Halloweening

We've had a very fun Halloween filled weekend. Yesterday was our ward's trunk-or-treat Halloween party at our church house and then tonight was my sister-in-law's Halloween party at their church building. They had carnival type activities at both parties, dinner, cupcakes, cakes, plus trunk-or-treating at ours and trick-or-treating in the classrooms at our in-law's. Very busy, very fun and the kids loved it. They were bouncing off the walls by the time we got home with a candy buzz, but they loved it. I'm so done with Halloween and we still have another week until the actual holiday. Oh well.

Here are the kids all dressed up in their costumes at the party. Karen and Michael are "ruff"ing in the picture though it sounded more like a roar.These are their cousins

And this is a close up of the kids faces. Did I do good?

I was thinking that with all the candy they got at these two events that we don't need to take the kids out trick-or-treating on Halloween. I mentioned this to Neils and he said that he still wants to take the kids around the neighborhood. Must be his inner-child needing to get out and celebrate the holiday. Well, at least we'll have candy for the next three months or more.

California Proposition 8

I usually let Neils take care of the political stuff, but I do believe in being informed. After reading this I think it is important for people to know what this is about and know how it will affect us even though we don't live in California. There is a clip from a news program that I found most interesting and informative about how this will affect our families and children, it's the second "Click Here" if you don't want to read through all of it.

An email was sent to me from my sister and here is some of what was in it.

I have done most of the work putting together all the good resources about this proposition so people can read about it through this email or blog. With the links already set. Read below and you will see. Also important dates for getting your absentee ballots and mail in votes...plus the links to do it! Hopefully this takes the work out of voting for everyone and the work out of researching it.

Failure to pass Proposition 8 will hurt children. If gay marriage remains legal, public schools will put it on equal footing with traditional marriage. Children will likely receive 'age appropriate' information about sexual relations within heterosexual and homosexual marriages.

Failure to pass Proposition 8 will hurt churches. The court's decision will inevitably lead to conflicts with religious liberty and free speech rights. Society will become more and more hostile to traditional beliefs about marriage and family. Over time, greater acceptance of nontraditional marriage will be demanded of all people. This could impact the ability of any religion to teach and practice its beliefs. Including adoption agencies.

A YES vote will not hurt gays. In California, the law provides for marriage-related benefits to be given to civil unions and domestic partnerships. Proposition 8 does not diminish these benefits.

For your information:On Friday, October 10th, 2008 a first-grade class took a field trip to witness a lesbian wedding in California. Click Here for the article from the San Francisco Chronicle. A father in Massachusetts was frustrated when his twin kindergartners were taught about homosexuality at school by the teachers. He insisted he be notified in the future before such things were discussed so he could pull his boys out of school. He was taken to jail. Click Here for the story.

A Catholic adoption agency In the UK closed their doors because of the Government's new homosexual equality laws. The Equality Act forbids discrimination in the provision of goods and services on the basis of sexual orientation. The law was forced through Parliament last year despite past Prime Minister Tony Blair's recommendation that Catholic adoption agencies be exempted from the rules. Click Here for more info. http://www.tldm.org/News12/UKCatholicAdoptionAgencyForcedToCloseDoors.htm

Earlier this month judges in Conneticut overturned the state law (just as the judges in California did) to legalized gay marriage. This is not just an issue in California. We voted years ago to keep traditional marriage as the only marriage recognized in the state of California, 4 judges overturned our vote…and we need to fight back. That is what this Proposition is about.

This is happening everywhere and the leaders of the church and others have warned that the outcome of California's vote will affect the way the other states vote. So PLEASE…even if you don't live in California, put this on your blog or email this on. The internet knows no state line. You know contacts in California that I don't…and so do your friends. Please pass this on as it could eventually have an effect on everyone!

Click Here for excerpts from the Broadcast given by Elders M. Russell Ballard, Quentin L. Cook and L. Whitney Clayton.A good resource mentioned in the broadcast: http://www.preservingmarriage.org/

October 20th: Last day to apply for an absentee ballot if voting out of state. Click Here to get one. http://www.sos.ca.gov/nvrc/fedform/

October 27th: Last day to apply for 'Vote by Mail' Click Here for info. http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/elections_m.htm#apply

November 4th: Election day. Polls close at 8:00pm. Vote by mail must be received by this time and can be hand delivered if necessary.Hopefully, this information has been helpful. Even if you don't live in California you can make a difference by emailing this to all your contacts and getting the word out. Whether you are into politics or not...this issue is so INCREDIBLY important. So get the word out: VOTE YES ON PROP 8 in California. Thanks for your time. Amber

Halloween is Coming

From the first day of October, Karen has been looking forward to Halloween and is really excited for it. She often tells me that she just can't wait for Halloween. She loves to dress up in her costumes and can't decide whether she wants to be a pink poodle or a black kitty cat. She looks darling in both. Then there is Michael who was kicking and screaming when I tried his doggy costume on him, but he's still excited about getting candy. They can't wait, so we got them dressed up one day and took some pictures of them in their costumes. The background is a display in front of the Wal-Mart near us. Isn't it so cute. We also began carving pumpkins, here are our 1st 2 attempts.

