Mason turned 1 last month...I didn't take very many pictures and all of the ones with Celestia and Jack were just too bad to put up...I'm talking RUNNY noses, YUCK! So, just pictures of Mason will make it up this time. At least the runny noses didn't stick around for long...Knock on Wood, right?
David's dad came out for the big game last month, we had a blast going to the tailgate parties and the game. The kids were troopers and lasted almost the entire game in the cold. Here are a few pics of us...sorry no action shots of the actual game...I guess I was too busy keeping my kids from kicking the people in front of us, j/k.
I was just thinking, as I folded the pile of clothes on my bed while my kids are sleeping, how grateful I am for naptime....just think...what a miracle it is that my 4 1/2 year old, 2 1/2 year old, and 1 year old all nap at the same time, just about every afternoon. If that's not a miracle, then I don't know what is! Ahhh, the joy of sleeping children :) Better get back to my laundry pile......
Celestia, Jack and Mr. Mason....
Celestia showing off her new silly face to Jack while in the middle of lunch. By the way, where is their lunch? Must be on the floor already. Ha.
Did you ever make these fun bead things when you were little? I did. David thought it was a waste of money, but come on...Celestia was busy for at least 30 minutes getting every bead just right before we ironed them. Jack gave up after about 2 minutes and made me finish his...it is a lot harder than I remember. Maybe because my hands are so BIG? 
See what happens when you leave your baby alone at the counter, too close to his sister's yogurt cup? I wouldn't recommend it. Although he was quite satisfied for a couple hours. Yum.
I must say he does clean up well. Look at this cute 1 year old! Gotta love it!
I know these are late, but I thought you'd still like to see them....
We had a little picnic outside the other day and here is Mr. Mason, checking for any last crumbs...he is a crumb-a-holic!!! He LOVES any leftovers! Can you believe he's going to be 1 in just a couple weeks? Time sure flies!
Here were are at the pumpkin patch. The kids loved the huge "Straw Slides" and went down them over and over again.
Celestia had a Halloween party at school. I was lucky enough to talk David into watching the kids for me for a couple hours while I helped out with the party. She was so happy to have mom with her. All of the kids looked so cute.
My mom, being the great woman she is, came see us for her birthday, which was Nov. 1. We went and picked her up right after Celestia got out of school on Halloween. The kids were sooo excited to see Grandma. We had a blast with her, as we always do! We did a bit of shopping, some trick-or-treating, some sewing, and had a yummy birthday dinner for her at one of my favorite's -P.F. Changs....it doesn't get better than that! The kids loved having her with us for Halloween! 
We LOVE the Zoo....especially the one here in Colorado Springs...set right up against the mountains. It is soo pretty...just a fabulous fall day! The kids had a blast. Here are some pics. The grizzly bear was our favorite....check out Celestia touching his nose. He was so funny pressing himself up against the glass...pretty cool!
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David "pinned on" Major at the beginning of the month. It was quite a memorable day, mainly because his dad and grandfather were able to come and be a part of it. His grandfather was sooo excited about it. We had a wonderful time with them and are so glad they made that day so special. Congratulations Daddy!
SOOOOOOO YUMMY!
All recipes are from allrecipes.com
TEN CLOVE GARLIC MARINADE
(I use this for Tri-tip, but you can substitute any 2-4 lb. cut of meat)
INGREDIENTS:
2/3 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup steak sauce
1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 yellow onion, minced
10 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
DIRECTIONS:
In a bowl, whisk together vegetable oil, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, steak sauce, water, salt, pepper, onion, and garlic until thoroughly mixed.
Pierce several holes into meat with a sharp knife, and place in a shallow dish. Stir marinade once more and slowly pour over meat, smothering the top with the garlic and onions.
Cover and refrigerate overnight, or up to 36 hours. Cook as desired.
HONEY ROASTED RED POTATOES
"These slightly sweet potatoes are perfect with most entrees."
INGREDIENTS
1 pound red potatoes, quartered
2 tablespoons diced onion
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 tablespoon honey (I use more like 3 T of honey...suggested by other reviewers...yummy!)
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 pinch salt (I think it needs more than just a pinch, but it's up to you)
1 pinch ground black pepper
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly coat an 11x7 inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
Place potatoes in a single layer in prepared dish, and top with onion. In a small bowl, combine melted butter, honey, mustard, salt and pepper; drizzle over potatoes and onion.
Bake in the preheated 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) oven for 35 minutes or until tender, stirring halfway through the cooking time.
CARAMEL BROWNIES (thanks Lisa for this one, YUMMY!)
INGREDIENTS
1 (14 ounce) package individually wrapped caramels (I use Brach's Milk Maid caramels)
2/3 cup evaporated milk
1 (18.25 ounce) package German chocolate cake mix
3/4 cup butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup chopped walnuts (I used pecans)
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease one 9x13 inch baking dish.
Melt caramels and 1/3 cup of the evaporated milk over very low heat, stirring occasionally until smooth.
Combine cake mix, melted butter, the remaining 1/3 cup evaporated milk, vanilla and nuts. Mix well and spread 1/2 of the batter into the prepared pan.
Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 8 minutes.
Sprinkle the chocolate chips evenly over the partially cooked brownies. Pour the melted caramel mixture over the top and with a teaspoon drop the remaining 1/2 of the batter evenly over the top.
Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 20 minutes. Let brownies cool in pan then cut into bars.
Here is another classic Craigslist find....Jack's new bed. Check it out! Hey, you can't beat $40 for a solid bed like this!!!
Before: (the cardboard was just there to catch the overspray when David was painting it for me.)
After: Isn't it cute?
Celestia started back to school a couple weeks ago. She is now going MWF mornings and is doing well. Notice I don't say she is loving it...every morning before school, she tells me how she doesn't want to go and that she wants to just stay home with me instead. I am not sure why, she is like this because once she is there she has a great time. Her teacher says she does really well, so I don't know. Anyway, just yesterday as I was getting the kids in the bath before we got dressed, Celestia comes in the bathroom and proceeds to tell me how she's not feeling very good and is sick, so she better not go to school!!! She was totally faking it and I just thought it was hilarious that my 4 year old was already trying to play hookie! Too funny.
Check out the difference between how she looked one year ago (first picture) and now (second picture).......
Okay, so I have been trying to get this banner made for almost a year now and finally while my mom was here visiting last week we got down to business and each made one. I am so excited about it...isn't it cute? I must say, this is not a cheap and easy project, but if you love to make things, this is just a blast to make!!! I have all the instructions, thanks to my good friend Valeri, so if any of you are feeling crafty, let me know and I can send you the instructions via email. 
While we were in CA visiting my family, I was lucky enough to get professional pictures of my kids done by a family friend, Brian Mickelson. He just happened to be in Vacaville visiting his family as well and was so kind to take these pictures. He did an amazing job. Thanks Brian!.jpg)
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This is Jack's face when you say, "Jack....BIG SMILES!"
Here we are at Sundance with David's family. We took the chair lift up to the top and had a picnic. Later on that day, David, his sister Anna, and I went mountain biking at Sundance. It was a blast! Grandma Taylor made the kids all matching shirts and Celestia a dress. They were African inspired from her recent missionary trip to Africa.
We stayed at David's family's cabin at Sundance for the week and had a wonderful time. It is so relaxing and peaceful up there. The kids loved hiking and playing at the playground right across from the cabin. Also, we loved having our own personal waterfall "Stewart Falls" to hike to...it seems like no one is ever there. It was our own little piece of heaven!, 
