Thankful for House Progress on Thanksgiving

The house is starting to really look like a house. 

 The fireplace is in. I can't wait to sit by the fire on a snowy day. 

  This is the back of the house and the back of Jens and DeA

 We could not ask for a better autumn.  

 Hockey is a big part of our lives right now. Rock couldn't care less if we are watching him, Ryker checks constantly to make sure we are seeing everything that he does. 

 The school had the annual community Thanksgiving dinner. The kids were excited. 

 Rock wanted to give goalie a shot. It turned into three games in goal and he quickly realized that he doesn't like goalie. 

 The kids love it when Grandpa calls and asks who wants a ride in the helicopter. They always all say yes, so I rarely get to go. 

 Grandpa Leo would have turned 100 this year. We celebrated his birthday with chocolate milkshakes and with Mom complaining that we were only making chocolate, just like when Grandpa was alive. 

  

 Leo Baby chose to chow string cheese instead. 

 MAXAMILIANO!! loves helping make milkshakes.

 DeA was excited to see the progress on the house that she literally ran there (well, she went for a jog and ended up at the house, but still).

 This is the house color and the stone that we picked. It turned out better than we thought. 

  Thanksgiving Day finally arrived. The annual Turkey Bowl was totally lit. Dave Thompson brought hot cocoa to help fuel the players. 

 It was a great turnout and a fun game. 

 Dinner was at Doug and Jama's. It didn't start great when the potatoes spilled on DeA's feet, but she still let me join everyone else for dinner. 

 Leo Baby loved the pumpkin pie. 

 Jacob barely put any whipped cream on his pie. 

 DeA used the leftovers.to make a stuffing waffle sandwich with turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy.

 The kids re-decorated MAXAMILIANO's skin.

 It wouldn't be Thanksgiving weekend without the kids all crashing on the couch. 

 Leo Baby convinced Aunt DeA to take him to the new house and give him a tour. At least he had a good hat. 

Dia de los Muertos

The Spanish class at MHS made ofertas for Dia de los Muertos. They dropped mine off and surprised me with one for Grandpa Leo. It was pretty sweet. 

 Speaking of sweet, Luke likes his candy.

We keep checking on the house every night, but it's getting harder with the earlier darkness. The sunsets this year have been amazing. 

Most of our Friday nights have been spent at football games. It's been a fun season. 

Jens is still the bestest Funzee. 

Ryker started learn to play hockey, he loves loves loves it. 

We've been trying to decide on finishes for the house, this is what we've come up so far. 

Picking the exterior paint was difficult, but we think we found the right one. 

We went to a Wenatchee Wild game with the Hinckleys. It was a lot of fun. 

We had a linger longer at church, Ryker dressed for the occasion. 

Rock looks like a guy that is ready to get the priesthood in a month. 

We took a day to go shoot and burn stuff. It was great. 

Even DeA got in on the fun. 

There's so much to unpack in this picture. 

This isn't the one we wanted, but it is getting closer. 

It's been a really vibrant autumn with great colors.

Maybe, but not quite.

 A little darker, right?

Late Fall Wrap Up

Jens has loved playing soccer. She runs fast and pushes the little guys out of the way. 

Rock and Ryker a good year of football. Rock really took a step forward from last yer. Ryker started out a little timid, but about halfway through the last game something clicked. He turned into a madman, making tackle after tackle. It was fun to see.

Jens knew that the best way to recover after a tough game is to chill and Grandpa's and watch football. 

We carved pumpkins before November 1, so that was a win for us. 

They actually carved their own pumpkins this year and I didn't even touch one. 

Dea was really glad that she didn't have to touch any pumpkin guts. 

They turned out looking like Jack-o-lanterns. 

Jens' last game was played in 30 degree weather. She played great!

Halloween was an excuse for Rock to show off how much he looks like DeA. It was weird. 

Jens wanted to go as a hunter and I was her trophy buck. 

It really is weird how much they look like each other. 

My antlers wouldn't stay up on my head. 

Every year, the church trunk-or-treat ends with a candy marketplace where kids can exchange the candies they don't like (3 Muskateers, Almond Joy, etc.) for the good stuff (Snickers, Kit Kat, Twix). 

The Church's party was on Halloween Eve. The kids wanted to go to Chelan for the real Halloween. Jens wanted to be the deer this time. 

Halloween selfie!

Ryker was a cute tough hockey player.

We had fun following Rock and Ryker around on roller blades. No one fell and spilled their candy all over the sidewalk. Nope, didn't happen.