I forgot the usernname and password. I need to get better at this!
Let's go back to Halloween. Halloween night, it was cold, rainy, and windy. We took the kids through the neighborhood and they got tons of candy. The kids were excited and had fun despite the cold and rain.
The kids both too ice skating lessons at the Olympic Oval. They both did a great job! They looked so cute in their skates, helmets, and gloves. They both were not afraid and though they fell many times, they got up and kept going. We had fun watching them. Rene gave us a one-year family skating pass as an early Christmas present and we've gone a few times as a family, or Kevin and the kids have gone without me. It's been fun.
Emily got her first report card of the year, and she got all 4's and a few 3's (4 is the best, 1 is the worst). In addition to her awesome marks, her teacher gave her all E's (Excellent) for behavior, getting along with others, citizenship, etc. We are proud of Emily. She has always been an intelligent girl and we are happy she continues to do well in school. Just as important as getting good grades is the fact that she is well behaved and good in class, that she interacts well with others, and that she applies herself. To celebrate her achievement, we went to the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory as a family and chose some special treats.
Winter hit with a vengeance the weekend before Thanksgiving. It snowed a lot--probably a foot or more. We get more snow on the west bench then the valley often does. It snowed 2 more times that week, leaving a ton of snow. It was also really cold--single-digit temperature cold!
For Thanksgiving, we enjoyed hosting and cooking at our house. My parents came, as did Craig, Taralyn, Suede, and Ellis (visiting from Kentucky). We had fun being together, preparing the food, and enjoying each others' company. Suede and Ellis are darling, and Craig and Taralyn are good parents.
The next day, the entire Sowby family gathered at my brother Mike's house. There are 29 people, as follows:
Steve & Laurie (Mom & Dad)
David & Shannon (Jarom, Spencer, Kate, Noah, Emma, Caleb, Emma, Ben, Sarah)
Mike & Tiffany (Megan, Luke, Ellie, Joshua, Drew)
Kristin & Kevin (Emily, James)
Rob & Christie
We had a family photo taken in the family room. It turned out as well as can be expected with that many people and children. We had fun visiting and playing. We watched a slide show of old slides my parents brought. It was a hoot!
That weekend, we enjoyed hanging out, eating leftovers, sleeping in, etc. Craig came one of those nights to "play" with Kevin in the studio. They recorded part of a song they just wrote there on the spot. Put two talented boys in a studio for a few hours, and that's what you get!
Speaking of music and the studio, we are all loving it. It has been a dream and a plan for a while, and we were able to put it together and get it done. It is a great, beautiful space for Kevin. Emily practices the piano in there and James has fun on the drums.
As December came, I became busier with work. As the high school counselor, I am responsible for assigning classes for each student (and there are 45o students). It takes time to look at their transcripts, see what they need, then manually enter 6 classes into the system. I am so glad though that I have a job which is flexible and allows me to work from home!
On December 3 I had a staff meeting then later that night, our staff Christmas party. Kevin came with me to the Castle in Layton. I accompanied on the piano as the group sang some Christmas carols.
The following week was busy with the Relief Society party, Ward party, James' preschool program, and Emily's piano recital. Emily played "Jolly Old St. Nicholas" and looked so pretty in her fancy skirt and sweater from Grandma.
James has been doing an online preschool program called Upstart. He is supposed to do it 15 minutes a day and sometimes resists, but does well. He also goes to Goodstart Preschool, run by Joey Brough. He's been going there since he was 3. This is his 3rd year.
We are ready for Christmas. Our kids have asked for simple things this year so Santa will have no problem getting them to them. They are good kids most of the time. Lately they have been fighting and arguing and hurting each other at times. This is normal sibling behavior, but it is not fun. Most of the time they get a long and have fun together, playing games they make up.
We are looking forward to our vacation to California in January!
