Our Fabulous Thanksgiving Adventures!

WAHOO! What a fun and fabulous last few days we've had. My parents came down for Thanksgiving and we had the best time with them- seriously. So many great memories. It was actually my Dad's first visit since we have lived here so it was so great to have him come and see a bit of our "world" and to spend time with him and Mom and Chris and Abby... here's the roundup of what we have done since Wednesday!

Wednesday afternoon we all arrived in Sedona and even though it had rained and was foggy, we headed out on a Ranger ride to Soldiers Pass. And Chris had every right to look nervous in the above pic.. and be all geared up with his helmet and 5 point harness on! We had a near death experience! Ok, not near death but a scary one... The rocks were a little slick and we had Abby and Chris in the back which was a mistake... we were going up a steep rocky edge on the way to the Devils Kitchen and we almost rolled backwards- our front end went all the way up and just as we thought we were going to roll the back hitch caught on the rock. We were seriously at about a 80 degree angle sitting on the hitch. I was leaning all the way forward, afraid that at any moment we were going to flip backwards. To make a long dramatic story short... not only did Ry's hitch save us but he had chains in his Ranger that ultimately resolved the crisis! My dad (an engineer) suggested the solution and Ger and I were able to jump out and pull the front end of the Ranger down once the chains were attached and Chris and Abby jumped out and Chris jumped in the drivers seat immediately and pulled it forward since we obviously weren't strong enough to pull the Ranger all the way over the steep rocks. Sydney was amazingly brave! She wasn't panicking when I seriously was a nervous wreck. When we got her out she started laughing with relief and was just grinning. Poor Mia was bawling but my Mom reassured her that everything was ok and they prayed and thank heavens we were blessed and it was. But we have NEVER had anything near scary happen on the Rangers so I felt horrible that my parents were there for all the drama and were afraid that they would be too nervous to ride for the next few days... But they weren't frightened or nervous in the least about the whole situation- we knew why it happened and they LOVED every minute of riding with us the rest of the trip. Phew. Ok, sorry that ended up to be WAY longer than I thought!Here's a pic of Abby and Chris after the "incident"... it bonded them closer together than ever. Ha ha! Totally kidding- but are they not the cutest couple ever?

Colby just LOVED playing with my Dad- so neat to see them have such a great time together. They would tease each other back and forth and I love that Colby didn't need any time warming up to him- they hit it off from the first day as you can see!

DAY 2! HAPPY THANKSGIVING!No turkey for us today! We decided to play hard and have our turkey dinner Saturday. BUT! We did have this AMAZINGLY yummy chocolate cornicopia filled with chocolates from Mrs. Cavanaugh's that helped us celebrate Thanksgiving. We gobbled it up pretty fast and it was so amazing- thanks Mom!

Then we had pannekoeken for breakfast (thanks Chris and Abby!!!) which was fabulous, a treasure hunt thanks to Grandma, just played and hung out together and then we headed out on the Rangers!We went up Schnebly Hill and it was cloudy and foggy but luckily the rain subsided. We had a fantastic ride- so many gorgeous cliffs and red rocks and when we neared the top we found a great spot to make a fire, toast marshmellows and make Smores. YUM! Then we...

did the A-Tu-Ta-Ta! ALL growing up my dad did this with us around the campfire with us so it is just tradition. And it is super funny every time! The girlies loved it- and Chris is so good at acting handicapped it sometimes worries me (and Abby- ha ha!) but we were all cracking up. So fun.

This post is getting long... so ta-da! This is our groupie photo that I will end with for now... but plenty more coming!

Gobble Gobble!

• These cute little guys will be gracing our Thanksgiving table this year! The turkey's came in a headband craft kit from good old Hobby Lobby. I used those super small ziplocs (used for jewelery or whatever) for the candy and made the little "bags" from cardstock! You can see how they are put together below. Email me if you want more info- in the past I have done these for bridal shower favors tied with ribbon at the top and they are really cute...

Growing up we ALWAYS did these turkeys with tulle and pipe cleaners- it was a fun Thanksgiving tradition! We have made them for the last few years and the kiddos love helping put them together and they are easy and cheap too.

