Thanksgiving in Colorado

The holidays are such a big deal to the Peaden family and we have been looking forward to them with excitement but also a little wariness. This will be the first holiday season without Sue, and it just feels like things will never be the same. She was so much of the magic, the gathering force, behind any holiday celebration with her family.  The thought of trying to gather like we regularly do with the absence in her bedroom like a void felt almost too much to bear. When we were visiting Bruce on our way home from Nauvoo, the idea was thrown out that maybe we should celebrate Thanksgiving there instead. It was a big change, for sure - but I think it was something that we really needed this year. Here are the reasons that I loved celebrating Thanksgiving at Bruce's home in Colorado: 

-It turned a 3 hour dinner into a weekend full of togetherness and connection. 

-It was fun to be at Bruces's house with everyone. 

-The weight of Sue's absence was present but not overwhelming. We were able to talk about her: about how much we loved her and missed her, without it being quite so acute. The different location eased the pain. 

-We finished almost all of our Christmas shopping online but still hit the stores for some Black Friday shopping.

Things that I didn't love as much: 

-The Renchers were planning to come with us to Colorado, but they had to stay home last minute. We really really missed them. 


The food was delicious, a real traditional Peaden Thanksgiving Dinner with lemon jello, homemade mashed potatoes, and pumpkin pie. Bruce ordered a smoked turkey this year, we got pies and rolls from Kneaders and Marie Calendars, and even though it was more store-bought than usual, everything was great. 

Bruce's house was plenty big enough to host us all. We were grateful that he has invested in so many air mattresses and blankets so that we could all stay together at his house. 

It was just so nice to be there all together, especially Cal. He hung out and did his stuff, while still being a part of everything. He spent time with each of the kids, interjected his thoughts while we were playing games, and was a steady presence the whole weekend. The drive to Colorado was worth even just this one thing: that he didn't have to go home to an empty house after a short Thanksgiving Dinner. 

We ate dinner, black Friday shopped, watched football, and played LOADS of games. Lydia and Austin were in Heaven. Lucy got a new "Go Fish" game and we played round after round after round of Go Fish on the rug in the great room. 

It was a lovely weekend and eased a lot of the worry I have had about the upcoming holidays. We have so much to be grateful for and one of the biggest things is this Peaden Family. We were so glad to celebrate together. 

Bonus Trip to Canyonlands National Park

We drove home on I-70 instead of I-80, because of the snowy conditions through Wyoming. As we were crossing the Eastern Utah border, I mentioned that I had absolutely NO idea where we were on the Utah Map. No clue. We started looking up exactly where we were and how close we were to certain things. We realized we were less than an hour away from Canyonlands National Park! "Should we go?", David asked? I am almost always the one to initiate and push spontaneous things - but this time it wouldn't have happened without David! We only had about 5 minutes until we hit the fork in the road that would take us to Canyonlands instead of home, so we stopped for gas, talked about it and decided to go for it! I'm so glad that we did. 


We have never been to Canyonlands as a family, and I've never been at all! It was beautiful. We explored the main area, went to the visitors center (and got Jr. Ranger packets/badges), and went on a hike. It was warm enough to hike comfortably but still cold enough for snow to be on the ground. The snow was covered with these incredible ice crystals and we just loved this bonus adventure. Plus it was beautiful! 

Happy Thanksgiving!

November Wrap Up

 We had the primary program and the kids did a great job. One of my favorite things about Caleb right now is that he really likes to look good for church. He likes to wear his suit and tie and it is so fun. 

In November, the 200th temple was dedicated and Shantel decided to do a 200th temple celebration in every ward in the stake. After our primary program, Shantel did a presentation for our ward and it was fun. 

My Dad with Lucy.

Caleb and Lucy can be hard to convince to try new foods. We decided that we would allow Caleb and Lucy to earn tickets (Caleb) and puff balls (Lucy) by trying new things foods. They earn a ticket by eating the food and then when they get 10 tickets, they get to go to Maverik and pick a treat. 

Nothing to say here except that kids sleeping are always so cute. 

We have been reading Harry Potter with Lydia over the past few years (reading a book every 6 months or so). We were so and finally finished reading the 7th book with her. It was so fun and we loved reading with her. We got her a new hoodie to celebrate. 

