Haunted Gingerbread Houses

We have been trying to plan an activity with my brother for quite some time now (sad to say, it has been a few months since we have spent much time with him). So we were excited to spend some time with him and Kamille on Saturday night creating haunted gingerbread houses.

While Rueben and I were both quite focused on the houses...Kamille and Dan were more focused on how much frosting Kamille could get on Rueben's face by the end of the night. In the end, we all ended up with some (some more than others for sure)!

Rueben and Kamille's final product

Our house and my frosting "whiskers"

Dan and our house

and the back of our house...who can have a gingerbread house without honoring Dan's favorite football team, right?

Carving Pumpkins

The Friday before Halloween we were invited over to our neighbors to carve pumpkins and roast marshmallows. It was cold but lots of fun! We enjoyed taking a break for a few hours and enjoyed the company.

Dan was excited to be able to carve a Saints pumpkin this year...

Dan's pumpkin at night...

My pumpkin witch

Mine at night...

And last but not least our "baby spider pumpkin". Dan carved this one Sunday night. Our garden had issues this year and this was the only pumpkin that grew (we purchased the other two). We decided it would be our baby pumpkin since just like your baby, it isn't quite ripe yet.

At night...

Marathon 2011

Dan, Andrew (brother), Paul (Dad), and Cort (cousin) ran the Layton Marathon this year again. The morning started bright and early for the boys with a 3:30 am wake up call (yuck!). The cheerleaders/fans were lucky enough to not have to be up quite so early, which was good since the morning started off very wet and cold. Rueben (my brother), Cami (SIL), and I arrived extra early to have time to quickly paint banners for the boys and see them pass the 18 mile marker as they exited antelope island.

Spray painting on wet ground was interesting...but made for fun (and cold!) memories

Rueben and I next to my poster (and yes..."D" stands for our little girl's name. Cami and I both decided to add our kiddos into the posters. Not sure how I didn't end up with a picture of her poster...)

Dan at the 18 mile marker. They had half marathoners crossing this point at the same time as him so unfortunately my picture taking skills were lacking since I almost missed him coming! He is the one is yellow and blue with his fist in the air:)

Andrew at the 18 mile marker, giving Cami (behind the scenes) a high five

Paul at the 18 mile marker

Dan nearing the finish line (one again, bad picture...but he is on the left next to the guy in yellow)

Dan about to cross the finish line

Cort, Dan, and Andrew after the race

Proof that Cami was there as a cheerleader too

My parents came to cheer him on as well at the finish

Proof that the boys had to get up super early for the marathon! (Look closely...you can see the tag for Dan's shirt, he wore it inside out)

Picture of us with the sign

Dan and I

Eating....there was lots of that going on afterwards!

Paul, Andrew, and Dan

Overall, the boys all did great and enjoyed the experience. The training was awfully time consuming, but worth the accomplishment. I am proud of Dan and glad he got the opportunity to do something he loves. His life is extremely crazy lately with school and he deserved a day off. He came in with a time of 3:29:06, which is a 7:59 mile pace. Although, he didn't quite get the time he wanted, he still did amazing and came in 18th overall and 3rd in his age division. His goal for the next one he runs is to be under 3 hours and 20 minutes.

Help!

So I am trying to decide on several larger items that we need to purchase and/or register for soon. I am trying to decide a lot now because I am hoping to strike quite a few deals with Christmas sales this season, especially black Friday. I am also signed up for Amazon Moms which gives you free 2 day shipping and I have heard there are lots of good deals the whole month of November. Anyways, initially I signed up for a consumer report subscription but have come to realize it was not as helpful as I thought it would be...

So, I am hoping some of you out there who are experts in the kid product buying and using department might be of some help:) I want to know everything! What brands you have liked/seem most reliable and have been recalled the least, what features are a must versus just a perk, etc.

So here is a list of things I have had my mind on deciding on soon...but if you have other products you want to tell me about or that I am forgetting to consider please do so! I have only listed the big expenses I can think of...

1) Crib
2) Carseat, Stroller, or Travel System? What kinds/packages have you guys liked the most?
3) Breast Pump
4) Swing- I know there are lots of different kinds, I have been recommended a side-to-side cradle one but I am also interested in what people thing of the travel size ones or I have even seen ones that turn into a high chair?? For those that have the travel, how often did you actually take it somewhere?
5) Pack N Play- are these really necessary?

Thanks for anyone with advice to help me know which direction I want to go!

When Life Gives You Lemons...

Life sure seems have put a lot of lemons along our path lately. Some days we think we are given challenges that are more than we can handle, although deep down we know that with God nothing is impossible. I ran across this quote the other day and LOVED it. I know that I need to do better at remembering that I can't choose the lemons I receive but I sure can choose the attitude I have.

"The only way to get through life is to laugh your way through it. You either have to laugh or cry. I prefer to laugh. Crying gives me a headache." -Marjorie Pay Hinckley