Fun Family Weekend!

I am finding it hard to think about the great weekend we had, in light of what my friend, Deanna and her family are going through. While we played and partied, they said "goodbye" to someone so precious and dear to them. So, I gave it some thought, and realized that it is so true that "life goes on." Sandy spent her life well, and she would want all of us to keep living life. So, in honor of her, I will make every second count!

We did have a great weekend!

On Friday night, we went to Aaron and Cher's for lasagna. Shawn and Mary were there, and we had a great time! The lasagna was a treat too!
Then on Saturday we chilled. Alyssa and Kenlee came to spend the day with us. Alex and Duane fixed a yummy cowboy breakfast of hashbrowns, sausage, eggs and cheese. It was delicious! We spent most of the late morning/afternoon watching Boise State win yet another game!!! It was a good game!
It was Kenlee's birthday, so she chose toasted cheese sandwiches and brownies for lunch. We stuck four candles in her brownies, and sang "Happy Birthday." She was a happy girl! After lunch, the girls went outside and collected leaves. You can see here that the leaves became pom-poms, and the girls became cheerleaders. Such fun!


That evening, Duane took me out to dinner...just me! We went to one of our favorite places-McGrath's. (Yes, Aaron, we went to seafood!)
Duane and I really enjoyed just focusing on each other, and sharing some much needed quiet time (adult conversation is a necessity for this "at-home 24/7 mom"!)

We woke up to a cloudy Sunday morning, but our hearts were full of joy! Sunday has become our family's favorite day of the week! I am sad to say, that this hasn't always been the case. We wasted many Sundays being stressed out! Now, we wake up at 8 a.m., or should I say, we sleep-in until 8 a.m.? Then we have a simple family breakfast together...usually monkey bread or orange rolls. We leave for church at 10:00, for the service at 11:00. We arrive to church around 10:20; just in time to sit, drink coffee and fellowship with our church family, before checking-in Alex & Nikki for their Kid's Worship/Small Groups. Ashley also heads up to Teen Worship.
Pastor Darrell has been going through Psalms 119, verse by verse. It has been so challenging and uplifting! This week, he preached on "Finding God/Good in Adversity"
One of the verses spoke volumes to me: Psalms 119:68---"You (God) are good, and what you do is good; teach me your decrees." Thank you God for your goodness, all the time!

We enjoyed having lunch with Robb and Julie French. It was Tucker's 3rd birthday. He is such a fun, adorable little guy!
Then we were off to Murphy, where my parents live. Around 4 pm, we started the process of Dutch Oven Cooking.
Dr. Gary Gregerson, the doctor that my mom worked for, and who is also the doctor who delivered Nikki, Alyssa and Kenlee, was coming out with his family for dinner. As a "thank you" for all the nice things he has done for our families, we wanted to fix him a special meal.
Aaron and Duane cranked out an Award-Winning Dutch-Oven meal of: Autumn Pork Chops, Ranch Potatoes, Corn, Cornbread and Blackberry Cobbler.
We had a great meal and a great time! They don't come much better than the Gregerson's!
As a side-note, Duane and Aaron are now for hire: "Two Dudes Cooking in Dutches". Just kidding!