Sunday in Vegas....more fun than you think!

Lauri and James blessed their new baby Molly on  the first Sunday in December.  They live in Henderson, and their church doesn't start until 1 pm (Vegas time).  We decided to get up at the regular time, like we were going to our own 9 am (Utah time) ward, but drove to Vegas instead.
What the heck do you do with 4 small kids (the oldest of which is the morality police) in Vegas on Sunday morning??  Well, you go to the nicest casino/hotel you can think of!  The Bellagio!
The Bellagio is our favorite stop in Vegas on any day of the week, and since everything we do there is free, it was a great Sunday morning activity too.  They have a big indoor plaza that is always decorated to the hilt according to the closest season or holiday.  We hadn't ever seen it done up for Christmas, and we were so glad we finally did.

There was an awesome train set around the awesome gingerbread village and giant rocking horse.  The train had a camera on one of the cars, that was hooked to television screens throughout the place.  So every once in a while you caught a glimpse of yourself on t.v........or if you are my kids, you ran around and around and around the display to see how much you could be on t.v.

 There were probably 5000 poinsettas, 

and the giant polar bears were made completely of carnations- 18,000!

We also went out to the front of the casino just in time to see the fountains do their big show.

We walked down for a closer view of the next little show (15 minutes later) but there was a little breeze and all the sudden we were on the front row of the Shamu show- we got showered!

We were still an hour and a half from when church was supposed to start in Henderson, 

so we drove up to the Las Vegas Temple.

Kyle and I had each only been there once, and the kids (obviously) hadn't been.

They were actually very surprised when they found out a temple existed in Vegas!

We really enjoy our wanderings, exploring new places with our little clan, and resolved to do it more often.  They have become very good travelers (thank you technology).  

It was a fantastic morning.

The blessing was great too, and the food after was great too.

Overall...great!

Who knew you could make so many memories on a Sunday morning in Vegas.

Giving thanks for Thanksgiving

I am not sure how I forgot to do a Thanksgiving blog.  Maybe I didn't take enough pictures....but still....it is blog worthy even if I didn't capture every moment digitally.

We had a great trip to Lehi.  We got there Wednesday afternoon and, of course, Dad and Kyle took off to a movie.  Jandy went with them too, I wanted to, but I had a mission to accomplish.  I was bound and determined to make my first perfect lemon meringue pie.  Kyle's maternal grandmother is one of my best friends, we get each other.  I get to take her to the temple every Thursday and we all go to her house for cake every Sunday night, and occasionally a lemon pie.  Leila Sullivan makes the best lemon meringue pies EVER.  Everyone in her family looks forward to their birthday for the gift of their own lemon meringue pie.  Mason didn't even share his this year.  Ate the whole thing himself (over time I think).  So I asked Grandma to show me how and I watched her make one and then she watched me make one.  Over the next few weeks I made 4 more, for practice, and none were quite right, but were good, and getting better, so I was hopeful that I would peak at Thanksgiving.

So I stayed home from the movie and started making my pies.  The first one- the filling got a little scorched and water got in the egg whites, so they wouldn't peak, but we used them and it was fine, we deemed it the "kids" pie.  The next one went so smoothly, everything was fantastic, and it baked up beautifully.






I was so proud.  I have never been so proud of anything I have ever made.  When Kyle and Dad and Jandy came home I made each of them take special notice and tell me how beautiful it was.  Mom didn't have room to refrigerate them, we should have just left them on the cupboard, but we decided it would be best to put them out on the picnic table on the deck (since it is so freaking cold in Lehi).  Mom had saved a cake box, and we carefully put them in it and put them out on the deck.

Then Jandy went downstairs and let the dogs out to go potty.  Emily at this point in storytelling would say (DUN DUN DUN.....) They are dachsunds. Their noses work really well.
It took Lilly about 12 seconds to get on the table, chew through the box, and destroy both pies.  Gus was barking the whole time, that is what tipped us off.  I don't think he was tattling on her though, he was just mad that he was too fat to jump up on the table, and wanted her to push some off to him.

I secretly hoped that that much egg whites and sugar would kill her, but she didn't miss a beat.  I on the other hand was completely deflated.  I must have looked really pathetic as I stood by the remains of my hard work, because Shayne and Grandpa both came and gave me big hugs.  Kyle asked me what I needed at the store, and at 9:30 pm, I popped open a Dr. Pepper and started over.
My mom, my savior, encouraged me and helped me, of course she could have made them perfectly without me.  We whipped up two more pies, which turned out...fine...but they were missing the key secret ingredient....LOVE! :)  My heart was not in it.  They tasted great, but I still can't even believe that something so cliche'- so holiday sit-com, actually happened in real life....to me....and my first perfect pie.  It was a good lesson to me- I've decided no one should have so much pride in something, and I was being chastened, and humbled!

