The Wall, cont'd . . .

Just check out this year's "Wall O' Gratitude"! As my fabulous friend, Lisa, might say, BOY HOWDY!  (Thanks for letting me borrow that, Lisa.)    As you can see, I had to build an extra wing onto our "Wall O' Gratitude" this year because of the many, many grateful hearts who entered our home, either physically or via this nifty wifi doodah, and wrote on that awesome wall!


Every time I looked at or wrote on our wall, I received an overwhelming feeling of warmth and gladness and, well, uh, surprise, surprise!, GRATITUDE, for all that I have and especially for all of the people in my life whom I love and adore.  


Thank you, everyone, for contributing to my "Wall O' Gratitude." For, in doing so, you have contributed to brightening my soul and adding to my renewed realizations of the endless blessings that are ours to receive and to acknowledge if we but will.

"Hem your blessings with 

thankfulness so they don't unravel."  

--Author Unknown (but I wish it was me, because this is some kind of awesome)

Thanksgiv-mas?

Oh.  This is NOT a good look, is it.  Look at that sturdy Christmas bugle boy watching over that Halloween/Thanksgiving door decor as if it was completely overstaying its welcome. Which it was NOT.  It's just that "Winthrop," our bugle boy, just somehow jumped right into my car (true!) while I was out shopping last week, completely unannounced and unplanned, and he just had to go somewhere, didn't he?  I couldn't just make him hunker in my car for another week until Thanksgiving was over and the guilt I always feel when I decorate for Christmas too early went away, could I?  That would just be downright inhumane.  (I think our Thanksgiving Day visitors thought he was the butler.  Fine by me.)


If there was such a thing as "What Not To Wear" for houses, I suppose this would be it.  Stacy London would be so ashamed.

My First Born

Couldn't you just devour this little face?

My beyond beautiful daughter, Ashley, is all grown up!

She is a loving, caring wife . . . 

. . . and a loving, caring mama . . . 

. . . and, it's her birthday today!!!

Sorry, Ash--I made Jordan suffer through it, and now it is your turn (lucky you!):

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY ADORABLE, LOVING, CARING DAUGHTER!

WE LOVE YOU WITH ALL OF OUR HEARTS!!!

Where Are the French Fries, For Goodness Sake?!

Christian and I had a wickedly fun time at BYU's basketball game Tuesday night!  Christian totally got into the game, and I totally got into watching the crowd.  In fact, two of the reasons why I buy our mini-season basketball passes each year are:  1) the game is played INDOORS!!!* and, 2) I can't get enough of people watching.  A cherry goes on top if BYU wins the game, but I'm not there for the basketball, people!  Seriously?  No.  I go because there are about 20,000 (give or take a few) people who are just begging to be studied and admired (uh-huh).  

Compared to the rest of the world, BYU draws a pretty tame crowd, what with its no beer policy and the like.  Smoking anything is also slightly frowned upon.  Slightly.  But!  All the better!  People have to be pretty creative to stir things up when fellow attendees are completely sober, so creativity rules the day!  I just love it.

Now that you've come with me this far, will you stay a while longer and play a game I like to call, "Spot the . . . "?  It's fun!  It's educational!  It's a big fat time waster!  Heeeeeeere we go!!!

To get you started off on the right foot on today's "Spot the . . . " we'll go with a very easy challenge harking back from last year.  The challenges will get progressively dumber harder.  See if you can:

SPOT THE JIMMER!

Yeah, easy, right?  OK, that was soooo last year.  

Now, try your hand at this year's crop:

SPOT THE GREEN ANTENNAED BUMBLE BEE 

SPOT THE SLICE OF PIZZA (Really?)

SPOT THE BANANA 

(Of course there would be a banana, why wouldn't there be?)

SPOT THE TWO BLUE MAN GROUP GUYS WHO GOT TIRED OF BREATHING THEIR OWN GARLIC BREATH UNDER THEIR FULL-HEAD HOODS, AND EVENTUALLY DID THE UNTHINKABLE

BONUS:  

SPOT THE GUY WHO COULDN'T MAKE UP HIS MIND ABOUT BEING A CONSTRUCTION WORKER OR A REDNECK

AND, WE'LL END WITH A DIFFICULT ONE--

SPOT THE OSCAR MEYER HOT DIGGITY DOG!

Raise your hand if you were able to spot every challenge!  Rah, rah, rah!  Sis boom bah!  You guys are such good sports!  Awwww, I love you guys.

Ah.  I suppose somebody out there would like to know if BYU won the game.  Give me a minute.  Let's see . . . .  Um, yes.  Yes, I do believe they won, but you better ask Christian just to double check; I was too busy scanning the crowd looking for a double cheeseburger.  With pickles.

