Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving is such a great holiday--you hang out with family and friends with the intent of eating a lot and watching football. I always try to catch a little of the Macy's parade too...

Mike, Carson, Kevin, and Collin have settled in to watch the Dallas Cowboys game before dinner
Carson and I are watching the game too, and I mean Carson REALLY watches football when it is on TV. It is kind of weird actually--because he doesn't pay attention when it isn't football!

Collin is Kava's absolute favorite--when they are finished playing, Kava is one tired puppy!

Ummmm...PIE! The anticipation grows for the upcoming feast!

Who is responsible for the beautiful table and yummy meal? Grandma and Grandpa of course!

Kevin is scouting out which piece of turkey he wants before dinner. :)

This is the result of eating turkey and nursing Carson after eating turkey--a long nap!!

Carson showed his CU Buffs spirit on Friday as the Buffaloes rolled up Nebraska in the final game of the season. There wasn't much defense in this game, folks. At least CU was victorious!!

Thanksgiving this year was a great start to what I'm sure will be a great holiday season. We already have the Christmas tree up and we are putting outside lights up today. Tis the season!

A couple of thoughts about football this weekend

All of us DUCK Fans are in mourning once again--our hopes were up as the #2 Ducks went into Tucson on Thursday, and once again we were met with disappointment as they lost 34-24. More importantly, Dennis Dixon tore his ACL which pretty much means the Ducks are done for the season. So close and yet so far...maybe next year. We say that every year.

The T-Town Fantasy Football showdown between my team and Mike's team starts tomorrow. Pride is on the line, and anticipation is high!! :)

Go Cowbell Fever!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to ME!! 25 is a GREAT age... :)

On November 6th, I celebrated my birthday (yes--another wonderful year at age 25...) when my family was in town. Ryan and I got to re-live the "combined party" that we grew up with since his birthday is Oct. 27th. Ummmm...DQ Ice Cream cake!!
Here is Carson's first picture with all of his cousins and Uncle Ryan:

We went to GrandRabbits Toy Shoppe in Boulder on my birthday. When I was growing up, Mom used to take us on "special time" outings with her, and most of the time we ended up at GrandRabbits. :) It is a fantastic store. Here is Carson with Grandma--he definitely looks like he doesn't miss any meals...

There is a FREE horsey ride in GrandRabbits. Don't worry--I didn't even try to ride it...THIS TIME!!

We played on the rocks outside the shop, and Ryan enjoyed being King of the Mountain! Isn't it great when all it takes for a good time are some big rocks??

On November 11th, 14 of my friends and family went out to dinner at LoDo's bar and grill to celebrate my birthday. This restaurant has the most amazing rooftop--complete with TV's for sports, a fireplace, and a complete view of the rocky mountains that is breathtaking. I foresee many enjoyable days passing time up there. Watching College Basketball during March Madness will be perfect!!

My wonderful friends gave me some nice gift cards, and Big John thoughtfully accompanied his Hooters gift card with a birthday card in SPANISH. This is me reading my birthday card...in Spanish :).

Before we went to dinner, I spend 3 hours getting pampered at the Spa with a facial, massage, and pedicure that my wonderful husband gave me for my birthday. He always knows JUST the right things!

With another Birthday Extravaganza in the books, we are looking forward to the Holidays that are coming up quickly. For now, Mike and I are focused on Fantasy Football this weekend when we play eachother...will it be "Cowbell Fever" or "Get a Spoon" that goes on to the playoffs???

The Texas Brigade came to town

Time flies when you are having fun--which is my only excuse for not updating our adventures until now :)

We had a blast with Ryan (with Josh, Delaney, and Ava), and Devin & La Nan (with Alayna, Dallin, and Rhett) when they all came to visit on the inaugeral Austin-to-Denver flight route of Southwest Airlines. They were here from Nov. 4-8th, and Carson was finally able to meet his Texas cousins!

This is the big maple tree in my parents backyard where Ryan, Devin and I used to climb all the time. Josh, Delaney, Alayna, and Dallin have kept the tradition alive! :) They all look like they are dressed for winter weather, and those of us who live here were wearing flip flops still! hee hee
Devin and La Nan stayed with us, and it was so fun to have them there. Alayna made very quick friends with both Carson and Kava, and Dallin enjoyed feeding the fish every morning and playing in the basement and outside. Rhett liked Carson's toy train and we ALL liked watching Madagascar! (Thanks again for the birthday present!)

In this picture, the whole gang is playing a neat learning "game" on my laptop. What was that website called again, La Nan? Carson was even paying attention!
We did a lot of fun things when the family was in town. We went to Colorado Mills to visit the Lego store and the Hello Kitty store, we went on a picnic in Golden, went to Estes Park, and attended the free open house at the Colorado Childrens Museum. We also had a Birthday party for Ryan and I, but I'll get to that in a different post...

These pictures are at the Childrens museum. I can't WAIT to take Carson there when he is older!!

Josh is running some tests on Grandpa in the Vet clinic: (You are such a good sport, Grandpa!)
Delaney and Alayna are fighting fires near the life-size fire truck. Where was this stuff when I was a kid???

I think Dallin was somewhat overwhelmed at the fire truck--or he was just jockeying for position inside the cab waiting for someone to vacate a seat!

So cute! There is a dance area, and Ava wasted no time showing off her dance moves. The thing is that she actually has GREAT form already :)

This picture is where I grinned the most--Rhett went shopping in the supermarket, and it was like one of those contests where you win 10 free minutes of binge shopping! He couldn't get enough stuff in his cart which was overflowing. It was hilarious!

It was sad to see all the cousins go--and I miss the midnight conversation with Devin and La Nan :). Mike and Carson needed to catch up on some sleep after everyone left, and it is pictures like these that remind me how lucky I truly am. PRECIOUS!!!

Great memories, but we missed Sadie and Aunt Jessica who had to stay in Austin because Sadie isn't feeling well and has been in the hospital. We love you, Sadie and we are thinking about you getting better--positive thoughts!!

Happy Halloween

In honor of our Colorado Rockies (even though they got swept by the Bo Sox), Carson made his Halloween debut as a HOTDOG. Thanks to Aunt Jess for the cute costume :).
We carved our pumpkins for Halloween night, and decided to honor the Colorado Rockies for the last time this season with a special pumpkin. Mike has some SKILLS!!

Here is our family of pumpkins for 2007:

See? Carson LOVES his costume! What a cutie!!

Or....maybe not. He could only stay in it for short periods of time because it was HOT.

Here we are before going to have lunch with Daddy--I am wearing my Rockies National League Champs shirt.

Last week, you may have heard how many people tried to get tickets to the World Series games in Colorado. I was no exception, running TWO computers to get a chance to see the ROX vs SOX. I spent 2 hours trying to get tickets on the day that the system went down (Idiots!!), and another 2 hours the next day...and I never got past the countdown screen. Big John got tickets to Game 5 and we were excited to go...and then the Rockies lost in 4 games. :(

Big Papi eats Big Boogers. (This was THE best sign we saw at Coors Field--Game 3)

Here is Carson on NFL Sunday. He is happy to watch any sport on TV and just thrash around on the floor. Here I think he is watching Ronnie Brown get hurt and out for the season which really hurts Mommy's fantasy football team...

This weekend we are looking forward to Devin's and Ryan's families coming into town! It will be so fun to see everyone and for Carson to meet his cousins. :)

Our thoughts and prayers go out to Sadie, my niece who is pretty sick right now. She is only 4 years old, and a real cute kid. Please send her some good karma so she doesn't have to see anymore "doctors in white coats". We love you, Sadie.