Thanksgiving WEEK

What a wonderfully exhausting Thanksgiving week we had. Tuesday night started all the festivities…

We went to the Zoo lights that night. Other than the beautiful lights our favorite thing was the 17-foot talking giraffe. Brinley was able to have a fascinating conversation with him. We watched the lights dance to the music, hopped around on the “bouncy” ground, saw Santa, touched the stingrays or cried at the sight of the stingrays, road on the Merry-Go-Round, and ate a churro. What a fun night!!!!

Thank you Justin for being a teacher, once again we were able to have him home Wednesday so he could help put up Christmas decorations. Okay, so this is the first Christmas in our new home and who would have guessed that it would take all day and a lot of $$$ just to put SOME of our decorations out. We did have fun but I think that it was a bit more stressful that I had imagined. I had pictured music playing in the background, happy helpful children, and an all patient loving husband that was willing to buy everything I wanted to get at Target, even if wasn’t necessary. That scenario was literally in my dreams:) That night all the siblings stayed at my parent’s home the first time in YEARS mom had all her children sleeping at home again. She loved it, and it was fun to feel like we were kids again.

Thanksgiving morning was spent pealing TONS of apples for my mom’s famous apple pies, then off to play b-ball with the family, and a stop to get icees on the way home. Mom had made us coffeecake and monkey bread with eggs on the side, YUMMY! Justin and I got the kids ready and then left for dinner #1 at his parents home, it was very good and nice to visit with them, that family is sure expanding. Again we packed up the kids and were off to dinner #2 at Grandma and Grandpa Kings. Again delicious food, at this point in the day I am just eating to taste the food I am completely full already, but isn’t that what Thanksgiving is all about? We left late that night after visiting with my large extended family.

Friday was another fun filled day. I took Owen shopping with mom, Jennie, and Stef. We were able to stop by the Pavilions to see Na Na helping Santa in her elf custom (cute)! The King family tradition since I was itty-bitty was that the men take the kids the zoo the day after Thanksgiving, so the women can shop. The tradition lives on to the next generation. Justin has taken Brin to the zoo every year, after they stopped off at Carlos O’Brien’s for lunch and then on to the ASU football game. Justin and I poop out before the game most years and this year was no different. I always say next year I’ll go with all the cousins but I think I mean it this time.

I guess she was having fun with my adorable cousin Braden. Watch out for her kisses she gives them freely, I try to tell her that not everyone wants kisses all the time but who listens to their parents anyway:)

Saturday morning we went to the temple Sydney (my cousin) was getting her endowments out. She is headed on her mission to Guatemala the beginning of January. There have been a handful of times that our family (20+ family members) has been able to go through together and the numbers continue to grow. I love to look around and see so many loved ones around. After we all went to Chinese together, MORE FOOD. But I was able to put it all away.

We went home after that and are now recovering from an exciting, exhausting week. I am SO TRULY grateful for family.

A new title for me...

I have taken on another hobby “COACHING.” Yes that’s right I am the head coach of Heritage Academy’s Junior High Girls Basketball team. I got a phone call about a month ago offering a position either JV or Junior High coaching I blew it off at first but the thought of being back in the basketball world quickly persuaded me to give it a “shot” (no pun intended!) So for the past few weeks I have been creating drills and plays and the one of the greatest parts is remembering the good old times. I love this sport and for the past 6 years life has taken me on a new and excited journey of marriage and motherhood. My old hobbies and passions sort of took a backseat, but I see now that I can do multiple things and still be an attentive wife and mother maybe even a better more happy one!!! I love basketball I love athletics the teamwork, the drive and aggressiveness I have surely missed it all. Granted I am only coaching junior high so its mostly fundamentals I am really having fun. Maybe I can start to see why coaching is so appealing to my husband. Another Coach Lensch in the family (but I go by Coach D).

Two and 1/2 Months

Our Little Man is growing so fast. He is at the ...

Fan loving

Early morning smiling

Cooing and Cuddling

Knowing who feeds him

Love to look at himself

Waking up more during the day

Sleeping more through the night

Adorable Adorable Adorable

STAGE

How blessed we are to have Mr. Owen. I am aware that all the parents know this same thing "We have one of the best blessings of all, children!"

Until Next Year

Time to say goodbye to one of my favorite times "Halloween." For the past few years we have hosted a family Halloween Pizza Party, we enjoy this immensely. We were able to go trick-or-treating in our neighborhood for the first time and it was great. So many neighbors did such a good job with all their festive decor. Brinley enjoyed getting LOTS and LOTS of candy with her friend "Vanna," and I guess she had fun with her parents too:) Owen was up the entire eventing between people holding him and trick-or-treating, which meant he gave me a 5.5 hour stretch of sleep. I needed that thanks little man!!

