Halloween 2016

We had another great Halloween this year.  Our neighbors, the Braegger's, who are also in our ward, totally go all out for Halloween every year.  Their house is always amazing.

Dallin couldn't decide what he wanted to be this year, or if he even really wanted to go trick-or-treating at all.  At the last minute he finally decided to go and threw a costume together at the last minute.  Once Kenzie saw the Rey costume she knew she wanted to be Rey from Star Wars VII this year.  I'm kicking myself that I didn't take a picture of Kenzie's hair, it took me about five tries to get it right, sort of...oh well! Lulu dug through our costume bin and fell in love with Rex the dinosaur (from Toy Story) costume.  Gennie had a plethora of options to chose from.  She couldn't chose just one so she decided to be Rapunzel for trick-or-treating and Minnie Mouse for preschool.  Sadie didn't want to have anything to do with any of the costumes at all!  But I forced her into the fairy costume that all three of her sisters wore.

Happy Halloween!!

Thanksgiving

We were so delighted to have Spencer and Amanda and the kids come to Colorado to visit with us for Thanksgiving.  It was a GREAT trip and we had a lot of fun with the Foutz's.  I didn't take many pictures but our fun included lots of great conversations, yummy food, a trip to the museum, shopping, more yummy food, lots of Nerf gun wars, playing in the snow, lots of laughs, and great memories made.  We are thankful they drove all the way over here to spend some time with us.  We have such an awesome family!

Photo Challenge

I'm still working on my photography skills.  I've gotten a little bit more serious about learning more and decided to take on a month-long photo challenge in October.   This photo challenge was a lot of fun and it pushed me to try new things and really put photography on the top of my to-do list during the month of October.  I wanted to share with you what I did!

Day 1: smile

This is my very feisty 4 year old.  She's stubborn, challenging, opinionated, passionate, loving, and "super cool"!

Day 2: someone you love

This is our little Sadie-boo! I love her so much, she brings such happiness.

Day 3: mornings

The girls woke up rearing to go on Saturday morning and wanted chocolate chip muffins.  Lulu's showing off her chocolatey smile.

Day 4: self-portrait

I'm totally weirded out by posting this picture...but I'm sticking to the challenge! 

 Day 5: daily life

These girls play with play-doh every day!!

 Day 6: work

Today is laundry day...only 5 loads!

Day 7: quietness

That brief moment in the middle of the afternoon when the house is actually quiet.  Even the dog can catch a few zzz's before the mayhem starts up again.

Day 8: happiness

We love when it rains and it's still sunny...it's a sure bet there'll be a rainbow.  The girls get crazy excited and beg me to take a picture.  How can I refuse?  Happiness! 

Day 9: excitement

Saturday was an exciting day in our family. Lulu scored her first goal in her soccer game!! And Dallin intercepted the ball and ran it in for a touchdown in his flag football game. EXCITING!!

Day 10: reflection

Gennie is playing with her reflection in the mirror. My biased opinion: she's stinking cute!

Day 11: peacefulness

There's nothing more peaceful than a sleeping baby. I love her little eyelashes in this photo. 

Day 12: love

I love this time of year and I love spending time in our backyard.

Day 13: satisfaction

I took a TON of pictures of her this afternoon, none of which were anything really exciting. FINALLY, the last shot I snapped, I just happened to look over and she was inspecting these leaves so thoughtfully. I'm finally satisfied! Sometimes I need to remind myself to slow down and just be patient.

Day 14: joyfulness

OK...I know this isn't the greatest picture (dark basement, horrible lighting) but really what could be more joyful than a handful of boys at a birthday party with tummy's full of pizza, soda, and chips with Nerf guns in hand?

Day 15: sun flare

My girls have been really patient with me as I take millions of pictures of them in the hopes that just ONE will turn out ok. I finally got in the right position (laying on the grass) to get the sun flare I was looking for.

Day 16: backlighting

Ok, so I know this isn't true backlighting but I was trying to work with what I had. I like how the light from the window is lighting up just the front of her and the rest is dark. However, the sunlight coming through the window makes it look really dirty...at least let's just blame it on the sunlight

Day 17: candlelight

This little girl had a birthday on Wednesday. She's numero uno!! Happy Birthday, Sadie! ‪

Day 18: warm glow

Gennie is playing at the playground and the sun was at her back, just loved how warm it turned out.

Day 19: shadow

This was her birthday...her fuzzy head...her happy smile...her clapping hands. Love this girl! I pulled her right up next to the window which made the shadow on one side of her face. Love the details it brings out.

Day 20: silhouette

This was a hard one to get...every time I tried the sky was no good. Finally...I got it!

Day 21: full sun

This precisely expresses Gennie's feelings about my photo challenge!

Day 22: jumping

Kenzie can do some mad flips on the trampoline!

Day 23: coziness

Gennie found this hamper and with her blankie she snuggled right inside for a cozy little nest.

Day 24: patterns

I was not feeling very inspired on this one so I asked the girls for help. This is the pattern they came up with...works for me!

Day 25: oversize

The biggest pumpkin I've ever seen! ‪

Day 26: nature

Still enjoying our backyard transformation this fall.

Day 27: water

This photo was actually taken this summer on a hike we took with family.

Day 28: pumpkins

Sadie would NOT for the life of me cooperate for this picture. I even had the other kids dancing and trying to get her attention...nope! This is the best I could get.

Day 29: Fall

This picture was taken while we were on a really bumpy wagon ride at the pumpkin patch.  I'm really impressed with how sharp it turned out despite the bumpy ride.  I love the big Colorado sky!

Day 30: excitement

Playing in the leaves is a must-do in fall!

Day 31: spookiness

Happy Halloween! ‪

And that wraps up the month-long challenge.  Like I said, it was great to get my camera out each day and make photography a priority for the whole month.  I need to keep at it and make sure I'm challenging myself so I can continue to improve.  I think my favorite picture is day 13.

Halloween

This Halloween was so much fun.  The weather was perfect for trick-or-treating and everyone was happy and in good spirits.  We had fun at the ward Fall Festival the day before.  For the trunk-or-treat, Charlie set up the projector in the back of the van and streamed the UofU football game.  It was pretty epic!  Happy Halloween!!

Park

We met up with Grandma and Grandpa Pratt for lunch at the park during fall break.  It was a beautiful day and the kids had a really fun time.  I even let the kids use the camera to take some pictures.  Here's what we took: