or sugar smeared on their faces. I guess it's OK, since it's only once or twice a year:)
Alexander sifting flour with his Great-Great Grandma Peck's sifter.
S-t-r-e-t-c-h!
We love our Grandma Kathie! We found out the day after we left that she has pneumonia! She was still a good sport in keeping up with the kids.

Salt Lake City

Our first family stop was in Utah, where Darren's sister lives. We surprised the kids with an extra treat-- Grammy Roos was there! Mom Roos was in Salt Lake for an MS treatment, so we got to see her as well as the Cazier clan. The kiddos love to play together & they love their Grammy!
Mom Roos, Cami, Scott, Alyssa & Nathan. Thanks for the fun visit {albeit short} & the yummy chicken noodle soup!
Nathan & Alexander are best buds. Right now they're both into... you guessed it-- Indiana Jones & Star Wars. Alexander gave us all an impromptu recital on the piano, featuring songs from those movies.