Three Petersens

After a yummy Thanksgiving dinner with just our family:

I hopped on a plane headed for Denver to see this little peanut:

Luke Nathan Petersen was born last Monday and we all couldn't be more thrilled, especially these two:

Nathan and Chelsea are the sweetest parents and just can't get enough of this little guy. He is such a calm baby with the most perfect face and skinny little bird legs. I enjoyed snuggling him all weekend long.

Welcome to the world Baby Luke! You are definitely our greatest blessing this Thanksgiving season!

Taking Chance

Looking for a good movie to rent? (It seems like there are very few out there right now!) I highly recommend "Taking Chance". Put out by HBO last year, it's based on the true story of a marine Lt. Colonel who chooses to escort the body of a fallen soldier home from Iraq. It's very powerful and emotional to see the care and honor that is given to these brave men and women who give their lives so selflessly. Warning: have your kleenex handy. I don't know if it was since Mark was in the Air Force for 14 years or if I'm just a crybaby, but I found myself crying through the whole thing. Whether you have family ties to the military or not, I think all Americans will be touched this movie.

Halloween Happenings

We had a fun Halloween weekend full of parties, trunk and trick or treating and of course plenty of candy. Even Maple got in on the fun with her very own witch's hat.

Here's our fierce-looking spiderman, BYU football player (he still wanted to be Max Hall, even after going to the TCU game), doctor/dad (can you say "last minute costume so I can still get candy?") and Mallory holding a sign that says "Go Ceilings!" Any guesses as to what she was? If you know Mall's quirky sense of humor you can figure it out.

The best part of the night is always the sorting and trading of treats.

And in other news, we had our first snowfall on Thursday, although nothing stuck to the ground. I'm not ready for winter!

Homecoming Weekend

We're back from a whirlwind weekend in Provo. It was homecoming for BYU, a tradition I don't think my parents have missed since they left the Y over 30 years ago. Of course they've passed this school pride on to the rest of the family (I always say that in my family it was never "if" you go to BYU, but "when" you go to BYU.) We had almost our entire family there (all but Jason's family and Melissa's kids). To say it was crazy would be an understatement...picture 23 people trying to go anywhere together (BYU bookstore, Chuck-a-Rama, Cafe Rio, etc). We had a great time just being together, even if our beloved Cougars never even showed up for the game. The other bad news is that even though we were all dressed so cute in matching Y gear for the game we never got one big picture. You'll have to settle for these not-so-great-ones taken at Lindsay's apt. after the game.

Brandon, Ashlee, Jeff and my dad.

Melissa, Matt and Mark (who has taken the loss remarkably well, I might add.)

Chelsea and Nathan, waiting for a baby boy in December!

Cutie Skylar, who we loved seeing along with Amber's Carter and Sydney (how could I not have taken more pictures?) Thanks for a great weekend, everyone! We love and miss you all.

Mission Accomplished

(Picture taken last winter for my 365 picture-a-day album)

So last night was a monumental event for our family: we finished reading the Book of Mormon. Now you might think I was bragging about how spiritual and obedient we are. We're not. It took us probably 4 years to finish it (no joke). We are so on-again-off-again with our family scripture study that it drives me crazy. We go in spurts when we'll read for a several nights in a row and then we'll go a week without. And let's not even talk about this summer when it didn't get dark until 10:00, so by the time everyone was in the house it was time for bed. Regardless of our track record I'm glad that we can say that we finally finished it.

Apparently Brady is also relieved, since he said to me this morning, "I'm so glad we finished the Book of Mormon and now we'll never have to read scriptures again." Yep, future missionary in the making right there.

Only 12 more hours...

I think I might be more excited for this wedding than I was for my own.

Fall Update

Yes, Fall has arrived in Idaho, but I'm afraid Winter is trying to butt it's way in too quickly! Look, snow on the mountains already:

Fall is definitely my favorite season, but I feel like everyone says that. No, seriously, I really love it and always have. October is my birthday month (22 shoppping days left everyone!) and so many of my favorite sights (leaves changing), smells (yummy candles) and tastes (pumpkin anything) come around this time of year. Fall also reminds me of fun trips we would take during med. school in Maryland when my parents would visit every October. It's so fun to again live in an area where the seasons change.

Here's what we've been up to:

FHE last Monday night at the pumpkin patch/hay maze.

Football, football, and more football. Dallin had his best game yet on Saturday with 5 tackles, 2 interceptions and his first touchdown.

And since I know you've all been so worried about our cat situation, we did get another kitten from a different family in the ward. I think we're naming her Nala since she looks like a little lion cub. Maple is much happier and we're hoping these two stick around for a while!