Sierra's View: November 2013

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Saturday, November 30, 2013

It Was My First Thanksgiving With My In Laws...

and it was horrible.
Juuuust kidding.
It was a great Thanksgiving! The funny thing about getting married and adjusting to a new family for Holidays is that I kept thinking, "It's not gonna be the same! I'll miss my home!" Yet, it was totally fine that it wasn't the same. I didn't miss my family at all ;) haha.  I was just happy to be around people (and animals!) that I love. It was an afternoon of wonderful food, company and relaxing. I love love LOVE Thanksgiving dinner, yet, after one plate I was full (trying to shrink my stomach and lose those ell-b's so I think this was a sign that it is shrinking!) 


I told you that I got a kitten, right? Well, technically its my brother in laws cause it stays at their house, but I claim her kind of :) We would have her at our apartment, but our landlord is allergic, so I'm her "half mama!'  This is our kitty, Boo. We named her that because we got her on Halloween. She is the most wonderful and cutest kitty in the world. She is so incredibly chill! She lets kids just drag her around and pick her up and she just lays there. We love her :) 


My sister in law made a Thankful tree. How crafty, huh? 

This is Tanner's cousins doggie, Aussie. She is the most calm puppy in the world! She would sit there and lick Boo's face and Boo totally took it. She was a happy camper. And, yes, in case you were wondering, another reminder that I can't wait to have a dog!

My handsome husband :) 

My cowboy brother in law. Get used to cowboy hats, people. I married into some country folk! 


My father in law, the FANTASTIC cook in his lovely apron. He made the best turkey in the whole world. Seriously, it was delicious!


 I had to bring a little bit of my family's tradition--sparkling cider. Yummmm. 

Again, my attractive husband and cute cousin, krissi! 

I spy another cowboy hat! Everyone hard at work at the  Thanksgiving crossword puzzle. 

It has been a very fun break. Not very relaxing, actually. But very fun! It's just nice to get a break from teaching and spend some time with my family. Even though my husband has worked nonstop and I have barely seen him, I have had the opportunity to hang out with my sister and niece who's in town and in laws. 
Lots of card games have been played, lots of movies have been watched and lots of food has been eaten!
I had my very first experience doing Black Friday. It was okay. But my hatred for crowds outweighs the bargains, so that experience, my friends, was my last one. Ha. Had to try it thought, right? 

Last night, I had a sleepover with my 4 year old niece, Brizzy. She is the funniest little girl on the planet. Holy Cow. This was our conversation last night: 
Brizzy: 'Sisi, are you gonna sleep right next to me?' 
Me: 'no, but I'll be just in that room right next door.' 
Brizzy: 'are you gonna sleep with tanner?'
Me: yep!
Brizzy: 'I think that's a really good idea. I like tanner. He needs a friend to sleep with too.' 
Sleepovers with my niece, brizzy=the best.
We took Brizzy to see the Temple Square lights with the Charlesworth gang (I mean, literally, the whole gang--cousins and all!) and Brizzy was on people overload. She was the youngest girl there so all the cousins were catering to her every need and she LOVED it. She kept repeating, "Oh my gosh! These lights are so pretty! This is so fun!" Over and over. 

It's going to be a hard adjustment going back to school on Monday! Is it Christmas Break yet?
:) 
Oh well, at least I can listen to Christmas music without feeling guilty now. Hoozah! 
Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. 
xoxo. 

Wednesday, November 27, 2013

Just Thankful.

I am just feeling grateful right now. 
Sure, we have no money and I spent all of our weekly grocery money on things such as toilet paper, laundry detergent, printer ink...with very little food mixed in there so now we have no grocery money (top raiment it is!)...
I have so much to be grateful for.
I don't have the natural gift at always looking at the positive. That's not to say that I am incredibly ungrateful and pessimistic all of the time, I really do see the good in things. It is, however, not my strong suit.
With that being said, as I watched the doctor stick a device up my husband's nose to look at his stomach (he has been having tons of stomach issues--trying to pinpoint what the problem is), I realized the miracle (and partly disgusting) parts of human life. I stepped outside and it was a beautiful, sunny day. I was grateful that I had insurance so that those kinds of appointments can take place--so that we can figure out how to help Tanner physically.
I love Thanksgiving.
I always joke with my brother and family because I tend to have bad luck on this week.
From getting caught in TWO storms on our roadtrip home two years in a row to getting kidney stones last Thanksgiving--this week has gone down as a week of " bad luck" in my life. Yet, amidst those unfortunate events, I love this holiday.
I love that we get to bond with family and eat delicious food (mashed potatoes!!!) and celebrate all of the good that we have in our lives. What a brilliant holiday!
I am finishing my {November Thankful Moments} from my {Wedding Series} with the rest of the photos from my Oregon Wedding. (Utah reception to come!). I have posted many of the photos in the rest of my wedding series, with engagements beforehand, so enjoy! (sorry if there are repeats and you have seen some of these photos a million times. Hey, who doesn't love looking at wedding photos, right? Ha). Looking back at this past month's posts has made me realize all of the great people that I have in my life. Most of my November Thankful Moments were not just moments, but more specifically people, and I don't think that's coincidence. I have many strong, funny, faithful, and kind people in my life. And I'm pretty lucky for that.

Note: I am trying to show you the rest of my Oregon Temple/Reception photos (again, sorry if there are any repeats!) so just a warning,  MAJOR PICTURE OVERLOAD. (But, hey, they are gorgeous!) :)

Enjoy!


































































































Told you there were lots of pictures :)
xoxo.
Happy Thanksgiving! Have a very special, enjoyable day.