Thanksgiving dinner the next day was great- all the classic Shelton foods and tons of it!  We were at Steve's house, and Juanelle had it all decorated so cute.  Ashley Shelton had the fantastic idea of Skyping with Brashley in California, so we could all be together.  It was just right.
We were sleeping in a hotel, so Kyle took Matty back for a nap.  Kyle napped, Matty watched TV and played on the Ipad.  Luckily she  couldn't figure out the locks on the door!  We sat around and played games, and looked at Black Friday ads.  It was a good day.  I felt very grateful to be surrounded by my loving family.

The next day everyone came swimming at our hotel.  We met the capacity limit! Luckily no one else from the hotel wanted to swim at that time! We shopped and we got some great black Friday deals.  Kyle loves watching the craziness and as long as we never go with our hopes high, we usually find a great deal or two and come away with a good story or two.

Saturday was the pinnacle of the trip.  We weren't planning on even staying that long, but then Penny told us that Shayne had decided to be endowed on Saturday in the Mount Timpanogos Temple, so we changed our plans in a jiff- we definitely didn't want to miss that!

 Shayne got her mission call about 12 seconds after the prophet announced girls could go at 19 instead of 21.  She is going to Perth, Australia and is stoked.  It was a very crowded session, with 3 other missionaries and their families doing the same thing, but it was awesome to be at the temple with my siblings.  This hasn't happened since Andy's wedding, I think- and he has 3 kids now, so it was long overdue! Families are Forever, the Church is true, and we are greatly blessed to be a part of it, and BECAUSE we are a part of it.

This. is. halloween. halloween.

Nightmare Before Christmas Music in the Background- imagine it, I don't know how to add music!
Halloween is always fun with the Wells' clan since Kyle and Jillyn's birthdays compound the festivities. The festivities were doubly compounded this year with it being Homecoming week at DSC and Andy Shelton and his family coming to town.  It ended up being 6 days of parties!
Andy and Sarah and the kids were coming home from Disneyland and needed to crash at our place so we tried to turn it into a Halloween Holiday party- this doesn't even count as one of the 6 days of partying- but it was a big party, and it helped get me in the holiday mood.

 I made soup and bread bowls and mint chocolate fingers and 100 sugar cookies!  

Penny brought soup too and all the frosting and toppings for a cookie decorating extravaganza!

 This got the festive holiday ball rolling, then we had the week of craziness.

1. Friday:  Homecoming week is labor intensive for the alumni committee.  The alumni open house is this night, we don't have to do too much at it, but we did enjoy the live band immensely.
 









Kyle was in charge of the midnight 5K this year though, (talk about labor intense). It being so close to halloween, we got some of the zombies from Thriller to come and haunt the event.  It was a little stressful for Kyle to be in charge, but it was a very very fun night.  We got Spencer and Shana and Drew and Mason and Mandy and Maycee and George and me and my neighborhood running partners: Keli and Katherine, AND Joel and his brothers  all running this year (Penny and the girls helped direct runners).  Every year I wish it started earlier, but it is a very fun event.

2. Saturday  (A marathon party day -happening on 5 hours of sleep)
We went to the Homecoming parade and got loads of candy for breakfast and had a great morning.

Emily and George got to ride in the parade with the college sponsored swim team they are on.

We went straight to the tailgate party and played for about 45 minutes and then Evan had a soccer game- right there on campus luckily, so I took him over to that, and the others stayed with Kyle and the cousins and kept playing and eating.

Evan really loves soccer, it is fun to watch him- especially when he makes a goal!

After all of that we went to the football game, and nearly fell asleep watching it.  I don't remember the score, I think we ended up loosing it in the end.  

I know Kyle and I did anyway- I don't know about the team.

We would have gone home to a bowl of soup and vegging out in our jammies for the night at this point but we went home and mowed and edged the lawns and everything else that is supposed to happen on a Saturday, got the kids settled with some pizza and headed to the Alumni banquet.  Bruce Hurst spoke and it was nice, but we were running on fumes.  As we were cleaning up they had 5 giant balloon arches gathered up in a bunch and were trying to figure out how to dispose of them.  Kyle asked how they got them in?.... we built them in here.. duh?  oh yeah... then I asked something else that was equally brainless, that I can't remember,  and we all got the slap happy giggles.  We decided we could get those balloons home- I know we were not thinking clearly, but we attempted, and succeeded somehow to get 100+ helium balloons home to our kids.  The neighbors thought we were celebrating the Utes win, but we were so slammed- finding out they had won was a great surprise.

 3. Sunday the 28th On Kyle's birthday, we came home from church and unwrapped presents (of which there were few, because he bought and was wearing all his b-day gifts already).

Circus Afro Circus Afro, polka dot polka dot polka dot afro!

 and then we carved pumpkins while we watched Kyle's new Madagascar movie 

(one of the pumpkins was rotten on the bottom- so we cut the bottom off!)