But the kiddos LOVE making these turkeys too! If you need to enertain the kiddos on Thanksgiving day, these are always a hit!

A Fabulous "Semi-Homemade" Treat!

It's always so nice to do a fancy treat that is super easy... and this is a great one for the holidays! You just buy the pretzels already covered in chocolate and drizzle with chocolate melts! You can do brown or orange for Thanksgiving... Green and red for Christmas... they will add a festive touch to whatever party you take them to or just add some color to your treat bowl at home!

• Buy the white chocolate or yogurt pretzles at Sprouts or Fry's or wherever (I think Sprouts is cheapest at $3.99 a pound) Place pretzels on tin foil or wax paper.
• Melt candy melts (in whatever color!) in a plastic bag in microwave for 20-30 seconds. (15-20 melts does a pound of pretzels- a little bit goes a long way)
• Cut corner of the baggie (TINY CUT!) and drizzle across pretzels.
• Allow to dry and put in dish! My kids were eating these just about as fast as I could make them- they are so yummy! And Ross is great- I picked up this cute arrangments of ceramic pots for only $4.99!

Amazingly Tasty and Quick Freezer Jam!

Yes, you can make jam in the winter... without fresh berries! I should have posted on my Costco post about how yummy their frozen berries are, because this is what I use to make jam probably 50% of the time. Thanks to Lorell Morell! (She's in my ward and yes that is her real name- she showed me how to do it with the frozen berries.) The berries are sweet and delicious and perfectly ripe and it's actually easier than fresh fruit because you don't have to wash them and dry them, hull the strawberries, etc. Just take the berries out of the freezer the night before you jam and they'll be perfectly defrosted the next day. You just follow the Freezer jam recipe EXACTLY! I'm taking, get out your knife and scrape it across the top of the measuring cup every time you measure, time everything out just right, and it will be perfectly set up jam. We are addicted- my kiddos are jam snobs because they won't even try jam if it's not homemade! This is the mixed berry- 1 1/2 cups strawberries and 1 3/4 cups mixed berries. We were totally out so I'm so glad to have some just in time for Thanksgiving!

FINALLY! A Frozen Yogurt Place in Gilbert!

Ok, I am a HUGE fan of frozen yogurt. In Utah they had it around every corner- Hogi Yogi, TCBY, Golden Spoon, Maverick, etc. Well in Texas they only had TCBY and it was in North Austin so we didn't go all that much... And here the closest place is miles away on Gilbert and Baseline... So I've been feeling very deprived. But Hallelujah! Ocean Blue Frozen Yogurt just opened up in the Dana Park Shopping Plaza on Baseline and Val Vista! We had to stop on our way home from picking up Mia from school and.... IT WAS SUPER YUMMY! It's like the Yogurt Stop in Utah- you swirl your own, add your own toppings, and pay just $5.60 a pound! It's all 50% off for their Grand Opening this weekend though, so run down! I love when you get to make it just how you want it. They have 14 flavors. Yes, that's right- 14! From mango to cheesecake to carmel pecan. And toppings from gumballs and gummi bears to nuts and candy bars. So Lissy, it's official, you can now move down here because we've got frozen yogurt!

Easy and Cheap Thanksgiving Decor

Need something for your Thanksgiving table?!? Well this is a super easy decor that also adds some height which is always a plus. My sister-in-law Meghan made something similiar years ago at her Enrichment night and I just loved it. You can pretty much pick up everything at JoAnns or Michaels. I bought the vases at JoAnns on sale for $7 a piece and everything else at Michaels just last week when it was all 80% off! (Except the wheat, which I used my 40% coupon for.)

So just put green floral foam in the base, put straw/mossy stuff on next (I don't love the moss but you can see my brownish stuff whatever it is called! It's found in the floral dept!), stick the wheat in all together, stick in the squashes that have leaves already attached, stick in the berries... Tie a brown ribbon around the wheat and you are done. Mine cost less than $15 each to make and took under an hour to make both of them. I didn't use any hot glue because I tried to stick everything in to the floral foam... If you have any great decor tips for Thanksgiving or any holiday, let me know!!!