More Halloween Fun

Aunt Jennie was nice enough to get Brinley some new Halloween books, a coloring book, and a CD full of wonderful (or annoying depending on your age) Halloween music. There were a few fun ideas we got from those that we decided to have a full day of Halloween fun, just Brinley and Mommy.

Here is Brinley with the recipe for the Halloween Soup cooked in a pumpkin. After we cooked the soup it was on to homemade bread.
Brinley likes to lick everything after we are done cooking including the bread dough.

Time to cook the bread almost done.

We have to wait until daddy gets home to eat. So we make our family out of pipe cleaners to pass the time. Plus a snake we don't have one of those, no way!!

Finally its time to eat, she waited all day for daddy to come home so that we could dig in. Stop with the pictuers so we can eat already:)

Last but not least SPOOKY ghost pudding, her favorite, she even helped mom finish hers.

We finish the night off carving pumpkins and watching "The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown." We didn't leave Owen out of all the festivities he just didn't think it was quite as fun:)

Here he is screaming in JOY!!!

An exhausting, yummy, exciting, memorable day. Time for bed!!!

Its Halloween time!!!

I LOVE HALLOWEEN!!!! I love the weather, the creativity, the food, the scary movies I love it all. I start planning costumes months in advance and after much thought and stress I decide on a theme. I know that as the kids age they wont want to match there parents so I need to take advantage now. Brinley wanted so badly to be a pink princess after much struggle and persuasion I talked her into being a pink princess FLOWER. I found the perfect costume on Pottery Barn Kids for $120 it finally went on sale for a mere $60. Yeah right!! For one night I don’t think so, so I was brave enough to try to make it. I even found the shoe covers at the Dollar Store and embellished them with flowers and bees. I had so much fun, (thanks mom for letting me use your sewing machines, your help, and your home) it took all day but it turned out better than I imagined.

Another fun thing I accomplished, I am first time e-bay’er. My first item to bid on I WON!!! I got Owen’s costume on e-bay for $11 including shipping. It was a brand new (tags still on, in original packaging) from Gymboree. As soon as I won I started celebrating and couldn't wait to tell Justin so I called him at school to let him know of the good new. I don’t think he was as excited as Brinley and I were. I love e-bay how come I didn’t start this earlier?





Thankfully we have a Ward Fall Festival that we can dress up, more bang for our buck. Justin and I dressed as bees or so we said we did. The shirts didn't turn out as well as I wanted. But what else could I expect I was practically painting on them as we walked out the door.

Well, I have a lot of catching up to do. Over the past two weeks we have done some fun things that I should be journaling about better.

Owen was blessed Sunday September 28th. We had a great support group for Owen (like I expected anything less from our super supportive families.) I found his blessing day to be very relaxing I was able to sit back and take in the day understanding that it would be over in a flash. I suppose with the first one you don’t understand just how fast these precious moments are gone, and with each child I bet it just goes faster. Owen received a nice blessing and after we were able to eat lunch at Grandma and Grandpa Kings home, unfortunately our home does not accommodate all our family. I am so appreciative for the knowledge of the Priesthood and for the blessing it is in our family’s lives.

Justin's 4 generation

My sister in law Rachel is soon expecting her 1st baby next month. We had her baby shower over here on Saturday October 4th. Justin and I have talked about how excited we are to be first time Aunt and Uncle (a fun new title for us!) Brinley is excited to be a cousin, she reminds us all the time that Alex is her cousin. Rachel and Tom live directly behind us, we share a fence. Baby Alex and Owen will be just a few months apart and I am looking forward to watching them literally grow up together, for probably along long time with the housing market the way it is. Hope that baby gets here safe and sound and for Rachel’s sake SOON.

There are some real perks of having a teacher husband, one of them being vacations. This week was Fall Break so we were able to spend some quality time with each other. Thanks Justin for staying up until 2 in the mornings finishing papers and side work to spend the days with us.

Eatable play dough fun and yummy!!!

"I can stand like a mingo too."Our little PEARLAunt NaNa is so much funIf ever in the neighborhood try this Thai Food we are addictedShe calls it "Fire Soup," it comes out with a huge flame.

Her favorite!!!

I know that kids say the funniest things I can't write them all down but, this one I have to remember. If only I could have captured her facial expression.

On the way back from the Zoo Brin was trying to explain something to Aunt Morgan, it was taking her a while to get to the point.

NaNa said "Spit it out kid!"

Brinley, spiting in to her hand replied "But I don't got nothing in my mouth."

Try explaining what a figure of speech is to a two year old:)