Friends visiting!

When Angelica texted me last month asking if she could come and visit, I was ecstatic! 

OF COURSE! We absolutely love visitors!! 

It worked out perfectly because Aaron had Veteran's Day off so he hung out with the boys while I ran to the airport to pick up our friends. These three started out their day by reading books together.

 

The baby boys were instant friends.

Wednesday night Aaron made us deep dish pizza and apple pie. The guy is going places in the kitchen.

Thursday we had toured the Olympic Training Center, something I've been wanting to do since we moved here! Thanks for making my wish come true, Angelica!

I think I finally found a sport for Eli and his aggression. 

We love Team USA! We love the Nelsons!

After lunch and naps, our next stop was the Air Force Academy. The sunset was gorgeous that night!

Friday we had a playdate with Alex and Tiff and their little ones. I love when our home is filled with friends and their mini-sidekicks! Friday night we ate Chick-fil-a and Aaron took the kids on a train ride at the mall.

Next time instead of the train, we'll just pay for these carts and shop while the kids drive the taxis. ;)

Friday night was rough as we had a trip to the emergency room with this little guy. I was so grateful Angelica was here to be with the sleeping kids so Aaron and I could go together. Austin was vomiting and we couldn't get him to calm down. Aaron and I both felt something was wrong and when I called a nurse and told her all that was going on, she told me to take him to the emergency room. We waited a while to be seen and during that time, Austin calmed down. We were extremely grateful that everything was okay and we were sent home that night. We were also extremely grateful that the doctor and nursers were so kind to us and said it was better to be safe then sorry at this point. I cried tears of gratitude when we went to bed finally at 1:00 a.m.  Aaron had to leave for work at 4:30 a.m. for a football game the next day so needless to say, he was exhausted. I'm glad we could be together though!

Saturday we relaxed at the house and then made Thanksgiving dinner! It was fun to have a "Friends-giving" with the Nelsons. We also made Christmas sugar cookies. I wanted to celebrate as many holidays as possible with our company!

Best friends make this world a bright place. 

I love Angelica for her dedication to the gospel and her family. We had many heart to heart conversations that were so uplifting to my soul.

From college - to missions - to Chicago - to now.

And these two toddlers were something else. 

Frienemies really is the best way to describe them. ;)

Thanks for visiting us Angelica and kiddos. Come back soooooooon! XO

The Valley

A road trip isn't a road trip without road trip snacks like powdered donuts from 7-11.

With Aaron working all weekend, the boys and I headed to southern Colorado to visit my extended family. A three hour road trip is the best distance for a mini-trip. Easy peasy.

It was my grandma's turn to clean the church on Saturday so we decided to join her. 

"Many hands make light work!"

Eli's daily chores included gathering the eggs. :) The first time he gathered the eggs, he threw this egg on the ground. We quickly reminded him eggs can crack and he didn't do it again. Ha!!

He wants a kitten for Christmas.

Naps at grandma's house are the best.

I wanted to make sure and introduce my boys to my grandparents. Our first stop was saying hello to Grandma Thomas and Papa. As we were driving to the cemetery, Eli asked if they had toys to play with. When we got out of the car, he was looking around for my grandparents. We had a quick lesson on the circle of life and I told him someday he'll get to meet them!

Aunt Marilyn drove out to the cemetery with us!

Our next stop was visiting my Grandpa Pav, whom I have never met. 

What a sweet reunion it will be to see our loved ones again someday.

Austin sure loves his papa. 

This trip, I learned that my Grandma Pav has a Master's Degree in Music Education! I knew she was a teacher, but I missed the fact that she went on to get her Master's Degree! Smart lady! 

And I also learned that Uncle Larry just turned 80!! 80?!

