A Time To Give Thanks

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens. Ecclesiastes 3:1.

This year's Thanksgiving was definitely a season for giving thanks...

Because we are now neighbors with my mom and dad, we decided to tag team this year's dinner. We hosted the meal at our place and used my mom and dad's oven to cook the turkey down the street.

My mom came over on Wednesday afternoon and we set the table. I searched online and saw this idea for a cute centerpiece. I bought everything on clearance and spray painted it to match my colors. We kept the candy filled cornucopias and set them on leaves from Oma Bosch's yard. It was fun to blend both old and new traditions. I think it turned out great!

Brady made this headdress in school and was excited to be Chief Brady!

Thursday was an absolutely beautiful day. Sunny and about 60 degrees...you would have never known it was the end of November! Mark and Abby and Gwen and Tim and all of their kiddos came over around 1:00 so the little ones could nap while we hung out. But, before we put them down, we held a quick photo shoot. 11 months is such a fun age. Still babies, but happy little squirts who are developing their own personalities.

While the little ones slept, the big kids (and by this I mean kids and grown ups!) played with toys. Tim has gotten in to "flipping" atv's. He pretty much has the corner on the Craig's List market. So, Brady and Rylan took turns driving Grave Digger.

The big boys played with our newest toy in the basement--Ping Pong! It was actually really fun to have a lot of different places to hang out and a lot of different things to do!

Gwen (and all the rest of the girls for that matter) played with their version of toys...the Black Friday Ads!

Just before dinner, we attempted to snap some family photos. This, however, was what Brady was doing on the couch 5 minutes before pics. That will explain his super happy poses in the pics to come :)

Grandma Inge and just a few of her Great Grand Kids.

I like this pic a lot. The ladies are usually the ones taking the pics, so it was fun to get one of all of us together!

My mom, dad, and Grandma Inge took care of the turkey, gravy, and mashed potatoes. Thank goodness, as hosting would have been way more stressful if I was in charge!

Sitting down to eat. There were 19 of us total. 11 adults at the "grown up" table with the "little kids"--Heath, Cohen, Landon, and Reagan--in the four corners.

The four "big kids"--Nolan, Rylan, Payton, and Brady--had their very own table. Not much eating happened at this table, but they enjoyed themselves for sure!

Landon ate absolutely everything we put on his tray. Not surprising. He definitely enjoyed his first Thanksgiving!

After an awesome meal, it was time to clean up. The men decided to give the women something to be thankful for and took dish duty. With music blaring on the iPod, they certainly made it fun.
And finally, it was time for dessert. We are always in charge of pies so it's fun to made the old favorites and a few new things. This year's selections? Pumpkin, Cherry, and a Lemon Tart.
We had a wonderful day. It was great to relax, enjoy each other's company, and give thanks for the many blessings in our lives.

Eleven Months (& Look What I Can Do!)

(Yes, I realize I sound like a nieghing horse in this clip!)

Air Force Football & A Tornado

Last Saturday, we decided to celebrate the end of volleyball and do something fun as a family. Bradd and Aubree and their kiddos Jaydd and Caell have season tickets to Air Force Football, so we decided to tag along. It's only an hour drive up to the Academy, so we piled in the car and headed up bright and early so we could tailgate before the 12:00 game.

When we left our house, it was a beautiful day. About 60 degrees and sunny. Let's just say that the weather in Colorado Springs was the farthest thing from beautiful. I have NEVER experienced such a strong wind. It was unbelievable. Just trying to open the doors to get out of the car was difficult. So, our tailgate happened inside the cars. The grown ups hung out in one car and the kids played in the back of our car.
Once the game was about to start, we got bundled up and headed in to the stadium. We almost didn't make it as we had to walk sideways...Landon was crying, Brady was crying, Payton was screaming...not sure whether it was out of fear or pain from getting pelted by flying debris. The tents that usually host tailgaters were torn to shreds.

Needless to say, the fly over that we were anxiously waiting to see was cancelled. The parachuters were cancelled. And, I'm not exactly sure if the halftime falcon demonstration got cancelled or not. We left half way through the 2nd quarter and watched the rest of the game at home on tv.
I think this picture is hilarious. Look at our hair!

