I am thankful for....

Good health. Except for a few sick tummies and stuffy noses (oh, and that tonsillectomy), we've enjoyed good health this year.

A sweet husband. I can hardly believe we've been married 8 1/2 years! He gets up in the middle of the night to get me advil if I need it. Doesn't complain a bit when I take the night (or the week) off to sit on the couch and watch Jon and Kate + 8, or whatever dumb show I watch. He'll even do the dishes. He is supportive, helpful and a good dad. I think we make a pretty good team.

The most adorable children in the world. That would be our dinosaur/animal genius and the show-off that comes with a soundtrack and sound effects (he actually will recreate any situation and insert the sound effects as needed). They sometimes drive me CRAZY, but they are really good kids. I am so grateful I get to be their mom.

Our jobs. Dave and I work in industries that have slowed way down, but our jobs are pretty secure. I hope saying that out loud doesn't jinx us now!

The Gospel. Being a mom has helped me realize how important it is to have good values and a strong foundation to help raise my kids. I hope I can be a good example to them and help them understand this too. I'm also grateful for my calling. It's been an incredible experience to teach the Mia Maids in our ward. My testimony has grown so much. I know that Heavenly Father knows and loves each of us.

Our family and friends. We have awesome families. They have helped us so much this year, tending kids, making Halloween costumes, fixing cars, camping, loaning their really nice car, I could go on and on and on. We are also excited for our newest cousins, Talon, Zack and little baby Siggard! The boys love being around all their cousins.

We are very blessed and have lots and lots and lots and lots of things to be grateful for. Happy Thanksgiving!

Jake

Jake is such a ham! He's been so funny lately. He comes home from Primary singing "Called to Serve Him", but he kept singing "Onward ever onward", over and over and over again. If I leave my place, Jake will steal it, and when I come back Jake will say, "Mom, I'm just protecting your spot!" Last night Jakey was in a happy mood and singing Christmas songs. We went to Chuck a Rama for dinner and he fell asleep coming home. When Dave brought him into bed, he started singing and giggiling in his sleep. It was so funny!

Spencer

Spencer is doing great in first grade. He LOVES to read and is reading everything he can get his hands on. His vocabulary is increasing by leaps and bounds. The other day he came to me and said, "Mom, it would be delightful if you would help me with this". A few days later he said "Jake and I were playing and suddenly we crashed into each other!" He's getting so big, I can't believe it. I love that he's becoming more loving and tells us how much he loves us. He's also becoming more aware of the world, reading the newspaper and watching the weather on the news. What a sweetheart!

Halloween

What are we going to be for Halloween? Not too hard of a decision this year, Jake is a Star Wars guy (exactly which one changes constantly) and Spencer is Indiana Jones. Dave took them Trick-or-Treating. After about 4 houses, Spencer started complaining, "my feet are killing me", (What, are you 70?) and I'm sooo tired, I'm going to fall asleep while I'm walking. I think they had more fun passing out the candy than collecting it!

Pumpkins

We've decided Jack-O-Lantern making is our favorite part of Halloween. We usually make them with Dave's family, but this year we struck out on our own. Jake & Dad decided to make a Darth Vader pumpkin, Spencer wanted wolves and I did an easy bat. It was a lot of fun, and I think we're pretty talented (it's mostly Dave).