Thanksgiving/Tree is up!

Matt was on call every holiday this year (hoping next year is a different story).  But on the plus side, we all took an amazing helicopter ride from Moab-Colorado-Salt Lake-Moab (with a couple breaks).  It was like flying through different worlds with the scenery we saw. Gave me a lot to be thankful for.

We had Thanksgiving lunch/dinner with some friends here in Moab.  There was good food, friends, and games. This picture pretty much sums up our last couple days.

What a precious little boy! And that pose!

Our Christmas tree from last year was buried in storage and I really didn't want to mess with those lights again this year... so i went into Grand Junction and bought a pre-lit tree (and maybe a few other things)!  Trips to Grand Junction, Colorado are just refreshing after being in Moab a while.  Who knew seeing Cafe Rio or Walmart could put a big smile on my face at first sight.

Ta-da! I was pretty happy about how it turned out.  Of course I had to take a picture before these little hands got to it...

1st Birthday!

We had Gray's 1st b-day party with family a week before his actual birthday.  The theme was a monster party and was very fitting for our little monster :) I was proud that my cake actually turned out how I imagined it! It was so worth the look on his face when he saw it.  He soaked up all the attention and loved every second of it.

We really can't imagine life without this boy! He keeps us on our toes and is so much fun. 

He also got his first haircut by Aunt Alise! I may have shed a tear as I watched him transform from a baby to a toddler...

(this happened before his party)

Halloween/First heli ride

Few more pics from October...

Halloween was the last "first" holiday for Grayson! So crazy. Which means he wasn't quite sure what this funny green bucket was for ;) He loves putting EVERYTHING on his head these days!

I was looking through some pictures of Gray on my phone and this little guy wanting to see too! He was quite amused with himself!

 Living up these nice days at the park. Grayson loves to "walk" Bella. 

 First helicopter ride! We weren't sure about all the noise taking off, but he surprisingly left his ear muffs on and did really great.

 Cousin, Berkley's, blessing day. Weird to think these two will be in the same grade year!

 Visiting Great-Grandpa Long 

This kid makes me happy :)

 Poor Bella girl tore her ACL at some point (likely from running the mountains in Moab).. She has been hopping around for too long so surgery was our best option. Everything went really well though! Here she is just before going under:

 First pumpkin carving. Naturally the pumpkin should be tasted before anything else..

 You bet we went trick-or-treating too! That sucker lasted him the entire time (and got ALL over Matt, haha). And now we have candy to last another year.

October

Who doesn't love fall weather? I have missed the changing leaves and cool night that Vegas rarely gave us.

Granny's tub is the best!

We had a fun Halloween party with all the cousins (from both sides) and it was awesome! The kids had so much fun. As I was setting up, I never thought we would make it through all the games I had planned. But they did! We had potato sack races, donuts on a string, pin-the-hat on the witch, and a few others. 

So initially the idea was that Matt would be the knight, me the princess, and our little dragon. Well, when it came down to it, the helmet fit me better... and Matt made the comment that i should just be the knight. Pretty sure he didn't think that one through all the way ;)

We adventured out to Silver Lake one evening with Matt's family for some pretty views before sunset. It did not disappoint! 

More September

Matt got a new shell on his truck. It's much better/easier to travel with Bella now. Though, I did like the look of the truck better before...

We met up with my sister in Spanish Fork for some lunch and park time. Have I mentioned how awesome it is to be closer to family?

Dad teaching our little fishy to swim :) Grayson LOVES water!

Perfect weather = lots of walks and hikes for us! This was landscape arch below.

Oh, and remember when I said Grayson loved water? I'm thinking about getting him a dog bowl with his name on it for Christmas. Haha

Rock climbing with friends. I really want to get our own gear now! It was so much fun (and hard). I have always been afraid of heights, but as long as I keep my head up, I'm okay! 

Coming home from work and seeing this is my favorite! (including the part where Matt's doing the dishes, haha)

TEN months old! 

September- Fall is here!

We have loved the Fall weather in Moab! Grayson started taking a couple steps this month and you can tell he is eager to walk all over. So crazy how fast he is growing. Here are is a peek into this month:

I can't do anything without this little person tugging at my pant leg.

Emptied out the diaper bag and found the marshmallows (from our Scouts activity)! Stinker!

Grayson came to visit me at work one day. Everyone LOVED him and he proved to be quite the entertainer- it was so fun to watch.

Teething is no fun for anyone :(

Shopping with this boy is so much funner than it used to be.  

Matt and I teach the scouts at our church. Grayson is a good helper and will one day be a good scout.

Since Fall is here, most of the out-of-towners have dwindled which leaves us with the perfect weather and trails to ourselves. this little waterfall is just a few minutes from where we live. I love this place!

August happenings

Love our Sunday walks :)  

Mama and her boy at the Colorado river

 There's just something about sitting in sink..

 He's getting real good at this crawling business!

We spent a few days un the mountains house sitting for friends. We had fun feeding the horses, watching the sunset and just being up in the mountains. Well, until Bella decided to find and eat some rat poison! Seriously! After hydrogen peroxide, charcoal, and some vitamin K... she seems to be doing fine. It was quite the scare!

 Bella was getting a little too brave thinking she was one of them. At one point, ran in the coral and was chased by one of the horses. 

Always need a bath pic, right?

Mr. Independent

We also took grandpa's new jeep out for a ride! (top left was taken before we left- promise he was strapped in, haha)

It's fun being much closer to family. We get to see them so much more now! Especially since Matt's job is a little more flexible.