Happy Boo Day!

Hope you all have a great halloween. I will have pictures of the kids later. But for now... have a great BOO day. We are hoping it doesn't rain tonight (or at least lets up while we trick or treat).

Oh, and Happy Birthday Jamie!

Super Saturday Success!

About a month or so ago, my friend called me up and asked me if I would be in charge of a project for our RS Super Saturday. They knew they wanted an Advent Calendar project of some kind. I love advent calendars and I had a few ideas stashed away. I sent her several projects to choose from and this is the one they decided on.

Now, I have to tell the truth I didn't come up with this idea. A great woman shared this advent calendar on her blog and I love it. Another great woman shared fun activities to do each day of the month and I combined the two with daily scripture of the Nativity Story from the Gospels to create this collaborative effort.

So, this advent calendar combines everything... candy, family activities and scriptures. Thanks for all the help ladies... our Super Saturday was a huge success and everyone loved their calendars.

The great Pumpkin Patch

Last week, we went to the local pumpkin patch for Hannah's preschool field trip. We have a nice farm that has a great cornmaze, tractor rides, pumpkins, animals, bounce houses, etc. Besides being in the uppeer 80's it was a great fall day.

The kids learned about how pumpkins grow. Then they took a tractor ride. Got to pet and feed the animals and pick out their grand pumpkin. The kids were so cute especially all of Hannah's friends dressed in pink. The girls in her class are so cute and they are always giving each other hugs and saying goodbye to each other day.

Cute girls. great day. fun times. Hence all the pictures.

Spooky Fall Decor

Just wanted to share our little space of halloween spirit in our house. Our entry way is about the only place we have halloween decorations. And really it is halloween and fall combined. And it is really a work in progress. Little by little I am getting into the spirit of Halloween, so slowly I am working on my collection. It is funny because I never really liked this holiday. But I have to admit... it is starting to grow on me. So, for now this is what I have. Just wanted to share.

YW in Excellence - Color Me Beautiful

About 2 years ago, I was asked to be in charge of my old stake's Young Women in Excellence night. My idea: Color Me Beautiful! Well, fast forward about two years and our ward's YW in Excellence night was this month and again we used my Color Me Beautiful idea.

here are all the details:

Theme: Color Me Beautiful. It is based off of the value colors representing each YW value and teaching the girls that they are individually beautiful because they are Daughters of God.

Decorations: I had round tables with a paint can in the middle with tissue paper coming out the can. I tied helium balloons to the can also. I then scattered confetti around the table. So, each table had the tissue, balloons and confetti in on specific color. We had 7 tables. One with each color of the YW values.

Our ward YWIE night was a bit different (we didn't use round tables, we just put the cans on the value table).

A few weeks ago, we had a mutual night were the girls learned how to do self portraits using chalk. It was a great activity and we hung up their "masterpieces" behind the value project table. The artwork really helped tie in the theme of the night. It was perfect!

Then on the refreshment table I had paint roller brushes, paint roller brush pans, stir sticks, regular paint brushes and paint swatches and paint as decorations.

The on the Value project table I had paint accessories from artistic painting. Paints, brushes, smocks and paint palettes.

Program: We had the girls take a personality test (based off the book "The Color Code") to find out what color they were. We went over what personality traits that specific color had and gave a talk on how as YW they are given gifts/traits from God and it is these gifts and how they use them that makes them beautiful and unique. We had different girls perform (dance, singing, music instruments). We had some girls give talks on the theme and then remarks from the stake YW president.

Here is our wards program:

Prayer
YW Theme
Welcome introducing the theme
talk by a YW
"What color am I" personality test
Remarks from YW president
Song "beautiful to Him" song by a YW
4 min video "become like Him" (from the church)
remarks by bishop
prayer

Movie - For the stake event, I put together a movie of all the girls in the stake with music asking them questions based on the theme and took pictures of each of the girls. So, we watched that at the end of the program and then had refreshments.

Refreshments - ice cream brownie sundaes with colorful toppings.

Handouts - I put "red", "yellow", "white" and "blue" jelly bellies into white envelopes and attached the corresponding color traits to them. After the girls took the test, we had all those that were "reds" stand up and we handed them a "red" envelope. And then for the "whites", "yellows", etc.

I have the personality test and corresponding traits for each color if anyone would like them. I can email them to you. This night ended up being a great night and one I think the girls really enjoyed!

How long has it been?

Well for us it has been 3 1/2 years. for what you ask? Since we have been on a trip/night without our children. In our 4 1/2 years of marriage with children in our lives, we have had one over-night away without children. 1 night in 1630 days. Now that I think about it, that is ridiculous! Now granted, we have no family in town and both our parents were away for 3 years each (and overlapping) on mission for our church. So, we haven't had anyone to help us when it comes to taking care of our children.

Well, tonight will be the 2nd night in 1630+ days that we will have an over-night without children. My mother-in-law is in town and she insisted we go away for the night and so without any hesitation, we are. We are going to dinner at Flemings Steakhouse (our favorite restaurant in town) and then up near Yosemite to a little B&B.

