I LOVE OCTOBER

I love October. So much. I've always enjoyed the fall because, hello duh, and I've always loved Halloween because HELLO DUH, but now that Rory AND Stephen have birthdays in October it just feels like one big party month and I am here for it. Seriously, sometimes it's hard to play it casual I love it so much. 

To kick off my October celebrations I hosted the beehives mutual at my house where we played Halloween party games, including haunted gingerbread houses (made with chocolate graham crackers and burnt sugar, they were so cute). This was the first week of October, see what I mean by no chill? But it was the perfect excuse to throw a party because the next day was Rory's second birthday! I was too sane to throw a party with kids her age but not sane enough to not throw a party at all, so this was a good compromise. Mostly I needed a reason to bake her a cake. I did a strawberries and cream puppy dog cake this year and I was SO. INSANELY. PROUD. OF. IT. It tasted delicious and it looked adorable. I would be slightly ashamed of the number of hours I spent decorating it if I didn't enjoy the process so darn much. It was awesome. And Stephen made it home just in time to cut cake with us and sing happy birthday. 

For Rory's actual birthday we went out to lunch with Emily and McKenna. We ate at Joe's Farm Grill and it was perfect weather to eat outside. Rory enjoyed covering herself in my german chocolate milkshake and stealing most of Emily's fries while refusing to eat any of the other delicious things that I ordered. McKenna gave her the cutest little Golden Doodle puppy toy for her birthday and Rory refused to let McKenna hold it. Oh, and she peed her pants, but luckily it was outside anyway. So I guess you could say it was a major success of a birthday lunch!

That night we got to open presents together and it was so much fun to watch her react to each gift! She got a puppy purse and alphabet toy from Grandma and Poppop Marsh, a bike from Grammy and Grandpa Earl, and a baby doll with a stroller from us. She threw a major fit when we made her put her things away to go to bed, so yay! She is officially a two year old!

But, the birthday fun didn't stop there. Rebecca's birthday is on the 2nd so we planned a little birthday date with her to the splash pad and then finished up with some Baked Bear ice cream sandwiches. The best part was when we told the lady at the store we were out celebrating birthdays she said that meant our cookies were free! It was the best FREE birthday celebration. 

We hosted a little get together for Conference that weekend and in between sessions we had yummy carne asada that Stephen grilled as well as some homemade cinnamon rolls by yours truly. I still have yet to make a perfect batch, but there were for sure improvements this time. We had Cameron, Emily, McKenna, Sarah, and Rebecca over and it was good times. And I almost forgot to mention the best part was the announcement of the two-hour block! We can't wait for church in January!

With the beautiful fall weather we've been able to spend lots of evenings at the park and Rory insisted on bringing her new bike to ride. 

For mutual the following week our activity was decorating pumpkins, so of course Rory had to get in on that action. She covered her shirt in acrylic paint (mom fail), but she was so proud of her pumpkin it was hard to stay mad for long. After we put the pumpkin on the porch with the other Halloween decorations Rory insisted on a picture. And then continued to insist on a picture any time we came out the front door or she managed to run out of the garage to her pumpkin before I could catch her. We also started a Mommy and Me fitness class at the library and we usually finish up by walking through the Riparian preserve afterwards. These turtles swam right up to us and I haven't seen them there since so I had to make sure this was documented. 

I wanted to do something big for Stephen's 30th birthday, but he was too busy at work to get away so we kept it pretty simple. Rory and I got him a new BYU leather briefcase for work. We also bought tickets to see the BYU Ballroom team when they came to perform in Mesa. We got tickets in the back of the theater in case Rory was a nightmare, but it ended up being so much fun. Rory loved the show and it was hard not to tear up watching her get excited about dance. The next day we went out to dinner with the Hardings to Gecko Grill, then dropped Rory off at home with a babysitter so that we could go watch Hunt for the Wilderpeople at their house. It was a lot of fun and Stephen was only a little embarrassed by the sombrero treatment. 

For Stephen's birthday I made him a banana cream pie cake and once again it turned out delicious. Stephen isn't much of a frosting guy so I focused a lot less on presentation and a lot more on flavor, but I think it turned out awesome. 

