November...in a nutshell

This "nutshell" type of post is quickly becoming a norm for me.  I hope to be able to do better after the first of the year.  For now...it will do.

So, November.  Let's see if I can remember what happened in November.

1.  Time Out for Women in St. George.

I was able to attend TOFW with my mom, a couple of my sisters, and my friend, Melissa.  We had such a fun time!  All of the presenters were really, really great.  I learned a lot from them and from what the Spirit whispered to my heart.

2.  Josh's first "Girl's Choice" dance.  

Josh attended Fall Ball in November and according to him he had a fun time.  He is not very good at sharing a lot of details in his one word style of answering my questions.  The theme for the dance was "The Great Gatsby."  I thought that the girls planned a really great day activity.  They did a service project at a local place that makes toy cars to send to children in third world countries.  Such a great idea.

3.  Abbie and Ellie's newest adventure.

My little Ellie is an animal enthusiast.  She wants to be a zookeeper when she grows up and so I have been trying to think of something that she could do to help develop skills with animals.  She has been on a horse a few times and loved it, so I decided to try and find a place that offers horse-back riding lessons.  Abbie used to do some therapy with horses for her anxiety issues so I wanted her to be able to have the experience as well.  Fortunately I was able to find a place that is not too far from our house and so far, so good.  They have loved it!!

These pictures are from their very first lesson.

 4.  Helping Grandma Great decorate her Christmas tree.

Mark, Abbie, Ellie, and I stopped by Grandma Great's house one day and she was getting ready to decorate her tree so the girls stepped in to help!

 5.  Thanksgiving with the Ogden's

This year we had Thanksgiving with the Ogden Family.  It was crowded and crazy and so much fun.  The food was delicious, especially the smoked turkey that Mark made.  Abbie and Ellie had fun making sure the kids' table was properly decorated.

 6.  Our Family Thanksgiving

Every year we try to set aside a night to have a special Thanksgiving dinner with just us.  Mark made another smoked turkey and I have to say, we are hooked.  It is amazing! 

 November was really good to us, although it went to fast.  This whole year went super fast!