Way to go Utah!

Well...they did it! The Utes won the Cougars 48 to 24. They remain undefeated so far this year 12-0. Hooray! Although I would have loved to have listened/watched the game...a girls day out took precedence. We went to Chili's for a yummy lunch, caught the Twilight Movie, and then a girlfriend and I did some Christmas shopping. What a great day! The movie was pretty good, but only because I have read the books. I fear that if I hadn't read the books, I don't think I would have liked the movie. Although...I anticipated that before I went to see the movie. The movies normally never hold up to the details painted by the author. Through the entire show I would think...that's not how that happened...or they skipped that scene. Overall, I enjoyed the movie and am planning on seeing the rest.

Utah Rocks!

This weekend is the big game between University of Utah and BYU. Since Doug attended the U of U and we lived in their Marriage Student Housing for a few years, we are big fans of the Utes. Don't get me wrong, we still like BYU...but when it comes down to a game between the two, we are rootin' for the Utes. This year the Utes have been amazing. They haven't lost a game yet. 11-0. Woo hoo! If I'm not mistaken, BYU is 10-1 so they're having a great year too. This Saturday the two rivals play each other and it should be an exciting game. If we have time, we might take a few U cupcakes around to the Y fans to spice up the excitement. If you are not from Utah....you probably don't understand the hype between the two teams. In fact, I think that there are a lot of Non-Utahn BYU fans out there who are fans of the Y just because of the LDS connection. But those who live in Utah know and feel the rivalry connection...it is in the air. I just have two words.....GO UTES!

P.S. Thanks to my sister-in-law Crystal for the inspiration to post this article.

Our Wedding Anniversary

Thirteen years ago today, Doug and I were married in the Salt Lake Temple. Four kids, three apartments, and two houses later, we are just as happy as the day we were married. We were pleasantly surprised by the gorgeous weather that day. Usually in Utah at this time of year, the leaves have mostly fallen off and there is snow on the ground. But in 1995, we woke up to blue skies, no snow, and those beautiful fall leaves were still hangin' on.

I love my husband because:

• He is always trying to improve. Not only in our relationship, but in EVERYTHING he is involved in. (Thus, there is never enough time in the day) He's always setting goals.
• He is very smart. I've always wanted to be smarter than him, but I know I never will be.
• He is very talented. This is pretty obvious to anyone who knows Doug.
• He is pretty good at playing boggle. Although he tries to make up a word here and there to get one by me. Good thing I'm pretty good at boggle too! This makes for great competition.
• He puts up with me wanting to change the furniture around every six months.
• I love that we have several common interests.....Yard work, reading, watching "our shows" (Smallville & Prison Break), Camping, Games, Puzzles, & Dining.
• He is a great father. The kids just adore him and there definitely is a certain glow around the house when Daddy is home. They can't wait for him to be home.
• His sense of humor. I don't think I could be married to a man without a sense of humor. I love to hear him laugh!
• Becuase he married me!

Here are some pictures of our special day

Happy Anniversary Doug! I love you!

Veterans Day!

Thank you to all those veterans who served for our country!

Deep Sleepers

A friend and I were talking about night terrors the other day and I decided to do a little digging. I learned that Night Terrors, Bed wetting, and Sleepwalking are all related. They all normally occur within the first 90 minutes of sleep. Your body will go through 4 stages of sleep and then go into REM sleep (where you dream and have nightmares). It is in stage 4 before REM sleep that a child will have a night terror, wet their bed, or sleepwalk. This is a very deep level of sleep.

A night terror can last between 5 and 20 minutes long. The child will normally not remember the night terror at all. Some experts say not to yell or shake the child awake, but you can try to comfort the child and wake them up with a soothing voice. Other experts say to move items out of the child's way so they will be safe and unharmed, but don't try to wake them at all. Just let them wake up on their own. I recently realized that Lexi is having an occasional night terror. She will wake up with a horrified look in her eye. When I try to talk to her she doesn't focus on me at all. She'll walk around the house and be softly crying. I didn't realize these were night terrors. I always talk to her in a soothing voice and usually steer her towards the bathroom. I always thought that she just needed to go to the bathroom. She always woke up while sitting on the toilet. They've never lasted for more than just a few minutes. I'll ask her about it in the morning and she laughs and never remembers it. She has done some pretty hilarious things during these night terrors. I know that my nephew Benjamin had night terrors and I think that my brother Ryan used to have them too, but never realized it. Night terrors are most common in children 2-6 years of age, but can still occur in adults. In fact, I'm pretty sure Doug use to have night terrors about 12 years ago. They say that stress can be a trigger. One time he tried to move the TV. Another time he flushed the toilet, pushed play on the answering machine, and came back to bed. Anyway...I have several of these stories...but I'll save them for another time. I'm pretty sure that he was having night terrors though .

Bed wetting also occurs during stage 4 sleep...deep sleep. Experts comment, "Have you ever noticed how your child is hard to wake up in the middle of the night or can sleep through anything?" This is a perfect example of Jordan. Jordan is 9 and is recently overcoming bed wetting. He is a very deep sleeper. We would have New Years Eve parties at our house with drums, party blowers, and pots banging at midnight...Jordan would sleep right through it. Bed wetting is very common. I've heard of SEVERAL different ways that people have tried to get their child to overcome bed wetting. Since Jordan is overcoming this problem on his own, I don't think I'll take any more action. Otherwise, I might have tried to wake him up during stage 4 sleep (within first 90 minutes) and made him go.

I've learned that this deep sleep where night terrors, bed wetting, and sleepwalking occur is often hereditary. You'll find that a relative also had/has this same problem.

I wanted to post this article to be informative, but also to see if you've ever had to deal with similar issues. I think these things are more common than we realize. So, please feel free to share.

More Visitors

We've been really lucky to have lots of family visit us this past month. Last weekend, Doug's Mom and Dad came to visit us. It was fun to have them here over the Holiday weekend. On Friday (Halloween), we carved pumpkins. I took a short video of how they turned out:

Jack-o-lanterns from Kristi Farr on Vimeo.

On Halloween night, we went trunk-or-treating at the church. Jordan was a Ninja, Kaylee was a Twisted Witch, Lexi was a Cheerleader, and Mason was Superman.

On Saturday, we headed to the Lied Children's Museum in Vegas. We have a seasonal pass there and the kids always have a great time.

Doug had a Marching Band competition and wasn't able to join in the fun. :(

On Sunday, we went to church where the kids practiced for their primary presentation. Their presentation is in 2 weeks. Grandma & Grandpa were able to see them practice, so that was fun.

Grandpa recently had his 65th birthday and we celebrated by having Oreo Pie after dinner...YUMMY!

We had a great time with them and it was sad to see them go. Thanks Grandma & Grandpa for a great visit!