Surprise 60th Birthday Mom!

Friday I flew to Utah to help my sisters and brothers throw a surprise party to celebrate my mom's 60th birthday. My mom is a huge murder mystery fan and so we decided we would use that as our theme for decorations. My mom had no idea that she was having a party or that I was coming so I ended up being a part of the surprise. It turned out so great and the decorations turned out beautifully!

The entry was pretty magnificent. Keep in mind the only things that are actually normal hall decorations are the wood chests and the mirror. Everything else was put there as a part of the decorations.

The hallway had great posters, beautiful banners and even creepy mice to add to

the old English feel.

Here's the main party room (where the food was).

The family room was the game room: Guess how many murder mystery's Loraine has read (1304) and Loraine trivia.

I think the party was fun for everyone and I think my mom felt very loved! I'm so glad I got to be there to celebrate.

Halloween Fun

Tonight was our annual Ward Trunk or Treat.

Sophie went as a beautiful mermaid!

Avery was the cutest little pink poodle imaginable!

I went as the fashion police...

ready to write a ticket to anyone wearing white shoes after labor day! :)

Lance went as a K9 handler. I didn't take a picture of him because his costume was really just his work attire. Since we figured he would be holding Avery (the doggy) all night it seemed like an appropriate outfit. As it turned out the only dogs he handled were the hot dogs at the grill, but I guess it's still appropriate!

Primary Program Day

We are so proud of Sophie. She went up on the stand with all the kids for the program. She sang her heart out and even knew most of the words. She wouldn't say her part at the microphone even though she had it memorized and said it at home all the time. But for her first program she did a great job!
Avery was just very happy that her daddy got to sit with her the whole time! :)

Our Final Year

Every year since Sophie has been born (and a few years before even), Lance has gone to Half Moon Bay for the Police K9 Trials. It's sort of an olympics for police dogs. Since he is the Sergeant in charge of the K9 team, his free hotel and per diem make for a fun little getaway for our family. Every year we go in October so we go to Lemos farm and feed goats and ride the ponies. The girls love that of course. But this year is Lance's last year as K9 sergeant. In fact next week is his last week and then he will switch to Internal Affairs Sergeant. So this year was our last Half Moon Bay trip. We took lots of pictures and tried to enjoy every second!

Pumpkin Waffles

Try this yummy waffle recipe and experience one of the great joys of fall!

1 cup flour

2 Tbsp packed brown sugar

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ginger

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp salt

1 large egg

1 cup milk

3/4 cup pumpkin puree

2 Tbsp butter, melted

In large bowl, stir together dry ingredients. In another bowl mix egg, milk, pumpkin & butter until well blended. Stir in flour mixture just until evenly moistened. Spoon batter into waffle iron and cook to desired crispness. Serve with warm maple syrup or my favorite way: sprinkled with cinnamon powdered sugar!

Rest, Relaxation and Shopping!

This last weekend, my sweet, sweet husband took over my mommy duties so that I could go to visit my dear friend Heather in Salt Lake City. I got up very early on Saturday morning to catch my flight out of Oakland. I landed in Salt Lake just in time for lunch and then we shopped until we dropped! There is nothing like the beautiful little boutique stores Utah has to offer, and Heather (my shopping equal) knows all of them. I had such a great time exploring every nook and cranny of stores like, Hip & Humble, Children's Hour, Details, The Purple Pomegranate, Whimsy, The Black Goose, Four and Twenty Sailors & the historic Gardner Village (with names like that you can imagine how fantasic they are!). Of course we couldn't neglect our tried and true favorites though so we made our way to The Gateway and spent some time in J Crew, Gap, & Anthropologie. I found some great treasures! We ate ourselves sick at Tucano's and then saw the movie Love Happens (thumbs up from me). We made it home by midnight though and got what sleep we could before morning.

These are the clothes I bought. The gray shirt is from Hip & Humble. The black shirt you might recognize from the cover of the Anthropologie catalog. The shoes were a fantasic find at the Sundance Outlet. Regular price: $298. Sale Price: $40. The jeans were free at Gap because I used a reward certificate (feel free to zoom in on the size!:), and the hat is explained below!

The "Give Thanks" sign and the pumpkin wreath on the wreath hanger were some great finds at little shops in Gardner Village.I even found some fun things for Christmas.

Heather is such a wonderful cook and greated me Sunday morning with lemon curd and cream cheese filled ebelskivers! They were so good. We went to Sacrament meeting and watched her four wonderful children in their Primary Program. Then we took off to tour the exciting neighborhoods of old Salt Lake. Heather is a spectacular photographer and we just happen to have the same camera. (Click here to see some of her work).We used the houses as "models" to practice using the skills Heather had taught me in our crash course in photography. Salt Lake does have some amazing houses! Here are a few of my favorites.

Monday morning we got up early and went to breakfast at Market Street Grill and then headed over to "Breathe" a spa in Sugarhouse for our massage appointments. The massage was great, but here's a tip for anyone planning a weekend like this: book your massage appointments for late in the day, or DO NOT let the massage therapist TOUCH your head! I unfortunately did not think of either of these things in advance and so for the entire day I looked like I had washed my hair in a vat of crisco courtesy of the massage lotion & scalp massage! My makeup was completely wiped off from the face massage and basically I looked like a dirty homeless person in nice clothes! At least I smelled good from the massage lotion, but I finally had to break down and buy a hat just to keep my hair out of my face and hide my utter embarrasment! Good Times... Good Times!

Really though, I had such a wonderful time. Heather and Kelly are gracious hosts and I had a blast hanging out with my dear friend and her incredible family!

Ode to Grover! (In Pictures)

It just wouldn't have been the same with out you! Thanks for the laughs!