Thanksgiving 2011

This year's Thanksgiving was held in St. George.  We had never made the drive from Monterey to St. George before - it was roughly 10 hours... kind of a long drive for a short weekend but it was worth it.  Grandpa Christensen set us all up in a hotel so my entire extended family was together.

Of course our activities included the usually family football game, craft time, pool time, catered dinners and of course a great family program for Thanksgiving.  I woke up early to try and score some deals on black friday.  I didn't find much at all.  The stores were mobbed though.

I was getting ragged on the entire trip by my entire family and extended family about having another baby.  Little did they know I already was!

Halloween

Halloween this year seemed like it lasted for weeks. Cohen's friend had a Halloween party, then there was the school Halloween parade. Add that to Trunk or Treat at church and Trick or Treating on the 31st and my boys were in their costumes half a dozen times. Thankfully, they chose costumes that were easy to get in and out of and not too conforming.

Jello Brain

Brain-eaters. They didn't like it. Who doesn't like Jello? They are pretending for the camera.

Cohen's Birthday, round 2

Cohen got to celebrate his birthday in his classroom with his other buddies who have a birthday in October. He looks a little shy! Then onto his party at MyMuseum. It's a local children's museum we belong to. It's a great, easy party idea because the kids just run around and thrash whatever they want to thrash without it being my house!

Kicking Dolphins

This was Cohen's first year playing soccer. He signed up for a team that had a bunch of his kindergarten classmates on it so he was more willing to go. I can honestly say he isn't too aggressive. I'm on the fence if this is the sport for him. I guess it was only his first year playing but he complained most days about having to go play. Such a funny kid.

Butterfly Sanctuary

This is what I'm talking about when I say millions of butterflies migrate here. They are easy to miss because they look like leaves in the trees.

Butterfly Parade

Pacific Grove is known for it's butterfly population. Every year millions of butterflies migrate here and hang out in the trees. Ethan & Cohen's school have had what they call the Butterfly Parade for over 80 years. It is a huge event that the two elementary schools participate in. All of the Kindergarteners dress up as butterflies and Ethan's class were assigned Native Americans. The boys had a great time marching with their classes. After the parade the PTA puts on a huge party in the field behind the school with bounce houses, dunk tanks, games, bake sales, etc, etc. I think they will look forward to this for years to come.

The Wedding

Dean and KC were married on October 14th in the Salt Lake City Temple. It was great weather. The boys were acting like monkeys, climbing on the gates and sliding down the temple walls - but they came around in time for a picture. Congrats to Dean & KC!

Park City

After our whirlwind break in Southern California including Ethan's birthday, Ethan's baptism, and Cohen's birthday we flew to Utah for a weekend in Park City. Park City is gorgeous in the fall. I love all the colors, something that you don't see in Monterey. We had great weather and had a great time taking Ed, Diane and Gma Bishop to all of our favorite Park City places.