Temple Square Lights

I took a short break from blogging because I'm trying to get some photobooks done. We started doing family yearbooks over a year ago, but I put the project on hold after our external hard drive crashed, taking with thousands and thousands of pictures. But a couple good deals on photobooks have brought me back to it. Thanks to Facebook and family members, I've been able to scrape together a decent picture of the years that got hit the hardest. I used Groupon to get 2 books through MyPublisher for $15 each, so I'm working on getting those done. (I don't know if it's been worth it, though. The MyPublisher software is crazy frustrating and really limited. I'm not impressed at all.)

So anyway, here's another catch-up post, finishing up our Thanksgiving break.

We met up with a bunch of the Nelson family to look at the lights on Temple Square on the Saturday after Thanksgiving (which Rich spent a lot of the day working). We probably picked the busiest night of the year to go, making it basically impossible to keep our group together, especially with our strollers. But the lights were definitely beautiful, and I always love the atmosphere there, especially during the Christmas season.

I really love this shot Rich got. The color of the sky just makes it that much better.

I don't know how more kids don't fall into the reflection pool. It's a favorite place to play for all kids, and, no matter how cold it is, there is always splashing. It was hard to explain to Norah why I didn't want her to touch it when basically every other kid was.

After looking at the lights, we all headed over to Crown Burger for some dinner. Oh my yum. I avoided getting burgers in Spokane because, in my opinion, nothing compares to Utah burger joints. Crown Burger and Apollo Burger are my personal faves.

Norah was in an especially sweet mood at the restaurant. We got to sit with Grandma and Poppa, so I'm sure that helped.

This is probably one of my favorite pictures of all time. She pulled Grandma and Poppa in for a hug on her own, and it was absolutely adorable.

Unfortunately, we had to say goodbye to Grandma and Poppa right after this. But it sure was a fun Thanksgiving, and we were so glad we could spend it with them and so many other Nelsons!

Thanksgiving 2014

Less than two months behind. I can do this. Slowly but surely, I will catch up.

Thanksgiving 2014 was lots of fun. We spent it with the Nelson side, hosted by Christine and Nathan at their home in West Jordan. We were excited for a chance to spend time with as many of the siblings as could come, but things got even better when we heard that Doug and Edie would brave the weather for the drive down. We definitely miss seeing them multiple times a week!

When we pulled up to the Kidds' home, Norah knew exactly whose car we parked behind. She got pretty excited when she realized that their car being there meant they would be there, too.

We knocked on the door, and she basically screamed the moment she saw her Grandma and Poppa. She ran across the room and gave the biggest hug I've ever seen (I'm a little jealous of it, actually). Doug says this moment has permanently secured her place in the will.

For Thanksgiving dinner, it was Great Grandma Farnsworth, Doug and Edie, the Kidds, the Wings, and us. We got to see the (Scott) Nelsons the next day since they had dinner with Karolyn's family, as well as the Harrisons on Saturday. We all missed the Petersens!

Norah and Kelsey got to sit at their own table, which was great since they kept each other happy. I'm pretty sure Norah didn't eat anything, though.

The pies. This was my first time making any kind of pie. and it actually worked out for me! Well, the pumpkin wasn't all that great, but my chocolate mousse pie was delicious!

Cami and Ethan

Doug and Edie brought along lots of slides for us to see, and someone was able to dig up a slide projector so we could put on a show.

If you're familiar with "Christmas Vacation," you'll appreciate the video. Especially listen to the music and watch Nate.

Watching the show

 Visiting the Kidds' house is always a ton of fun for Norah because they have toys galore. Norah and Kelsey were plenty entertained with the ponies!

The next day, we all got together again after doing some Black Friday shopping. My first Black Friday experience back in Utah was actually pretty disappointing. I think it was because Utah is just so BUSY and CROWDED! Sure, Spokane has its crowds, but nothing like here. Rich always had to work on Black Friday in Spokane, so we'd go out after he got off of work and have no problem finding at least a couple great deals. But Utah just had constant crowds all day because there are so many people, and everything was basically gone by the time we got out. (I am not the type of person to go out Thanksgiving night or crazy early the next morning, so I guess that's what I get.) The only real success we had (which, admittedly, is a big one) was helping Santa find Norah's big present.

After shopping, we headed back to the Kidds' for leftovers and some family sports time. We had a big kickball game, and then the more agile of the group (meaning not the pregnant women) played some basketball.

Cami had a great idea of how to keep the littlest ones occupied. They loved it, and it kept me pretty entertained, too.

I love how slow they went down. But that didn't matter because it was a "slide."

There's still a little more to cover from Thanksgiving weekend, but Saturday's event gets its own post so this one doesn't turn out crazy long. So, more on that later!

November Photo Drop

I'm blogging right now because I need a break. Norah is currently banished to her room since it seems all she wants to do right now is yell and pout. All morning long. Maybe if I keep her in there long enough, she'll take a nap. I have no other ideas to help us out this morning.

