Thanksgiving in St. George 2011

Well, another fantabulous holiday spent in St. George with the Aleman/Gubler families. Am I not the luckiest girl to have such cool families surrounding me? I mean, if I am not with my own family the next best just HAS to be the Aleman family which I get to be a part of. A week of laughing, lots of games, hot men (Weston B.) playing basketball, and too much food. I mean when you eat so much junk you throw up at night too much food... and yes, I am speaking from experience. :0

In all honesty we have so much to be grateful for. This year was hard on the family. As I mentioned before, Grandma Gubler just passed away a month. She usually organized everything and put everything together, and knew what was supposed to happen and when, and without her, we all felt like something big was missing. And, it was. Her. We sure did miss her. With that weighing heavy on our hearts we are blessed to know we will see her again, and she is with our Father in Heaven. I know I can speak for Wes and other family members when I say how grateful we are for eternal families and the power of temple sealings which allow families to be together forever. I am grateful to be a "Mormon" and have the gospel of Jesus Christ in my home. I am grateful for not only my extended family but my small and wonderful little family... myself, my husband Wes, and my sweet baby Peyton. I am grateful for our health and our strong capable bodies which allow us to live comfortably and have so much fun! I am grateful for our warm home and soft beds. I am grateful for at least 1 working car. I am grateful that my husband has a job and does his best to provide for us, and most importantly allows and desires me to stay home and raise our child to be a good, smart and wonderful little person. I love my job and am grateful to do it!!! There is so much to be grateful for and I love this time of year when I am extra careful to do so... it is too easy to get lost in the hubbub of life and overlook all the wonderful blessings I have.

Moving on.... Thanksgiving week/weekend! As I said before, we were able to go up to St. George Utah with some of Wes' family for the holiday weekend. And, as always up there we had a grand ole' time. Here is our week in photos. We did a heck of a lot of game playing which I failed to photograph, and even more eating which, obviously, I was too busy partaking of to photograph. But, I think you will get this idea of the amount of fun we had by what you see. And, did I mention how really, REALLY, grateful I am to have kind, good, patient in laws who willingly watch my child so I can go off with the hubby and folks to have adult-like fun? Cause I am really, REALLY grateful. ;) (Thanks Sandie and Fred)!

Thursday/Thanksgiving: Annual Aleman vs. Gubler Pre-Thanksgiving Basketball game (Aleman 2, Gublers 1) My boo even dunked that mug. And boy... he is one sexy bearded beast!!!

Btw: This picture cracks me up... here are all the men warming up and stretching. Then, there is Matt in the background. Love this family!


And, I had to throw this one in because Fred looks like a crazy old man not knowing how to take a photo (Be it known however, he has NOT lost his jump shot). And, Robb busted out Uncle Rico.

Here is the little girl cheering section... poor Tyler and Tug are sadly outnumbered.

Also, you would think with all of these cute, happy, willing helpers my life would have been cake. BUT, Peyton has decided in the last month she will go with no one else or be happy unless Wes or I are holding her. If we aren't around she will pick another soul, but the moment she sees or hears us, it is all over and she cries until we hold her again. Even if I am 2 steps away that is too far for her liking, so I was unable to take advantage of all these sweet girls. Grrrrrrrr.

Thanksgiving dinner was wonderful. We had a smaller group than usual. Too bad, I missed seeing all of Wes' cousins.

Left to right: Top: Ashleigh, Michael, Kristy, Ross, Rhonda, Grandpa Gubler, Sandie, Fred, Lynn, Ron, Peyton, Me, Wes and Kent. Middle: Andy, Jacob, Robb, Patrick, Kati, and Matt. Bottom: Hannah, Kaylah, Kristana, Trent (Tug), Kenna, Carly, Brinley, Jaime, Tyler, Kari, and Kody (Delanie was sleeping inside).

We were also able to go out and have fun taking lots of fall photos.
My family:

The "booted" gals:

Lots of "Fall Frolicking":


Wes and the cute cousins, Peyton and Tug

Here is Peyt telling Tug to "come here" with her hands. She loved looking at him and saying over and over, "hi".


One other thing I LOVE about being in St. George is the location and Fred and Sandie's home. They are located about 15 houses away from Grandpa Gubler. The kids (and myself) love the walk back and forth between the homes. Here is a cute thing I found on my way to Grandpa's.

It was faster than her walking and she LOVED it.

