Thankful

This Thanksgiving, we traveled over the river and through the woods to Grandma and Grandpa Sorenson's house in St. George, Utah. We would lucky to be able to see all but one of Jared's brothers and their families, and to do it in some quite balmy weather, compared with our normal chilly fall weather. We got to do some fun hiking, participated in our very first Mystery Escape, and of course got some yummy pie. On our way back home we spent a day and night in Las Vegas, and Jared and the kids let me drag them "Love," the Beatles-themed Cirque du Soleil show. And at the end of the week, we headed on home, thankful for all of our family, but also thankful to be back at home.



Hiking with Grandma and Grandpa. Ellie just finished a science unit on rocks, so she was able to point out all the different types we ran across during our St. George adventure.

Alert the press - I think we finally have a successful selfie.

Yeah, Ellie's pristine white vest (which actually was Grandma Sorenson's borrowed vest, since Ellie had an unfortunate bloody-nose incident on the plane) was a bit dusty by the end of this hike

It's hard to tell, but this was a cool little hidey-spot in the rock - Ellie and Jack decided they'd very much like to live there

"Let's exercise on Thanksgiving morning!" ... said no Candland ever. But we were in Sorenson Territory, where apparently that is a great idea. So early on Thanksgiving morning, a bunch of the Sorenson clan got up and ran a 5k. Did I succumb to the peer pressure and run? Oh hell no - I mean, perhaps if there were an ice cream truck leading the way, I would have chased after it, but to run just to ... run? Um, no. So I was the loyal photographer / cheerleader / coat and key holder. Everyone plays a part, people!

Getting ready for the race

Look at that handsome man running!

Go, Jack, go!

Really, those legs are like a gazelle

All manner of Sorensons at the finish line

There aren't any pictures of us eating all manner of pie on Thanksgiving, but you should probably be thankful for that. The next day, the menfolk took the kids swimming, while the ladyfolk got pedicures. This was only my second pedicure ever. I have an intense, visceral distaste of people touching my feet, but I managed to get through the experience with only a little noticeable flinching and hissing.

A local amphitheater put on a live nativity, which was lovely.

Once we were in Las Vegas, we of course had to track down a McDonald's. After all the European McDonald's, Jack is focusing on visiting a McDonald's in each U.S. state.

They have a big ol' Hershey's store there, people. We managed to keep ourselves from eating every single item in the store, but only barely.

I have a confession to make. After the trip, the kids forgot that we still had leftover candy from our Hershey's trip. Yup, I ate 'em all. I'm trying to dredge up some guilt, but, yeah, no I feel fine about it.

I give you .... Statue of Liberty made out of Twizzlers.

That evening, we went to see "Love," the Beatles-themed Cirque du Soleil show. It was AWESOME, although I most likely embarrassed my family since I sang along with each song.

Very thankful for these guys

Who's Your Daddy?

Ellie was very proud to bring her veteran dad to her school's Veterans Day concert. She insisted that he wear his "fanciest" uniform, and Jared dutifully complied. Ellie's class gave a great concert, and there was a really good turnout from neighborhood veterans and their families. But probably most important was that Ellie - who is fast developing the opinion that her parents are (1) idiots, (2) tragically uncool, and (3) horribly embarrassing - actually had a morning where she thought her dad was a pretty cool guy.