Catching Up

Well, hello there! It has been a while. Life has been good around here, and we are soaking in all the glory of pumpkin spice season! I have a lot on my mind, especially after watching General Conference this last weekend, but I am going to use this post to just catch up on what has been going on lately.

Let's get right to the pictures!

I love to take the kids outside, to enjoy the fresh Fall air. I took them to the Train Depot on a Sunday afternoon, and we had a really nice time.

The kids loved exploring the surroundings. Henry was so eager to just jump all over the rocks and climb.

Oh man, I sure love these kiddos.

Henry was just running around like the free spirit that he is.

He is so full of life and laughter, it can be contagious.

These boys are all so different, but for the most part they get along. We have moments of crazy, and moments of bliss. Sometimes crazy and bliss happen at the same time. Actually, pretty much all the time it is blissfully crazy around here. :) I love my William, Daniel, and Henry.

This girl... she is such a natural light. I am so grateful for her.

I will need to take Sammi's Senior pictures, so we started practicing.

Cutie-head!

I love this face!

Daniel has been going to-and-fro with music. He is in band and choir, and this time of year is nuts. Marching band has pretty much taken over for him right now. He has been traveling to perform, and we are just trying to make sure he does not burnout with too many things going on. This will likely be his one and only year of band, his true love is singing and choir.

The marching band went and performed in Portland. They got 2nd Place in their division. They work so hard, they even practice in the pouring rain. I can hear them practicing from our home, which is fun.

It is officially very fall-like, and getting cold. 

I am so lucky to live in such a beautiful area.

This spot is always magical.

Sometimes when I run, I just have to stop and soak life in.

Sammi and Daniel dressed up for "twin day" at school. Sammi found matching glasses at the Dollar Store, and they were very cute together. And Altos are awesome.

They are such good friends.

I took the kids out to eat. I almost never do, so it was a treat. We went to Pizza Pie Cafe. It was pretty good!

Henry was so excited to be there that he spilled his entire cup of water on my lap.

Sammi and Daniel have been attending the temple on Saturday mornings. They have had some really great experiences there with their group of friends. 

I love that they have such good friends to serve with together.

Here is Henry being Henry.

Wee!

My one and only pumpkin from my garden. Look how cute!

Sammi went to the temple on the day of the Homecoming dance.

It was a great way to start her dance day! 

Later that day I helped fix her hair. 

And we turned her into a princess.

Here she is waiting for her date to arrive.

She went with a boy she has known for a long time.

She went with a group of friends, and she had a great time!

So cute! 

Encore performed at a Cathedral downtown, and from what I was told, it was amazing.

 I look forward to hearing the music at their upcoming concert.

They sang in this beautiful old Church.

Sammi said she found this quote on the wall inside the Church.

During a Barbershop festival, the kids got to meet the "Newfangled Four." They are a Barbershop group that is kind of a big deal.

 Getting some feedback for their song.

 The groups from the Barbershop Competition.

Sammi got to try on a crown that someone had won from a competition. I think Sammi looks very natural as royalty. She is a daughter of God, so her heritage is Divine Royalty :)

 Having fun with friends.

I was watching a Hallmark movie the other day, and I heard this quote I thought was very profound: "It ain't baggage if you don't carry it around." I am trying not to carry my "baggage" around so I can focus more on the joys of the future, rather than the sorrow of the past.

I have also been thinking about what it means to have the gift of discernment. I found this, and I thought it was very insightful.

We had our ministering brothers come to our home. We spent the time together chatting, and mostly singing. We have asked that we sing together when they come, and it has been a really great experience.

For choir, the kids pick a quote to hang on the wall that represents them. These are Sammi's quotes from the last three years of choir.

Sammi took this picture... she sure loves the miracle piano that was anonymously given to us. We are daily grateful for such a tremendous gift! It is certainly well used and loved!

Autumn mornings are so glorious!

I just can't get enough of the colors.

I found Henry just peacefully rocking on the hammock.

I loved this... 

So Heavenly!

Sometimes the colors take my breath away!

Here is Sammi in her Encore choir dress. She will be living in this dress for the next few months, during the holidays.

I took Henry to Home Depot to see the Halloween displays, he loved it!

We have been dressing our home up for Halloween.

I love crunching through the leaves as I run.

Sammi getting ready to sing at the Morrison Center.

Henry came along for the Barbershop competition.

Daniel preparing to sing.

Daniel's group got 1st, and Sammi's group got 3rd. They each took home a decent money prize!

Daniel gathered all the quartets and had them sing together at the end of the show. I love that Sammi and Daniel are next to each other, this kind of moment makes my mother heart really happy.

See The Lion King poster hanging on the wall? We get to see that in a few weeks! I am so excited! It is kind of awesome that the kids got to perform on the same stage that the Broadway shows will be on.

These boys are so fun to watch, and so talented! They really rocked the performance.

They are so cute! 

Sometimes nature is just so beautiful.

Henry is losing teeth like crazy. He has one tooth that has been hanging there for weeks, and it just does not want to come out!

Sammi was driving around with a car full of boys. It has been so nice for her to have her license. 

Henry is really improving with his reading. It is so fun to watch him figure out the words of a story.

I made pumpkin bread, and it was pretty yummy!

We watched General Conference with my parents. They were passing through before heading to their new home in Utah. The boys have a tradition of making a fort. I am so excited about all of the changes and inspiration I received from Conference. I will write more about that later.

I spent some time laying in the hammock pondering the things I learned.

This was my view.

The kids had so much fun making leaf piles and jumping in them.

Notice Sammi's shirt. :)

It was such a joyful time.

These are the sweet moments that I love.

Megan came to visit and sing with us! It was so nice to have her back in our home to sing! We sure love her!

I just love listening to these beautiful girls singing together, it is like having my own personal Disney Princess concert.

Sammi captured this picture on top of the roof. I love the contrasting light and darkness. We live in a beautiful world!