Fabulous Finds at Costco

Thank heavens for sample day at Costco! Not only do the kiddos love it but I have found some yummy products by sampling them first! Last week we were doing our shopping and the bagel lady called us over for a sample. I am pretty picky about my bagels so was just grabbing one as I quickly passed but I was pleasantly surprised! It was really good! So I asked more questions... and Ta Da! Maybe I am the last one to know about this but Costco makes Einstein bagels right out of their own bakery! They send you home with a dozen bagels and an official bag to prove it. They are very tasty- yum. So glad that I now know this! Our favorite flavors are cinnamon raisin, honey cracked wheat, and asiago cheese.

Other things at Costco that are yummy that you may not know about that we love...

They have super yummy mashed potatoes in the open refrigerator section. I am also picky about my mashed potatoes- always do homemade- but these are really creamy and yummy and my kids LOVE it. Susie told me about these! In fact last night we got home from dance at 5:30 and I stuck some in the microwave (only 4 minutes!), sauted some Costco canned chicken breast in a little butter and then made a gravy out of it with Cream of Chicken soup and milk, threw some frozen corn (also from Costco! Bybee Foods Organic) in the microwave, buttered some rolls, and dinner was ready in 15 minutes! AND it was super yummy.

Also in the same refrigerator section they have a pot roast that is pre-cooked that you just warm up and it is super tender and really tasty. That would also be great served up with the mashed potatoes.
Another Costco item we love is Pirate Booty! Debbie brought us some to try and we're hooked. They are kind of like Cheetos without the orangey cheese- they are all natural and have aged white cheddar on them and they are yummy.
And I can't even think of the name right now, but there are these other chips in a black bag that are so yummy too- organic with all sorts of grains and sesame seeds and stuff- and can be used as chips or crackers. We love dipping them in Salsa... Lena let us try some and we now love getting those! (The reason why I don't have any in my pantry right now- to get the name- is because I eat the whole bag at a time so I have banned them until I can have better self control. ha ha!)
The Fetticine Alfredo, shrimp and cocktail sauce, and chicken parmesan are all yummy from the deli area... I've heard the pot pie is, but we have never tried it!

The Marie Callendars Corn Bread mix is the BEST. So yummy. Everyone already knows how yummy the dried mangos are.. those are also banned here for a while. And the Pacific Gold Beef Jerkey...

What are your favs that we may not know about?!?

WAHOO! I ran a mile!!!

Ok, seriously this isn't a big accomplishment for any of you, but considering I LOVE to run and haven't been able to since my ankle surgery in July... this was exciting! I "granny-jogged" so it took me 11 minutes but I didn't have any pain- it still just feels a little weak. So hallelujah! I have to say I think taking Glucosamine has helped... I wish I would have taken right after the sugery. So anyone out there with joint pain/problems... give it a try. Some cases have shown that it actually builds back psuedo cartilage, the kind I needed after the microfracture- so it will be interesting to see when more studies come out on it if it really does. I will continue to gradually build up to my usual 3-5 mile runs over the next few months, but actually have enjoyed biking and doing other stuff to work out!

Listen up Ladies!

Here are a few hair tips I have recently discovered that I wish I knew a long time ago!

Firstly, Baby Powder... Out of all the uses for baby powder, this one has to be the best one I know. Debbie let us in on this little secret at Cooking Club months and months ago and I LOVE it! If you work out and your scalp gets sweaty but your hair is clean- you just washed it the day before- powder the sweaty areas near the scalp with a little baby powder and voila! You are smelling fresh, your hair looks fabulous and you are ready to go! This really might change your life and the health of your hair! ha ha! Seriously though - give it a try. It takes a little practice to get just right and I generally flip my head over and blow dry for a few seconds too... Thanks Debbie!