Our next fall adventure was checking out one of the local pumpkin patch/ corn maze places that we hear so much. They had a ton of games and things for the kids to do, but there were also approximately one million moms and toddlers there. Also, it was crazy hot. It's fun to play in corn and hay and stuff when the air is crisp, but the sun was beating down and we were all a bunch of sweaty messes. The best part of the day was when we stopped at the stinkiest booth I have ever smelled and got snow cone. And they weren't the good fancy kind either. Probably it would be more fun at night, but I don't see myself ever going again so I guess we will never know! It was the one real dark spot in my October. 

Finally, it was time for the ward trunk or treat! They had a chili cook off and a dessert competition and I entered both because of the whole no-shame-so-obsessed-with-halloween thing, plus last year they totally ran out of desserts and I got none. I ended up bringing five or six different kinds of cookies and I would have taken a picture, but I have a feeling it would be less impressive than it was sad. I started baking weeks before hand and just kept everything in the freezer. BUT it was all worth it because I WON THE DESSERT BAKE OFF! I never win anything! My s'mores cookies cup won the whole thing and I was so, so proud. Other than the competition it was such a fun night. Rory's little Tinkerbell wings light up, so we could let her run around wild all night and still always knew exactly where she was. Stephen took her around to the cars to do the trunk or treating and she loved it!

My good friend Jax is a photographer, and in October she does mini Halloween costume sessions as a fundraiser to raise money for her son's school specifically for kids with autism. It was an amazing cause and once I saw these pictures I realized I should have paid even more because I am completely obsessed!

Also, HUGE shout out to Aunt Mady who got Rory this to die for Tinkerbell outfit. You the real MVP. 

Since Kendall's wedding in August Rory has been completely obsessed with the temple so we took an afternoon to go and visit the temple and she was stoked! We walked around the temple grounds and got to admire the flowers and the fountains and just had the most lovely afternoon together. She was so excited about it and for a while afterwards every time she saw a tall building she would say, "I see it, mom! I see the temple!" 

 Just before we officially called it a wrap on October, we snuck in one more Halloween activity. We had a couple in our ward over to watch a movie and carve pumpkins. Stephen is the one who came up with the idea for our Tinkerbell pumpkin. I carved Tinkerbell's body and Stephen and his drill worked their magic on the little sparkles. It was a fun night and once again, we were impressed with ourselves for something we made- it runs in my blood to be easily impressed with myself and I must be rubbing off on Stephen. 

Last, but NEVER least, we got to celebrate Halloween! Stephen got caught up at work so Rory and I took off on our own for a little bit and hit up the houses on our street. Rory was not hesitant at all to say, "Trick or treat! Happy Halloween!" to people and she was so cute most people gave her extra candy. She got a little hesitant around houses with loud or moving decorations, but for the most part she was pretty fearless. Stephen made it home, quickly changed into his Captain Hook costume (that man is such a trooper!) and we put Rory in the stroller to head over to the next neighborhood where lots of our ward friends live. Pulling her around in the stroller felt a little bit like cheating, especially because she would lay low in her seat, keep her bucket out to one side, and wouldn't even sit up to say trick or treat. But if we tried to blow past a house, she noticed and would freak out. She is totally my kid. We ended the night at the Harding's Halloween party where Rory ate way too much candy and played until she cried and made others cry as well. It was our best Halloween yet and I loved every minute of it. Now if only Neverland was real and we were able to keep this little Tinkerbell forever. 

