PumpkINFERNO

I love happenstance.  Chance.  Coincidence.

(I'm actually not a believer in chance or coincidence on the grand scheme of things, but it works for this post.)

I checked the mail yesterday.  I admit, I don't do that every day.  Or every other day.  SOMETIMES it happens once a week.  But I checked it.  And there happened to be a flyer in the mail for Upper Canada Village and their PumpkINFERNO.  Basically a HUGE pumpkin display that runs every weekend in October until Halloween.  And it just so happened that the next day was Friday and it was the only time we had open...so we decided to make the trip (Upper Canada Village is about an hour and a half away).

Totally worth it.  It was awesome.  We picked up a couple of pizzas on the way and ate our way to a good time.

It was super crowded which made us nervous at first, but it turned out to be totally fine.  It wasn't too cold yet and the evening was a great walk outside looking at amazing pumpkins.

Tribute to Canada

Chess

Jack

Lizards

Egypt

Our favorite: Headless Horseman!

It was a late night, but totally worth it.  And we're geared up for our own pumpkin carving.  

In the End

While we were in Alberta we also got a chance to briefly meet Janeen's boyfriend Colton.  Although Janeen wasn't able to be there, he made an effort to come out and see us.  He seems like a really genuine guy and really got a kick out of all the Tyler stories everyone told...seems to fit in.

And we tried to soak up as much family time as possible.  Really soak it up.  I tried to hold babies until they didn't want to held anymore, and play with kids.  It was all good.  And too fast.  

Picture This

The Wedding

Most of the trip I was back and forth to the bathroom.  Kind of sucks.  And I woke up early the morning of the wedding with the same problem.  Not perfect.

However the whole experience at the temple was beautiful.  It was amazing to sit in a row with all of my siblings and watch our youngest sister get married.  It was amazing to have all of us in there.  Sam was beautiful.  Absolutely beautiful.

She had asked me to make her hair piece for her wedding and so after the sealing, i waited for her in the brides room along with my mom, Becca and Alison to help her get ready.  It was amazing to be able to experience that with her.  It was awesome actually.  The weather in Edmonton was chilly, and Lucy was coming down with a fever and headache.  Poor girl.

After taking a few pictures, Tyler and I headed over to his cousin Angie and Brad's house for Logan to have a nap and for Lucy to have some down time while her tylenol kicked in.

On the way home from Edmonton, we stopped at A&W in Red Deer.  While we were eating, Max noticed the mug he was drinking from and said, "Hey Mom, this cup is REALLY old!  It's from 1956!"  I was drinking Root Beer at the time and nearly had it come out of my nose.  Seriously, that kid.  

West Ed!

While we stay at Williamson's, the kids share a bed.  A Queen-sized bed.  But they don't take up very much space in that queen-sized bed.

The whole time we were in Alberta we were busy.  Really busy!  But it was awesome.  We enjoyed Thanksgiving, General Conference, and Sam's Bridal Shower.  The wedding was in Edmonton, so we headed up a day early so we could enjoy the water park with the kids.  It was a major blast.  As you can tell by the facial expressions.  

Doesn't Lucy look like she's enjoying eery minute of this?

We ate at the Old Spaghetti factory, as per tradition and got to bed.  Big Wedding in the morning!

Calgary Temple Open House

Our trip to Alberta was fantastic.  I loved every minute of it and had a hard time coming home.  Normally two weeks out of routine and out of our own beds has me wishing for the flight home...but not this time.  I really wasn't ready to come home.

We arrived on Wednesday afternoon and our first stop was the new Calgary temple on Thursday.  I was so grateful that my sister planned her wedding during the time that the Open House was still going on in Calgary.  I still remember what it was like when I was young and got to go through the Cardston Temple when it was being rededicated.  When I went again as a youth, I remember everything.  And when I went as an adult the celestial room felt comfortable and like home.  I wanted that experience for my kids.

It was everything I hoped.  The kids were so well behaved.  They were reverent and enjoyed it.  Lucy walked around with her mouth open almost the entire time.  She especially loved the Bride's Room and the Celestial Room.  She held her hands over her mouth because she didn't want to scream.  So sweet.

I loved giving each of my kids a hug in the Celestial Room, knowing that I would be back there with them again someday.  I can't wait.

Afterwards, we took our time getting some photos taken outside, and then headed out for dinner.

Unfortunately, while we were out for dinner, Tyler's grandma tripped over a little girl's foot and fell.  She ended up breaking her pelvic bone and that has changed things a lot for the family.  She spent the remainder of the weekend in the Canmore Hospital, and then we set up a bed for her in the music room at Tyler's parent's house.  It's going to be a long recovery for her, but she is in good spirits so far and she is one tough cookie.