2 is better than 1

I am always grateful for gospel discussions that cause introspection and a deeper self evaluation.  i don't always love what I discover, but it's good to be able to identify some of the cobwebs, holes, and weak areas that I can hone in on and set in order.  I'm grateful for Spencer, who with kindness and love, brings better perspective to my life.

I'm learning to appreciate our different approaches to doing things and our differing points of view.  As frustrating as it can be sometimes, it helps me pause and consider things I may not have looked at before or may not have seen in that way.  I'm learning how to be more open and because of that, discovering the benefits and joy of being part of an eternal team.

There have been a lot of big decisions in our life lately and therefore many opportunities to discuss differing opinions.  Many of these decisions have to do with bringing a new member of our family into the world.  I'm sure all who have ever done this know exactly what I'm talking about.  My ideas about how to do things are sometimes different from Spencer's ideas (crazy right?), but that has given me reason and opportunity to think, do research, and become more informed about decisions as big as birth plans to decisions as small as where our tiny son will sleep.  For those who are wondering, I am planning to have my baby at the hospital with a doctor and an epidural.  For this baby, at this time, that is what Spencer and I have decided, although the research we did into midwives and natural births was enlightening and broadened my perspective.

We've also had the opportunity to disagree on decisions about the house we are in the process of purchasing.  But again, it gives reason to think more deeply about the decisions we are making.  We are both so excited to be buying a house.  My excitement translates into hours of pinterest perusing and filling online carts and wish lists with ideas to make the new house feel like our home.  However, this makes Spencer start to see stars and dollar signs that make his head spin and his palms get itchy with anxiety.  But he helps me reign in my vision and consider more carefully what things we really need and how to best spend our money.  Sometimes I think it might be fun to go really crazy with my home improvement ideas so that when I present my real ideas, he'll feel relieved instead of overwhelmed.  But I wouldn't want to give him a heart attack!  

Well, the future is exciting, mysterious, and bright.  We are so grateful for our family and friends who care so much about us.  You are what make our lives full.

Thanksgiving!

This week was awesome! We started our Thanksgiving celebration at Grandma and Grandpa Crosland's. Can't find a much better way to start off the week of Thanksgiving than having a turkey dinner. So good! The week just got better as I had work off on Thursday and Friday. There was a lot of eating and playing this weekend.

Thursday was a great day. I was invited to play in a turkey bowl by Tyler Nelson. It was a cold morning, and I haven't played football in a year, but it was fun. I couldn't really walk very well the rest of that day or the next. Good times.

Later that afternoon, we went over to the Crawley's for Thanksgiving dinner. We're still reaping the benefits of that dinner. After a little rest, a game of Annie-Aye-Over ensued. I limped around enough to play. Michelle, needless to say, sat this one out. We finished out the night with a nice game of Scum. John Crawley ended up as King.

What's Behind Door #3

There were some major happenings this week in the Hutchings family. We were able to agree to contract terms on a home in Provo. We're looking at closing on our first home possibly by Christmas! Crazy! And awesome! It's a cute little duplex (upstairs/downstairs) on 300 West in Provo. It's really close to the hospital and BYU. These are just a few old stock photos, but not much has changed over the years.

We also had our first of two prenatal classes. Um, it was a little bit eye opening for me. We're at 33 weeks now, so it really is time to prep for this kid. I'm learning a ton and am getting really excited. And Michelle is looking great too!

Fall is in full-swing, and a little bit of winter too with all the snow we've had over the past couple of weeks. We had some fun with Zoe playing in the leaves and snow. Again, just wanted to show a picture of our dog.

The First Snowfall

It was a beautiful week this week - until Friday. I left for work at about 6:00 a.m. under a light rain. Before I got to Salt Lake City, it had turned into a fat snow which continued all day long. The results, although cold, are beautiful. The first snow of the season was also the first snow for our dog, Zoe. I believe she has some mixed emotions about the change in weather. She hates the cold. Chances are that if she is outside alone, she'll be looking in the sliding glass door shivering her little nub of a tail off. She loves the snow. Yesterday afternoon, we took her out to a park to play. She bounded and pounced all over the place chasing who knows what. It was certainly enjoyable to see and even more fun to participate in.

This week also saw us make our first offer on a home. Although we have yet to finish negotiations and sign a contract, we have taken what we feel to be a major step in growing up! We'll probably grow up enough to have a baby soon! Crazy how much is happening right now!

Halloween

I guess it's my turn to brief the world on the Happenings of the Hutchings. These past ten days, we've celebrated Halloween numerous times. On October 25, we started off the Halloween season by carving pumpkins after dinner group. In preparation for the Disney acquisition of Lucasfilm, Michelle and I went all in with Darth Maul and Chewbacca respectively. SkyKat joined in the merriment of pumpkin carving with a pirate pumpkin and Maleficent (quite possibly the most evil Disney character ever!). Unfortunately, Greg and Sally couldn't find the time to carve, but did enjoy the great taquitos.

Friday, we dressed up a little bit for a party at the Pino's place. Michelle went as an oven (she has a bun in there that's due in 9 weeks) and I went as the baker. Unfortunately, we failed to get pictures of these costumes. The party was super fun and we met some new friends. Again, we went at the pumpkins carving out Jabba the Hutt and Yoda (yeah, maybe a little obsessive, maybe a little clairvoyant). Overall a great evening.

To continue in the Halloween experience, Monday night we joined SkyKat on the Halloween River Cruise at CLAS Ropes course. It was a gorgeous evening with a full moon. Another fun-filled night in our celebration of Halloween.

 Finally, Halloween came along. SkyKat threw a great party at Mom and Dad's place. There were eight couples that showed up. We enjoyed mummy dogs, donuts, caramel apples, chips and dip, and other assorted goodies. As an aside, stay away from the black and orange Halloween chips if you want to avoid a surprise the next day. The joy of the evening for me was dressing up as Matthew Crawley, heir to Downton Abbey. Mom dressed as Anna, Dad as Bates, Katie as Daisy, Skyler as Thomas, Sally as Lady Mary, Greg as Pamuk, and Michelle as Lady Sybil. Oh the joy! Can't wait for what the next few months bring!