Not exactly what we had planned, but oh well. It was still fun to get out and do something, and catch up with the Bieshaars. Maybe next year!

BOO-FEST 20-11

We enjoyed our first Halloween in the new neighborhood! After practice/school/work, we got all dressed up and hit the streets to trick-or-treat.

Payton the Zoo Keeper, Brady AKA Mario, and Lando the Skunk.
Isn't this shot of the boys adorable?
Lando's 1st Halloween. He LOVED the sucker we gave him, until he dropped it and it got stuck in his skunk fur.
Payton and Brady took turns ringing doorbells.And of course, no Halloween night is complete without our annual stop at Oma and Opa's for soup and cousin time!

Carvin' Punkins'

Since the last time we hung out with Uncle Bradley, Auntie Jayne, and Cohen was a total bust, we decided to try and improve our fun factor by carving pumpkins.

Not sure why, but Payton thought it would be hilarious to put her foot inside her pumpkin.
Wes and Brady made a silly faced pumpkin.
Auntie Jayne carved out B-O-O.
I helped Payton with her cat and tried to keep Landon from eating raw pumpkin.
I was unsuccessful.
Uncle Bradley created a Tebowing pumkin.
And Cohen pretty much just hung out.
The finished products.

Just Like His Brother, Just Like His Sister.

Halloween posts to come, but looking at these photos of Landon reminded me of a few pictures we have taken before.

Just like his brother...
Just like his sister...

Here Come The Irish.

Volleyball is FINALLY over, so now it's time for me to do some catching up on the blog.

A few weeks ago, Wes and I took our delayed 10th anniversary trip to South Bend to watch Notre Dame play USC. We did this two years ago and had an absolute blast, so we were excited to get to go again.

After a rocky start at the airport (who forgets their football tickets when flying to another state for the sole purpose of watching a football game?!) we landed in Chicago and drove up to our hotel in Chesterton, Indiana.

We stayed in Chesterton the last time we went to the game, but didn't have too much time to explore the area. Sand Dunes National Park is about 5 minutes away, so we headed there just before dinner Friday night.

Colorado is so dry and open, so these thick, dense forests are so cool. They remind me of my days at Calvin.
We were given a suggestion to drive over to "Mount Baldy", park, and hike up to and around the dunes. At the top. It was a clear evening. Can you see downtown Chicago in the distance?Running down the dunes.For whatever reason, Wes decided that he was ok with taking some photos together. This only happens once every oh, ten years or so, so I took full advantage of the opportunity.We enjoyed watching the setting sun, but headed back to our car before it got pitch black and creepy.After our trip to the dunes, we headed here for dinner. We ate at Gel's the last time, and it was some of the best pizza we have ever eaten. They did not disappoint. There is nothing like Chicago-style pizza and a glass of beer. (Yes, I know this isn't really most people's idea of a romantic tenth anniversary dinner. But, it works for us!)Saturday morning, game day! After breakfast and a walk around another nature preserve, we headed out to South Bend. It was an absolutely beautiful day. Perfect football weather. The game wasn't until 7:00 at night, so we had plenty of time to enjoy all the traditions and sites of Notre Dame.

The Golden Dome.One of our favorite parts of the day was listening to the trumpets play inside the dome.

The bagpipers also gave a little concert outside of the Golden Dome.

The students display their loyalty on the side of their dorms.Do you like our matching sweatshirts? :) We went to the outlet mall in Michigan City before the game hoping to score a deal. We got these sweatshirts for 25$ a piece. They were $70 in the bookstore! So, we decided to be ok with being twins in exchange for the great deal.We made a quick visit to the grotto. Lighting candles for victory?!St. Mary's College is just across the lake.
Next, we headed over the the library area (aka Touchdown Jesus) to watch the team march into the stadium.
Coach Kelly...
...and Michael Floyd.After that, it was time to head into the stadium. We just happened to be in the right place at the right time and saw the team heading out to the field. This was the first time they wore their new helmets. This is Tyler Eiffert, the tight end and my favorite player.
Our seats were AMAZING. Five rows up, right on the endline. We were about ten feet away from the band and all the action. It was so much fun!

We had an awesome time. Thanks Grandma Tammy, for coming out to watch the kids while we were gone!