Happy Birthday Baby!

NOVEMBER 23rd-DOUG TURNED 40!

We had a nice little dinner with KaLynne, Darin, Chad and the family one night, and then Sunday (Doug's Birthday) I planned a "Surprise Open House" that ended up not to be much of a surprise after all! First someone (you know who you are!) who wouldn't normally know when Doug's b-day is, asks him about it, and THEN, Mr.-I-don't-even-know-how-to-check-my-own-e-mail....opens one of MY e-mails! Doug was still surprised though, as he didn't know who or how many people or when exactly to expect it. Thanks to all of you that came! My favorite part of the evening would certainly have to be playing ping-pong!

Doug, you are the most hard-working, witty, wonderful man I know. It's hard to find anyone more ethical, your friends know no one more loyal. You are impossible to "schmooze" and unimpressed by things not truly worth admiring. Among those whom don't know you, you are hard to get to know and frequently misjudged; you are unwavering, completely honest and straightforward. You are frustrated by petty details and bureaucratic practices. Your friends love you for life--as a trusted confidant, a playful game-starter, the funnest guy at the party (but only if you want to be there!), the best travel companion ever. You are hilarious--the funniest person I know. You are a challenger, a visionary, a conceptual thinker. You are an incredible problem-solver. You are my I-can't-pick-between-these-two-pictures tiebreaker, my sports statistic encyclopedia, my I-don't-trust-anyone-else babysitter, even though the house will be a disaster or they'll eat too much sugar :) You're a phone-talker, a my friend-harasser, budget-splurger, and we-can't-play-on-the-same-team gamer. You are my love. You are my life. You are inspired, and you inspire me. Happy Birthday Baby.

You asked for it!

Everyone has been demanding that I update my blog! Honestly, I have been surprised to learn just how many of you have been following along and enjoying it so much! Everyone has been asking, "What happened?"..... Drumroll please...... and NO, we have not died, so quit asking!

I got a new church assignment back in September! It has dominated much of my free thoughts and time, and I love it! However, it has made blogging less of a priority. BUT now that things are running smoothly and now that I have so much demand for "Baby Emmy" updates, I PROMISE to do better. SO... I am going to highlight what you have been missing....

Tis the Season!

Giving Thanks...

I am so thankful for THANKSGIVING. I absolutely LOVE to prepare every last little detail of Thanksgiving dinner. I am thankful for my wonderful husband who was willing to iron all the table linens for me!! I love the smell of the baking turkey, and coordinating every side dish so that everything is done and ready at just the right moment. A lot of people don't care for all the work and the leftovers, but I absolutely adore the process and relish every leftover. I loved that Brett could come down to spend Thanksgiving with us. I do not love that I was so busy enjoying everything about Thanksgiving I didn't think to take any pictures! The only pictures I took were the ones I grabbed just before Brett headed back to Alaska, when he was all decked out in Army gear.

Kate helped me get the lights set properly--the feather boa is for effect, and she thought the poinsettea was so beautiful we needed to take a shot of it too!Jessa calls Uncle Brett "Brandon".

Kate loved the hat and ended up keeping one.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Snow Angel: Kate was so excited for Halloween because it it the only day she gets to wear REAL lipstick. She loved getting all dressed up, and I even curled her hair for the first time ever; I had no idea she could sit there so patiently!

Our little ladybug--the cutest ever!

Kate made it to our neighbor's house before she zonked out. She had been so excited it was Halloween that she just couldn't take a nap! She slept through 2 houses, and then woke up for 2 more. We had every intention of making it in to the church trunk-or-treat, but we had a lot of fun visiting with the few people looking forward to the rare trick-or-treaters in these parts. At the last minute, I threw on Doug's turnouts and smeared black on my face to join in the costume fun.

Gearing-up for a Hipwell Halloween

How to prepare for a Hipwell Halloween:
Step 1: Get down the Hallween tote and try out all of its contents....

Step 2: Take a break for some bird hunting with friends Step 3: Have a ghoul and a goblin help bake up some festive cupcakes

Step 4: Sometime in the month impusle buy new dresses for the season at Costco

Step 5: When Halloween is getting REALLY close, invite a few people you normally don't do anything with for a Pumpkin-Carving family night.


Step 6: Proudly display your phenomenal pumpkin-carving skills until the pumpkins shrivel up and start to rot away--in true Halloween fashion.

Halloween has always been one of my favorites because I have a lot of great Halloween memories. BOO!

Something Light to Break the ice.

I am a creature of habit, and I just needed something "just for fun"to break the ice that has been thickening on my blog... Alyssa posted this on her blog and asked what's in your name...

T-Loved by everyone
I-Loves to laugh
F-People wild and crazy adore you
F-People wild and crazy adore you
A-Dead Sexy
N-Can kick ur butt
Y-Great kisser

A: Dead sexy
B: Loves people
C: Really easy to fall in love with
D: funny and sweet
E: Freakin Beautiful eyes
F: People wild and crazy adore you
G: Never let people tell you what to do
H: best smile
I : Loves to laugh
J: makes people laugh
K: Really silly
L: easy to fall in love w/
M: makes dating fun
N: Can kick ur butt
O: Has one of the best personalities ever
P: Popular with all types of people
Q: A hypocrite
R: good bf/gf
S: Lives life for fun
T: loved by everybody
U: gets blamed for everything
V: Not judgmental
W: Very broad minded
X: Never let people tell you what to do
Y: Great kisser
Z: Lives life for