Thoughts for Veteran's Day

I had to run a few errands today, and one of them took me to the post office. Of course it was closed when I got there, but until I was there I had forgotten why it would be closed today - Veteran's Day. I had noticed that it was coming up a few days ago, and thought that I needed to remember to call my dad, but until I got to the closed post office, it had completely slipped my mind that today was Veteran's Day. Then I took the kids to the grocery store after I picked Sam up from school. Right as you walk in they have a huge cupcake/cake there for anyone to have that says, "Thank you Veterans!" Sam asked me what it said and when I told her, she then asked, "Mom, why do we need to thank the Veterans? Who are the Veterans?" After I answered her, I thought a lot about it as I was going through my grocery shopping, and thought how important it is that we do take some time to remember those service men and women who have served our country in so many ways. Although not all those who have served in the military have had to serve during a war, thankfully, each and every one of them deserves our respect and gratitude for the sacrifice they make each day, as they fill a duty that so many are unwilling to share.
My family has a rich military heritage. My father is a retired Colonel in the US Army, my brother is a Sargent in the Army, currently serving in Afghanistan, both my grandfathers fought in WWII, my great grandfather fought in WWI, and one of my uncles served in the Vietnam War. This list could go on and on, not to mention many of my friends and their families who also serve, or have loved ones serving in the military. My point is, we all have similar lists. Not one of us does not have a tie to the military in some form or another, and those ties should make us proud, not only of our loved ones, but of our country as well, and the freedoms and rights that make it great. It is to those freedoms and rights of this great nation that these men and women devote their lives to protecting. No matter your opinion on the current war, or past wars, these men and women deserve to be honored and given our gratitude for not only their large sacrifices, but for their day to day service as well.
I am extremely proud of my military heritage, and for the bravery and courage my family has shown in service to their country. I am the woman I am today in large part because of my father's military service. Were it not for his choice to serve and honor his call of duty, this army brat would not have had the tremendous opportunities or desires that have so wholly shaped my life. So, thank you, Dad! Thank you, Donny! Thank you to all of you who are serving our country and making my world a better, safer place. Thank you for your sacrifices; the sacrifice of your time, your family, and sometimes even your lives, as you uphold your duty and protect what I hold most dear. You are all American Heroes!

My Father, Retired Col. Donald O. Bills
currently teaching ROTC to the next generation of Heroes

My Brother, SGT Donald O. Bills Jr.
currently serving in Afghanistan

My Grandfather, Walter Rudolph Bills
served as a pilot during WWII

My Grandfather, Ralph Mason Gerrard
served in the navy during WWII

My Great Grandfather, William Smith Gerrard
served as an infantryman during WWI

Our American Hero

My brother Donny is on leave right now for about 15 days from his tour in Afghanistan. He got home to Texas just in time for Halloween and spent a few days down there with my parents and my sister's family. On Monday he flew to Utah for about a week, but had about a 3 hour layover here in the Denver airport. I was so excited when he told me he was coming through town! I haven't seen him since last Christmas, and have been anxious for him every day since. His flight landed just before noon on Monday, so we got Sam out of school early, picked up some lunch and headed for the airport. Luckily, Mike was off on Monday so we were all able to go. The kids were so excited to see "Uncle Donny" and right when Sam saw him, she ran straight to him and gave him a huge hug! We were able to spend a few hours together while he showed us a few pictures from his base in Gardez. It was really neat to see his pictures of every day life as a soldier stationed over there. It's nice to see he actually is working, some of the time. :) After a few laps around the airport, and after trying to squeeze every bit of information I could out of him, it was time to go. Of course I was the only one in tears. No matter how big he gets, he's still my baby brother and I worry about him. Of course he assures me that he is actually quite safe over there, but that doesn't really help much to ease my anxiety. He will go back next week to finish up his time over there. He comes home for good in February, which definitely isn't soon enough. Time is flying by quickly though, so I'm crossing my fingers, and saying many prayers until then. We love you, bud!

Trick or Treat...Again...and...Again!!!

So, usually Halloween only lasts a day...well, we decided it needed to last for a whole week!
Our Halloween celebrations started last Saturday with our annual Halloween pictures. Expressions photography in Highlands Ranch does free Halloween pictures every year. I found this out our first year we moved to Colorado and have only missed one year of pictures. How can you pass up FREE!! All you have to do is bring canned good donations and you get a free professional 4x6 photo of your kids all dressed up in their Halloween costumes. It always turns out cute too! Everyone there is all dressed up and the studio is all decked out in Halloween decor. They even have a cute little pumpkin patch set up where you can take your own pictures of the kids.
After we took our pictures, we were off to Boo at the Zoo. The kids did this last year and really had a fun time. Mike had to work, so this year Heidi and Christian came with us, so we had our own little Justice League! I wish I could say we were there to see the animals, but of course not - we were there for the candy! I think the kids spotted a few of the animals between candy booths, so we weren't totally uncultured.
On Tuesday at school, Sam had crazy hair day. We had a lot of fun with it and Sam thought it was so cool - especially when everyone commented on her hair when we were running errands that afternoon.
Then, on Wednesday our ward had the Trunk or Treat Halloween Party. Mike was working again, so Heidi and I took the kids - yes, we are both often widows! Of course the kids had so much fun. I didn't even see the boys half the time we were there, since they were off playing the games with other families in our ward, and Sam hung out with her cute friend Ally just about the whole time - it was torture when I pulled her away to spend time with me. She found Ally again for the Trunk or Treating and I didn't find her until it was all done. After the boys and I had finished making the loop once, Heidi went searching for Sam and finally found her struggling to keep her huge haul in her little treat bag. That girl definitely has the concept down!
So, by the time Halloween finally arrived, the kids had plenty of candy - but of course that just the beginning! Sam had her class party on Friday morning. It was really cute to watch all the kids all dressed up working on their "pumpkin math". wasPart of the game was to guess how big around their pumpkins were, and Sam actually cut her string exactly right! What a little smarty - she definitely gets that from her dad! After school the kids were super excited to have Grandma and Grandpa Hansen come over to celebrate Halloween with us. While the kids carved pumpkins with dad and grandpa, mom and grandma were inside putting together the traditional Halloween Buffet! This is something my mom did every year when we were little, and now my kids love it. They can't get enough of the green slime!
Finally it was time for the real trick or treating - as if they didn't have enough candy already! Grandma stayed behind to pass out candy so both mom and dad could go with the kids.

