Thanksgiving

We had Thanksgiving in Colorado with the Phillips again this year. Normally we switch off every other year, but everyone had gotten off schedule. So we did two Phillips Thanksgivings in a row to get everyone back on the same schedule. It was a packed weekend. Here are the highlights - a lot of the pictures are thanks to my wonderful SIL, Edda, as I didn't pull out my camera all that often. (I figured her camera is better than mine, so I'll let her take the pictures.)

Wednesday:

Got up and drove to Colorado with KD and Phat Tony.

Stopped in Grand Junction for lunch. Corby had his first Happy Meal from McDonald's. His favorite part was the fries.

He also experienced his first Play Place. He didn't love it, but he grew to like them more and more as the trip went on. (He played in 3 throughout the course of the trip.)

Thursday:

Drove to Kathy's for Thanksgiving dinner.

Took family photos. We didn't try for long because the little boys didn't want to sit still. It isn't the best picture ever, but it does show that EVERYONE was there.

Enjoyed appetizers. I made Cheddar Bruschetta to go along with all the other yummy appetizers they had.

Mike fried not one, but two turkeys. They were delicious as always!

Played a funny game where you had to figure out what you were by asking people questions. Rog asked Marti what he was and she said, "Bacon." Ha ha.

And finally the main event - Thanksgiving dinner. It was Corby's first. (Last year he was only drinking milk.) He looks excited, but don't be fooled. He took a few bites and then decided he was done which didn't make for a very enjoyable dinner for me and Rog.

Sister-in-laws. Just a cute one of me and Edda.

The swingset in the backyard was a big hit with all the kids. Normally Corby goes down slides on his own, but this one was super steep. So he got a little help from his dad.

Drove to Rex and Edda's to see the unveiling of the theatre room in their basement. Rex had been working hard (and not getting a lot of sleep) to get it ready for the weekend. It is pretty sweet.

Corby joined Aiden and Sam for bath time. (Jaxon was a little too young this time to join in the fun.)

Friday:

Did some Black Friday shopping at the Outlets.

KD bought all her nephews beanies from the Children's Place. Corby got a reindeer one that will be so cute with some Christmas shirts I got him at Carters (for 50% off + an additional 10% off).

Helped move some furniture Dixie bought from a coworker. Corby loved climbing up and down the ramp to the van.

Enjoyed a delicious nacho bar at Kenzie and Irving's.

Saturday:

The girls and kids enjoyed a cookie party at Rex and Edda's while most of the boys went shooting at a range. Corby was a little intimidated by all of the neighborhood kids that were there, but enjoyed the cookies after they left.

Shooting took a lot longer than anticipated, so our plans got a little shuffled at this point. We were planning on going to Crave for lunch, but by the time the boys got to us, everyone was starving and there was an hour and a half wait. So we went to Chick-fil-A instead. After we ate our meal, I was still hungry, so I got a milkshake. I gave Corby a taste and after that he refused to share with me. Every time I tried to take a sip, he would scream his head off.

Got Crave to go for dinner. Crave is a gourmet burger place that everyone always raves about. All of their burgers have the actual burger plus a lot of unique add-ons that don't normally go on hamburgers. We were excited to finally get to try it. I got the Texas burger which had beef brisket, bbq sauce, and coleslaw. And I sprung for the sweet potato fries although I'm sorry to say those weren't worth the extra dollar. I think next time I'll get coleslaw or a side salad instead of fries because the burgers are super filling. I could only eat half of mine.

And Rog got the Luther burger which had bacon, cheddar, and egg served with 2 glazed donuts as the bun. Sounds disgusting, but I had a bite and it actually works because it's like a breakfast burger.

Celebrated Rex's birthday with cake and ice cream.

Played some Rockband and a round of Hand and Foot.

Sunday:

Played Tetris to load the car with all our Christmas presents from Mike and Dixie.

Drove home.

We had lunch at Taco Bell in Grand Junction, but then we went over to the Burger King where they had a Play Place for Corby to get some wiggles out. We felt like we should order something, so we got some ice cream cones. Corby took one of ours for his own. I think it's safe to say this kid likes ice cream!

Thanks everyone for a wonderful weekend!