Homeschool Nov

We've lost some of the "start of year" energy and haven't been sticking to our schedule quite as much as we initially were. But this truly has been my favorite year of homeschooling yet. It's such a beautiful lifestyle to spend our days together, learning, exploring, playing, living. 

November Family Studies:

Country - India

Nature - Rocks

Creation - Plants & Dry Ground  

We are still reading fairy tales on Monday mornings, but have pretty much dropped off doing poetry on Thursday mornings because the rush out the door to coop is just too much. (We could do it, but I found out that I prefer letting the kids sleep in just a little bit longer on that day.) I feel find about that, we are having a great experience with our family studies and that's the value of homeschool, is being able to be flexible in what we are doing to fit our needs. Here are some photos of the month: 

-The kids asked if we could play a card game in the morning before family study and David grabbed this picture as he was walking out the door. 

-Working/reading together. 

-Taj Mahal art project (Lucy loved learning about the Taj Mahal and now everytime we see a large white symmetrical building that is not a temple she says "It's the Taj Mahal!")

-Rock Activities: identification/rock cycle, making rock candy, reading about rocks. 

Caleb has been working on his reading skills and I love when he reads to me. 

Austin is trying to learn how to solve a Rubik's cube. It's hard! 

Makerspace

Austin had his mid-year Makerspace show and we got to see some of the cool things that he has been working on. He asked if David could come, and I said "probably not", because I knew David was busy and the openhouse was just pretty simple. I should have known better though, because Austin asked David and of course he came. He is such a good dad and so supportive to these kids (and to our homeschool in general). Austin was SO excited to have him there. This class has been so good for Austin this year.  

Utah History

Learning about pioneers, building covered wagons, following their path across the states. 

Coops

I'm still teaching a sewing class at Lydia's middle school coop and it's been so fun! Lucy has been feeling a little resistant to her coop lately, and one of the times I brought her with my to Lydia's coop while I was teaching because she just really really didn't want to go. It wasn't a great decision, but it worked out. The boys love their coop. Miss Molly (Molly Thomas, the facilitator) is fantastic. Lydia has also been enjoying her coop and is learning to navigate the middle-school dynamic. 

Field Trips

We had to cancel our first Utah History field trip (I hate doing that so much!) - but we made up for it with this awesome field trip. We hiked to the top of ensign peak then discussed what it would have looked like when the pioneers first arrived to the valley. The kids then drew pictures of either what it would have looked like or what it looked like now. 

We had the Haderlies for cousin weekend, and after the hike we went to a park to eat a picnic lunch (it was a beautiful day!), then we decided to go to the Church History Museum in Salt Lake and walk over to see the construction on the foundation of the temple. By the time we got home, little Molly was pooped! She fell asleep on my chest and I soaked up getting to hold such a sweet almost-baby because my babies are all growing up! 

Thanksgiving Point 

There was an India Display at the children's museum and I loved being able to connect the things that we were learning in our country study to the things we could experience there. We watched a scene from a Bollywood movie and danced with them, we "rode" in a tuk-tuk down a busy street in India, we explored their kitchens and market. (Mostly, the kids wanted to play hide and seek through the exhibit, but okay.) Lucy loved the giant mural of the Taj Mahal. And of course, the kids trying to convince me to buy things from the gift shop at the end. (But the "let me take a picture of it so we will remember you want it" really is effective.) 

Children of Influence (200 Temples!)

In November, I did a presentation for all the primaries in our stake celebrating the 200 temple mark. I had the opportunity to teach the same celebration/class to our COI group. I made it a little extra fun by doing the presentation and then letting them build temples out of marshmallows. 

November was a great homeschooling month! It's not always easy, and definitely not always perfect. Lydia is struggling with feeling overwhelmed and I think part of that is because at the beginning of the year we decided to be a little less structured with her core tasks in the hope that she will find fulfilment in the things that she enjoys (writing) instead of just doing a workbook curriculum, but the lack of structure can feel overwhelming. But we are working through it and I know that she's learning and growing in the ways that she needs to right now. She's doing amazing, all the kids are, and I'm grateful I get to be both their mom and their teacher.