November in a Flash!!!

So I JUST felt like November was starting and now we are already into December ---- WoW!!! This year has flown by and I am grateful for that, but also sad cuz trying to treasure each moment with my littles seems to be going too fast.  I would love to freeze time right now and just keep them these ages forever - I must say - 2, 4, and 6 are so much fun!  Cute enough and old enough to do most things even on their own, and not too big to be too cool for hugs from their mommy or let me pick out their outfits etc......So I would love to just have another year of this on repeat.....but I know - we can't stay young forever. I feel a little like Peter Pan these days with this wish!  Anyhow, so here is November in a nutshell!

Saw this cute picture of a snowman apron and after seeing price decided I could do up some just as easy myself and way cheaper - so we went to the fabric store, picked out the fabrics (each kid chose their own) and then I just free-handed them (so no they are not perfect circles or even close) and they turned out so cute!  Just in time to help mommy with the holiday baking - Griffin LOVES to help so he has been wearing his constantly!

modeling Cash's for him!

 I got some super long runs in this month and the view this one Saturday was breathtaking. I live in a beautiful place!

 We got into the holiday spirit to do up Christmas cards and before the actual photo session the kids and I goofing around with our new lights - the Christmas card this year is 100% awesome! So excited about it!

 Ivy is obsessed with Christmas trees just like her mom and wanted to look at this one forever on one of our shopping trips!

 Picking out outfits for the Christmas card shoot is quite a feat!

 A little date out for some Gelato and family time!

 Made it to AZ and got to spend an evening with these cool folks and my mommy!  So much fun! My Grandpa makes 91 look good don't ya think!?!

 Lots of fun cousin time and I went crazy and made all the nieces and nephews aprons - they loved them!

 Grandma Betty reading Elf on a Shelf book and choosing out a name for the elf at her house!

 A bunch of us ran the 5k turkey trot on Thanksgiving day - SOOOO fun  - they handed out Santa suits to run in at the beginning, and yet my jacket was off by the first 500 yards and the hat didn't last much longer ---- I had actually already ran a 10k on my own earlier cuz wasn't planning on running this race, but then decided to join and was pleasantly surprised to well and came in right behind Jayton, at 24 minutes - not bad for being tired and having a strained hamstring.  Also, my 10K I ran my fastest I had run one in a long time so that was cool - and with 9.5 miles under my belt then I could really fill up on the Thanksgiving feast right?!

At the finish line - with fake snow and all!  So fun and love these peeps!

 Didn't take many shots of our Thanksgiving trip but these two were so cute sitting to eat their turkey got a couple!

 Bowen kept saying Cheese so wanted him to get in on the pics!

 Cash and his cousin Adella - 2 cute 6 year olds!  After dinner Chip and his cousin John decided to put Cash against Ryder (also 6) and have a sporting contest - they made them compete in soccer, football, basketball, and running ---- altho Cash didn't win he did awesome and had a sort of good time I think! (his leg was also still recovering from not being able to walk on Monday or Tuesday so all things considered he did great! (not sure what happened to him - maybe a pulled muscle!)

 There was some friendly cousin basketball that the Brown boys and Wes dominated!

 Ivy enjoyed playing with all the babies - she LOVES them!!!

 Griff LOVES his aunts and uncles and especially had fun seeing Heidi and Steven!

 A fun night of crafting with the cousins - kept them busy for an hour at least!

 Ivy is hilarious and found it funny to stick her bum out and tell daddy "shoot me in the butt daddy!" and then laughed hysterically when he did!  

 The fun days with cousins were sometimes exhausting!

 Celebrating Becky's 30th bday at Texas Roadhouse with the family!  Love her! and check her arms out - dang! I want to look like her!  

 A little cousin love from Ryland to Griffin!

We had SO much fun and the only bad part was it ended too soon!  

Love our Family and we are so grateful for all our blessings this year!!!

2nd Half of October: Alma Awards, Pumpkin Patch and Dates!!!

It is NOT very often I get to ditch the mom mantra and dress all up formal and attend a red carpet event.  In fact, never before have I had tickets to actually WALK the red carpet with the celebrities and enjoy the glamour of the cameras and lights etc.  When Chip first told me he had received tickets from a friend, I didn't really want to go - it seemed like a LOT of work to arrange all the things for the kids and babysitting, find a dress, shoes, clutch, get hair and makeup done up and nails and get there - but BOY WAS I GLAD WE DID!!! It was so fun and we had a great time.  We had amazing seats and the show was only an hour and that was fun and then afterwards we had VIP tickets to the producers after party and that was a blast too. (since Chip's friend was the producer of the show that makes sense!  He was awesome and it was fun meeting him!)

Anyhow, I never take pics of myself usually and don't really like being the center of attention for the camera so the pics below are somewhat awkward due to my friend just taking them on my phone and me feeling a little silly, but it was so fun and I am glad we did it!