So, here's a another quick photo drop post. I think I was still trying to come back to life from pregnancy sickness in November, so I don't really remember doing many stand-out things. But these pictures are pretty cute, and I now realize sleeping Norah is a theme throughout.

Starting right out with some sleepy pictures. I could get a nap 2-3 times a week from her at this point, as long as I slept on the love seat in her room. You mean I have to take a nap, too? I guess if I must.

Norah is not a fan of being woken up from a nap. She needs a good half hour to cheer up.

She fought the naps so hard and would fall asleep in all sorts of ways.

(FYI, Norah has now been allowed out of her room, but I told her she has to do puzzles without me for a while. I still need some quiet time of my own.)

We got to go to a fun dinner with some of Rich's friends from Spokane who now live in Utah. It was a lot of fun seeing them and all of their cute kids. We didn't grab this shot until all but these two had been put to bed. Oops! I'd only ever seen pictures of adorable Miss Emma, pictured here, and her cuteness was no trick of the camera. Check out this girl's cheeks! Such a doll!

Have you been to Station Park in Farmington? We absolutely love it. It's a great outdoor mall, and they have this great water fountain that has displays choreographed to music on the hour. We joke that we always have to catch "the show" when we go to Station Park. (Also, it was NOVEMBER 8TH, in this picture, and Norah did not need a jacket. The weather was absolutely amazing!)

 On the 4-wheeler with Gangka Craig

My dad got really excited about putting together a swing set for the grandkids, and what started as a small project has turned into what we now lovingly call Grandpa Park.

 Playing in the leaves.

I've mentioned this before, but we live right behind my dad's office. Sometimes, when Norah and I need to get out of the house, we walk over to Gangka Craig's (and Norah can usually talk him into taking us to lunch). One day, Norah put all of this on and said, "I go to Gangka Craig's office now?"

We went to a surprise birthday party for Ryan Merriman, one of Rich's old BYU teammates and fellow steeplechaser. Norah had tons of fun with Ryan's son Jake, who taught her how to be a pirate, thought not how to properly hold a sword. (By the way, Ryan's wife has an amazing food blog, Baking with Blondie. My most recent fave from her blog was slow cooker chicken philly sandwiches. Delish! Plus, all of her food is just so pretty. You should really check our her blog.)

Norah had a fun trip to Kangaroo Zoo with cousins. She hasn't been for over a year, but I was a little afraid she'd still be too scared to attempt anything. It took her just a moment to warm up, but then she loved it.

She even attempted the giant slide on her own!

Norah and Huey had lots of fun together (although it kind of looks like she's choking him in the above picture on the left)!

Anyone ever heard of All-Star Spinner Baseball? Me neither. That is, not until I met this guy. He's been searching eBay for his own set and finally got one in November. He and Scott used to play it all the time as kids, and Rich even made an updated set of cards for Scott's game a few years ago. Such a sports nerd!

 

My sister works with my dad, so we've been able to have cousins over a couple times on days where her babysitter can't watch the kiddos. Norah loves having someone other than me to play with, and I don't mind it either!

This was me at 15 weeks along. I haven't wanted to do belly shots like last time. I guess that's typical for a second pregnancy, huh? It's probably because now I realize just how hard it is to drop what you gain.

We always check on Norah right before we go to bed, mainly to make sure she still has her covers on. We found her like this one night. I especially love the bare feet sticking out the bottom.

I'm not entirely sure how this happened.... I think I may have fallen asleep on the couch (that unfortunately happens too often), and Norah kept on entertaining herself in her room, only to wear herself out entirely. She never falls asleep on her own, especially if she's not in bed or her car seat, so this is a pretty rare photo indeed!

My mom took us out for Japanese food one night, and Norah actually did really well. I was afraid she wouldn't eat anything, but she was pretty adventurous. And she loved trying to use her chopsticks.

 My mom, sister, sisters-in-law, and I went to Time Out for Women in November, so Rich and Norah had a fun daddy-daughter date at Chuck E. Cheese. He sent me these pictures, and my heart just about melted. She absolutely loved it and still tells me all about it when she sees a Chuck E. Cheese commercial or pass the Chuck E. Cheese sign.

Working for Fanzz, which is part of the Larry H. Miller company, definitely has its perks. Rich got a couple sets of tickets to Jazz games throughout the season. In November, we saw Jazz vs. Pelicans (and Jimmer!). We've gone to Jazz games before, but we were almost as high as you could get. It was so much fun being able sit in the Lower Bowl and actually watch the game on the court and not the Jumbotron.

I love seeing sweet photos like this. We went to the little playground in our complex, and Norah prepared this bouquet for me. "I got these flowers for you for your birthday." She's obsessed with birthdays lately, but you try explaining to a two-year-old that your birthday isn't for another 3 months.

A little more evidence of how hard it is to wake her up from a nap.

 Rich and Norah playing Uno Spin. He's brave to attempt card games with a toddler.

Our final photo is from my friend Becca's wedding reception the day before Thanksgiving. Becca was absolutely gorgeous and glowing, and the reception was lovely in perfect Becca style. So glad we were able to see her on her wedding day!