Cutest Lady Bug on the Block

Brooklyn got to trunk-or-treat with our ward on Friday night and trick-or-treat with some friends on Saturday night. Can I just say that I had no idea that taking a sixteen-month-old trick-or-treating could be SO fun and so ridiculously cute. By the end she was a pro, running from house to house sticking out her hand and saying "treat". My favorite part of every house was when she would get to the door and knock...and knock...and knock...until someone answered. One guy even started knocking back on the other side of the door before he opened it to see a little lady bug pounding away.







She made out like a bandit. This was only one night's worth of candy (okay, so her bucket is actually rather small). Needless to say, Shane and I have had our fair (or unfair) share of her candy.

Macadamia Clusters and Other News

Okay, so who has had the Chocolate Macadamia Caramel clusters from Costco? They are heavenly. Try some. Just be aware that they will be gone within about 24 hours...so don't plan on keeping them stocked in your pantry.

In other news...I broke my foot last night. I was walking to my car, thought that it was farther away but saw it right in front of me and tried to stop/turn. I landed really awkwardly and heard that wonderful bone-cracking noise. The break isn't terrible and should heal in about six weeks, but I have to stay completely off my foot for now. The hardest part is trying to take care of Brooklyn and hop/hobble around the apartment on crutches at the same time. She thinks my crutches are fascinating and keeps trying to get in front of me and grab them while I walk -not so cute. She has also learned the word for crutch - cute.

Sad things about breaking my foot right now:

1 - I will have to drop out of my dance class that just started a few weeks ago (sad day Natalie, you are an awesome teacher)
2 - Brooklyn and I have to stop our recently resumed morning walks (it's finally cool enough to enjoy getting outside in the morning)
3 - My family is coming down and we were supposed to go to San Diego next Saturday...not sure if I won't be able to go, or just limit what I do
4 - Shane and I are flying to Baltimore in two weeks to visit Sarah and Jon - we're also planning on going to D.C. and Philly while we're there - we're still figuring out what our options are for that
5 - I'll be on crutches for my birthday

Happy things about breaking my foot right now:

1- Shane got to hang out with us for a few extra hours today while we went to the doctor and got settled at home
2- Shane now gets to do the bulk of the cleaning at home
3- Shane gets to do the grocery shopping =)

Just kidding, only number one was good. I feel bad adding extra duties and stresses to Shane's already hectic life at his job and as young men's president in our ward. But he is bearing it like a saint. Anyhow, I've never broken a bone before (unless you count the time I rolled over my thumb on a banana chair and had to wear a rockin thumb cast for a few weeks), so this will be a good learning experience. And Brookie and I will get a lot of quality (movie) time at home together. If you live in the area and are ever bored, come over and play. I promise we'll feed you ice cream. Or maybe even those to-die-for Macadamia Clusters. =)

Our Little Reader

Brooklyn can read! Well, okay, she can't read, but we have so few books that she has memorized some of the simpler ones. She can actually "read" both of these books all the way through, but she was in a frustrated mood today, so we only got through parts of them. Enjoy!

Note: Sorry about the awkward videography, but I had to sit close enough to turn the pages...

Wub yoo

Shane got the first "wub yoo" from Brooklyn last night (after which I made her say it to me three times as payment for not saying it to me first). I just thought it was a blog-worthy moment.

Tea Party

Wow, can it get much cuter than this? I have a picture of my little sister Joy in a teacup at Disneyland when she was around Brooklyn's age - it is one of my favorite pictures because of the look in her eyes - the awe and wonder of being at Disneyland for the first time. Now I can add this teacup picture of Brooklyn to it as my two all-time favorite photos. This past week was a whirlwind. Two days after getting back from my grandma's funeral in Utah, we picked Shane's sister Megan up from the LAX airport (for those of you who have had to battle that traffic, groans are appropriate here). However we had a great time on the way home - Megan and I catching up on life, and Brooklyn glued to her Mickey Mouse DVD in the back. We had a full weekend. We made some awesome carrot cake cupcakes, ate at In-n-Out, did a little shopping and just hung out. Then Shane's sister Melanee, her husband George and their two kids arrived on Sunday evening, shortly followed by Shane's parents. We spent the week at the beach, Disneyland, and watching some BYU football. We had a blast, and hope that they will all come to visit us again soon! Here are some of my favorite moments.


I must say, Mickey Mouse was a big hit with all the cousins. It was appropriate since we were headed to Disneyland. I have some great pictures of Brooklyn and Sammie with the princesses at Disneyland (for some reason, Kevin didn't want to have anything to do with them). We waited in line for an hour to get those pictures, but they're on our other camera, and I'm just too lazy right now to upload them.


Brooklyn can officially eat a whole ear of corn. She tends to like the food that I like - I could probably eat six ears of corn in one sitting.

On Saturday, Melanee and I got brave and made strawberry freezer jam while the boys watched the football game. Of all the things in the world that I love, strawberry freezer jam has got to be close to the top of the list - maybe just behind ice cream. I was always too intimidated to make it, so we have been strawberry freezer jamless our whole marriage. I discovered on Saturday, that it is one of the world's easiest things to make - so needless to say we'll be adding to our jam stores every time strawberries go on sale. I'm a little worried that this batch will only last a few weeks, so maybe I should hurry back to the store and buy some more while they're still on sale.

All in all, life has been treating us well. Brooklyn continues to amaze me. She can say almost any word you ask her to say, she spins in circles, walks backwards, and can be very stubborn when she wants to be. She also gives the world's best kisses, and she loves playing with her new stuffed Mickey.

Best Treat for a Buck

And here is me...eating the best treat you can get for a buck (actually in the United States it costs about 2.19. Maybe that has something to do with shipping costs). This was my favorite treat when we lived in Japan. It's an ice cream sandwich, but not in the traditional sense. It has a cake cone outside that looks like a rectangle belgian waffle, with vanilla ice cream, and a layer of chocolate on the inside. It sounds simple, but it is the perfect combination of everything and a delight to your taste buds. I've been looking for this at every Asian store, and finally found it in a grocery store in Little Tokyo in downtown LA. We were there with Shane's parents and stumbled across it. It might be worth an hour drive/$10 parking fee to get one of these every month. Or maybe I'll just take a cooler next time and buy them out.

Is this allowed?

Am I allowed to post pictures this naked (and cute) on my blog? Oh well, here you go. We were in Utah a couple of weeks ago, and had a blast on the family farm (aka, the house in Fairview where I think every house qualifies as a farm). Brooklyn bathing in a tub...


Brooklyn riding on a four-wheeler... Hey! Who let her up there? No seriously dad, you better get permission next time. Mom power overrides grandpa power.

We had an awesome time there, and weren't scheduled to go back until Christmas. However, my grandma Bangerter passed away on Thursday, so we'll be headed back up sooner than we planned. She was an incredible woman who really lived the gospel and left an amazing heritage. We miss her a lot, but she finally gets to be with her husband who passed away about 10 years ago. So it's a happy/sad day.