Photo trial #1 (and Colter was picking his nose!)
Photo trial #2...oops we're missing mom, i guess the self-timer didn't work!
Photo trial #3...i love Colter's facial expression, it doesn't even look like him!
Photo trial #4...yes! i think we have a keeper!
Brandon and i thought perhaps we could lay down on the floor next to each other and finish watching the movie everyone else was viewing...we soon had company! Emma maneuvered her way between us and rested her chin on Brandon's back and finished the movie! And Marissa came over with a mind game she wanted to play with Brandon! i was *just* a sister that day and since they see me every day i must get boring because they didn't pay me too much attention...they had eyes for Brandon! But he didn't mind at all!
Shasta's fiancee, Jon, was here for Thanksgiving as well. Well, both Shasta and Jon went to his mom's house for Thanksgiving dinner, but then came to our house for "socializing" time and dessert! Colter really likes Jon...they can talk about heavy equipment and pickup trucks and that just thrills Colter! i think in these pictures Shasta was trying to bug Jon with sitting on lap...she usually doesn't just go up and sit on his lap...unless it is to try to bug him! They are always playfully harrassing each other...they know just what to do or say that will get the other one going!! You know you are at our house when you look closely at the photo and see the stray foot sticking up just in the frame of the camera in the right hand corner! There is always someone who is trying to "get-in-the-way" of the camera to bug mom! 
Dad and Lisa...sitting on the couch together! i liked the photo so i thought i would include it! 
And as you can tell here...we have a lot of fun too!!
A week at *the store*...while down here with Brandon...the furniture store and coffee shoppe. Once a bowling alley...and to remember the bowling alley days they have a collection of things on top of the candle shelf in the coffee shoppe. i love coming up to the store and spending the day...i don't think i really do much...but i like to make the espresso drinks and chat with the customers and grammpa and bruce. And everyday gramma comes in for some lunch before she goes to work and in the afternoon bonnie comes up for a latte! The family is very close and i am very happy to be coming into the family!
The bathroom...this is where the vanity was and hopefully we will find one soon that we like to replace it...i didn't get a good picture of the flooring...but it is all up! Ceramic tile will soon be in its place!
Brandon is a little embarressed about the way his house looks...this is the spare bedroom where the washer and dryer is right now...i love this picture...dryer *and* washer doors are both open and all the *clean* clothes are piled on the floor!
When Brandon was tearing up his bathroom flooring and some the plaster on the walls...there was lots of dust! He decided not to hang plastic over the doorways to keep the rest of the house relatively clean...so there is quite literally a layer of white dust everywhere in the house! This is on his bedroom dresser...so sweet!
i love harrassing Brandon about not putting switch plates up on the wall after we painted the house...2 years ago!
But he is getting closer to having the switch plates up...they are in this bag from Menards...so maybe soon we will have the switch plates up!
Last Saturday was Shasta's Bridal Shower! She is getting married in January...and she couldn't get away without having a shower! This picture of her was not taken on the day of the shower, but it is a favourite of mine so i had to use it. 
As little gifts to all of the guests that came (close to 40 women came for Shasta!) these little candy boxes were given out. We had plenty of extra candy boxes after Shasta handed one out to each lady...so they came home with us! We have been eating candy for ever it seems...there was a lot left over...the kids like it though!
A bunch of little treats for everyone! You cannot have a bridal shower without snacks! Jessica made up a menu and i spent Friday in the kitchen baking it all up...m&m cookies galore, pumpkin bars, striped delight (a bar with pudding and cookie crumb crust), and lots of hearty vegetable beef soup! Yum!
Okay, unfortunately, at all bridal showers you must play those dumb games! Here was one that we played...it was called something like "dress the bride" or something close to it! There were eight teams and each team had to create a wedding dress with toilet paper! From the eight teams Laura, Lisa, Shasta, Ceara, and myself all had to be dressed with toilet paper! i must admit that this one was kind of interesting! The picture above is Shasta being the model for her wedding dress...created by Gramma Betty (in the brown) and Pastor Shirley (in the purple). 
Here is Laura's dress...this one was very good! They did a good job making this dress from toilet paper! 
Here is Shasta and some of her friends...Kara, Shasta, Bobbie, and Carol.
This was after the meal was eaten, the games played, and the gifts opened...we were thanking everyone for coming. Mary in the middle with the turquoise shirt helped us plan the bridal shower and Jessica on the far end who really put everything together!
Everyone was *very* generous with gifts for Shasta! This table we thought would be big enough to use as the "gift table", but there was quite a bit of overflow!
After the gifts were opened and brought home...they covered our dining room table! Shasta's car was very full with gifts...but they were all gifts that will come in very handy for her...most of them were kitchen gifts. Shasta's kitchen will now be very well stocked!
