Halloween...

Halloween this year was on a Friday. I knew Aaron would be working late so I decided when the girls got out of school we would head up to Papa's house and visit for a little bit, so that's what we did. After spending some time there the girls and I went and picked up some dinner from Carl's Junior and headed over to Mandi and Chris's house.

We ate dinner and then at about 6:30 we all went trick-or-treating. I think the girls had a blast trick-or-treating with their cousins. Aaron ended up getting off work earlier than expected and he was able to meet us and trick-or-treat with the girls for about 45 minutes. It was nice having him be able to come, since we didn't think he would be able to. The girls ended up with a ton of candy. It overflowed their buckets, so we poured all their candy into a pillowcase. We then decided to weigh it, and it was roughly 11.5 lbs. We had a ton of candy. Quite a bit of it I sent with Aaron to work to give out to his coworkers. It was all the candy we don't eat. Like Gobstoppers, Milky Ways, Baby Ruth's, Mounds, and 3 Musketeers. I have a feeling we still have too much candy and most likely won't ever get thru all of it, but the kids had fun. That's the most candy we have ever gotten. As a matter of fact I don't think my sisters and I ever got that much growing up...

The girls each picked out their own costume this year. Here is Emma as Queen Elsa, Livi as Princess Anna, and Abby as Doc Mcstuffins...

Our upcoming Disneyland trip...

Aaron and I have planned a trip to Disneyland (a 3 day park hopper), and also to SeaWorld, and the kids have NO idea. We have been keeping this secret for quite awhile now and it is soooo dang hard. I had to book our reservations after the kids went to bed, because it seems every time I got on the internet one of the kids would walk up behind me and I didn't want this surprise ruined....

We will be stopping in Saint George on our way there to spend the night at my parents house. The kids will have fun spending some time with their grandparents. They think visiting their grandparents is all we are doing. However, the next morning we will be on our way to California. We were originally going to just drive to Disneyland and have them be surprised when we checked into our hotel. However, now that Emma is reading so well and she is in 2nd grade, we knew that wouldn't be an option the second we drove into California. I am sure there are billboards everywhere for Disneyland in California and I know Emma would figure it out quite fast. So with that option scratched out I decided I would write a little poem for Emma to read aloud to her sisters. I have the poem broken up into paragraphs and each paragraph is on a separate piece of paper, so Emma couldn't skim to the bottom and cheat lol....here is what I have come up with so far:

Dear Emma, Livi, and Abby, 

What will you do today?

Go to school, do homework, and play?

Or maybe get in the car, and drive away somewhere far?

We are going away to a hotel to stay,

And you will have some very fun exciting days.

It’s a place where you all want to go,

Where there isn’t any cold white snow.

It’s a place in the west with a very big castle,

And getting there shouldn’t be much of a hassle.

There are rides and parades and fun to be had,

And you will get to go with your sisters, mom and dad.

The place has a great big mouse as a pet, 

So tell me now, have you guessed it yet?

We are going somewhere grand. We are going to.....Disneyland!

We packed our bags from our house, now let’s go see Mickey Mouse...

The car is waiting, so hurry, get dressed...

We are visiting Mickey, Minnie and all of the rest.

I might make a few changes here and there but that is pretty close to what it will say....

I am sooooo stinkin' excited. I have been to Disneyland several times growing up, and several times since being married. Only once since having kids though, and I was 6 months pregnant with Abby at the time. However, I have never been during the holiday season and I am so excited to see all the holiday decorations. holiday lights, and holiday parades. I just hope it doesn't rain...

These are pictures I took off of google that shows the Disneyland Castle all lit up for the holidays:

and here is a picture of It's a Small World ride all lit up:

Goodbye to our beautiful Nana...

News about our Nana....
Nana's health deteriorated fast,  unbeknownst to us. At first the doctor's said she will be around for at least 5 years and if she was lucky then she might even make it to 10 years. Then they changed their opinion and said she had 6 months - 1 year. Then they changed their mind again and said she only had a week or two left with us. We saw her the Saturday before she passed away (October 11th) and she seemed to be doing pretty good.. However, on Friday October 17th, Aaron, me, Mandi, and Chris stayed the night at Nana's and Papa's house because hospice said she was fading quickly. Our girls stayed at Mandi and Chris's  house with Chris's parents and sisters. She passed away on Saturday October 18th at 1:15am with the 4 of us (and Phil) by her side.

We all got to say our goodbyes, which I am sooooo thankful for.  I loved and still love her SO much. It was so hard to see her breathing slow down and to see her take her final breath. However, I am soooo thankful for being there when she passed. I am glad I could be there for her final moments on earth and her final moments with us. She loved her family so much, and we loved her so much. She always put family first. You could call on her anytime, day or night. whenever you needed. She truly was an angel on earth. I could have never asked for a better mother-in-law. She was the best.

Phil had Aaron and Mandi plan most of the funeral. I tagged along when I could. We had to make arrangements with the funeral home, pick out a casket, a headstone, floral arrangements, and write an obituary. It was the hardest thing I have ever been thru. I have never been this close to anyone that has passed on. She was a Mother to me. Always treated me with love and kindness from day 1. It has been so hard to see her health decline. The girls loved her soooo much (I did too of course), but it is so hard to talk about death to the girls with someone they were so close to. I think Emma and Livi realize that Nana is gone from this earth forever, but I don't think Abby does. I know they are upset, but I don't think they know how to cope. I have told them that it is OK to cry, but we have to remember all the fun times and happy memories we have of Nana.

I miss her sooo much. It has been so hard to visit Papa the last couple days and go into their house and not see Nana. I walk in and expect to see her walking down the hall, standing in the kitchen, or sitting on the couch. It's not the same without her, nor will it ever be. There's a huge hole in my heart. People who have lost loved ones have told me it will get easier with time, BUT I just don't see how. The only thing that makes me feel better is thinking that the reason she HAD to leave us was because her grandson Joshua needed her up there in Heaven with him. I HAVE to believe that, otherwise I get upset knowing she has 5 other grandchildren down here on earth that needed her too. Her funeral was beautiful. It was a beautiful sunny day, and no need of a coat. That's the type of weather she would be working in her garden in, which she loved to do. She would've loved today's weather. She looked so beautiful, but she always did. I will always love her and miss her and think about her every day.

Nana holding Emma in the hospital

 Nana holding Livi in the hospital

 Nana holding Abby in the hospital

and here is another one of her holding Livi. I love this picture because Nana is looking directly into the camera.