Day 28-29

Day 28 brings a guest to our house for a few weeks. ELF ON THE SHELF

I've heard a lot about it, watched girlfriends post pics of the mischief their elf gets into, so this year I thought Anna was old enough to really understand and enjoy it. Oh man she loves it!

So far our elf hasn't been too mischievous. She did however find a candy bar in Anna's backpack, open it up and take a big bite!!

Oh and this morning we found her (yes, our elf is a girl according to the box she came in), hanging from our paper towel rack...wearing a barbie skirt!!

Day 29 - Gift
I know it sounds cheesy but my husband is a gift from God. Seriously! I love this man. For the 3rd month in a row, Chris has been recognized as a Triple Crown winner at work. That means that he hit his goals for his branch in all 3 areas (actually he is ABOVE corporate average!!)

When you hit your goals you are invited to a champions dinner with your spouse and all the other winners.  Twice they've had it at Rodizio and most recently at Brio. I love getting dressed up and showing off my husband! This last time they made it known that this is Chris's 3rd time. The recognition program started in August and Perk hasn't missed a beat.

He works damn hard at work for our family and I'm so grateful for him!

Day 27 - Letters

When I saw that one of the last few gratitude posts would be letters, I thought to myself "what on earth can I write about that has to do with being grateful for LETTERS??"

Then one night as I was running around the house after work, doing all the stuff you try to cram into the 2.5 hours before wrestling with bathes and bedtimes and homework and such, I opened my front door to call out to Anna to come in and when I looked down, I saw a plate of cookies with a nice little letter from my visiting teachers.

And there you have it. I'm grateful for little letters left on my doorstep. Even in the hustle and bustle of the busy night, these women always find the time to reach out and check in on me.

Day 26 - Family

Day 26 and I finally get to tell you how thankful I am for my FAMILY!

How cute is this picture? We hadn't moved the couch back into the family room yet after installing the new hardwood and something must have been really good on TV for Chris and Abby to just stop and stand like this to watch!

I'm thankful that my kids enjoy baking and spending time with their dad.

I'm thankful to be married to my bestest friend in the whole wide world and that we have two AMAZING daughters. After 19 years together we still love each other as if it was the first day we met!

I'm thankful to have such a great mom!

She loves people watching as much as I do, which makes us great travelers!

 

Day 24-25

Day 25 is all about FAMILY TIME.

My parents have a HUGE Dickens Village that my dad would normally set up the weekend after Thanksgiving. He would spend all day setting it up, usually by making ME climb up in to the attic to pull boxes. Why did I always get stuck climbing into that attic?  Since he passed, my sister Steph and BIL Will have been setting it up. But this year my mom came up with an idea to keep the tradition of the village alive and to keep the memory of my dad alive in the grandchildren, by having the entire family over the Saturday after Thanksgiving to help set it up and enjoy a nice dinner together.

I can't even begin to tell you how many little pieces are involved. There are houses and people and trees and streams and a train and SNOW, lots and lots of snow, more people, some animals...and you get the point.

The front room/dining room was chaos for a bit. But with a little delegation and a lot of bossiness (usually from ME!) we got the village set up!

Boards are down and snow is forming!

 Boxes are being unpacked!

 Placement of houses and businesses.

 

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

This is the Dickens Village.

I'm pretty sure a good chunk of our inheritance went into creating this village! (I'm kidding mom!!) It looks really neat at night when all the little house and street lights are on. I think however that unless my mom buys a bigger home, this village will not be able to grow anymore!

 

 

Day 24 - Black Friday

 

I didn't shop on Black Friday. Well I did go to the mall on Friday night with Abby, but I wouldn't call that shopping. She makes it hard to shop. I more walked the mall with either pushing her in the stroller or chasing after her with the stroller.

 

Nope, instead on Black Friday I tiled our bathroom floor. Good time. Good times.

Day 21-23

Day 23 - Parents

I am thankful for my mom. She is THE BEST mom ever!

I am thankful for Grandma Joy Perkins. Talk about a strong woman! This gal has seen 3 of her 4 boys pass away and her husband too. She is strong and sassy and opinionated, but she would do anything for anyone. We named Abby after her (Abigail Joy) and Abby is just as feisty! The girls love visiting Gramma Joy.

Day 22 - Celebration

You can't write celebration on November 22nd and not think of Thanksgiving. I am grateful for my family. All of them. Even though we don't always agree on everything or see things to eye-to-eye, at the end of the day we are all family. And that's what really matters.

 

Day 21 - Friend
Our great friends Josh & Virginia had a little girl back in September and we finally got to meet her. She's a cutie!! I am grateful for our friendship...even though they totally sold their Jeep and won't be going on the Moab Safari's with us anymore!

Day 20 - Quiet Moments

Day 20 is QUIET MOMENTS

I don't get too many of those with have  3 yr old and 6 yr old in the house. But last night I sure did!

