...Friday's Favorites...

Okay, so saturday is the first day of deceMber...and what better way to welcome in the official chriStmas seasOn than to wake up to a yummy smelling, delicious tasting, easy-to-make plate of warm christmas carameL rolls?! I don't think there could be anything better...these are soo yUmmy & I love them during the hOlidays...I'm sure you & your cute families will too! :)

...Happy Birthday Zac...

Zac turned 3 on Friday...hard to believe, but he'll be the first to tell you that he's getting to be such a big kid! He makes things exciting around here...we love the kid like crazy!

Zac requested a Lightning McQueen birthday this year, so here's his Lightning McQueen party invitations...it was fun to watch him get so excited to pass these out to everyone...he thought they were pretty cool!

Here he is opening presents at 7:30 in the morning...I don't know who was more excited about the birthday festivities...him or me!

The cake...waaaay more time consuming than it looked. The thing that was a pain about it was that there are like 7 different colors of frosting on the thing...so yes, I was up until 2:00 frosting this thing...but Zac was excited to wake up to his cake on the table...so it was well worth it!

One of Zac's favorite movies, he thinks it's hilarious. And of course, his favorite line from the movie is "he's pretty much a trash can full of poop!"

Still working on the 3 fingers thing...

Chad told Zac for his birthday we were going to do lots of fun things. We would go bowling, then to Chuck E. Cheese's, & then to the park. Zac said, "No dad. Just ONE thing okay?" And of course, that ONE thing was Chuck E. Cheese's. There's a cool, big truck that Chad was trying to get Zac to ride in...but being the cautious kid that he is...he opted for a ride in this safe little car.

Getting ready to blow out the candles...Zac's favorite.

Zac's first time experiencing "The Spanking Machine"...he loved it, can you tell?!

...being grateful...

"Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow."

...Melody Beattie...

...Friday's Favorites...

So for those of us living in Utah, we're not privileged enough to have an In-n-Out burger joint to eat out at...but that's okay!! There's a fairly new fast food restaurant off of State Street in American Fork called Chadder's...and even though it's not In-n-Out, it's a pretty good knock-off. Not only does it look and feel like In-n-Out...but the menu is the same, and the food tastes just as good. So until we make our way to California, Arizona, or Nevada...we'll satisfy our cravings by eating at Chadder's!

You really need to try it out if you haven't yet...they're located at 200 State Street in American Fork! ;)

..."mommy" by Zac Field...

I came home from the gym last night & found this drawing sitting on the table...and I was shocked! Just a few weeks ago, Zac was barely figuring out how to draw smiley faces...so to find this, I was pretty surprised. I don't know where he learned this...but it's pretty good for an almost 3 year old I must say. He was proud to tell me that it's a picture of "mommy"...so here you have it, the latest portrait of me!

...Friday's Favorites...

So for all of you sweet lovers like myself...here's a treat that you really need to try if you never have. I first tried them 5 1/2 years ago at Bloomer's Floral in Provo & have been hooked ever since. mmmmm...cHewY pePs...a handmade candy that starts out hard and gets softer as you go.

...little milestones...

Emerson had her first taste of baby food this week...and she lOved every bite of it. And when I say that she lOved it, i mean she rEaLLy lOved it! I fixed up some oatmeal & pears in this bowl & thought to myself "this is waaaay too much." But I was wrong...very, very wrong... She actually ate two of these bowls full of oatmeal & pears! Needless to say, I'm very happy about it...Zac eats like a bird & it seems like I'm constantly trying to get sOmeThing into that little stomach of his, so it will be great if Emerson keeps these great eating habits up!

post dAddy-FeediNg face:

And, much to my surprise, while I was feeding Emerson her baby food...I felt something hard in her mouth...and sure enough it's her first little toOth! I never would have known she was teething...she has not been the slightest bit fussy, feverish, or drooly!
I consider myself LUckY...very, very lucky...

...Friday's Favorites...

i don't know about all of you, but i love my house to sMell good...especially during the holiday season. something about walking into a warm, yUmmy smelling home is so inviting & i love it...so my new favorite scent for this time of year is Bath & Body Works' peCan pasSion (thanks to my mom)...it's delicious & I'm sure you'd all love it, you'll have to give it a try! :)

...tRicK or tReAtiNg...

So yes, I have been a slacker this last week when it comes to blogging...but here's the low down on our festivities. We had a great hAlloWeen...spent it down in Provo with my family & took our cute little monkey & banana to their ward's tRunk-oR-treAt...which seriously is the best way to go for young kids. Zac got the perfect amount of cAndy & we were done by the time it started getting too cold, so Emerson loved it just as much.

Brooke was dressed up as a pReseNt, and thanks to Brynn it turned out way too cute!

Kalle was the cutest little sTrawBerry around...

Grandma made a very pretty witCh...

Heather was all fairied up as tiNkerbell...

and well, Chad & I didn't get around to dressing up again after our Austin Powers & Foxy Lady costumes the night before...but here's a peek...