NOTE FROM EDITOR! Ger read this and was afraid I never showered. :-) You DO shower, just don't wash your hair! Put it in a shower cap or just up in a bun. No hygeine is sacrificed whatsoever here. Tip #2- At the Hyatt at Huntington Beach they had this amazing blowdryer in our bathroom- my hair was dry in half the time and it was sleeker and shinier when I was done, not frizzy and poofy. Maybe I am slow about finding out about these amazing blow dryers, but I was so excited to save myself so much time! Maybe I will get to wash my hair more now that I have my own one of these babies! I bought mine of Amazon for a steal of $34 with free shipping. It's called the Conair 213X Infiniti Professional Tourmaline Ceramic Technology Ionic Styler. Fancy name, great product. ;-) It got 4 1/2 out of 5 stars with 127 ratings so you know it's got to be amazing, right?!? WAHOO! So exciting. Let me know of any time saving beauty tips you guys have!

Late Night out on the Town!

Ok, so we were so excited to go to the Phoenix Suns game as a family this week... We were all geared up and then Ger happened to re-check the tickets and the game time was 8:30PM instead of 7:00 PM! BAH! We had already hyped it up for the kiddos, so there was no backing out of this one... even though it was a school night. AND to add to that Ger thought Colby got in free, but it's kiddos TWO and under. Not three. Luckily, that dilemma resolved itself when Colby said he would rather play at Grandma's. Luckily, Grandma was willing and excited to have him over last minute, so he busily got his PJ's on, dressed like a Power Ranger (I still am not sure why?!?) and packed his spiderman lunchbox with necesities like toys and his toothpaste and toothbrush. He thought of everything. ;-) Thank heaven's for such fun grandparents that live 2 doors down. Colby had a great time and was sufficiently spoiled I'm sure!

We got to the game in plenty of time, so we checked out the kiddos area- the US Airways Center has a great play place for kiddos on the 2nd level by Peter Pipers. It has lots of basketballs, hoops, slides, big cut-outs of players, video games, and even a zipline! Mia loved it. We had a great time and made it just as the game was starting. The girlies enjoyed the game and danced to the music, clapped when the suns scored and munched on snacks we had snuck in... We did buy cotton candy at the end- which they LOVED- as you can see! They had a fabulous time!

We bailed at half-time and Syd and Mia fell asleep on the way home... Phew. It was a fun little adventure out on the town!

Make Your Own Turkey!

Sydney came home with a project from school that we just had a great time with so I thought I'd share! She had to cut out a turkey from cardstock and decorate it... Ta Da!

Hopefully her teacher is not like, WHAT WERE THEY THINKING!?!? But anyways, we had fun being creative... We drew turkeys out for Colby and Mia too... they used cereal and raisins... and a WHOLE lot of glue. Woah. We are officially out- Colby squoze out every last drop!

(Is squoze a word!?!) But I thought this would be a fun activity to do again- using real feathers, beans, yarn, crayons or watercolors, other cereal, rice, or just whatever their little creative minds could think of! You can even color pasta different colors with food coloring and that would be fun to do...
Mia was definitely conservative on the glue so you can tell who's picture is who's!

We also love nature hunts with leaf rubbings at this time of year... Covering pine cones we have collected with peanut butter and birdseed and hanging them with yarn for the birds... Let me know of any other fun fall crafts!

Adventures with Chris and Abby

WAHOO! Chris and Abby were back in town! It was a great deal- we flew Chris in to watch the kiddos for a few days while we got away. Worked out great for both of us! On the way to the airport, we had dinner with them and the kiddos and it was so much fun. I had to post this pic of them because seriously, they are one gorgeous couple.

We had dinner at Lucille's Smokehouse Barbecue at Tempe Marketplace and then let the kiddos run around by the fountains and sit by the fire. It was a lot of fun... even though Colby ended up getting a little drenched. ;-) He was in heaven though- they loved every minute of it.
The kids were actually happy to see us go at the airport! They were so excited to spend a few days with Chris and Abby- and they were totally spoiled all weekend!
They were plenty busy with school on Friday and kept busy throughout the entire weekend... they went to Freestone park and fed the ducks and played on the playground, went out to eat at Pei Wei, picked out their own treats at AJ's and Chris made milkshakes for each of them with their treats, had soccer games Saturday morning, got smoothies, went to Gecko Grill for lunch,they made a Gingerbread House and had a blast (thanks Grandma!!!), went to church, had dinner at Abby's house and the kiddos LOVED the train her dad had in the backyard, watched a movie or two, had a FABULOUS time with Sarah who came over and played with them so Chris and Abby could have a date night, wrestled, laughed, just did a lot of playing!