I hate to say it, but for this one night, we might not miss our children all that much. Mostly because they are in good hands and well, we deserve a night to ourselves.
Hope you all have a great weekend!

Time to Cover Up

For about a year now, I have been wanting to sew some chair covers for my dining room chairs. Well, after the 5th cup of milk being spilled all over my nice chairs... I finally decided to do it. I found the cutest fabric and sat down and made these little coverlets. I didn't know if I could pull it off without a pattern, but in all honesty... they were a piece of cake. Even the piping was pretty easy after i got the hang of it. (my first time using piping :-)

I love when ideas turn into completed projects that actually look decent. Let's hope my chairs are still save-able. There are a lot of milk spots. These coverlets might be on these for a long time!

I heart Paul Frank

These last few links have been able things I love... and so I continue with one more. Paul Frank. I love Julius the monkey. He makes me smile. I think it comes from the stuffed monkey I had as a child that reminds me of him. I found this bike and thought, man if I were me (20 years ago) I would have to save my pennies for this little gem. How awesome is this!

There are also some more really great bikes, so check them out.

Back to Life

We are back from our trip and just like that not a moment to recover... back to life. We had such a great time with family. Funerals are bitter sweet for multiple reasons. It is sad to have to say goodbye to someone you love, but it is great because it brings the whole family together. All 5 siblings were there, and all 20 grandchildren were there and I think most of the 30+ great grandchildren were there all to celebrate the life of our grandpa.

We spent the rest of the week playing with cousins at This is the Place Heritage park for their Halloween week and we went up to Brigton Ski Resort and walked around beautiful Silver Lake and took tons of pictures and had a picnic. And the weather was beautiful too. Not like what we came home to. This week it is going to be 88-90 all week. Are you kidding me!

Well, now it is laundry, cleaning, grocery shopping, field trips, and getting ready for my mother-in-law to visit. We have had a great month of family trips and visits. So, much to do and so much fun.

I see Red!

I love the color red. I think I have mentioned that a time or two. So, when I saw these rooms.. .I fell in love. How fun would this kitchen? And that bedroom. Seriously... if I could design my own place from scratch and didn't have a husband that would object.. this is the route i would go.

Speaking of designing a home. If I could have help, these are these guys I would hire. I just love their classic look and feel, but also love their ability to use color. I'm sold Collin and Justin... check out their photo gallery!

Busy, Busy, Busy

This last week has been full of busy-ness. I was in charge of a Super Saturday project this last weekend and then in charge of Young Women in Excellence tonight. And there are a few projects I have been working on before all this. Then off tomorrow for SLC for my grandfather's funeral. So, you won't be hearing from me while I am gone, but when i get back I will share all that has been keeping me busy. So, see you next week!

Love You. Miss You.

On Sunday morning in the wee hours, my dear grandfather Owen Mauss Christensen left this life to join his beautiful wife. He was an extraordinary man... truly!

He would have been 97 years old next month. And just last week he was driving, playing games and loving all those around him. 5 months ago, he went golfing with his granddaughters (see photo above). At 96 years old, he had been completely independent up until a month ago when he got pneumonia. He never let life get in the way of doing what he wanted. He always talked about President Hinckley being able to do so much at his age, so why shouldn't he.

Grandpa was loved by so many. He was a stake patriarch for our church for almost 20 years. Everyone that met him thought he was so "cool" (that word was used a lot by the younger generation to describe my grandpa), caring and full of love. He loved his 5 children immensely along with his 19 grandchildren and 31+ great grandchildren (I have lost count) and I think 1 great, great grandchild! What a posterity and he got to live long enough to meet each and every one of them. Every time I talked/saw my grandfather he gave me the biggest bear hug and always made me feel so loved.

And to top it off, he loved his wife dearly. He took such good care of her their whole lives. And in the end when she was ill and sick, her loved her even more (if that was possible). It is hard to put into words how great a man he was, but believe me he was absolutely wonderful! I love him so much and am going to miss his bear hugs.

BTW - That picture is of him at his 95th birthday party. Now you can see why he lived so long. Doesn't he look great!

One more thing. My cousin Laurel wrote the most wonderful blog entry about my grandpa on her blog a few month back. (she is a captivating writer, so it will be worth it) You have to read it and you will see just how great of a man he was.
Read here! and another great entry by her that is just as great.

Preserve Marriage

We all know we have a very big election coming up in Nov. Not only are we voting for a president, but we in California are voting on a huge legislative initiative to preserve marriage. So, to all you Californians, please vote YES on 8!

I know that this could create a controversy on my blog and I would ask that those that disagree with me would please realize that we all have our own beliefs and convictions. Please allow me to share mine!

It is so important that this proposition be passed... and here is why!

1) In 2000, 61% of the population voted that marriage be stated "between a man and a woman". But those "sneaky" judges didn't listen to the PUBLIC voice and overturned what WE the people voted for. I hate when judges do that! (But that is a whole other conversation).

