Life is Good

First of all, I LOVE the song we have playing on the playlist right now. It totally reminds me of Christmas at home (in Idaho). I used to cry every time I heard it, but now I just love it so much and I cherish the memories it brings to me.
Actually, I love the first 5 or 6 songs on the playlist. So, turn up the volume and enjoy.


I woke up this morning to the BEAUTIFUL big snowflakes falling silently down all around us and thought to myself, life is good.
We have had such an awesome week, and a wonderful start to the holidays. The past few days I have been reflecting on the past few months of our lives, and I have just been so grateful for how many good things have happened. We have really had a lot of fun and have been so incredible blessed.
Because I am feeling so much joy and gratitude, I am going to list the things that have helped me feel this way lately.

So...in no particular order.

1. Our friend Ryan Dorman came to visit...we had a ton of fun! Ben and Ryan went camping in the snow, we had Ben's B-day party, we toured Colorado Springs, ate at Olive Garden, etc....

2. Ben's birthday and Birthday party. It was a blast having so many close friends and family in our home sharing in the celebration. Birthdays rock!

3. Visit from grandma JoJo. We LOVED having her here, and the time went by way to fast. We did so much. We went to the mountains, Garden of the Gods, Manitou Springs, the Veterans Day Parade, ect. We were so sad to see her go.

4. Ben was accepted to Regis University and has been able to begin the MBA program. HUGE blessing for us.

5. The Valley of Fire Marathon!! All of it was awesome, the whole package. The training was so hard, but at the same time, I loved it and it was so rewarding. I actually miss it already. Because we have a dog, I am able to run outside here and I can't seem to get enough of it. The marathon was amazing, and we had great trip! I was able to complete the whole 26.2 miles of hills and I am way excited about my time. The kids were amazing in the car and we had some scenery that words will never be able to describe.

6. Hanging out with and making so many awesome friends here. I will never take friends for granted again. California was a little rough in that area, because of where we lived, and I have been more than blessed here with awesome pals.

7. We were able to get Chamonix neutered and also get his poor eye fixed. Once the "lamp shade" is off, he is going to be loving life. No more pain!!!! It has been so awesome to know that he came from such a horrible place and we have been able to cheer him up, fatten him up, muscle him up, fix him up , and love him so much.

8. Mary has been loving preschool and has been doing great. She has made good friends. She also is attending a really good gym for gymnastics and has shown some incredible natural talent. Her coaches are awesome. She is a different kid here and has become such a little sweetheart. It is great to see her so happy and content.

9. We are in a house, and one that we really like. We have a yard that the kids can play in. Appt. living is fine, but there is nothing like having a home. We will never take a home for granted..that's for sure.

10. We live next to so many Ski Resorts it is almost ridiculous. Ben is in heaven.

11. Our family was able to hike almost every weekend in the summer and into the fall. It was great. Ben and I also hiked Pikes Peak and accomplished a big goal of ours.

12. Dan and Kristin came to visit. We had a BLAST with them!!! Wow, it has been such an awesome week.

This weeks wonderful moments:
1. Dan and Kristin being here. They are great company.
2. laughing until it hurt
3. Crash and Burn....such a fun game!
4. Movies every night
5. Twilight....aaahhhh
6. Taking Mary and Sam to the mall to see Santa...so cute!
7. The snow...I am truly so happy about having snow for Thanksgiving. It brings magic into the air and gets us all giddy for Christmas. We woke up to 6in. and it is STILL falling. yippee!! Church was canceled an hour early because of it.
8. Thanksgiving dinner..way way way too good. Making it with everyone was fun too.
9. The amazing apple, caramel, pecan, yummy goodness they call a pie
10. Shopping Black Friday...(it began at 4:30 a.m. and ended around 9:00p.m.)Kristin and I LOVED IT!! We had way too much fun. I got all of the Christmas and Birthday shopping done for the kids. We went to 10 stores that day, not kidding, and had a great time! I want to do it every year! (Kristin, that means you have to come back every year for it)
11. Costco...seriously, it can be a fun place
12. Decorating the house for Christmas while blasting Christmas music. (after Thanksgiving of course)
13. Getting the most beautiful Christmas tree ever and decorating it. Always a favorite for me.
14. lots and lots of pizza..good thing the marathon was less than a week ago.
15. The Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving Day. It was so cute to see Mary do the kids race. The 5K was great! I ran the last 1/2 mile with the worst side ache of my life and still got a PR. I was happy about that. The money was well worth it (it was actually pretty cheap for a fun run), the run was a blast, and I LOVE the shirt.
16. Not waking up early to run, and not worrying about it. I LOVE the week after a marathon for that very reason. I really do love running, but the break feels so good.
17. I went with Ben to get one of my Christmas gifts and I am so excited about it I don't know if I can make it another month!
18. Looking forward to more good times and more good memories! We have Mary's Birthday party, her Birthday, school party, Christmas, going to Idaho to see family, our Anniversary, New Year's with family, and so much more. The anticipation is always just as good as the actual events. This should be another great month!


LET IT SNOW!!!!! (at the time I am typing this post, about 4 hours after the pictures were taken, there is approx. 9-10in. of snow, and it is still coming..yippee!)