I laid down in bed at about 7:30pm. The kids were running around and Chris was doing his thing. I had no real intention of actually go to sleep at 7:30pm, but my body had another ideas. Chris let me sleep AND he took such great care of the girls for me.

I do remember Abby coming in and me telling her to get her jammies on. She brought them to me and in my sleep filled haze I said "okay, now you put them on".

When I woke up this morning Abby was laying in bed with me, with just a diaper on. Her jammies were on the floor outside her door.

I remember stirring when Chris got into bed, asking him if the girls were in bed. Yes.
Was Abby's TV turned off? Yes
Was the garage door shut? Yes
Was the front door locked? Yes

And 11 hours later I woke refreshed and ready for the work day!

Day 19 - Books

This will be my reading over the Thanksgiving Holiday.

I am grateful for the experiences others lived through, that they may share them with the rest of the world.

Day 18 - Love

I am grateful for LOVE!

You're tired.
You're sore.
You're dirty.
Your hands hurt.
Your back hurts.

You know this is LOVE when you've both been working NONSTOP to finish the house remodels. The basement paint, the trim, the doors, and closets, the wood floors, the kids, the dog & cat, the many trips to Home Depot. And yet you still have time to rub your wife's feet at the end of the day.
Yes my friends. That is LOVE.

Day 17 - Talent

I don't think I give Chris enough credit when it comes to home improvement jobs. I always tell him he has the 90% capacity. Meaning he completes the job 90% of the way, stops to get a drink/lunch and then never comes back to finish the 10%.

I was frustrated with him for not finishing the basement. Then we spoke and it came down to how he works such long days during the week that when he comes home, the last thing he wants to do is be working in the basement. That's when we finally agreed to let me hire someone to finish it (that gratitude post will come next week!!!)

However, he was super excited to install our wood floors in the front room and family rooms because A) it was easy and B) he was really, REALLY sick of the kid/animal stained carpet and C) we've had the flooring in the garage for 9 months, it was about time!!

Front Room

Family Room

BEFORE

 

DURING

 AFTER!!

 

Not only did he install the new wood flooring in, but he updated the baseboards too, which turned out very nice! We also rearranged the furniture a bit too, really opened it up I think!! We have area rugs on order from Home Depot, so as soon as those come in, the room will be so complete!!

I'm grateful for my husband's handyman talents, even when I get frustrated with that 10%!!

Day 15 - 16

See, I told you I might not post everyday for my gratitude posts. So let's start making up for lost posts, shall we?

DAY 15 - NATURE

 

I had the opportunity to travel to Vancouver, BC with my mom and aunt last month for a little vacation. I fell in love with Vancouver! If I could live there, I would in a heartbeat. Of course it's all sky rise condos and open walking paths. Good for me, not so kid friendly for yards!

 

We went to Stanley Park a few times. Words cannot even describe how beautiful it was. Perfect time to visit, the leaves were bright and bold colors. So very pretty. I'm grateful that 1) I was able to take the vacation with my mom and 2) able to see such a beautiful city!

DAY 16 - MEALTIME

With Chris's long work days, and my schedule of working full time, our family all sitting down around the table for a meal is kind of a rare thing. I do however love to sit down with Anna in the mornings and talk over our bowls of cereal.

She catches me up on the latest happenings of a 6 yr old. She says the funniest things too.
Here is our conversation from this morning:

Me: Anna, do you want home lunch or school lunch?
Anna: Can you look it up and see what they are having?
Me: tap tap tap on the computer...some cheese bread, soup, veggies, fruit, milk
Anna: Oh. Oh no, I'll have home lunch. I only like school lunch when they have some kind of treat with it. That doesn't not sound like a treat!

Day 14 - Health

Day 14 is all about HEALTH!

I'm grateful to be pretty healthy. Tilted uterus and all!

Day 13 - Decoration

I'm grateful for DECORATIONS!

 

Seriously, we are SO close to having the basement finished that I can't stand the excitment!

Anna has had her pricess stickers on the wall since we painted.

 And that was last Spring!

Day 12 - Weather

I'm grateful to live in Utah where we get to experience the changes in the weather with each season. The snow really makes it begin to feel like the holiday season.

Day 11 - Stranger

It only makes perfect sense to have Day 11 of gratitude be dedicated to a stranger.

See, it was a stranger who called me after finding Bear laying down in the middle of her neighborhood street.

WHAT?

Oh you didn't hear?

Let me back up and tell you about the EXCITING Saturday we had!

Chris had planned to take Bear pheasant hunting. Bear was acting skittish that morning for some reason and when he opened the back of his Jeep for her to climb in, instead she took off sprinting up the road. Apparently she really didn't want to go hunting (who can blame her? It was cold and snowing).

