thankful

I am thankful for my parents and my sister, and am thankful they're not too far away to join us for our first Thanksgiving in our house.

I am thankful I have an awesome little brother on a mission in a really cool place, and hope some of the blessings are filtering up to me.

I am thankful for little Macie, and that I get to think of her often. I am thankful that she makes me be a better person, in a way no one else could. I am thankful for everything she reminds me of. I am thankful for the rest of my family that I get to live with: Tyler, who is a ray of sunshine, Emma, who is wise beyond her years, and Spencer, who totally balances me out.

I am thankful for heaters, washing machines, garbage disposals and hand sanitizer. For Cadbury chocolate, goldfish, homemade pizza, paint, crafts, and cute Christmas cards.

And...he's baaaack! I am thankful for Hermey, who makes my kids just a smidge more pleasant. Now if he can get on the ball and remember to hide every night. So far I'm (I mean, he's) 0 for 3 and I need to do a better job at helping him or at making up excuses for him...

And I really want to find my favorite flip flops (2 1/2 years old) because I would really like to be thankful for them again.

Ringin' in the 80s

Spencer and Hyrum were both born at the very end of the 70s, which means they both have 30th birthdays this November. Spencer's was a few weeks ago, while we were on vacation (more on that in the future), and Hyrum's is on Tuesday.

Ashley, Candice and I organized a surprise party for these two old men. It was last night at Ashley's house. SO FUN. Both the guys were told it was a surprise party for the other. I had a hard time keeping my story straight and not ruining the surprise.

Anyway, it was an 80s theme party. I walked into my first thrift store EVER this week and didn't have much success. I was super grossed out by the smell. I was worried I was becoming a snob but Candice thankfully accompanied me to another "nicer" thrift store and helped me find some clothes. I had to get a little creative. All our friends dressed up, and we even decorated to fit the theme!

I did have one realization: I'd better save some of my clothes so that in 10-15 years Emma can dress up in them and make fun of us and what we wore in the 2000s.

Enjoy the pictures!




The wives of the old men (don't worry, we're both a couple years away from being as old as our men). And I love that Candice is on her tip toes.




The girls. I'm aware that I look totally ridiculous.


The boys.

no 7-year itch

What I have learned these past 7 years:

*Both of us are incredibly stubborn. And we're both always right.

*If MASH is anywhere on TV, Spencer will find it and he WILL watch it.

*If at a loss for what to make for dinner, spaghetti will always win out.

*Spencer totally has the dominant genes when it comes to our kids.

7 years, 10 houses and 3 kids later...it just keeps getting better!

Our wedding day was an unusually warm, sunny day. It feels like we've been married for a long time but I guess that's not long when you consider forever!!

(Check back later to see how we celebrated--in color and in style!)

flashback

Spencer and I met in Econ 110. I don't remember meeting him, but he swears he remembers seeing me for the first time. He had some sneaky friends who eventually positioned themselves by me and my friends, and I quickly realized that this newly returned missionary was smart. I needed someone like that. Spencer became my "dating counselor" and I would always ask his advice about this boy I liked in my building. Well, imagine my shock when in the midst of the counseling, he asked me out! I remember how hot my face felt, how low my jaw dropped. I remember that he didn't laugh or scoff or make fun of me in my shocked state.

8 years ago today, Spencer and I went on our first date. I was usually quite a basketcase with first dates (aren't they the worst!?) but going out with Spencer was like going out with a friend. We went to The Pie in Salt Lake, and then to see Warren Miller's extreme skiing show at the Capitol Theater. (I still have the program from that show!)

I had a diamond ring from another boy (on a mission) at that point. I had it with me in my pocket. (So judge me all you want, but just know that that ring came in handy quite a bit at BYU with pushy boys...in fact, some of my friends used it to freak out their moms/friends.) Anyway, Spencer saw some old mission friends and I decided to put it on to see if they would notice. We got a good laugh the next day when he got an email from the friend asking if we were engaged. :)

But back to the story...

Spencer took his parents' Suburban that night because I think he was embarrassed about his car that was nicknamed "Lipstick."

I love remembering that first date because it was so fun and not awkward. Believe me, the awkward points came later. We had plenty of them. But about a year after our first date we were married. That year was emotional and a little crazy but I'm so glad I made that decision! I love how every November 16th I think of our first date, that pesky ring, and some seriously yummy pizza.

More to come...

the wasteland

Our house is on a big lot. Well, "big" is relative, but I really do think our yard is extraordinarily large. The problem is, ever since we moved back in in April, it's looked like this.

A wasteland. Awful. Ugly. As one of our friends said, there should be a malnourished goat tied to a stake in the middle of all the dirt. Our Stake President is our neighbor and gave a talk in Stake Conference a couple months ago about how his lawn is greener than everyone else's. We got the hint! I guess the point of his talk was to make the grass green where we are, figuratively speaking. But perhaps he also thought we were bringing down the neighborhood...

On the side of our house were these trees. Beautiful birch trees. But, covered in ivy. Therefore, ugly. I could even hear the bees swarming from inside my bedroom.

Spencer and are both bigtime "do it yourself" types of people. Especially me. I hate spending money. But we wanted these trees out, and we wanted the stumps out (remember our root system from a few months ago?? That took us 3 weeks?), and we wanted it done quickly and nicely.

So, Spencer rocked it at work and got a bonus (have I mentioned I love being married to a super smartie pants?) And we hired out for the first time ever! You know, I really liked the whole concept of having workers. It was so nice to say "The workers are coming today." Way better than the alternative! And in just 3 1/2 days, our front yard (and side yard) was completely transformed! They took those trees down so fast, they added a new concrete walkway out to the sidewalk, they laid sod and even added a new and improved sprinkler system! Emma was really good at inspecting from the sidelines.

The workers finished here, and we were left to spread the mulch (we didn't want the yard to be entirely grass). The mulch ended up being a huge project so once again, we hired out--2 young men. I love watching rather than working. I really could get used to this. (The trees were on the side of the house, by where the truck is. I love how having them gone has opened up our house/lot so much.)

What do you think? Awesome, right? This walkway border was my doing, and it took a lot longer than I thought it would. But I love how it looks. We have two trees to plant still (in the mulch area), and solar ground lights to put in on the sides of the walkway. I'd like to plant a money tree too.

And our workers? Worth every single penny!