Getting ready for the season..

Decorating the tree

Stake Live Nativity


Breakfast with Santa: an annual tradition at the S.W. F.A.C.

Santa always arrives riding on the Firetruck. The kids run out to meet him and escort him in to sit on his lap.

Logan wants "a miniature motorcycle with a little dude to ride it".

Parks doesn't know what he wants this year...a game?

The Augers joined the festivities this year.
Blow up bouncy toys are the highlight of the morning.

Logan and his best friend Dawson, looking festive in red and green.

Hud, Skrap and Gunner playing 500 with their friends.

I am thankful for...

My family! For our health and the fun times we share together. Here are some pics i found on facebook that i never got to blog about and they make me happy, to look back at the warm weather and all the things we did together. Thanks Larry, Tierra, Hudson, Parks and Logan for being who you are! You make me smile.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Halloween spooks

I'll have to put our trunk-or treating pics up another time...they are on our other laptop. Hudson was Ron Weasley that night but since his friend and Parks were gonna be girls I talked him into being one too. A few years ago at Sunday dinner at Gram and Pops, Tierra, Abby and Phoebe dressed Hudson up as "Georgina" in this wig and dress (we forgot the shawl in this picture) so we dug it out at Grams one hour before trick-or-treating. Hud as "Lavendar" Parks as "Pam" and Logan as "Bozo the clown" They made up their own names.

My mom made this clown costume for Tierra and now it's been used down through all the kids (except Parks...i guess we forgot about it)

Parks wanted to be a girl. He kept it a secret for a whole month from Hudson until Friday night Trunk-or-treating. I don't know any kids that can keep a secret like my kids! He was sooo "precious." But he didn't like his hair "poofy".

Playing at Grams house before going trick-or-treating. Ezra as Dracula.

All the cousins.

It's been a tradition to go with Hudson's friends Jacob (as Hannah Montana) and Scott (a banana) for the past 3 years. They came over here first and we went to the Grubbs spook alley.

Engineer John Grubb making sure they are securely on the train for a ride.

Then we had donuts and hot chocolate by the fire before heading to Jacobs and hitting the neighborhood. We went to a scary haunted woods backyard with Logan clinging to me and crying and I'm screaming while a man with a hockey mask and chainsaw were chasing us and Scott and Jacob were about to cry and Hudson is asking him if he wants to be his buddy. He has no fear! Next year Hud, Tierra and I will hit the real haunted houses! We love them. Then we went to Heidi's and cooked hotdogs and ate chili and sat around the fire talking. There was an F16 pilot there who gave me information about getting my pilots license. :)

Deer Shop

Waiting at The Cheesecake Factory

This is an annual tradition from the Christiansen side of the family (Diane's). This year there was 8 of us.

Even though none of our husbands are actually out hunting, which is good cause we need them to stay home and tend the kids, we go out shopping ALL DAY. I'm talking from 8:30am we meet at Diane's and we eat breakfast somewhere then hit the stores till about 8pm. Most of the time it's a mall, but we've also done the outlets and Gateway before.

We are supposed to be doing Christmas shopping but I find it hard to shop for my 3 boys. They want toys not clothes. I do find great deals on clothes for myself though. And my favorite part of the day is eating somewhere yummy for lunch. This year, same as last, was Fashion Place Mall and The Cheesecake Factory. Lunch is a fun time we reminisce about old Deer Shop experiences and also make predictions of what will happen to everyone by the next Deer Shop. I was predicted to have my kitchen cupboards painted and to have moved. (let's all pray) The usual ones use to be someone would be pregnant when we were younger. I hated those days and never joined when I had a young baby that needed nursing. It would be pure misery to shop with an infant. Since Paige was not there I'll tell her her predition from me...that her and Cory would have a cabin by next year. :)

The rule is young girls have to be 18 years old to come..it used to be they had to be married but what if they never got married or married at a ripe old age like myself? So Tierra gets to join us in 2 years! She will really need a job before then because she'll be in 7th Heaven shopping for 12 hours straight and I'm sure she'll be the big winner of "who spent the most". I think this year was a tie between Becky and I. Not on the amount of money we spent but amount of bags we had. I got really good deals so I didn't spend much at all compared to what I brought home!

My legs ached that night!

Halloween Party

No I am not just some old lady...nor am I just any Vietnamese nail lady...I am THEE Ms. Bunny Swan from Mad TV. I Love Her! I have her accent down to a tee. Larry is an "official" official. Since the NBA referees were on a lock down.

Poll's as teacher and student with love child :)

Romney's Savannah as Sacajawea and Rachel as a Pink Lady

Augers as Mimes

A few guys even came without their wives! Nobody wants to miss the Cook Annual Halloween Party, date or no date.

O.K. I tell you everyting....heeee looka like-a man

If you don't know who Ms. Swan is, I suggest you google Mad TV Swan...laughs!