So with it being early and snowing, Chris was able to track her in the snow all the way to the top of our neighborhood. But then she must have crossed Gordon Ave because he lost her tracks. I get a call at 7:45am with him saying "we have a problem". I IMMEDIATELY think "it's that damn Jeep. Something happened...how much will THIS cost?" Then he tells me Bear took off.

I hop in my car and spend about 20 minutes driving the neighborhood, asking people out if they've seen her. Nothing. I head back home, grab the girls and we spend another 45 minutes weaving in and out of the area looking for her. Nothing.

We get home and I just start crying. I've had her since she was a puppy. She was MY first baby. She was my kid before I had kids!! I love that big lug of a dog.

A few hours later I'm in the basement painting and my phone rings. I could feel it in my bones it was someone calling about Bear.

"Um, I think I found your dog, Bear"

YES!! Someone had found her. Laying down in the middle of the street, most likely cold, tired and hungry. I hop in the Jeep and the gal directs me to where she is at. The neighborhood just west of our church. I pull up and Bear is sitting on the sidewalk. She recognizes me and that big tail start wagging! I must have looked like a crazy dog lady. I'm covered in paint, my hair is a smell and I'm sitting on the sidewalk hugging this dumb dog!

I thanked the gal repeatedly and offered her a reward. She declined and said "when we drove up, my son said "mom is that dog dead?" because she was just laying in the street".

She could have easily ignored Bear and drove around her. But she didn't. She stopped and called and I'm so very, very thankful.

Bear is such an important part of our family. I couldn't imagine life without her in it.

Day 10 - Technology

Day 10, TECHNOLOGY

This post brought to you by Blogspot, on the Internet, created from my laptop, while watching Comcast TV (Ute's game to be exact!!).

I'm thankful that technology helps me keep in touch with friends who have moved out of state.
I'm thankful for the technology that allows me to catch up on my Days of Our Lives every evening.
I'm thankful for the technology that tells me when I need an oil change in my car.

I could go on and on about all I'm thankful for when it comes to technology, but I really need to check my Instagram account off my Galaxy Notebook...

Day 9 - Traditions

Traditions.

I should save this for the new tradition my family is starting for the Saturday after Thanksgiving, but I will save that for another gratitude post.

This tradition is the every-other-Friday lunch I have with my mom.

My mom doesn't work those Friday's and since I have a pretty lax work schedule when it comes to lunches, my mom and I meet up and have lunch together. Sometimes it quick like Cafe Rio, other times we sit at Chili's or Red Robin. Heck sometimes we even hit a few stores up after!

Since we live in different cities, counties actually, it's our way of getting together and catching up. I'm thankful that I get to have this time with my mom.

I think it's a pretty fun tradition.

Day 8 - Food

Day 8 is FOOD and what a better day to post!!

I attended a Recipe Exchange party at my neighbors house last night. I would love to post pictures about what I ate...but I ate IT ALL!

Even the leftover soup I took home to share with Chris...I ate while helping Anna with her spelling words last night (it really is yummy Shari).

I ate fresh homemade sour dough bread.
I LOVED Sariah's awesome artichoke dip.
I scarfed down TWO different kids of pumpkins bread/cookies.
I nibbled on a cheese ball (which was quite yummy for having so few ingredients).
I had some rice sausage dish, that I didn't think looked like much, but man it was GOOD!!
I even had a chocolate cupcake with a GREEN BEAN baked inside. That was quite the laugh at the party!

There was more. And I tasted it all. There wasn't a single thing there that I wouldn't make again. Well I could skip the green bean IN the cupcake, but I'd totally eat the cupcakes again.

I am grateful that I was invited and that I got to spend an evening with a great group of women. And I'm grateful that I walked away with a dozen new recipes to try out!!

Day 7 - Simple Things

Today I am grateful for the SIMPLE THINGS.

The phone call from a dear friend, just to chat.

Anna telling me "you should wash it in OxyClean. It's tough on stains". Where does this kid get this stuff?

Neighbors with extra room in their garbage cans. Totally got rid of FOUR bags of leaves tonight!

Comcast OnDemand.

My lab Bear and her sweet, sweet personality.

Abby saying to me "I want to hold you" (that's her way of wanting ME to hold HER).

Chocolate. Enough said.

Days 5 & 6

Day 5 - Home
Day 6 - Work

I'm combining days 5 & 6 because they really do go together.

HOME
We've outgrown our little home already. I blame it on the grandma's and Santa Claus. We need the extra room in the basement just to fit all the Polly Pockets and Horses my children have been collecting. So I finally hired a contractor to come in and finish it up. Shelves and door jams and baseboards...OH MY!

It's been a long, slow project. But the light at the end of the tunnel that had burnt out has finally been replaced and I can just now see that little shining light. Soon my dear children, soon!!

