Thanksgiving

This year Thanksgiving was extra special for the Monson family because we were able to celebrate at my parent's new home in Midway. We have loved spending time up there. It's the perfect getaway that's not too far away. The food was wonderful and it was fun to catch up with relatives from my mom's side who joined us. My mom did a fabulous job decorating and because I was randomly feeling crafty, I helped with the place cards. 

We had our dinner early in the afternoon, so everyone could head to their in-laws after. Gotta love multiple Thanksgiving dinners!

Jeffrey and Eliza Jane

Ryan, Emily and Baby Kate

Michael with some of his cute kiddos

Matthew, getting kisses from Mom

After dinner we were off to Thanksgiving #2 with the Ingebrigtsens, at Grammy and Grandad's house. Lots of running around, but we are so blessed to both come from wonderful families and we loved every minute of it!

Barb, looking festive as usual with her Turkey apron.

Stein and Ashleigh contributed gummy worms to the meal - a little untraditional, but enjoyed by everyone.

So, Happy Thanksgiving everyone! This year I am especially grateful for my sweet husband Erik. Life is so much better with him. I hope you all had a wonderful holiday as well.

New Moon

Although we did not have plans to see New Moon on opening weekend, we decided to go for it when our Saturday night was looking rather drab. My nice husband was sweet enough to go with me and we also met up with Jeffrey and Eliza. Naturally I liked the movie more than Erik, but neither one of us left overly enthused. I think Erik's expression is a perfect depiction of his excitement towards his enormous Diet Coke (they totally sucker you into it with their crazy pricing) and the movie he was about to see. Love it! Overall a great night and the latest we've been up in a long time. 

Slumber Party

My friends and I decided we were in need of a little getaway and decided my parent's new home in Midway was the perfect spot for some much needed R&R. We headed up Friday evening, ate dinner at a great little cafe and then spent the rest of the night chatting about anything and everything. It was a PERFECT evening. I felt like I was back in high school, just hanging out with my favorite girls. 

The two babies were troopers for their first slumber party. Aren't they cute?

I love the attempts at self-shots. Here's the closest Amber and I got to a centered picture.

What a fun night! I think it was just what we all needed. I love you girls. p.s. Not sure why I'm in a black & white mood tonight.

Happy Birthday Bailey!

My cute niece, BAILEY, celebrated her fifth birthday on Thursday. She is such a smart, funny and beautiful girl. We love her so much! Happy Birthday Bailey Bop. Love, Auntie Sara and Prince Erik

Guy Fawkes Night

Many of you know that my sister-in-law, Helen, is from Whales and her family still lives over there. We now have another link to the UK, with Erik's sister, Heidi, getting a master's degree in England right now. So, this year Michael and Helen invited us up to their home to celebrate the English holiday of Guy Fawkes night which is celebrated on November 5. 

The holiday celebrates the downfall of the "Gunpowder Plot" of November 5, 1605 where a bunch of Catholic conspirators, including Guy Fawkes, attempted to destroy the Houses of Parliament. The occasion is celebrated with fireworks, bonfires and good food. We had a great time celebrating and got a taste of what Heidi was doing on the other side of the ocean.  

Here's some pictures of the kiddos with their sparklers and confetti poppers.

Erik and I also joined in the fun.

They also got in a little trampoline time before bed. I love this picture.

And finally, our wonderful hosts and cute baby Mary. Thanks so much for a fun evening Michael and Helen!

More Halloween Festivities

Since I actually bought Halloween decorations for our condo, I decided to invite my mom and dad over for a pre-Halloween dinner last week. I felt like I needed a couple more people to see my decorating efforts before they come down for an entire year.

 

 It was a fun night with great food! Thanks for the lovely evening Mom and Dad.

On Friday night we went to the annual Halloween party with Erik's friends. For the past two years it has been thrown by Greg and Raquel at their cabin in Sundance. It's the perfect setting for a spooky Halloween evening and they always go all out.

Here are the hosts. They always have awesome costumes. This year they were Beetle Juice and Lydia.

Erik was the famous skier, Stein Erickson, and I was a snow bunny. 

 

Award for creepiest costume goes to Erik's friends who dressed up as B1 and B2 from Bananas in Pajamas.

On Saturday Erik got in one last round of golf for the season, so I went up to Midway with my mom to join Emily's cute family for some Halloween activities. 

Here's Bailey and Jackson with their pumpkins and their beautifully colored Halloween pillowcases.

Here's Kate being a little angel as usual. Just chillin' with her Katelyn-sized pumpkin. What a cutie!

Another annual stop on Halloween evening is the Chipman's house for homemade doughnuts. It was so fun to see Caitlyn and Baby Diem.

And last, but certainly not least, we ended the night at Chad's house for their party. It's always been huge, but this year they think 600 or 700 people showed up. To say it was crazy is quite the understatement. These guys really know how to throw a party. Unfortunately, it ended with 18 cop cars and a $500 fine :( 

It took me forever to track down Jeffrey and Eliza in the sea of people, but they were looking awesome in their costumes. We also got a picture with Mr. Party himself, appropriately dressed as Zeus.

Here's a shot of the endless people that kept pouring in. 

What a night! I hope everyone enjoyed their holiday as much as we did.