Thanksgiving Feast

This last week, I was able to help with Reagan's class Thanksgiving Feast. It was so fun to see my little "Native American" sharing a poem and song, with the rest of the Pilgrims and Native Americans in her class. It was also fun to see the kids gobble up the feast. The traditional Thanksgiving donut holes were a big hit. :)


We are looking forward to spending time with our family this Thanksgiving....and eating way too much pumpkin pie.

Violin Recital

On Friday, Reagan participated in her first violin recital. She played "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star". She was the first to perform, and she did a great job.

Here she is pretending to play because I didn't take a picture of her while she was playing (I didn't want to distract her).

Here she is with her teacher and several other students.

And of course, Jenna was very proud of her sister.

Disneyland Trip

We didn't think that we were going to be able to do it (because so many before us have not), but we were able to go on a family trip that included our lawyer/daddy. I put lawyer first because we have heard many a horror story where a family plans a trip for months. And then last minute, the dad can't go because of work. So we beat the odds and took a FAMILY trip to Disneyland. We met Liz (Grandma) and Brooke (Ian's sister), Evan, McKenzie, and Brynn at the happiest place on earth.

While at Disneyland, we saw "The Mouse"! For us, Minnie is "The Mouse" because she is a female and females rule our roost. So the girls were excited about that.
***Sorry Mickey. I do acknowledge the fact that we saw and took pictures with you. And that was very special and all. But Minnie (and the Princesses) are what Disney is all about to these ladies.***



We rode a ton of rides. There were NO lines to stand in our first 2 days. It was perfect. But of course, now I will be expecting no lines anytime we go to Disneyland or World. (This was not only our girls first trip but mine also.)

We had breakfast with some characters. You can tell from the family photo above, that Jen was a bit nervous. And it is pretty darn obvious from the bear picture, that Reagan was about to burst with excitement.

So I had to through this picture in because this is how our life is (like many of yours'). Husband involved in family activity, meal, in bed, you name it and he is with his mistress Madam Blackberry.

We met a few fairies during our visit. (Jenna is starting to warm up to the characters.)

We spent some time with Princess Minnie.

We met just about every Princess. But our time with Ariel was probably the highlight of our character experience. She talked with the girls for several minutes and even played a bit. They loved it so much. It was worth it to stand in that line, just to see how excited and happy our girls were.

Another highlight for the girls, was spending time with their grandma and cousins. McKenzie and Brynn are their only cousins and we don't get to see them very often. The girls loved every second of their time with their family.

This picture of our last night together perfectly illustrates that despite the kids desire to live at Disneyland, it was time for them to go home. (Well, maybe Reagan and Brynn were up for Disney living but the other 2...they are a different story.)

We had a wonderful time with family at Disneyland. The girls are ready to go back. And I am ready for another vacation.

The President

Between falling asleep and being waken by my husband, I watched the votes come in. It is amazing and hard to really grasp the reality of a President Obama. I am excited to see what our country's future holds. I hope that he will bring prosperity and peace to our country and the world.

As a side note, McCain's speech was beautiful. He was very respectful and classy. And he understood the historical impact of such an election.

Being biracial, and just a minority, I feel overwhelmed. I now truly feel that no matter what your skin color or whether you are a woman or a man, you can be President. And that is a wonderful feeling for a mother of 2 little girls that have not only European but also Panamanian blood in their veins. I feel blessed to be an American. And I feel blessed to have witnessed this historic event.

Election Day Thoughts

In honor of Election Day (by the way, we voted the first weekend of early voting), I thought that I would share an article written by a regular over at Times and Seasons. I am sharing it because of several reasons.... 1. I am shocked to see an article written by someone who is LDS, that doesn't line up with what most of "us" think. 2. I am a staunch Republican. I have always agreed with everything that the Republican party has stood for. Well, that is until George Bush screwed up our country in so many different ways (and yes, I did vote for him both times. But I have decided that if something just isn't working, you need to try something new. And yes, I am still a Republican despite these feelings). 3. Years ago even before John McCain ran against Bush, I couldn't stand him. I have always felt that he is a Democrat in Republican "clothing". Ian and my parents could tell anyone that I have never liked the guy. 4. I soon discovered after Sarah Palin was added to the Republican ticket, that I knew more about politics than she did (I am talking about pre debate schooling). If I wouldn't trust myself (with the knowledge that I have on International and National dealings, laws, etc), how could I trust a woman that looked so sadly pathetic during simple interviews.

I know that being LDS, we have many values that line up with the Republican party. And I definitely still have those values. But I feel like our country just can't take another 4 years that are similar to the last 8. I think that the Republican party needs a shake down, and if voting against it is the only way to get us back to the old, or shall we say Reagan, Republican party, then so be it. Oh and let it be known that if Romney would have been the nominee, I totally would have stood by the man that would know how to fix this economy. I would have even possibly, just maybe, even voted for McCain if he would have chosen Romney as his running mate. But alas, he did not. So here I am, saddened by the party that I call my own....

Below is the article that I fist referenced. I hope that it will make you think rather than just react angrily. I found it to be very interesting and enlightening to read this from an LDS perspective.