chris.reese.girls1.2.3.4

With our kiddos getting bigger we feel a growing need to stay HOME for major holidays and instill our own traditions...and when possible host others in our home. This Thanksgiving we had most of Chris' family join us for the big turkey day. We missed his sister, Laurie, and family, but his siblings Matthew and Kaelin came with their families, along with his parents, for the weekend (or part) to enjoy this fun holiday! It was non-stop fun that started with visitors making their way through the rain and traffic Wednesday night. So fun to have bedrooms full of people!! Chris and Matthew went to the big-guys Turkey Bowl early Thanksgiving morning and when they got home we had a kid/mom/pregnant-friendly game of football - my pregnant SIL even scored a touchdown off a long pass! Yay for no rain! And for a park out the front door. My girls had a blast, especially Paige who is really into football as of late. Here is the crew that played... Fin still had her footie jammi...

November flew by! It really seems like a blur now that I'm up to my ears in Christmas to-dos... But we had some noteworthy events to document: In early November I snuck away for an Apken girls' weekend in Long Beach, WA. My SIL, Laurie, made the arrangements at a timeshare and I left the gang for 2.5 days. Yay for a cell phone to document a relatively chill weekend. It's nice not hauling the big camera every now and again. I stayed with my brother's fam the night before and had an early hair appointment before meeting up with the Apken girls for lunch (Burgerville!) and manicures/pedicures. I got some fun snuggle time with this sweet l'il thing.   We mostly ate good food, talked a lot about babies and pregnancy, which was probably a result of having  two pregnant women (not myself) and another with a newborn. My must-stop in Long Beach was the Cottage Bakery. I was dreaming about this place since our visit back in 2008 (see here ). Let's just say I ha...

Phew...I'm almost caught up on this blog! Our October fun culminates with Halloween. It's pretty self-explanatory, but we had a super fun year with the combination of our new neighborhood, a surprisingly  FANTASTIC   Ward Harvest Party (seriously, the best ward party I've been to), and Trick-or-Treating with friends and our little family. Enjoy the montage... Ward Harvest Party  (Saturday night before Halloween)  I cannot stand the cuteness of Miss Finley as Dorothy. Chris came through with his daughters' special request (aka begging) for him to dress up as Justin Bieber. Brynn had a hard time with Halloween this year. After the Harvest Party we had this conversation: Brynn: " Mom. I really don't like Halloween ." Mom: " Well, why, Brynnie? " Brynn: " Because it is just soooo scary. I only like the princesses. " It did not help that Paige was really getting into the "scary" part ...