We like to party

Scott and Carrie hosted the annual Niederhauser Halloween Party this year.

We had two of our five children there. 

Steve and Tammy were very clever.  They were rock bands.  Black-eyed Peas, Bare Naked Ladies, Styx, Guns and Roses. haha

Jeff and Fran only had one of their four kids there.

Scott and Carrie were missing Sheldon.

Mom and Dad with all six of their adorable?? children.

Billy and Nana came, sans costumes.

Jeff popped in right before this picture was taken.  Creepy.

We had loads of great food, of course.

A cupcake and Jessie from Toy Story

A tattooed princess?

The pinata is always a "hit"!

Even baby cupcake took a whack at it.

The "little kids" group playing the donut on the string game.

The "big kids" playing the game.

Thank you so much Scott and Carrie.  Another memorable Halloween!

Seizing the day, the autumn day.

None of us have to look very far to see the beauty of the season.  I feel pretty lucky that I have this view right outside my front door.

I picked these this morning.  The cool air makes them extra sweet.  I know the frost will be here later this week so I am trying to enjoy them as much as I can.

My geraniums are hanging in there. 

Alex and I had our traditional fall hike on the power line trail above our house.  We have done this for many years.  I think I am a pretty lucky mom that my 22 year old son still wants to do this with me.

This is looking across the trail to Willard Bay.

Friday evening Dave, Alex and I went on a bike ride along the Ogden River Parkway.

The confluence of the Ogden and Weber Rivers.

We were in a race against time to get back before dark.  We saw a couple of homeless guys setting up their sleeping bags and knew it was best to hurry back.  The mountain was glowing as we were finishing our ride.

I just couldn't stand it.  I had so much fun on our ride the night before that I made Dave go with me again on Saturday morning.  Alex had to work.  So Dave and I went 23 miles (round trip), winding our way through Ogden, West Haven and Riverdale.

The 21st street pond looked amazing with the reflection of the trees.

This is one of two places where the trail was washed away earlier this spring.  We had to take a detour both times.

One of my favorite parts of the ride, besides the river, is when the trail has a glow like this.  I backed up and made Dave take this picture of me riding through it.

Yep.  I am going to enjoy every minute of this amazing fall weather.   Seize the day!

Family Trip to California - Part 5, San Diego

We met Ash and Jud at one of our favorites, the Corvette Diner.  We used to go to the one in Hillcrest, but now there is a new one in Point Loma in a much nicer family-oriented neighborhood.

It's a fun place to take children.

I

I took this series of pictures of Logan after he had been hyped up on the sugar from his milkshake.  He was wild and crazy!  It was a good thing we were at a family-style restaurant

James got a little bit silly, too.

We stayed at one of the nastiest hotels ever that night.  But it was okay, I guess, because the next morning we were ready for a day of San Diego without the drive from Palm Springs.

We started the morning by driving over to the tide pools at Point Loma.  But it was high tide and the waves were rough.   The ocean was raging.  I still loved it.

Then we drove up the hill to the Cabrillo monument.

Usually the view is amazing.  We could barely see the skyline on the other side of the bay.

I love the little lighthouse there.

Then we drove over the bridge to Coronado.

Logan was "chasing the bodes".  He can't quite pronounce his r's yet.

James decided to join him.

Ashley and Jud had a great idea to rent these surreys.

The ride along the shoreline was unbelievable! 

I had been waiting all day for an oreo milkshake at Ruby's.  But it can't just be any Ruby's.  It has to be on a pier.  So we drove up to Oceanside.

We make sure we get a table with a view.

I had really been looking forward to an afternoon at the beach.  But it was overcast and the water was freezing.  Oh well.  In my opinion, the ocean is wonderful to be near, no matter the weather.  Of course a sunny day rocks.  But the sound, the smell, the sight - I tried to just let my senses have a feast. 

We drove back over to Palm Springs for one last night.  Holly and Cody and their kids had spent the day there relaxing and swimming.  There were no clouds there.

Cody had Olivia giggling like crazy on the "horsey ride".

The next morning we had to get an early start to get Stephanie back to Vegas for her flight.  Then we drove straight through, with a few stops to stretch, arriving home around 10 pm.

Although we did a lot of very fun things on this trip, it was just so much fun to be with the whole family.  I will cherish the memories that were made for the rest of my life.