Friday:

Sandie and Fred were kind enough to take Peyton so I could go along with Wes, the boys and Kati for some paint balling. Grammy and Papa took Peyton to a little bounce place nearby and she LOVED it! It's a shame I don't have the videos that Uncle Andy took of her while she laughed and laughed while being bounced. A part of me is sad I missed it, but at the same time I had so much fun it pays off. Oh, and Sandie said she tried laying Peyton down for a nap in her closet (where Peyt slept) and she said she was in there for about 30-45 minutes really quiet. Well, Sandie had to go in a get something and assumed it would be safe, so she said she opened the door very quietly and there was Peyton sitting up playing with her blankets and she looked up at Sandie with the biggest, happiest smile... so needless to say she was taken out and hugged immediately. :)

We also had a BLAST paint balling and still have the bruises to prove it. Matt had a great story about his show down, we laughed about the experts we played against, and Kati and I loved waving to Patrick up in our tower during one of the matches. It was such a fun experiences!

 The paint balling group: L-R: Tyler, Matt, me, Wes, Ross, Jacob, Michael (those Gublers must not have know we were trying to look tough), Kati, Patrick, and Robb.

Saturday

Wes and I relaxed while Peyton napped. She had been sick most of the week and needed a good rest day. Later that evening Wes went with the rest of the family to shoot. I stayed behind because the baby, and am so bummed I did. It was pretty boring being all alone in the house. BUT, the next day (Sunday) we went out again with a smaller group and Fred stayed behind so I could go out and shoot a little.... and this was probably the most fun thing we did. I am so grateful I was able to go.

We had a .9mm Smith and Wesson handgun. Oddly enough this was the hardest weapon for me to shoot. I was so inaccurate and had a hard time controlling the recoil. The little guy had a lot of "umph" to it.

 

We then moved on to a little .22 rifle. This was so fun and easy to shoot and pretty un-intimidating (that's a word right? If not, it is now.). I think I know what I want for Christmas. :)

Next we busted out the clay pigeons and shot gun. I love doing this and am happy to report I was able to hit a target or 2. Wes is a sharp shooter with this gun and didn't miss a target. He was awesome with this, I say bring it on Zombies. :) The same can't be said for his throwing abilities however. ;)


Now comes the fun stuff. Andy (Ashleigh's hubby) is the reason for the season. He brought all these bad boys up and has a fun little arsenal.

Our next gun was a M-16. Gawesome (great and awesome)! This was probably my favorite gun to shoot. But, just maybe and you will see why next.

Andy also brought a M-1 Garand. Holy Cow!!!!!!! This was so, so, so fun to shoot. You could feel it shake you chest. Man was it fun! It had a special scope so we were shooting things about 250 yards away with no problem. These last 2 guns were so cool. Did I mention that we liked shooting these?

 

 The really wonderful thing about St. George is that it is perfect for people who like the outdoors. We found a perfect place 5 miles from where we were. It was beautiful, be it a little chilly, and we all had a blast.

 Kari and Sandie showing off our beautiful little area.

Kenna and her massacred target. 

 
 If you look around you will see a scattering of targets and clay pigeons on the hillside.

Here is Andy throwing the clay pigeons, Kody shooting the shot gun, Wes with the M-16 and Sandie with one of the .22 rifles. So fun!

Bonnie and Clyde? Nope, April and Wes!

Sunday Night: We ended our night at Cafe Rio and at the St. George temple to walk around and enjoy the Christmas decorations. It is so beautiful and peaceful there.

We came home Monday, and I must admit sleeping in my bed is most enjoyable. :)

The Quest: Part 5

Challenger: Marv's

Reigning Champ: The Habit/Umami

As serious burger connoisseurs we don't limit ourselves to local burger joints. Therefore, while in Utah we had to try a good old fashion burger joint that we have heard has the best burgers around. This place is known as Marv's (yes, Marv like the wet bandit on Home Alone). Marv's has that old fashioned feel about it. Similar to a 1950s soda shop or something. Although be it known, it is located in a strange spot. 

So, we, along with practically all members of the Aleman clan, headed out for a light meal of burgers, fries, onion rings and milk shakes the last time we were all in town.

Consensus: The burgers were very, very good. Similar to 5 Guys in my opinion. I would go back and I would partake. However, I would not at this point claim it to be the best burger. However... they have the BEST sides to go along with their burgers that I've had yet. 

Growing up my family would frequent a place called, "The Burger Bar" in Roy Utah. St. George used to have one of these as well, but in the last few years it shut down (much to my dismay). The Burger Bar is very similar to Marv's, insomuch, that I would go there for their shakes, and fries (Marv's also has the best onion rings ever). The burgers are almost a side to those in my opinion.

So, while they don't make the best burgers, I am going to make a plea that all go and try their shakes and onion rings for a pleasant culinary experience. And, if we are around, we would love to accompany you!!! In fact, I think we may just go this week. :)

Ashleigh and Andy Moore (and Delanie Huefner) showing off our food. The middle side are onion rings, only they cut them into bite sized pieces and cook them to perfection so that you don't loose the onion after the first bite....... genius!

