Halloween 2014

Halloween is by far Jake's favorite holiday (Christmas a very close second). All through October, he chats away about pumpkins and ghosts and "The Nightmare Before Christmas." He discovered a song on YouTube that goes, "Walking down the street on Halloween Night, lots of scary monsters and other strange sights!" He sings it daily, and pretty much all year round. He has also LOVED a new Curious George movie called "Halloween Boofest." I think we watched it at least twice every day. And he would talk about No-Noggin incessantly. Every person he came into contact with learned about No-Noggin and all about how he kicks people's hats off on Halloween Night! It was super cute. Because he was very, very serious about it.

Jake dressed up as a pirate, Ruby was a strawberry and Benjamin was a pumpkin. Jake LOVED it when the twins got dressed up too. He already calls them his friends and loves to play and do things with them. The twins are at a fun age and Jake plays with them all day long. It's wonderful.

Halloween night we came to Grandma Heidi and Grandpa Martin's house for dinner. (Jake loves their house because it fully decorated with lit up pumpkins and all kinds of decor. Jake asked daily to go to Grandma's house and see her "Halloween stuff.") Mom had chocolate cupcakes topped with skeletons and spiders and poison bottles and Jake thought it was simply amazing. 

(Something I've really learned about decorating for holidays is how ESSENTIAL it is for kids. You could have the saddest display, the cheesiest decor and it wouldn't matter. Decorations make holidays special and magical for kids. It's truly amazing and I love seeing the light and excitement in Jake's eyes as he takes it all in.)

The weather forecast predicted rain, so as soon as Scott got to Mom's from work, we ate quickly, chatted with family and the sister missionaries who had come for dinner, and headed out to trick-or-treat around the neighborhood. We had the twins in the double stroller and Jake was so grown up this year, walking on his own, not scared, going up to houses all by himself at times. He still didn't say "trick-or-treat" very loudly. haha. He would just stand there until someone gave him candy. And if he did say it after prompting from us, it was very, very soft-spoken.  It was adorable and we had so much fun.

When it started to rain we dashed to get through a few more houses and then came back to Grandma's. We trick-or-treated just long enough to get a good amount of candy for Jake and he was content. He's still not at the age to have the desire to fill bags bags with Halloween candy. Thank Heavens! But he was the cutest 3 year old Pirate I ever did see! Everyone oohed and ahhed over how cute and sweet he was. And Benjamin and Ruby received lots of compliments too.

I love my family. I love that we make traditions together and can share in the magic of holidays. Happy Halloween to the cutest little pirate, strawberry and pumpkin that I know!

Natalie & Spencer's Open House

Once again, my mom outdid herself. She has a real talent for creating gorgeous color palettes and parties. The weather was hot hot hot, the food scrumptious and the newlyweds glowing. We just love Natalie and Kylie and are so happy to have them be a part of our family.

My friend Lora took beautiful pictures as always and we all died laughing going through all the grand children's pictures. Ben is stoic, Jake is all over the place, Ruby is fickle, Ryder is a ham and poor Kylie is just downright distraught. They are awesome and pictures that are destined to become infamous and legendary. 

Congratulations again to my wonderful brother and his beautiful new wife and daughter!

Los Doyers

My parents took the family and our new family--The Humbles!--to see the Dodgers! Baseball games are always fun and the kids did wonderfully.  Jake drank Coke to his heart's content and actually asked for food--nachos. It was a baseball miracle! Benjamin and Ruby pounded French fries and chocolate malts.

And...we got on the big stadium screen!!! We had four babies and Jake to wave around in the air so we were a shoe-in! Glad that's checked off my bucket list. It was so fun! We're famous!

Price is Right

Garrisons, come on down!!! You're the next contestants on the Price is Right!!

We actually didn't get called up though. Hah. But it was a fun and different and loud experience that we were glad to check off the bucket list. Price is Right is no joke. It was a major time commitment. We were there all. day. long. waiting. in. line. after. line. after. line. Like I said it was once in a lifetime. Thankfully, Scott and I ate at the LA Farmer's Market right before so our tummys were full. But you wait in line, to get a name tag, you wait in line to get a picture taken, you wait in line to be interviewed, you wait in line to get into the CBS building, etc. 

And what's so funny is how small it is in there! On TV, the stage and seating area look huge. Not so. Small. And you clap and cheer and yell for a straight hour because a lady with headphones and cue cards is in your face keeping you peppy. The best part about it though, was that we were seated in the second row pretty much right behind the contestants chairs. So we should be on TV quite a bit! The other cool part was having Drew Carey talk and laugh and make jokes during commercial breaks. It was like going to a Comedy show. That man is hilarious. 

Scott and I had fun, even though we had major headaches afterward and we were anxious to get back to our kids. But I love having little LA adventures this guy. I'm so lucky that he is fun-loving and brave to do stuff like this with me, even though we knew we wouldn't get called because as Scott said, "We're not crazy enough." Very true. 

Our episode airs November 13, 2014. (phones/cameras weren't allowed inside :( )

Multnomah Falls

Spencer and Natalie were married on August 22, 2014 in Portland, Oregon at an absolutely beautiful outdoor venue. There were flowers everywhere. They hung from pots on the arbor and around the vivid green grass. Swans floated in the ponds and butterflies were released as the couple kissed. It was so magical! I am so happy I was able to be there. 

Scott and my Aunt Hilary, and many others, watched the kids so I could be there for Spencer's special day. It was a blast to be on a mini vacation sans kids if I'm being honest. I felt so free! We were in Portland for just over 24 hours, but one thing I just had to do was go on a hike. Oregon has the most stunning trails. They are simply teeming with trees and foliage and pure gorgeousness. Seriously, why do I live in the desert? The mountains are where its at. 

My dad, Lina, Cardon and Ryder joined me on the hike to Multnomah Falls. It did not disappoint. Though it was all uphill. It was quite the workout. Lina gave up about 1/4 mile up. She sat on a bench and refused to budge. Dad ran ahead right after. The man is a beast and so in shape. So it was Cardon and I pretty much the whole time. He made it enjoyable and kept me going by singing, "Hi Ho! Hi Ho!" and making hilarious comments to the hikers we passed along the trail. 

It was amazing how high up we hiked. A little freaky. Dad was waiting for us at the top of the waterfall and we snapped a few photos. I could barely get myself to look over the edge of the waterfall. We were sooo high. It was a beautiful hike with my family and a great way to experience Portland. And Lina was waiting for us at the bottom :)