Thanksgiving Weekend

Pie making day with the girls!

Cutest Pilgrim EVER!

First and foremost, we have so much to be thankful for: three wonderful kids, a happy marriage, a good job, Ben pursuing his dream of getting his MBA at Thunderbird & doing so well, health, family, the gospel & seeing so many tender mercies from the Lord in our lives. We really feel like we were led to this new home in Mesa and have felt so blessed to be close to Ben's work, and my extended family. Other benefits have been more space (we were so cramped & it made me cranky!), great neighbors, wonderful ward, and closeness to the temple, airport, and everything. We feel truly blessed!  


We decided since we hadn't been on a vacation altogether all year, that we would go on a little getaway over Thanksgiving break.  On Thanksgiving Eve, we gathered the kids and had a movie party, watching the Polar Express, then told the kids we were going to take the Polar Express to the North Pole this weekend. Thanksgiving morning, I went on a nice run, and really felt so grateful for my health. Then I exhausted myself making our traditional dinner:  homemade rolls, stuffing, salad, mashed potatoes & gravy, ham, corn on the cob & gramma jello, oh and pie of course. It only took me 11 years, but I finally perfected Mom's apple pie. Ben used butter inside the turkey & it was so moist! We ate on the back patio & had to move the table to the shade... our butter melted in its dish it was so warm! That afternoon we had a fun skype with all the Murdocks, spread out over 5 states. Highlight was hearing Grandpa sing his Turkey song. 



The next morning I went Black Friday shopping by myself for a few hours and got some pretty good deals. That afternoon we went to the zoo as a family. It was really nice. Then we got ready for our trip. The kids were so excited!  

We had a nice, relaxing morning, then hit the road. We stopped for lunch in Sedona, then went on a nice little hike near Bell Rock. We also took some cute pictures in our ASU gear. Ruby lasted about five minutes before she was on Ben's shoulders. He's such a good dad!  Then we finished our drive to Flagstaff, had pizza, and watched a movie before bed.

ARIZONA kids.

Go Sun Devils!

The AZ Murdocks.

Best ride in town. :)

We found an eagle for Grandpa Murdock.

We also found fall leaves!

Finally!

I really miss fall!

We took the long route to Flagstaff, rolled down the windows, and just enjoyed the ride. 

Killing time in Williams, AZ.

The next day I ran on the treadmill while the kids watched cartoons. We had a nice breakfast, then headed to Williams where the train station is. We walked around all the tourist shops, took more photos, played at a park, then changed into our PJS in the car before going to the train depot. The train ride really was magical. The kids had never been on a train before, and they were able to turn the seats so we had our own little compartment. They started off by punching our tickets and tried to follow the story. There were Christmas lights inside the train, music, and the helpers were dressed like chefs. They served cookies & hot chocolate, read aloud the book over the speakers & shared the pictures, then as we got closer to the North Pole, the sun was setting. We went through a "time tunnel' and then we saw it, the Christmas Village all lit up & Santa waving. We stopped and Santa boarded the train, and gave each kid a bell. The kids were eating it up!  When we turned around, they led us on a sing along, and it was so much fun! Ben & I agreed we are so happy we did this while our kids are young, but it's not necessarily something we'd do every year. It was a really fun memory for us to share, and now when we open up our train and see our bell every Christmas, I hope they'll remember the magic.

Ruby's Princess Party

 Little Miss was invited to her first friend birthday a few weeks before her own. I'm not big on throwing parties for my kids until they're old enough to start asking for one, but this Fancy Nancy themed party was so adorable, I couldn't resist! Above, "Follow the Fancy." Below, selling cupcakes to the neighbors like they did in the Fancy Nancy book they read at the beginning of the party.

  Last day as a 2 year old.

 Princess of quite a lot. 

  Ruby loved every minute of her princess party, even the planning. 

Ruby's Princess cupcakes in Cinderella colors.

She helped make the cupcakes, chose the food, & kept saying it wasn't her REAL birthday, until her party. It was somewhat crazy in that I changed the time of her party to later in the afternoon so I could go to Jenna's baby shower in Maricopa. Also, Ruby woke up with a runny nose, so she wasn't her typical happy self (& refused to wear her Rapunzel princess dress), but we still had a lot of fun. We invited a few girls from the ward that are her age, Scarlett& Bella, and her princes...Kaleb, Dylan, TJ, & Ayden. Jenny's girls also came to help. The little girls dressed in their princess best, then when they arrived made fairytale pumpkins (modge podge mini pumpkins & glitter it up!). We then played Princess, Princess, Frog, Princess/Prince What Time is it?  Pin the Crown on the Princess, ate cake, opened presents, and tried to pop bubbles with their wands while they waited for their rides. Ruby's favorite part was the bubbles at the end. She wasn't really a fan of sharing her presents or pink tricycle, so I think it was a relief when it was time for her friends to go home. :)

 Crown from Grandma & Papa, bike from Mom & Dad.

 Sofia, Ruby & Bella.

 Princess, Princess, Frog with Taylor's help. :)

Awesome package from Grandma & Papa.

Ladybug girl dressing up with D after opening her package of fun.

Loving her first Barbie from Grandma.

Dinner date with Daddy on her REAL birthday.