Chris said he was sure the kiddos would prefer them instead of us after they left! So nice that we weren't even missed. ;-) But he also said, "I'm definitely not ready for kids yet." Lol! Especially 3 at once! But they were great to do so much with the kids. Of course I asked Sydney, "Did Chris get impatient or frustrated?" And Syd said, "No way mom! They were so nice to us the whole time." Why did I ask. Silly me. They just had a fabulous time and we are so grateful for them! Love you guys!

1st Timers at CA Beaches!

Woah. So sad we haven't been out there before! I know! This was Ger and I's first big trip to CA beaches! (Heather, are you so excited I finally made it out to your stomping grounds!?!) GORGEOUS! What a fun and fabulous birthday present. Do I have the best hubby or what!?! Well we had a great time... We stayed at Huntington Beach but also visited Newport Beach, Dana Point, and Laguna beach. We swam (dolphins were literally 25 feet from us!), biked along the ocean for miles and miles... ...body boarded, laid out ;-), played smash ball on the beach, ate at some amazingly yummy seafood restuarants, hot-tubbed, shopped at the surfer dudes shops, enjoyed people watching (lots of crazy surfer dudes!), got a couples massage, caught a movie, went to the Newport Beach temple... relaxed... it was just a great time.

One of the best things about it was Chris and Abby were watching our kiddos so they thought they were on vacation too! They were so excited you would have thought it was Christmas. They had a great time and we didn't have to worry about them once.

(I'll post on their adventures next!)

We got to be professionals at setting up our camera and doing the timer...
Ger scored us a convertible for $20 a day! What a deal huh. I had to snap this pic in front of the temple because we were totally laughing about our worldliness. ;-) We have since repented. lol. We loved cruising beach Blvd. in this baby with the heat cranked and the radio blasting!

The Hyatt at Huntington was a FABULOUS place to stay. We highly recommend it!

Gorgeous beaches... So much to do... Disneyland and Legoland so close...

We can't wait to go back with the kiddos!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HEIDS!

Ok, so Heidi's birthday was last week but I had all these pics in my blog ready to post with Happy Birthday wishes on her big day! Since we were out of town on her birthday it was a little too crazy but I still wanted to post these anyways with all the reasons I love you Heids!1. Heidi is one of the geniunly nicest people I know. Seriously. She is nice to everyone. In high school she was friends with all the "popular" kids and all the special needs kids. She is so kind to everyone she meets... as a hairdresser she was crazy busy because everyone loved not only the way she cut their hair but the way she makes people feel so good about themselves.

2. Heidi is hilarious! She is always making us laugh. Her street smarts have improved in recent years, but she is just always saying funny things...
3. Heidi is extremely talented- from cutting hair to shopping for deals to cooking and scrapbooking, she's the whole package.

4. My kids LOVE her! She is so cute and fun with them. She was like 8 months prego with Lola and let Sydney sit with her during her entire pedicure when we went together! (see pic below)Talk about LOVE! She not only loves to talk to them but is a good listener and really pays attention to what they are telling her! She makes them feel so good about themselves... and can cheer them up if they are sad.

5. She is GORGEOUS! What a babe!

6. She's always willing to play with the kids... even if it means getting splashed in the pool! What a fun aunt! She and Lissy are always vying for the "favorite aunt" title. ;-)

7. She's an amazing mom and wife. Lola is one lucky girl. Bo, you are on lucky guy! :-)

8. She is a happy person and always opptomistic.

9. Fun to talk to and hang out with...

10. An amazing hair dresser- the girlies always love it when she fixes their hair. She cuts hair great. Styles hair amazing. And is always our go-to girl for product since she gets a discount- she's always so happy to help us out!

etc etc etc!

(I love this pic Heids because you look a lot like Mom!) Anyways! I love you so much and am so grateful to have you as an amazing sister and friend. I've learned a lot from you and you are a great example for me! Happy Belated Birthday!