Crazy Eights!!

So I was "tagged" by my sister to do this Crazy Eights thing so here it goes!!

8 TV Shows I Love to Watch:
1. Heroes
2. The Dead Zone
3. Eureka!
4. Dr. Who
5. What Not to Wear
6. What I Like About You
7. The Office
8. The Red Green Show

8 Favorite Places I Love To Eat:
1. The Cheesecake Factory
2. Chili’s
3. The Cheesecake Factory
4. Applebee's
5. The Cheesecake Factory
6. IHOP
7. The Cheesecake Factory
8. The Cheesecake Factory take out so I don't have to worry about how the kids will act in the restaurant

8 Things That Happened Yesterday:
1. Got up early to take my husband to work
2. Did that to get tires on his car replaced
3. Took Karen to Preschool
4. Took Michael home crying that it’s his turn to go to school
5. Chatted online while playing on facebook
6. Heard the stock market went up a record 900 points
7. Picked up my husband from work
8. Posted political signs for Phil Conder who's running for State Legislature in our district

8 Things I Look Forward To:
1. Saturday’s when Neils is home
2. Everyday when Neils gets home so the kids can cling to him instead of me
3. Having intimate time with my husband
4. The quiet of naptime
5. Spring time
6. Going to the Temple
7. Holidays/Vacations
8. Game nights

8 Things I Love About Fall:
1. The cool weather
2. The crisp, clear air
3. Red, gold and browns of the changing leaves
4. General Conference weekend
5. Thanksgiving
6. Halloween parties
7. Shorter days so that when our kids go to bed they can’t say “but it’s still light outside”
8. No more 100 degree weather

8 Things On My Wish List:
1. Cruise to Europe
2. Vacation to England, Scotland, and Ireland
3. Going back to school
4. Selling our home & buying a new one
5. To talk to my parents again
6. For my husband to get a substantial raise
7. Free maid service
8. To be good enough to live with Heavenly Father again

There was one more section of 8 people to tag, but I didn't want to do it, so if anyone wants to be tagged, pretend I put your name here: _____________.

Karen's Cute Hair

It's been a while since I've posted pictures of some fun things I've tried with Karen's hair, so here are three different styles I've tried. Isn't she so cute. (mommy's bias of course)

All About Me (Jen)

I saw this on my sister's blog and thought it would be fun, so here goes.

Welcome to the 2008 edition of getting to know your friends. Copy then change all the answers so they apply to you, then post on your blog. The theory is that you will learn a lot of little things about your friends that you might not have known!

1. What time did you get up this morning? 7:30 am
2. Diamonds or pearls? diamonds
3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema? Mama Mia!
4. What is your favorite TV show? Eureka and Dr. Who
5. What do you usually have for breakfast? there is no usual, waffles, granola bar, cereal, etc.
6. What is your middle name? Sue
7. What food do you dislike? mushrooms and olives, yuck!
8. What is your favorite CD at the moment? Enya
9. What kind of car do you drive? 1997 Buick Century Custom
10. Favorite sandwich? turkey club
11. What characteristic do you despise? lying
12. Favorite item of clothing? jeans
13. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go? Europe
14. Favorite brand of clothing? Silver jeans
15. Where would you retire to? retirement community where all my needs are taken care of.
16. What was your most recent memorable birthday? 30
17. Favorite sport to watch? football, esp the UofU vs BYU game when the UofU WINS!!!!
18. Furthest place you expect someone to look at this from? Washington D.C.
19. Person you expect to blog it first? don't know
20. When is your birthday? March 29
21. Are you a morning person or a night person? night
22. What is your shoe size? 8
23. Pets? besides my husband and kids? none cause I'm allergic
24. Any new and exciting news you'd like to share with us? I'm pregnant! (just kidding)
25. What did you want to be when you were little? an artist
26. How are you today? fine thanks
27. What is your favorite candy? peanut M&M's currently
28. What is your favorite flower? roses
29. What is a day on the calendar you are looking forward to? whenever my next trip is
30. What are you listening to right now? the silence of my kids sleeping, aahhhhh
31. What was the last thing you ate? BBQ pringles
32. Do you wish on stars? yep
33. If you were a crayon, what color would you be? brilliant blue with some dark tones
34. How is the weather right now? raining a minute ago, but now just cloudy, now raining again
35. Who was the first person you talked to on the phone today? my husband
36. Favorite soft drink? grape soda
37. Favorite restaurant? Cheesecake Factory hands down
38. Real hair color? brown
39. What was your favorite toy as a child? a stuffed bunny
40. Summer or winter? fall
41. Hugs or kisses? yes
42. Chocolate or Vanilla? chocolate definitely
43. Coffee or tea? no
44. When is the last time your cried? night before last
45. What is under your bed? dust and a pair of shoes
46. What did you do last night? went shopping and then played on the computer
47. What are you afraid of losing? my children
48. Salty or sweet? yes
49. How many keys on your key ring? 7
50. How many years at your current job? 4
51. Favorite day of the week? Saturday
52. How many towns have you lived in? 8 towns and 2 states
53. Do you make friends easily? sometimes, I can be a bit shy, but I'm getting better