Pre Thanksgiving Happenings

We are enjoying a wonderful Thanksgiving in Colorado with all of Roger's family, but before I get to that, I need to post about some recent happenings.

Last Friday Corby got his second haircut - first haircut in a salon. It was getting very long all over and I had a coupon to Super Cuts, so I decided to take him. I was worried he wouldn't do very well, but he was a perfect angel. He sat in the chair all by himself, didn't squirm too much, and even let her use the clippers to trim the edges.

On Saturday we had our first real snow in Spanish Fork. (Before it was just in Salt Lake.) Corby got to try out his new snow gear with his friend Carver.

He wasn't the hugest fan, but I'm sure it will grow on him. Rog built a snowman that lasted about 30 minutes before it was knocked over by some of the neighborhood kids.

That day my mom got a ride up to Spanish Fork from my grandparents who were coming home from Palm Springs. I convinced her to come watch Corbyn during the last home game of the season, so we could both go. (She wasn't hard to convince - it was really my dad that needed the convincing.)

Before the game, in leu of a tailgate, we went to J Dawgs.

Bill decided to do pushups with the ROTC when BYU scored. He ended up doing A LOT because we played New Mexico State and beat them 42-7.

Because it was the last home game of the season, I made sure we got our cougar tail (long maple donut) and took a picture of us with Bill and Mariah. We stayed until the bitter (cold - it was freezing) end as you can see from the empty stands.

My mom stayed with us until Wednesday when we left for Colorado. My dad picked her up on his way to Salt Lake for Thanksgiving. She was an IMMENSE help in getting everything ready for our trip. Thanks dad for giving up your wife for a few days and thanks mom for all your help in taking care of Corbyn!

17 Months

I can't believe our little dude is one month away from being 18 months! Where does the time go?!

The Corb at 17 months.

*Scoots down the stairs on his bum instead of turning around. When he does turn around he just flies down them. And to think he used to be scared to death of the stairs!

*Plays with cars and makes beep beep and vroom noises.

*Had a scab between his eyebrows for a good solid 2 weeks (as you might have noticed). What's funny about it is that it had almost completely healed and then he got another scab in the exact same spot.

*Notices airplanes and helicopters in the sky and points to them in awe.

*Jibber jabbers more than ever before. We can't understand most of what he says, but he looks at us like he knows exactly what he's saying. Says there when I ask him where something is and he points to it in a book.

*Has gotten really good at putting our shoes on and walking around. They're on the correct feet and everything.

*Throws things away when we give him something and tell him to throw it away. Our only problem is he also throws things away that shouldn't be thrown away.

*Has gotten really good at pointing out the mouse in his "That's not my" books.

*Rides his push toy, but he prefers to ride his dump truck (that isn't meant to be ridden).

*Turns around in circles.

*Talks on his toy cell phones, combs his hair, and mimiks other things we do.

*Will look at the camera and smile when we tell him to - sometimes.

*Folds his arms when we tell him it's time to pray before bed. He'll do it sometimes when we're saying our dinner prayer, but that's not as consistent.

*Gestures for us to come here when he wants us to go somewhere.

*Does somersaults. I read somewhere that most toddlers aren't able to do somersaults or other tricks like that until they are 2 years old. He's definitely a mover not a talker.

*Loves to play with other kids. Most weeks we take him to nursery because he knows where it is and wants to go. Usually we stay with him because he technically isn't old enough to be in there, but we've left him a few times and he's done great - a lot better than some kids who are 18 months and older. Yesterday I left him with one of my visiting teachers while I went to a baby checkup. She has 3 kids and Corby had the best time playing with them. He cried when I came to pick him up instead of when I left him.

Oh my, this little boy keeps me busy all day long. I can hardly get anything done because he always wants to be entertained and is constantly making messes. He's such a busy busy boy, but he can also be pretty sweet sometimes. We love him so much!

In the Past Week...

*I hosted play group for the first time. We take turns hosting every Wednesday for an hour and a half in the morning. The boys love it and 2 out of every 3 weeks we get a guaranteed block of time to get stuff done.

*Rog and I cursed Daylight Saving Time more times than we can count. Our little dude is having a very difficult time adjusting. Before the time change he was waking up around 7:30 am every day, but since the time change he has been waking up at 6:00 am - not cool!