 The rest of the clan inside of Marv's. It is definitely a family friendly restaurant.

Baby Einstein.... eat your heart out!

My baby is a genius. Okay... not really but look how cute and smart she is. She says a lot more, but without preparation and knowing I had rare camera time (she usually won't perform once I get the camera), I had to take advantage of the small window of opportunity I was given. (You'll also notice when I do a video she is usually half naked in her high chair... it's the only time anymore she sits still for me).

Just Sayin'........

At least once a month he gets, "So, you must get this all the time but you look like that one actor......what's his name?" Bradley Cooper. I am one lucky lady. ;)

Kati and Patrick 11-4-2011

My brother in law Patrick married Kati Price last Friday. It's funny because I grew up with Kati as she was best friends with my sister since about 6th grade. Her mom was my 5th grade teacher and I used to "babysit" her brother (more like hang out with him and make his mom feel comfortable that he wasn't alone). So, who would've thought 15+ years later she would be my sister in law?

Anyways, let me start with the night before. AKA: the bachelor party, if you will. It took place at Dave and Buster's in Ontario. And, from the sound of it, the boys had quite the night and more fun than I think I have ever seen by the way they were acting upon coming back. Pumped would be an understatement. Let me paint  you a picture... imagine. 6 men, the youngest being 28 and the oldest being 65 running around like a bunch of school boys hooping and hollering at the top of their lungs from all over the room. Let me explain. Patrick (hearing how much Wes and Shaun LOVE their X-Box) has been wanting one for a long time. So, Shaun has spent months, lots of money and time earning enough points at Dave and Buster's to win him an X-Box. Their plan was to bring him their give him all the tickets and tell him to pick something (knowing it would be the X-Box). However, upon arriving there they noticed the cheap X-Box was no longer being offered and their was only 1 more and it was 16,000 more points than they had. So, they told Patrick the dilemma, his response.... "I'm up for a challenge." So, they had 1 1/2 hrs for the 6 of them to win 16,000 points/tickets. So, they only paid ticket games. With 15 minutes left before the place closed they still needed 6,000!!!!! So, they had a runner who would bring the last card with money on it to a person swipe it for them to play then run to the next so they could all play at the same time. They said it was intense. They even had a small following of teenage boys who couldn't believe how many tickets they were winning. At the end of the night, this group of men did it! They got all the needed tickets and thanks to Shaun really, Patrick was able to get himself an X-Box, plus they all had a blast!!!!!!

The boys on Frogger, where they won some big points.

 Patrick and his loot... notice the full cups of tickets under the ones draped around him?

                                               

Patrick and the prized X-Box. Along with Wes, Fred, Robb, Matt and Shaun.

After hearing how much fun they had, I demanded Wes take me on a date there too.

The wedding took place the next day on Friday the 4th at Riley's Farm. And......... it snowed! Who would've thunk? Kati was set on it being an outside wedding; so all the guests braved the cold, and were hauled (literally) up the hill, under a tent into the cold to witness the ceremony. I would love to say that I paid lots of attention to what was being said, but in truth I was so focused on keeping myself and Peyton from frostbite that that became my major concern. I literally lost feeling in my feet. Luckily Peyton didn't seem to notice as long as she had a sucker. :) Too bad she became so sticky I was forced to wipe her down with cold wipeys which only increased her hand chills. And, she refused to keep the blanket over her... ah well.

Here we are braving the cold. (me, Peyton, Kaylah, Rhi (Shaun's sweet girlfriend Rhiannon) and Kristana.

 Patrick and Fred

 The happy couple, Patrick and Kati.

Funny note... Wes and Heidi were both in the wedding so they walked down together, huddled together for warmth since the bridesmaids were told NOT to wear a jacket until AFTER they got up to the front. Did I mention it was snowing or pouring rain the entire time?
                                               

Well, once we got back inside the barn, and got our hot chocolate and sat under the heaters I was able to notice how pretty everything looked. It was a beautiful reception with ridiculous amounts of fun just as the invitation promised. They had an awesome Irish band which really made the night. Peyton loved dancing and loved all the attention she got doing it. So in spite of the cold we really enjoyed ourselves.

Before the wedding... waiting for Daddy to get gas, we took some photos.

 My parents were also there to enjoy the festivities.

 Patrick gave the sweetest, best toast/speech... Kati is a lucky lady.

 We all toasted the happy couple.

 However, give a baby a little bubbly and this is what your family picture looks like. Kidding guys, it was only cider  ;)

Daddy and daughter dancing.

 

 Peyton was not happy with me when I stopped her from causing a ruckus, or getting tripped all over by the dancing people./

 Having fun in the photo booth. Wes was M.I.A. a lot of the night, helping out and taking photos. Oh, and doing what he does best, eating. :)

Congratulations Patrick and Kati.