*Dave and/or Sean and/or Christian are the ones who always put our football season passes to good use.  But then, they don't mind four hours of sitting in drizzle, and 40 degree temperatures, and complete miserableness.  In fact they say they like it!  Me?  I would put those football season tickets to good use, actually.  I would light them with my Bic and warm my fingers by their flames.  That's what I would do.  Good thing Dave keeps those tickets under lock and key.

He Puts a Smile On Her Face . . .

. . . and that puts a BIG smile on mine.

HAPPY, HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JORDAN!

In case ya'll missed it the first time around:

Thank you for being the perfect husband to our little Ashley and the best daddy to our little Kimball!!!

WE LOVE YOU, JORDAN!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

Moonlight Serenade

Do you see that full moon above gorgeous Mount Timpanogos in this photograph?

This is a beautiful view from the top of that mountain in its autumnal splendor.

(Wow. Just listen to me, would you!)

This is what Sundance and the back of Timp look like in the nippy winter.

This is what the owner of Sundance and his buddy look like, which I'll take any season of the year.

(Miss you, Mr. Newman.)

So! I convinced Dave to go on a wild and crazy adventure with me to see that full moon above gorgeous Mount Timpanogos.

On a coooooold autumn evening.

Up at Sundance Ski Resort.

Which is up a winding, meandering, narrow road.

A short 25-minute drive from our house.

Just a hop, skip, and a jump, really. And a twisty turn or two.

Dave was skeptical. This was so out of character for 90-degree-weather me. I mean, I'll lug a huge snowflake motif blanket with me to the movies, especially in the dead of SUMMER because it gets so frigid at our local Cinemark. (It's the summer, people! I shouldn't have to be lugging a snowflake motif blanket with me wherever I go! In the dead of SUMMER! Man, those theater guys get that A/C jacked up somethin' fierce. I think they do it for sport.) And, while we're on the subject, I've also had an absolutely brilliant idea (don't steal it, anybody!) to design a Sunday-best Snuggie, complete with pearls, which I could wear to church along with my high heels. I just may actually enjoy my worship service if I wasn't turned into a living, breathing Otter Pop each and every Sunday. I swear, there are days when I can see my breath during Gospel Doctrine class. Well, nearly.

Anywho. Tangent. Sorry. Where were we? Ah. Doubting Dave. I'm quite certain Dave thought I had lost all of my marbles by the sideways looks he kept giving me and the question in his voice when he said, "Okaaaaaaaaay?" after I dictated to him what we were doing suggested we give this a go. But, I showed him! I think Dave found that he doesn't know me quite as well as he thought. See for yourselves (be sure you have your sound on):

(You may want to make sure your curser isn't bringing up the video controls or you will miss my inane scrolling commentary at the bottom of the screen. Just an FYI.)

The Wall

We Give Thanks, 2010

Tacka dig!

¡Gracias!

ありがとう！

Thank ya, kindly!

No matter how it is pronounced or in what language it is spoken, "thank you" is one of the most powerful, poignant, and uplifting phrases we can let loose on the world. And, I really believe that. With all of my heart. And soul.

Remember this beautiful wall from last year's "We Give Thanks" hoohah? Every day during November, each member of our family wrote a note of thanks on the wall, and every visitor who entered our home contributed their own thought of gratitude to the poster. Lots of you guys wrote on my poster too via of this here cool Internet thingy, right?!!! Remember? Remember? (Go look!) I just loved reading all of the things for which ya'll were very, very grateful, whether they were small or large, mundane or important, specific or general, all of which I happily added to our wall.

I thought of you guys every time I walked by that big, messy, awesome poster, and it made me feel really great inside. I guess it made me feel so fabulous because I so loved having a bit of my wonderful friends and family in the form of grateful words right there in my kitchen with me (while I burned that darn meatloaf yet again and again and . . . !), and it also made me feel so fabulous because no matter where I looked on that big ol' poster, something very positive and cheerful and perky was staring right back at me. I loved it. Just loved it. Made my day. Every day.

So! Will you pitch in and help me fill my house with warm and grateful thoughts again this year? Okay, let's hear it, everybody! Just post a comment by finishing the phrase, I am thankful for _______, and you will land a big, primo spot on the famous "Wall O' Gratitude!" You can even go incognito with your comment if you happen to be in the Witness Protection Program--I don't care, just gimme some grat. it. tude, dude! I'll post pictures so you too will feel your heart swell, and you may just very well find yourself quite verklempt (just like me *sniff, sniff*)!!!

My bounty is overflowing with gratitude because of the people in my life. Thank you all for being so dear to me.

Wall O' Gratitude, 2011

Gratitude is the fairest blossom

which springs from the soul.

~Henry Ward Beecher

I just couldn't resist . . .