*Corby and I spent Friday up in Provo/Orem running errands, seeing the animals at the pet store, playing with toys at Toys R Us, visting dad at work for lunch, throwing pennies in the fountain at the mall (pictured below), running more errands, having dinner at Olive Garden, running a few more errands, and then finally going home. Corby fell asleep on the way home and was so exhausted from our crazy day that he didn't even wake up when we changed him into his pajamas.

*Corby got his first cold of the season (most likely from play group because the whole time I was wiping the other boys' noses). Thankfully it's not a bad one, but Rog seems to have caught it from him. I have escaped it so far.

*Rog and Corby gave both our cars an oil change and rotated their tires.

*Mariah and I had craft time on Saturday afternoon. We both have lots of crafting to do for the holidays and it's always so hard to fit in crafting amidst everything else, so we decided to schedule time for it. It was such a success that we decided to do it again this coming Saturday.

*We all tailgated it up before the football game and then I went to the game with Bill and Mariah while Rog went home with Corby. It was his turn (I went home with him last time we had a late game and no babysitter) and he had some work to do anyway. It was a cold game, but I was prepared with multiple layers and a warm quilt. We beat Idaho 42-7! Woot!

*I finished reading the Help! I started it back in April, but I only got a few chapters in and wasn't feeling it. After taking a break to read/listen to the 7th Harry Potter (again), I gave the Help a second chance and loved it! I can't wait to see the movie - I've heard it's just as good as the book. I just have to read one more book before the end of the year and I'll meet my goal. Now just to pick a book...

*Rog and I started a new Thanksgiving tradition - countdown to Thanksgiving Friends style where we watch a Friends Thanksgiving episode every night leading up to Thanksgiving.

*Rog finished up the Top 20 at work (huge project they do every November) and got an attaboy from his boss. Way to go!

We are keeping busy, waking up too early, wiping lots of runny noses, and looking forward to Thanksgiving.

Homemade Craft Swap

Last month I participated in a Homemade Craft Swap organized by Emily (and I am finally getting around to blogging about it).

I made this Halloween sign for Emily's SIL Becky. The paper has little spiderwebs on it if you can't tell. I love how it turned out, but I felt bad because it really didn't take me very long at all to make!

Emily's cousin Erin made me two beaded necklaces and then threw in two bow ties for Corbyn. I have already worn both necklaces more than once and Corbyn loves to play with his bow ties.

To see what everyone else exchanged click here.

Thanks Emily for organizing this fun swap!

Weekend

My parents came up for the weekend because they most likely won't see us again until December. Friday afternoon I had to go up to Rog's work to get my flu shot. They came up with me and watched Corby while I got the shot. Then we did some errands in Orem/Provo while we waited for Rog to get off work.

First we went to an AT&T store to see about getting my iphone fixed. I accidentally dropped it in the toilet and after spending a few days in rice, it worked fine. But then the backlight went out. They said it wouldn't be worth it to fix it, so we decided to explore other options. It randomly started working again on Saturday and has been working ever since. But we aren't very hopeful that it will continue to work. Lesson learned, don't put your iphone in your backpocket.

After that we went to the Cotton Shop. My mom followed Corby around and cleaned up after him while I picked out fabric for the Christmas stockings I am making. I had attempted this on Thursday, but it was completely impossible to watch our little busy beaver and try to pick out fabric without help.

And then we met up with Rog at Applebees for dinner.

On Saturday we drove up to Salt Lake to spend the day with my parents and my Grandma Ford.

While Corby took his nap, we went to look at our pictures from our photo shoot the previous weekend. While we were waiting, we flipped through a book they had sitting on the table and look what we saw...

...Pictures from OUR wedding! I knew there was a possibility of them using our pictures for promotional stuff because you have to sign something saying it's ok, but I never dreamed they would actually pick us. Pretty cool. By the way, we love the pictures they took of our family. They are going to be emailing me 3 of the pictures, so I'll post those when I get them.

The rest of the day we just hung out and relaxed.

Corby played in the snow for the first time.

And Rog took him sledding for the first time.

I won't say he loved it, but maybe when we get him some actual winter clothes (a coat, gloves, snow pants, and boots), he'll like it more.