Thanksgiving Redux...

Thanksgiving started out with the Turkey Trot that we do annually. Somehow I agreed to trot with my friend's little girl which I was okay with because I figured that we could run in sync...
:) Well a cousin came along as well who has run only a few days in her life - and well I am not sure that a 5k was a good initiation for her! But nonetheless, we did it and I think she can be proud of herself for finishing. I basically was only able to fast walk with her and at times not even fast walk...gahhhh!!! 44 minutes! not even a time I want to record!! But this Saturday I am going to do my own 5k during my husband's half marathon. He won't even know I am gone!!
I am no where near where I wanted to be, but I will keep on trying. Running is such a head game and I really need to wrap my brain and lungs around it. I want to "just do it" like Nike says.

Dinner was just fine, family and some flirting happend at our table which made for some fun times!! My sister brought a friend of hers - Anton from Russia. Well he instantly focused in on our little Lauren. Later that nite at the movies, Jan informed me that Anton thought Lauren was a cutie! We already knew that! But it was cute and so had fun with it. I am not sure that it will ever go anywhere but it made for a spicier cup of hot chocolate watching a boy liking a girl...Kind of made me feel young again.

This is what went on in my house last nite...

The girls love to perform...so we always pretend to have a show - "So You Think the Lowder Girls Can Dance". Well, tonite Pappy got in on the action:

The Ability to Succeed - YW Lesson

Today in Young Women our lesson was "THE ABILITY TO SUCCEED" it focused on the power of self acceptance and that Heavenly Father created us with specific abilities to accomplish great things...there was a great quote from L. Tom Perry that pretty much summed up the lesson:

“One of the greatest weaknesses in most of us is our lack of faith in ourselves. One of our common failings is to depreciate our tremendous worth” (L. Tom Perry, “Be the Best of Whatever You Are,”



My first counselor taught the lesson and used a rather interesting object lesson...she gave a few of the girls each a potato and a straw. She then told them to make the straw go through the raw potato. This seemingly impossible task is really possible!! see the video below. One of the girls drove that straw straight thru the straw!

She is an investigator. Her response was, "My faith is strong enough to push right through". Ahhh, if only I always felt that way...

Puzzletime

Periodically my husband will buy a puzzle when he feels like he needs to take his brain to a happy place. Personally, puzzles take me to a dark place! I get overwhelmed and want to give up after the edges are in...I would rather have my hands in some dirt or sand...we are yen and yang for sure! This was a puzzle Madi brought over for a little assistance, Santa put it in her stocking last Christmas, well, beside it...two-color puzzles are too much for even Herb...this 5oo piece puzzle took twice as long as a typical 1000 piece puzzle...the look on his face says it all.

Just to make it a little more challenging...one of the girls "ate" 3 pieces...

:)

Watching the girlies...

We love to have the girlies over to hang out, we spoil them with lots of candy, cookies, brownies and smothering them with tons of concentrated attention and then sadly send them back home...

It's our job. They like our job.

They love to build things - tonite they built flowers out of blocks...what can i say, they are girls!






Madison - her block "flower garden"






















Autym and her block "tower"


















Jocie is so very proud of her block "flower"

Turkey Trot, I am getting ready for you!

Every Thanksgiving morning, Orlando Track Shack hosts a 5K run called the Turkey Trot. We did it last year and I was close to abyssmal...Herb and Kristin kicked my very ample buttocks...

Before the Butt Kick:

After the Butt Kick:

so just want you to know Mr Turkey, I am going to kick it into high gear this year!

Ahh, Fall is in the Air - Somewhere...

Having grown up in Indiana and being a transplant to Florida, I really miss the changing of the seasons. Fall is my FAVORITE season.
I love the warm colorsof fall, the smell of fall - pumpkin bread, pumpkin pie, Yankee Candle's "Autumn Wreath", and the temperature outside is just divine - well in other places other than Florida!
We take an trip to North Georgia/Eastern Tennessee/Western North Carolina every October General Conference weekend.
This year was no different, here is a smattering of what we saw/did -here are some from my phone...not too shabby for a phone camera:

We like to hike a new spot every year, this year was "Fires Creek Rim" in the Nantahala National Forest. It is one of the most beautiful spots we have hiked to date.

The area is centered around a river/stream that is chocked full of big rocks and cascading waterfalls lined with beautiful foliage...will be especially gorgeous with colored leaves in a week or so - still mostly green right now.

We decided to camp one night - here is our campsite, nestled next to Fires Creek, this is the good husband putting up the Walmart $38.44 tent that we purchased when we decided to camp, with the air mattress and sleeping bags inside...What is it about Walmart that whenever we are out of town, we feel the need to go and wander the aisles? We always do and we always get something. But at home, we never go to Walmart.

Tent set up and ready for it's occupants! - I slept with the 16 inch HeavyDuty Mag Flashlight as I was convinced by our lovely WalMart cashier that their were Bears in the area. I even made my husband come out and pee with me so I wouldn't be assaulted.

The Mag Light worked. No Bear Attacks.

Our Firepit that we actually lit a fire and made S'Mores, mmmm!!

The View looking up from our campsite...