WORK
I work full-time. I have since I was 18. Balancing working outside of the home and having two kids is a FULL TIME JOB in itself. But I've been doing it since Anna was born so it all comes second nature now. I've been blessed to work for some great companies with great people. I've also been VERY blessed to have great daycare providers (Nina, Debi & Brigette). Without them I don't think it would be as easy as it is to leave your child behind each day.

I like what I do for work. I'm a natural care-taker so supporting three executives is a good fit for me. I've been an Executive Assistant for 12 years now, so I must be doing something right. Growing up, I always wanted to work in a field where I'd have to wear a power suit at work. To me a woman in a power suit meant...well POWER. But more so it represented SUCCESS! I think I got the idea from watching Melanie Griffth in Working Girl.  I've actually never owned a power suit, they just look so uncomfortable. Of course growing up in the 80's, power suits with big shoulders pad were the style! So I might not have that power suit, but I can still rock the big curly hair. Just like my girl Tess.

Day 4 - Laughter

Day 4 is actually suppose to be BOOKS, but seeing that we had Abby's birthday party yesterday and she turns 3 tomorrow, I thought I'd mix it up and have Day 4 be LAUGHTER.

 

This kid makes me laugh.

We sing happy birthday to her and she covers her ears and just smiles.

She lines up all of her toys almost every day.

At nighttime on the table next to her bed.

Along the edge of the tub.

In the car on the seat next to her.

These two make me laugh because they are both such individuals.

Anna is a jokester like her mama. She'll do anything to make you laugh.

 

 

This picture was taken while we were in Yellowstone last August. Driving around the park in the Jeep with the top off. Our hair was a ratted mess, but we were laughing so hard!

 

This was last April on a Jeep trail that had a lot of water crossing. Chris would speed up just before we were about to cross and water would spray the entire Jeep. Of course we giggled our heads off!

This is Bear when she was a puppy. Total photo bomb. I don't know why this picture makes me laugh, but it always has! Look how stinking cute she was!!

I think laughter is one of the most important things a person can have in their life. They say that laughter is the best medicine ya know!

 

Here's a funny story for you: back in 2000 we received news that Chris's father had passed away. We're sitting in his hospital room, mourning and crying and feeling so very sad. Chris's grandparents and Uncle Kent are in the room with us. Let me just tell you that Uncle Kent had one of the best personalities of anyone I've ever met. He had such an outlook on life that you never left a meeting with him without smiling. So we're sitting in the hospital room and Kent tell us "when I die, I don't want people sitting around crying. How boring is that? I want to be cremated and shot out of a cannon like on the 4th of July! I want to be stuffed into fireworks and shot out of SLC so I can rain down on everyone". We all start laughing so hard that it actually helped make a sad day much more tolerable. Kent passed away a year ago and although he wasn't creamated and shot out of a cannon, his funny personality and love to make everyone around him laugh are some of the strongest memories we hold of him.

 

I hope anyone reading this got a few laughs too!

Day 3 - Spouse

So day 3 brings the topic of the SPOUSE. Oh where do I even begin?

Well let's see, I know I have a few "new" readers so let's start with June 1993! I met Chris one week after I graduated high school (he's a year older). We had a connection from day one. I was a new girl in the "group of boys" and he was the cocky guy, sitting across the camp fire with his Girbaud jeans, flannel shirt and Timberland boots. Back in 1993 that was hot! He had a smirk on his face and and got a kick out of teasing me and my girlfriend.  I'm most certain it was love at first site.

One month later we shared our first kiss on what would forever be considered our anniversary. July 6. We married 8 years later on July 6, 2001.

We've been through a lot in our 19 years together. The death of parents, college degrees, building a home ourselves, changing jobs, losing jobs, struggling to have babies and then finally having babies together, dealing with family and all time having each others back 100%.

Sure we have our moments with each other. We know exactly how to push each others buttons, but we also know what the other person needs to hear at that exact moment. Chris is my biggest cheerleader and my biggest supporter. His faith in God is something that amazes me every day. His incredibly strong work ethic is something to be envied, his love for his family and his need to protect them from the world around them is based off experience and his heart of pure love. He would do anything for his friends regardless of the return on investment. He's wary to trust people he doesn't know, but once you make his inner circle, you're in for life!

He loves to hunt and his Jeep is his 3rd baby. He loves the Raiders even when they lose, the Jazz, the Cubs (despite me being a Yankees fan) and fishing is something he would do everyday if he could.

He has goals and dreams bigger than this world and works tirelessly day in and out to achieve them or keep our family on the path to achieve them.

And oh man this guy makes me laugh! He does a mean John Black impression (from Days of Our Lives), he'll watch chick flicks with me, hug me when I cry during sappy moments, and will do a milkshake run even when it's late at night. How can you not love that??

He is a HUGE pushover when it comes to his girls.

I couldn't imagine life without him!