Conference in Africa

A new day in UgandaThe saints gather to watch and listen to our Prophets....4 weeks later

but still the same none-the-less.Sweet little smile to warm your heart! Brad is doing very well. He has had a bit of a cold but that is the first since he left. He hit his 100 day today. The time has flown by so far. He loves the people and LOVES the work. How blessed we are to have the gospel.

"How do you pick potatoes?"

We will make "farm girls" out of our girls yet!! Grandpa Kendall was kind enough to plant an extra row of potatoes for our family so on Saturday we set out to harvest them. The girls wondered how we would "pick" potatoes. ha ha... they now know that they grow IN the ground and that you dig them up. Jenna had fun helping Spencer and Michelle and Shannon were a team.

Rachel was helping Grandpa pull out the old tomato plants. The "farm girls"

After harvesting the potatoes, we washed them off. She looks more like a city girl but that farm girl blood in there inside her somewhere..... Michelle helped Grandpa too when we were done with the potatoes. We had some of the potatoes for lunch with creamed peas....DE-DOUBLY-ICIOUS!!!!!! Thanks Grandpa!!

Happy Halloween?

Halloween is so NOT my favorite holiday....if it were my decision, we would skip it all together!! Good news is I only have to come up with costumes for 4 more years. In our family, you only get to trick or treat till you are 12, then it's over! Yippee!! Although, Jenna really doesn't get to "into" the candy so it might be sooner!!

We did however recycle Jenna's Dorothy costume from last year and Rachel came up with her own so I guess it wasn't all so bad. We almost missed our "trunk or treat" due to a time mix up. And we had a total of 5 trick or treaters so we did have candy left over..... :( Rachel went to a Halloween party with a friend from school. They watched a scary movie which she closed her eyes and plugged her ears for most of. She ended up falling asleep during the movie.

Shan and Michelle just watched a movie together, the plans they had made fell thru. Oh well...another one past and gone!!! yippee!!

New Coat

I know she is a nut! I really had to look to find a coat that I thought would be warm enough for this little stick person with no meat on her bones to keep her warm. This coat had an attached jacket inside and then a warm coat. When we got home we realized it matched her back pack really well. Same colors as her coat. She has worn it for the past 3 days. Yes, it is about 30 when she leaves in the morning..... and yes we DO know that it WILL get colder.... :)

I was able to find cute coats for all the other girls at savers in provo so we are set!!! Need some really warm gloves and it will be good. Bring it on!

Pumpkin time!

This year pumpkin carving time was different than years before. First difference, no Brad to join in in the excitement. He is such a kid when it comes to stuff like this! A little neighbor girl joined in with us...her first time ever carving a pumpkin. Shannon and Michelle opened their pumpkins and gutted them but took them to mutual to finish. So it was just Jenna and Rachel. I helped open and scoop out the insides, then it was dad's turn to help with the carvings.

Here is Jenna hard at work poking her skull and crossbones pattern into her pumpkin.
She did a pretty good job. It is always so nice when they get more independent!

And Rachel poking her owl pattern into her pumpkin.....

and...... the finished product!

Michelle's Ghosts, Rachel's Owl, Jenna's skull & Crossbones and Shannons? goofy face?

They had a fun time.

Have I motioned I really detest Halloween? so glad another year is almost over. Going to trunk or treat on Saturday (wearing last year's costumes I might add.....) and whew! done for another year!!

"It's Snowing!!!...um...WAS snowing."

On Monday this is what the view was looking across the street to Grandma's house. If you look REALLY close you can see snow falling! Ok, it only lasted for maybe 3 minutes but listening to my girls you would have thought that it was a blizzard!

If they get this excited about this much snow, what will it be like when it REALLY snows?! Living in Utah has brought many new 1st's for them. Shannon's first time scraping frost off
her car window and having to start her car 20 minutes before she leaves so the defroster can keep up. She came running in the first time and said "Dad there is this much frost on my windows" (holding her fingers about an inch apart) Spencer had to help her scrape it off with a pancake turner... needless to say, she is now the proud owner of her very first Ice Scraper!!

First snow they have seen fall from the sky....

First REAL crush (Michelle)

First time riding to school on the school bus
First time being able to see Grandma and Grandpa's anytime they want

First time being able to go to a cousins baby blessing and seeing her when she was only a few weeks old instead of 2 years old.

First time going to a "big family" Family Home Evening

First time having family come for birthday celebrations

First time going to school with cousins

First time experiencing real FALL weather, crunching in the leaves and seeing the beautiful colors.

First time living without their big brother

ah, so many firsts and many more to come. Change is hard but good.

What can YOU make with duct tape?

This is a be-u-ti-ful shirt that Spencer and Rachel made for extra credit for one of her classes. They covered an existing t-shirt with duct tape. It was a bit hard to get on and off because it didn't stretch anymore so it really doesn't fit to well, but Jenna LOVES it!!! Crazy things we do for good grades!!