On a side note originally Chip saw my shoes I was planning on wearing and didn't think they were great and he hated the necklace when he saw it by itself - but both of those things were a huge hit as I had a celebrity ask me who my shoes were by and another person ask who I was wearing and then quite a few people asked for the details of my necklace - that was very fun and flattering and did make me feel like a superstar!  Haha - far from it but it was fun to feel glammed for a night!

My highlight was seeing Eva Longoria within arms reach and watching all her dresses she came out in for each segment of the show - and her and Mario Lopez were hilarious together - great on stage.  My only complaint was the show was too short - hopefully next year it will be a little longer - the Alma awards are the Music, TV, and Movie awards for Latinos.  It was fun to see them and as always I wished I was part of their culture - LOVE their beautiful olive skin and dark features!

 Before the show

 Eva Longoria and Mario Lopez - the hosts of the night!

 After!

End of the night at the VIP party!

 The next day I got up early and ran 8 miles - felt great and this pic was so beautiful had to stop and take a pic!

 Then it was another late night as we went out to Universal Studios Night of Horror - and it was scary and I did give Chip a few bruises squeezing his arms so hard.  We went with friends and it was a blast tho!  A fun Halloween date night!

 My favorite foods of fall - butternut squash soup and caprese salad with homemade french bread!

 My little shadow every morning!

Cash lost his first tooth one Saturday before his soccer game and was so excited - just pulled it right out himself before we could even video it!  Love him!

We had a great time at Mickey Mouse Trick or Treat at Disneyland again - a very fun tradition that the kids always look forward too - Ivy had said every day since then: "mom, I want to go back to Disneyland!" So it was a success!

Ready to go!

 The bus ride there- kids were SO excited!

 Waiting in line to get in to Toon Town!

 Found our friends and ALL in line for the Goofy roller coaster - Ivy's first!

Splash Mountain is always a favorite! Cash and Brighton - they had already rode it twice with Chip and were back with me for two more times - we didn't even get off and have to get back in line - just let us go in our same boat!

 Griff didn't want to go but him and Ivy enjoyed Winnie the Pooh instead while Cash rode Splash over and over!

 The next day we had a little bit of a Disneyland hangover so figured icecream and movies would help!

Cash has started playing bball on Thursdays at the park and it is so cute how the boys get so into it - here they were huddling up with their team before planning some strategy!  He is in there talking!

 It has been very warm so numerous beach and park days occurred!

Ivy loves the swings and is a little monkey climber - keeps me on the toes when we go!

 Chip and I had a great date night out to Pei Wei and then test driving cars and then to Handels for some yummy banana and coconut cream pie icecream cones!  Perfect night!

 We made Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory apples one Sunday and the boys were my little helpers - So fun and SO YUMMY!!!

 Also we did our annual pumpkin carving - a blast for the kids - altho it still cracks me up how Griff has to leave the room when Chip digs out the seeds to avoid puking!

Little miss insisted on carrying her own pumpkin - it may have been a little heavy for her!

 After the pumpkins were carved and lit we got to enjoy the yummy apples!  Even daddy LOVED them! (rare cuz he isn't a sweets guy!)

 I tried making pumpkin waffles and they were SOOOO yummy too!

Kids loved them!

Had to make more for friends!

 We went to In'n Out Burger and then Cottone pumpkin patch with friends one saturday - was a blast!  Kids had so much fun, and we did too!

 I worked in the classroom for the Halloween parties for Griff and Halloween was very busy! We had a great time - these two are so fun together and Griff always takes care of Ivy there......most the time anyways!

 My superhero and me!

 Enjoying their snack together!

 By the time night came I was tired of being dressed up and cold so I didn't since had earlier in Griff's class - but we did have our pizza for dinner with friends and then headed out trick-or-treating at candycane lane.  We had heard it was crazy but had no idea how many people and crazy it would really be.  It was an experience for sure (not one we will repeat I don't think)  The kids were tired and didn't last long but it was fun nonetheless!

The troop! Addie and Ellesyn joining my kiddos!

An example of the decorations at one of the houses - they go all out there which is awesome, but the treats they hand out are not so awesome (I don't blame them when busloads of people get dropped off to go through the neighborhood there!)

On Saturday, Nov. 1 we set up the Christmas tree (one of them!)  It is our grateful tree and won't get lights or ornaments yet but we cleared out Halloween and needed something and the Thanksgiving decor was lacking.  I love it and we are putting thankful notes in it and then reading them each sunday!  (this is what happens when Chip works the weekend!)

 Halloween Hangover called for hot chocolate, Elf, and dancing to Christmas music as we put up the tree!  We love the fall and holidays!!!

 Cash had a soccer game and the highlight for me was watching these guys play with their daddy - also at the end of the game when Ivy only wanted to go with daddy and so he had to take the mini van and the kids and I got his car and to ride in silence for a few minutes.   Heavenly!!!

October was great - and here's to an even better November!