The whole reason we made the quick weekend trip was to hear Ethan and Tylen talk in church about their missions in Paraguay and Chicago/Brazil. (Tylen was waiting on his visa and spent a year in each place.) They both gave outstanding talks about how their time as missionaries taught them so much. When Tylen was giving his testimony in Portuguese, Eli turned to me and said, "Hola!" :) Haha.. we're working on his Spanish. I'm grateful for these two returned missionaries and the example they are to these two little future missionaries. When we got home and had dinner with Aaron, Eli said, "Dad, I want to go on a mission someday." 

The boys slept the entire three hour drive home, so I had time to think about how grateful I am for family and the heritage I come from. I'm so grateful Heavenly Father created families for us to learn and grow together.

A rough one

Last week was a rough one! After Aaron got sick Friday night/Saturday, Austin got sick Sunday. Both boys had bad colds. Besides being sick, Austin was also teething. It was an exhausting week, but we all survived. 

Eli loves yogurt and after I let him eat some, I remember why I don't let him eat some every time he asks. It's quite the mess to clean up.

In an effort to get everyone feeling healthy again, we stayed home for three days. It's amazing what I can get accomplished when we don't leave the house. We had a bunch of apples that were getting softer than we like to eat, so I made some applesauce. It's delicious, if I do say so myself. :)

One of Eli's activities during our stay-at-home-so-everyone-gets-better days was taking pics on my phone. I love this one!

Thursday was our stake day at the temple. Unfortunately, Aaron wasn't able to get the day off because it was a big week with the Air Force/Army game on Saturday. Thanks, Alex, for watching our boys so I was able to attend. The highlight was when a worker at the temple ask me how old my boys are. When I replied they are 2 and 1/2 and 8 months, he said, "Oh, they really do grow so fast and some day you'll look back and miss these days and wish you would have spent more time with them." I smiled. Little did that gentleman know what an exhausting week I had, but his words were exactly what I needed to hear. I love going to the temple.

Halloween 2015

Thanks to my creative sisters, I love having family costumes now too! Angela wore this Dorothy costume several years ago and was kind enough to send it to me along with the basket and Toto. Not pictured are my ruby red slippers.

Austin's costume I found at Wal-mart and he was the cutest little lion. Eli rocked his tin man costume (even though he decided last minute not to wear the silver box I spray painted for him) and he carried around a pretend ax.

And Aaron is always a great sport and agreed to be the scarecrow. I wish you could see the patches and straw he added to his costume he found at Goodwill.

"Oh, you're the best friends anybody ever had!" - Dorothy

Friday morning my friend planned a Halloween party for play group. 

The donut eating contest was my favorite!

Halloween morning the boys helped me clean the church because Aaron got sick after the ward party and I demanded that he stayed in bed. :/

I'm grateful for their willingness to serve!

Our stake conference landed on Halloween night so we did a quick round of trick or treating in the neighborhood and then I headed to stake conference. (Aaron stayed home sick with the boys!)

I agree. Holidays are so much better with little ones! I loved that Eli went around telling everyone what his costume was. And, his face lit up as he examined all the candy he received. 

Thanks for a memorable month, October! 

First Date

Part of our first date four years ago was going the Haunted Mines. Since we now live a mile from the mines, Aaron insisted that we go back this year. Aaron has had a two week break from school and it's been sooo nice having him around during the evenings. We had a busy Halloween weekend planned so we opted for a date during the week. The scariest part was that Aaron and I were sent through the mines just the two of us!! I thought for sure we'd be with a group and I'd go in the middle of everyone. I hate being first or last one in those types of things, but with just the two of us, I insisted that Aaron went first! The best part was standing in line for two hours and laughing about our first date and all that has changed four years later!

2011

2015

(Should I cut my hair short?!)

The best part about going through the mines together this time was that I could close my eyes and snuggle into Aaron, something I refused to do on a first date. ;)

In other news - I read this book last week and couldn't put it down. It's been a while since I wanted to read each night over going to sleep! I loved how Ben Carson referenced all of his successes to God. Read it right now!