To kick off our very first Family Home Evening of the year, we decided that it would be fun to set some goals. Both personal and ones that included each family member. Each family member filled out their own 2011 Goals sheet (idea found here at thrityhandmadedays). The boys took this very seriously.
















They thought really hard about the things they wanted to work on and become better at in 2011. Of course we had to throw in some fun family activities too! Let me know your thoughts on John's "Just for Fun" ideas :-). Love that boy.

bay area fun

With a week worth of vacation for the boys, we knew we had to head home for one of the days. Our first stop was Grandma & Grandpa Shores house. When we pulled up in front of their house today, a flood of memories filled my mind. One of my favorite memories was lunch at their house every Wednesday while attending college. I was lucky enough to attend college with my sister, Amber & my cousins, Kerstin & Mike. Every Wednesday, we would show up for lunch. A few of our friends started tagging along. They loved lunch at G&G's too & looked forward to it every Wednesday. Soon, it became lunch & a few card games with Grandma & Grandpa. Such good memories. In true Grandma style,the table was all set & ready for lunch. I was so glad that my boys got to spend some time with them & enjoy one of Grandma's yummy lunches. As the boys have gotten older & more involved in school & sports, it has made it hard to have spur of the moment visits.










































Grandpa even pulled out his out Japanese riffle for the boys to look at. They thought it was so cool. John loved hearing about Grandpa's stories from WWII.


















Grandma took the boys for a walk around the block, not once, but twice. One walk before lunch, one after. Another fond Grandma memory. We are so thankful for the time we were able to spend with them today. They really are one in a millions. The are kind & very generous to all those around them.

Next stop, one of our favorite parks in Los Gatos. It was a gorgeous Fall day. We couldn't pass up a trip to the park. John & I remember playing at this park when we were kids. The plane & fire truck are still there.




























Next stop, Grandma Sandy & Grandpa Randy's house. My boys love to play at their house. They love seeing their cousins. We had an early turkey dinner with all the trimmings. This is our year to spend Thanksgiving with John's family. After dinner, we enjoyed FHE together. We had a Thanksgiving lesson. I passed out foam leaves to everyone & challenges them to write a note to another family member telling them why they are thankful for them. Then we enjoyed ice cream sundae's & more family time.



















I love my family. They are at the top of my list when I count my blessings. Today was just one of those perfect days.

boo'ed

This was a new tradition for our family when we moved here to Roseville, 6 1/2 years ago. We had never been BOO'ed when we lived in San Jose or Campbell. The idea behind the Boo'ing is that you leave your friends & neighbors a treat on their porch, ring the bell & RUN!!!!! Then they have two days to turn around & BOO someone else. Once your house has been Boo'ed, you put a little sign on your door that lets your friends & neighbors know that you have already been Boo'ed. It is a fun tradition that the kids look forward to each year.

This photo was taken in our car as we were leaving to BOO some friends. it made for a FUN Family Night.

Winner & other random things(recipe included)

We have a winner(s). We couldn't just pick one...we picked two! I will make another set of cards in the next day or two! Our winners are:

Congrats ladies! Annie M. & Julie, will you please email me your home addresses @ doeraimi@gmail.com

We enjoyed a fun FHE in the park with some friends tonight. Thanks for organizing it Steph. We were all asked to bring a treat to share & filled water balloon's. Now, if you know my boys, you know that this was an awesome FHE & right up their alley. Treats & water balloons, what else could you ask for? Everybody had fun taking turns using the water balloon launchers & some of the kids had a great time catching them in the outfield. It was hilarious to watch & all the Dads even got in on the action. We played Bocce ball, the kids played on the playground & there was even a soccer game going on. Did I mention that all of the treats were yummy :)? I love the shot of Brody below, he is pointing to the water balloons flying in the air.

I thought I would share the recipe for the yummy treats I made to share tonight. This recipe is from my friend Jan. ***Meridee & Jan, this is the one I was talking about.
Marshmallow Krispie Bars

1 pkg. brownie mix (one that make a 9 X 13 pan)

1 pkg. (10 1/2 oz.) mini marshmallows
1 1/2 cups of semi sweet chocolate chips

1 cup creamy peanut butter

1 T. butter

1 1/2 cups of Rice Krispies

Grease 9 X 13 pan. Prepare & make brownies according to pkg. directions. Remove from oven. Sprinkle marshmallows over the top of hot brownies. Return to oven-bake 3 min. longer. Place chocolate chips, peanut butter and butter in saucepan. Cook on low heat, stirring constantly until chips are melted. Add rice cereal. Mix well. Spread mixture over mellows. Refrigerate until set. Cut into bars. Enjoy.

This is where my baby can be found if we don't catch him fast enough.

Yep, he crawled up there all by himself. He LOVES to crawl up on the counters...the coffee table...the kitchen table...the computer desk, etc... Do you see the higher counter behind him, that is what he has to get over to get down on the regular counter, never a dull moment with this boy. All of the kitchen chairs are on their backs shoved under the table. It is totally annoying but a solution that seems to work (for now anyways).

We played @ a new water park today. The boys loved this park. It has a huge playground, a toddler playground, & a water area. The water part is smaller than the park we normally go to but all of my boys agreed that the playground was so much fun. I am sure we will be heading to this park more often. We have our niece, Ciara playing with us for the next few days. She will tell you that she is a tomboy, so I think she loves the playtime with our boys. I asked Tanner to stop so I Could take his picture today & I believe he said something along the lines of "I'll pose for you". This is what I got. Silly boy.

The count down is on. There are only two weeks left before school starts. Where did the summer go? I have mixed feeling about school starting so soon but after a morning like this morning, It can't start soon enough.

I have been experiencing major pain for about 5 days now. I had to go back to the dentist after I returned home from Chicago. My dentist had to re-do the impression for a crown. Mind you, I already sat in that dentist chair for 3 hours the first time around. In order to get another impression, he had to un-do the entire temporary crown, take the impression & then re-do the temp. crown. UUGHHH, another 2 1/2 hours @ the dentist. At one point, I heard the dentist say"oh, this is not good...this has never happened to to me before". Those are never great words to hear when your mouth is propped wide open with your dentist's hands in there. Apparently, he got a tool (I am pretty sure he said it was a screwdriver) lodged in there & was holding my jaw while trying to yank the tool out with his free hand. It took him a good 3-5 minutes(it felt like eternity) of yanking before it finally came out. The right side of my face hurts from my jaw to my forehead. I am not excited to have the permanent crown set any time soon. Wish me luck!

What have you been up to & are you looking forward to school starting? Be honest :)!