thankful

this year, i have a lot fo be thankful for.
more than ever it seems.

branson. my parents. my siblings. my in-laws. the power of prayer. tithing blessings. the opportuniy to fast for a good cause... or several. my testimony. missionaries. good health. skilled hands. priesthood blessings from my husband. favorable circumstances i find myself in. the opportunity to develop my talents. my great friends. extended family. the generosity of others. food. my job. the people i work with. my piano. being able to cook. scriptures. temples. reassurance that everything will always be alright. our home. the ability to express creativity. plus a billion more...

all contributing factors as to why
this is the best time of the year -
my favorite holiday:
thanksgiving.

i hope that thanksgiving treats you as well as it does me.
and that you have many things to truly be grateful for.

happy thanksgiving.

pie face

today my baby sister turned seven.
gosh, that's hard to believe.
i remember the day she was born.
coincidentally [or not] it was the same day that i first officially failed a test in school. but now, that's not the point here, is it...

pie-fee...
she's such a cute little girl.
she's spunky and sassy, but sweet and sensitive.
i love her.

why do i call her pie face? well, because that's her name, of course! the week she was born, my parents, grandparents, neighbors, ward members and all manner of -ites referred to her as:

such a cutie pie
what a sweetie pie
and all manner of -pies

so tca$h and i started calling her pie.
and then i called her pie face.
and it stuck.

and now lots of people call her pie face.
gee, i feel like such a trend-setter.
[correction: i'm not really]

i find it mind boggling that:

in one year she'll be baptized
branson has known her since she was 4
someday she won't remember life before i was married
she is the smartest of my siblings
[seriously - the girl could get on the internet before she could talk.
and she could read before she could walk.
i'm pretty sure i'm only exaggerating on the later part of this,
and still, only slightly]

and so, i write a simple ode to the babe of the fam...
the youngest... the girl who completed our family:

pief,
[said pie-fff]
i'm glad you're in my life
you never cause me strife
you're cute as a button
and sweet as a muffin
i could eat you like stuffin'
[but i won't]
today you turn seven
sent straight from heaven
to my bread you are leaven
[don't question my rhyme - it's totally legit, yo]
i hope your birthday
is as sweet as a gourmet
[a good one - like at the bellagio]
because i love you - hooray!

happy birthday pie face.

*and just for the record,
yes, i have every intention of calling her pie face for the rest of her life. i see no need to refer to her as anything else. it's worked for seven years so far, and by george, i'll use it for another 87. she's my little pie face. and she always will be.

spinning

i feel like i'm in the eye of a tornado.everything swirling around me, making me dizzy.

but while i'm spinning and spinning
with seemingly no end in sight,
i've realized a few things:

hard work does pay off... eventually.
there is always a bright side.
i have the most in-tune and amazing siblings.
[seriously, folks, they're incredible.]
sacrificing to help someone else is totally worth it.
i need to de-clutter my life.
it isn't always bad news.
crying is genetic.
sometimes you just have to take a step back.
purple has involuntarily become my favorite color.
[green, i sill love you. green and purple, both favorites]
my mom has perfect faith.
i own way too many unnecessary things.
great music is a rare commodity in 2009.
i just plain suck at exercising.
[but i'm determined to get better at it]
sometimes the thought doesn't count.
miller's creamy honey is undoubtedly the best.
catching up with friends can be completely awkward.
i take too many things for granted.
you really can't judge a book by it's cover.
[or a person, for that matter]
i truly enjoy being helpful.

and so much more.
some i knew before.
some i thought i knew, but just believed.
and some... so entirely new and mind-blowing -

making me spin even faster.

november

life was crazy in the month of october.
between:

being sick
catching up on work
rearranging a few rooms at our house
hosting a family party
more catching up on work
and balancing our weekends
with football, baseball and cleaning

the month sort of flew by.

and now, here we are;
the beginning of a new month.
one of my favorites, no less.

thanksgiving
football
decorating our house for the holidays
making pies
cutting down our own christmas tree
wearing scarves
and donning my adorable new purple mittens
sitting by [one of] our [many] fireplace[s]
making hot chocolate with my new lovely teakettle
christmas music on the radio


it truly is the most wonderful time of the year.