(NEWS FLASH! No I am not making this up, our high temperature on Halloween was 76!!! They said it was one of the warmest Halloween's on record! I was even wearing flip flops when we took the kids trick or treating!)

It was really fun taking them around the neighborhood and watching them run up to each house with bags opened wide, shouting Trick or Treat as loud as they could! They are at such a fun age, when everything is so exciting to them - hopefully it lasts for a while!

Rocky Mountain Get-Away!

This week is Fall Break, and since Sam doesn't have school we decided to take the chance to get away and have a mini family vacation! We thought we would enjoy the beautiful Fall weather and scenery up in the mountains at Breckenridge. We thought we'd have Fall weather, anyway!
On our way up on Monday afternoon, we got a little bit of rain, and although it was a bit chilly when we arrived, it was still beautiful and had that wonderful crisp Fall smell!
Tuesday we decided to take advantage of the sunshine, although it was still chilly, and walked through the town. For those of you unfamiliar with this area, Breckenridge is up in the mountains and is one of the many ski towns here in Colorado and about 2 hours away from Vail. There isn't really much there to do during the off season, but it is still a fun atmosphere to relax in. After we walked around the main street in the town, everyone was feeling a bit chilly so we stopped into Starbucks for a little warm refreshment. You know me, I love my vanilla steamer!
We didn't get much sleep the night before so that afternoon we all went back to the hotel for some naps. When we woke up we were surprised to see snow falling! We decided instead of walking that afternoon, we'd take a little drive instead. There was plenty of beautiful scenery to enjoy up there!
Needless to say, we decided we'd have an early dinner and head back to the hotel. As if having rain, sunshine, and snow all within a 24 hour period wasn't enough, after dinner we walked out of the restaurant into a little hail storm! We had pea-sized hail pelting us the whole way to the car. The kids thought it was very funny that mom was shivering from the hail that had somehow fallen down my back! We spent the rest of the night warm and cozy in our hotel room, safe from the hail, snow, or whatever the weather decided to throw our way. This morning when we woke up, we were definitely not surprised to see a blanket of snow surrounding us. It was a little bit of a slippery ride home for the first little bit!
Despite the crazy weather, we still managed to enjoy ourselves, and although it was only a few days, it was fun to just be together without our daily stress and chaos. The kids enjoyed the change of scenery, and I think their favorite parts were staying in a hotel and seeing the snow - I'm not quite ready for that yet. I was glad to see that winter still hadn't come to Parker when we got home. Hopefully the autumn weather will hang on for a bit longer, but I have a sinking feeling that winter is right around the corner. My fingers are crossed though, that the snow might hold out until after Halloween at least! ...Maybe!?

The Greatest Show on Earth!

The circus is in town!

I haven't been to the circus since I was really little, and only once in my life, so when we saw that the circus was here in town, we thought we'd take advantage of the opportunity and take the kids to see the Greatest Show on Earth!
Wow, how the circus has changed! Nope, no bearded ladies or tatooed men! The show was really great and the kids absolutely loved it!
It really is amazing the things they can do! Of course the clowns were funny, the acrobats were amazing, and the various tricks they did with the animals were pretty cool, but my favorite part was watching the kids' faces. I don't think I have ever seen them all so still and totally focused on one thing for so long! The show was about 2 and a half hours with constant action - the kids were mesmerized! Of course the endless popcorn and cotton candy helped a bit too. It is the circus, after all, how could we have gone without it! (Of course Sami specifically asked if she would get some when we told them we were going. How could we dissapoint her?)
We got lucky and had really great seats, especially since I didn't buy them until the day before. The kids had a totally clear view and were up pretty close to all the action. If you ask them what their favorite part was, they will give you a different answer every time, but of course one that always comes up, is when the clown "tooted" every time he popped a bubble! The things that stick with them???? We invited Grandma and Grandpa to come enjoy the day with us and the kids were really excited to be with them too. They bought the kids a DVD of the circus performance and of course, they all asked if they could watch it when we got home. It was a little late last night, but today we HAD to put it on! They sat there watching it with their hats on the whole time...and somehow those hats have turned magic and I have imaginary bunnies popping out of them all over the place!
I'm so glad they enjoyed it so much and had such a wonderful time! It really is amazing how your perspective on things changes with children. Yes, I was excited to go see the circus and "ooed" and "awed" at the amazing show they put on, but the best part of the show for me, really wasn't the show at all. It was watching the fun and excitement through my children's eyes, and the wonder and joy they felt at being there. Their sweet faces and happy giggles are why the circus truely is the Greatest Show on Earth!!






A few snapshots of the show.

Our little family after the show.

The kids with Grandma and Grandpa Hansen.