are you ready?

for snow that is? i'm not really, but it does make it feel more like christmas. i don't know if it's snowed in your neck of the woods, but it began here yesterday. today it hasn't let up. there are a couple of things i don't like about the snow:
*when it gets dirty & then it's grey, i prefer the pretty white stuff!
*it's hard to keep your car clean especially when it's black, although the rest of the time i love having a black car.
*crazy drivers in the snow & all the accidents. some days it takes forever to get to work!
other than that i love the snow. if i could have it my way, and really should it be any other way, i would have snow just on the grass for the month of december & i would love the mountains to have nice snow from november thru march for a wonderful ski season. lol!

i am loving all the christmas lights! it makes me so happy to see all the lights & listening to so much christmas music! at this time of year there is no other type of music for me. there are more houses in our neighborhood with lights on than ever before. it's so pretty! i took the kids to drive through layton's lights on sunday. we went through twice. if you've never been it's worth the drive, unless you're amy or gretchen, both out of state. we usually go at least once a week to see the lights.

oh another item worth mentioning...i have cooked for 3 nights in a row & will be cooking again tonight! my family has been loving it. it's really not that bad when you plan for it. ha ha! who knew that i had it in me? let's hope this streak doesn't end.

grateful

so i've been meaning to post this & things just keep coming up. i don't ever think it's too late to say what you're thankful for & i guess it really doesn't have to be at this specific time of year. seen how this is my 29th year i thought i would list 29 things that i'm thankful & grateful for.

1. my wonderful husband!
2. my two darling kids!
3. my family and my in-laws.
4. my job.
5. a beautiful home where i feel safe & have warmth.
6. my beliefs.
7. my talents.
8. my health.
9. technology, it helped me get through two years of my parents being gone!
10. transportation.
11. conveniences we have in america.
12. being an american, i love america!
13. laughter.
14. holidays.
15. forgiveness.
16. education.
17. books.
18. good & loyal friends.
19. opportunities for my children, they love sports & bay loves to dance!
20. music.
21. pictures, capturing a precious moment or just a moment in time is priceless to me.
22. hospitals & modern day medicine, i can't imagine having 2 c-sections without it!
23. good examples.
24. being able to travel & vacation.
25. food.
26. the ability to learn.
27. seasons, although i'm not a fan of driving in the snow, or i guess really dealing with other drivers in the snow.
28. family time.
29. history.

i had a wonderful thanksgiving with my in-laws, thank you! thank you for loving me for me & accepting me into your family. i do have to say that i am very excited to think that next thanksgiving we will be able to also celebrate with my parents, i have missed them. just 35 days until they are home, but who's counting, ok i am! i love you mom & dad & can't wait for you to be home. who would have thought that it would have gone by so fast? in the beginning i thought i would never be able to make it without my mom, but i have learned so much. i realized i can make it & even though she's not an hour away she is always "there" for me. my relationship has grown so much stronger with my parents, especially my dad! who knew he had such a soft side? :0) thanks to todd for putting up with me this whole time. i was a mess in the beginning & he just loved me & let me cry, a lot! he is wonderful & there are so many things i love about him! thanks to my 2 precious kids for loving me unconditionally. i never knew that being a mom would be so wonderful! i love you 2 & thank you for letting me be the one you call mom!
i really am blessed! thank you to each & everyone of you that has touched my life, helped to make me a better person, been there for me, & for just being a part of my life. i am one blessed & lucky girl.

a must have...

& i have it! what is it you ask? boutique edition monopoly! have you ever seen anything so cute? it is one of my new favorite things. thanks to my sweet husband that humors me with such strange requests. who would have thought i would get so excited over a board game? after i played it for the first time i made several phone calls to people i thought would love it too. what am i thinking, who wouldn't love it, well besides the men out there? lol! please make note that this is a toys r us exclusive & it's on sale right now with free shipping! does it get any better? ok maybe free would be good. i hope you love it as much as i do.

i heart gwen & my sister-in-laws!

i love gwen! this morning as i was getting ready i was listening to her, she's awesome. one thing that i love about her is that she reminds me of my sister-in-laws that i love! we went to the gwen concert in april & we had so much fun. talk about a fun night! i think this was the first time in 9 years that we did something just the girls, without kids! i am so grateful to have sister-in-laws that are fun & consider me one of them. you girls are the best! i love you! oh funny thing about the night of the concert...we were all so tired & actually left a little early. i guess we're getting old! well maybe except for don's wife. maybe it's because she is still young & wears "white" beaters! sorry tor, i just had to say it. i laughed so hard & am laughing now just thinking about it. you won't get this unless you were there, but believe me it was funny. btw, i do know that they are called "wife" beaters, that was part of why it was so funny.

congratulations!

congratulations morgan family! we are so happy for you. they received a baby girl yesterday! this was unexpected for them & they were actually on a family vacation when they got the call. talk about surprise! they are wonderful parents to their other daughter & will be with their new bundle of joy. talk about an amazing early christmas present!

how cool!

i found out about these awesome books from my friend rachel. they can make your blog, trip pictures, wedding pictures, etc. into a book. check this site out! fun stuff!

i am also excited about a clock party i am having in december, thanks rach! mark your calendars ladies for a fun night in, december 13th. i will be sending invitations, but if you read this before you get one & you're interested leave me a comment. talk about awesome christmas presents! i will be making the red one for our house. i can't wait.

so a few of you are interested in what the "gift" was & who it is for? yes, gretch, it is a wii & it's a family gift. i am so excited about it & want to play it now! ok so something about me, surprises for other people kill me. well not the surprises, but waiting! i get so excited when i find the perfect thing for someone & i just want to give it to them, now! lol!

oh happy day!

that's right, happy day! so we've been on the hunt for a very hard to find gift. well not hard to find, but hard to get. you have to be in the right place at the right time. today was my lucky day! i remembered there was a store at the gateway that sold this item. i called them & they had two left! because they don't hold this item i ran there to get it. when i walked into the store my heart sank as i got in line behind 6 other people. i thought for sure i wouldn't be getting one today & the hunt would continue. the guys in the store were laughing at me because i was a little stressed about the situation. thankfully nobody in front of me purchased this item & i was able to get one. yeah! i was one happy girl, still am. it's already home & wrapped along with some other gifts. holy cow, i have never had gifts wrapped this early. i love feeling prepared. we should be pretty much all done by thanksgiving. how cool is that? i'm grateful to todd for his help in the christmas shopping process. i'm excited to just enjoy the holiday season. thanks to my sister amy for picking up a couple of items for me & to those of you that were keeping an eye out for me.