 

Then later we went to Grandma Sullivan's and sang happy birthday to Kyle and let him eat his traditional birthday lemon meringue pie. 

Over the years I have tried to make festive cakes, or buy decadent chocolate creations, but this pie is all he truly wants.

 I am sure he got a birthday nap in between there. 

 He sure looks good for 39!  One more year of youth ;)

4. Monday night we went to Thriller.  We always gets tickets  because Kyle loves it, and the rest of us join him because we love.... him....and being together, but not really Thriller so much.
Mason loves Thriller- I don't think that necessarily means he doesn't love Kyle....or the rest of us, but you'll have to ask him that! :)

            

Apparently we don't have a picture of the birthday boy.....but he was there :) and he loved it!

 5. Tuesday I thought we would have one day of recovery before the actual holiday came, but the College decided to do their trick-or-treating a day early.  All the college sports teams dress up and line up around the track at the stadium and give us candy!  It was a good dry run for Matty, she loaded up because she didn't know that once they put one piece in your bag you are supposed to walk away.  She just kept standing there looking at them, so they just put more and more in her bag at every stop!  (I am totally doing alien family next year....yep yep yep yep yep yep.)

6. HALLOWEEN

 It was finally here! The day started with the Halloween parade at the school and then straight to Emily's class party (I am the room mom). I made an awesome jack-o-pinata a.k.a pinata-o-lantern.

It took 5 days to make and 5 minutes to bust open and attack.   

Emily made a very cute cowgirl- thanks Penny

Evan was a mummy again- thanks Penny

Matty was a super cute witch after a lot of convincing- thanks Penny

Matty was determined to be a pirate ever since we got back from Disneyland.

-so over a month- I be a pie-yut.  I finally took her to Shana's to try on a pirate costume and then she decided she didn't really want to be a pirate.  This is exactly the reason I avoid buying new costumes! 

Thank goodness for Penny's Halloween costume boxes.

So the party at Em's school was super fun- 4th grade boys are a piece of work, but it went well.

 Then we went to Jillyn's for the next party!

It is a great way for all the cousins from all their different neighborhoods to get to

see each other and play for a minute on Halloween. We were so lucky to have baby Molly this year.

It is also fun for the brothers to show off what horrendous creation they came up with each year.

 Happy Halloween!

 

GOOOOOOOO DIXIE!

We have loved being involved in the Alumni board at the college, as time consuming as it is during football season, it is nice to be full of that old Dixie spirit.  It has also turned us into pretty big Dixie sports fans, and it didn't hurt that this year we had a great football season and the games were so fun to watch.  I am glad the burger flipping season is over, and basketball season has begun.

  The last few years Kyle has gotten passes for his brother's families too.  Kind of as a way to pay them back for all the dental work and trigger point injections and medications (not that we abuse the system in any way..... hhmmm). ANYWAY,  It is tons of fun for us all to go together and to let our kids run wild and pretend they belong to someone else.

  Well, the first pre-season game for basketball this year was against UNLV.  HUGE!  In the Thomas & Mack Center.  HUGE!  The problem was that it was a Wednesday night and was inconceivable.  Kyle said at about 3 pm, will you just make one last ditch effort to see if there isn't someone that could stay with the kids..... so I call Shayne, hoping on a wing and a prayer that she doesn't have to work or have tons of homework, and she can watch the kids and get them to swim team and fed.....etc....wing and a prayer.  She says well I can't, but my mom had the day off work last minute so she is right here......pause while Shayne explains our plans.....then "yeah, she will take them if you can have them ready if 5 minutes, we are at your post office."

 WOOO HOOOO! We are headed to Vegas!
  THANK YOU PENNY!

I text Kyle and he says bring me clothes to change into, 

we get all our poop in a group and by 4 pm we are on the road!

Of course our first stop is B DUBS.  Kyle's brother's have him totally addicted to wings now, and I think they are pretty good too, as long as there is a Dr. Pepper close by to wash them down.

I had never been in the Thomas & Mack Center and it was intimidating, I can't believe it is a college stadium, they serve alcohol, in the elite seats they even serve alcohol by way of very cold girls.
Our seats were up in the nose bleeds and I was afraid to cheer for our team surrounded by Rebels.
When we got there Dixie was down by 8 or so and we were surprised that they were doing that well, we really thought we would get crushed.  Then Coach Judkins, as always, lit a fire under them at half time and they started to catch up- so I started taking pictures....

Here is the run down of the score.....all the Dixie fans were taking pictures of the jumbotron.

It was such an exciting game.  We found the other Dixie fans and sat by them, and it was so much fun.  Even though in the end we lost by one point, we were so proud of those boys for taking UNLV into overtime.  It is going to be an awesome season!