2) Gay marriages will be discussed and possibly "promoted" in the public school system starting in kindergarten. I am sorry, but I don't want my child (let alone my 5 year old) being taught about gay marriage by anyone except me! This is not the responsibility of the public school system. It is my responsibility as a mother and I don't want that taken away from me.

3) Churches will lose the not-for-profit status and will start being taxed. The LDS church gives millions and millions of dollars in humanitarian aid all of the world. Think of all that money that won't be used to help those in need, but will go straight to the government. And we are not the only church... the amount of humanitarian aid will be affected. That is a sad thought.

4) Adoptions will decrease. The Catholic church contributes to a huge number of adoptions that happen in the country/world (along with other churches). They will not be able to continue placing children with loving families because they won't be able to distinguish between a heterosexual couple and a homosexual couple. So, churches will have to decrease (maybe eliminate) the number of adoptions the do in California.

And for the doubters out there or the ones on the fence... big reason why people should vote YES FOR PROP 8! It doesn't take any rights away from gay couples. They will keep all the rights they previously had... the only right that will be taken away are the rights of churches and us as parents.

Please vote YES on 8 and all those not in California, please pray that we can restore the definition of marriage to be between a man and a woman. It will have lasting, long-term affects on our country, society and families. If it passes here in California, it is just a matter of time, before your state will have the same battle. That is why this is so important.

Need Some Help?

If you aren't artistically or technically saavy but would love some great halloween graphics for free you have to go to Matthew Mead's Halloween download section. He has some great graphics that you can download and use to embellish gifts, food, displays... you name it.

image from Matthew Mead

Halloween Wreath

I am in love with this simple, but elegant looking halloween wreath. It is right up my alley when it comes to decorating for halloween. I don't know if I will make it this year, but I am pretty sure it will make an appearance next year.

Mr. Scarecrow

Okay, how cute are these cookies from Skip To my Lou. I mean, come on. I want an excuse to make them. But the thing that pulls it all together is the presentation. The scarecrows sticking out of the hay. Seriously... so clever. I love when people are creative... it makes me so happy.

Mutual Activities Roundup 4

This week we did Volleyball 101. One of the girls in our class plays Volleyball so she taught the girls the basics of volleyball and then we played some games. It was super fun and we enjoyed a nice evening at the park.

Last week we went to the corn maze as a joint activity. We had our best turn out yet. 60 kids and lots of leaders. Again, another fun filled night.

Here are some ideas for you all:

1) Adopt-a-Highway activity

2) Boo to You activity

Last One, I promise

I forgot I had some more pictures to share of Disneyland... I know you guys have got to be sick and tired of Disneyland by now. But I have to get this stuff down... for memories sake. So, bare with me... but this is the last post about Disneyland for a while... I promise.

Here are more highlights (according to my sister):

Walking into the park with my parents for their first time in almost 30 years. My mom used to work in Disneyland as a teenager (at the restuarant in the Pirates of the Carribean) and my dad would come every summer with his family as a little boy. When they saw what used to be a huge parking lot is now California Adventure, I'm sure they thought everything else about Disneyland had changed but when they got through the Main Gate and than saw Main Street, you could see them magically swept away to the past and they lit up! It was really neat to watch, this was by far my highlight of the whole trip. My dad started taking about a magic shop that he loved going into on Main Street as a boy and sure enough it was still there. I think that made him really happy.

Telling my parents that the Peter Pan ride is by far the greatest ride in the whole park and my dad lit up again and got really animated and said, "You're right, that ride is so great."

Hannah, my little niece, constantly loving Elsie and smothering her with hugs and saying over and over again, "I love you Elsie." It was really sweet to see. She will be a great cousin.

*One lady, she was from Korea, actually asked to get a picture of our whole family and Elsie...I think it was because of Elsie, Hannah's adorable curls and Ella's big blue eyes. It was pretty funny, here she was at Disneyland, there are so many other things worth taking a picture of and she is taking a picture of us. I'm used to be an attraction when we go to other countries but not in the U.S. My dad got a great picture that capture the whole moment.

*During the firework show, Hannah was on her dad's shoulders and I was standing next to them and there is part of the show where they take clips from different movies where the characters are all wishing something. Well, when Pinnochio would say, "I wish I was real boy." Hannah would look at me and get all excited and say, "Pinnochio." Or, "I wish I was a part of that world." She would get really excited and say, "Ariel." She did this throughout the whole part and than gave me a huge hug! I loved it!!! She got really excited when she learned that Mary Poppins was narrating the whole thing.

*Watching my sister and brother-in-law (Chris and I) get into the whole pin trading experience. They became the dorks they used to make fun of...what goes around comes around. It was pretty funny to watch them but they got some great pins.

*Hearing my dad come into the hotel room at midnight because he wanted to stay and ride more rides like Splash Mountain and Peter Pan. He became a child at heart this trip, it was great to see.

A great idea for Back to School

I know it is too late to do this adorable idea this year, but what a great tradition to start next year. And can I say what a great mom!

Thanks Elizabeth for sharing your adorable idea. I hope you don't mind me stealing it!

Image by Elizabeth Harris