Thanksgiving

For Thanksgiving this year Chris and I went with my family to our cabin at Bear Lake.
A few highlights include:

- Snowmobiling. We even saw a Moose and it's family probably 50 feet from our trail! I tipped the snowmobile twice but was able to jumped off instead of getting squashed both times. I felt vindicated when Chris tipped his snowmobile just seconds after me in the exact same spot.

- Convincing Chris to go jogging with me on Thanksgiving morning in 0 degree weather. We didn't last too long...
- And of course eating a wonderful Thanksgiving meal.
We also
- Went swimming at the Indoor swimming pool
- Made 'gingerbread' houses
- Made honey candy with grandma
- Watched lots of football
- Read books (Robyn)
- Did homework (Chris)
- And went to the traditional Bear Trapper Steakhouse as an early celebration of Kelsi's 10th birthday.
After Bear Lake we went to South Jordan to spend some time with Chris's family. We had a great time watching the BYU vs. Utah game. It is disappointing that BYU lost but Chris remains positive because he felt like they played a great game and let's be honest the fumble at the end was clearly miscalled. After the football game we played games as a family and ate some delicious PIE pizza. yummm

I know this post is already way too long and surely you are already sick of reading it..but solely for my benefit I wanted to end this post with a few things I am grateful for.

- My husband. He is so perfect for me. He works hard in everything that he does. He can make me laugh and he always knows the right things to say when I need comfort. He truly is my best friend and I am so happy that he is mine for eternity.
- Collin. I love my baby boy. Even though it is hard not having him here with me I am grateful that he is my son.
- My family and Chris's family. Both of us are so incredibly blessed to have such amazing families who love and support us.
- The gospel. I am so grateful to know that I will be with Collin again. I am grateful to know that I have a Father in Heaven who is very mindful of me and who loves me. I am grateful that Chris and I were sealed in the Australia Melbourne Temple and that Collin, Chris and I are an eternal family.
- My job.
- Chris's job (starting in July)
- My education
- Warm showers, warm blankets and warm clothes
- Eggs and toast. My all time favorite breakfast at the time being.
- My health. I am so grateful that I am able to train for this marathon in April. And especially grateful that I have a wonderful training buddy
- Chocolate. Because let's be honest I always love chocolate.

And the list could go on and on. I truly am so blessed!

Visiting Collin

Chris and I go and visit Collin's grave every other weekend. We know that his spirit is not in the ground but we love to go there and talk to him. We tell him about our week, ask him how he is doing, and tell him how much we love him. I really feel like he is listening to us.

We are still in the process of getting his headstone all figured out - we want it to be perfect - so the little marker in the pictures is just temporary. We are very lucky because he is buried right by his great grandpa Shelton.

We love you so much Collin!

A few thoughts

I've got lots of thoughts running through my head today. I thought I'd share a few.

- I went to Yoga last night with Erica. A couple things I learned - Yoga is not nice and relaxing it is strenuous and hard. I am not even the tinest bit flexible (this isn't really knew knowledge but still). I woke up this morning sore - from YOGA - yes it made me feel very out of shape.

- With the Holidays soon approaching I've thought alot about decorating my house. The only issue (which is a farily large issue) - I am so not creative when it comes to things like that. My problem is I'll go into the store - TaiPan Trading or Hobby Lobby - for an hour and come out with nothing. I don't have the mind like some people do where they can look at something and picture the perfect little nook in their house where it belongs. I want to have a cute house - a quest that will take lots of time/failed attempts I am sure.

- This whole marathon goal is going to be a lot of work. For some reason I am running like everyday and still feel out of shape. I have already paid for the marathon so don't worry I am not backing out. Another thing, lets pray for a warm winter, it would make my training much easier.

- Chris and I are excited about going on a vacation together after he graduates, probably like Janurary or something. We just haven't decided where we want to go yet. It's actually gotten to be pretty stressful trying to decide a good place for a vacation. Shouldn't everything about a vacation be nice and relaxing? Why am I feeling stressed?

- I miss Collin. I know that after he was born I had to recover -but I wish that I could have been with him more. I wish that I would've sat in the NICU and held his little feet longer. I really miss him. One thing I have learned is to cherish every single moment you have with your loved ones. Erica told me about a family living in Taiwan the mom and dad are doctors so they take their baby to live at a nanny's house Monday through Saturday. Saturday they pick up their baby until Sunday night when they take their baby back to the nanny's house. Don't be like that. Hug and kiss your kids. Take them to the park. Show them you love them by being there. Trust me, it's not fun when they are gone. I love you Collin