September travels

We started September off right by spending the weekend in Tucson with a bunch of the Marsh extended family. John and Lucina got a few rooms at a resort so that we could all meet up for the BYU game. Rory and I went down early with John and Lucina and while Stephen spent the day at work we played in the pool and had a blast. He made it that night just in time to catch the family dinner at Oregano's

 The next day we played and hung out while the boys went golfing and once again had a blast. John, Ashleigh, and Siena had arrived late in the night and Rory was so excited to have a play mate. That night John, Ashleigh, Stephen, and I went out to dinner at El Guero Canelos before making the way to the game. I had to include this picture of Stephen with the cup of churros and ice cream because is there a more beautiful sight in this world than the man you love holding a cup for churros and ice cream for you? 
It was an unexpected win for BYU and it ended up being so fun to be at the game. I saw that rare side of Stephen that only comes out when he's watching BYU sports. You know, the side of him that stands on the bench, turns to greet his public with a solemn face, and then proceeds to alternate between pounding his fist to his chest or raising it high in the air for his "people"? Yeah, that one. I was invisible to him all night and I'm not sure I have ever laughed more. Man, do I love this weirdo. And if you think I am exaggerating that screen shot taken from ESPN is about all the proof I need. 

It was a quick, but very fun, little escape. When we got back home we realized that Rory had picked up a new skill- she now stripped off her diaper before falling asleep for naps or bedtimes. How advanced, right? She must be ready for potty training or something you might think, but no, she just wakes up in a puddle of her own pee if we don't catch it soon enough. 

The next weekend Rory and I drove down to Redlands, CA to meet up with Courtney and her crew. We got there in the afternoon, and once Curtis was done with his time at the clinic for the day we made out way down to San Diego for my cousin Parker's wedding. It was a great excuse to be together again so soon after Kendall's wedding and it was especially awesome to not be in charge of anything this time! We took one picture! It was bliss. Having never been there before, I thought it was pretty cool to be in the San Diego temple. 

Before the reception, Parker and Kara held a ring ceremony for her family members that weren't able to join them in the temple. They asked my dad to officiate and he did a really lovely job. I hope that I got from him his love of the gospel and his love for others, though I do think I was blessed with my mom's filter instead of my dad's nonexistent one. ( He did such a lovely job on the ceremony that I won't document the way he offended the bride's mother at the rehearsal dinner, but just know it was hilarious.) 

Their reception was held in a botanical garden that evening which was just lovely. I spent most of the night trying to keep Rory from jumping in this pond and I was pretty successful. There was Olive Garden, dancing, and cake, so overall it was an extremely successful party. 

Everyone headed out the next day and I drove back with the Papenfi to Redlands to spend the week with them. I love any time I can get to hang with Courtney and this was no exception. Thankfully, Curtis's schedule as a fourth year med student is a little less insane so I even got to see him some of the time too! We spent a lot of time playing at the park, swimming, eating good food, and watching good shows. Oh, and also a lot of time trying to get Rory to NOT strip every time she slept, which as you can see I was not so successful at. 

Rory loved having pretend siblings for the week and even though she spent most of her time trying to fight them it was clear she was so obsessed with Quinn and Dean. She was so obsessed with Dean that after seeing him use the potty she decided she wanted to go on the toilet too. We spent our last few days there with her doing all her peeps in the potty, aside from during nap time when she'd strip down and pee in her bed. It was crazy. One time we were even at the park and she used the public toilets FIVE times, and she went every time! It was seriously crazy. 

Our last night in town we enjoyed some fancy grilled cheese and gourmet ice cream and it was such a blast. I really hope we get to live closer together someday because hanging out with my sister all the time is just the best. 

*Side story: I received a text from Stephen saying that he bought a tool from our neighbor and he needed me to venmo him $250 for it. I was so bugged. I had been saving up for his birthday present and to afford I was waking up early to teach classes the whole time that I was with the Papenfi. I just couldn't believe that he would buy some random tool that was that expensive without even thinking about it! I was so mad I even full on vented to my mom and sisters and fumed about it for a while. 

When Rory and I got home we chatted with Stephen for a little bit before he made the comment, "I think the closet is stinky again, can you go smell it?" (and yes, we have had stinky closet problems in the past) I opened the door to find brand new shelving that Stephen and my neighbor had built together! It was so gorgeous and such a shock. Stephen is not one for surprises like this, so it totally blew me out of the water. And then of course I felt terrible for being so mean. And then of course he told everyone how ticked I was and they all thought it was hilarious. But I'm the one with a brand new closet so ha ha ha.