What's Your Favorite Christmas Movie?

A week or so ago at work my co-workers and I were having a discussion on Christmas Movies and the question going around was "What is your all-time favorite Christmas movie?". I didn't have an answer. So later that night I asked Ray what his favorite is. He didn't have an answer either. So as an effort to do something "Christmassy" we set out to solve this very important mystery.
How do you figure something like this out? Well you have to watch a bunch of Christmas movies. We made a list of 16 movies then ranked them and put them in a bracket (you know like in the March Madness playoffs).

Here is our list of Christmas Movie match-ups
The Santa Clause vs Jack Frost
The Grinch vs It's a Wonderful Life
The Christmas Carol vs Babes in Toy land
Elf vs The Best Christmas Pageant Ever
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation vs Miracle on 34th Street
The Nightmare Before Christmas vs Holiday Inn
Santa Claus The Movie vs A Christmas Story
White Christmas vs Fred Claus

The ones in red are winners so far and will compete in the final 8.
Rules: We don't have to watch the same movie more than once unless we can't agree on the winner. The winner of each match-up is decided by the quality/ quantity of Christmas content & Christmas Spirit. (Holiday Inn is a great classic movie but The Nightmare Before Christmas was overall more Christmassy). Winners will be decided by a unanimous decision by Ray and Julie which may require a re-watch of more than one movie.

It has been fun so far and hopefully by Christmas we will know what our favorite Christmas Movie is.

National Adoption Month

Among many other things, November is National Adoption Month.
For the fourth straight year, in honor of November being National Adoption Awareness Month, Portrait of an Adoption is running a special series called 30 Adoption Portraits in 30 Days. Designed to give a voice to the many different perspectives of adoption, this series will feature guest posts by adoptees, birth parents, adoptive parents, waiting adoptive parents, and foster parents-turned-adoptive parents. Painful and beautiful, these stories will bring you a deeper understanding of what adoption looks like, allowing you to appreciate the many brushstrokes that comprise a family portrait. (copied from their site)http://www.chicagonow.com/portrait-of-an-adoption/2014-30-adoption-portraits/
I have read through a few of the stories and love this one written by an adoptee.  
http://www.chicagonow.com/portrait-of-an-adoption/2014/11/i-was-never-bothered-by-questions-about-my-adoption-it-was-just-my-story/
My favorite quote from her story is "Is adoption all black and white?  No.  There is so much gray.  But am I Happy? Grateful? Thankful?  Yes, I am.  Because, though many parts of adoption can be bittersweet what I have known in my life is LOVE."

I look forward to adoption being part of our child(ren)'s story. " A story I don’t ever remember not knowing"

Crazy, Busy, Fun Weekend / Halloween Parties

This is the story of Julie's crazy, busy fun weekend. In primary at church the kids have been practicing their songs and speaking parts to prepare for our sacrament meeting presentation where we show the rest of the ward what we have been learning in primary. The presentation is coming up and we have one final practice on Saturday before the main event. We decided to reward the kids with a treat of "dirt cups" (pudding with crushed Oreos and gummy worms) to celebrate getting the bugs out of the songs. So Friday night Julie and Ray made dirt cups.

Saturday morning is the final practice and decisions made for the presentation. It went pretty well and the kids enjoyed the treat. Saturday evening is the church Halloween party that we were asked to bring cut up apples as part of the dinner. Thanks to some neighbor boys for picking a big box of apples for us we didn't have to worry about getting them just cutting them. (this required some research of how to keep cut apples from turning brown. Thanks Pinterest!) We also volunteered to take a pot of chili to the party. So after the presentation practice Julie finished up some details on our Halloween costumes, made some chili, made peanut butter cookies, and started cutting apples. The trick is to put the cut apples directly into a big bowl of water with a little bit of lemon juice, when the bowl got full we put the apples into zip-lock bags and put them in the fridge. Our niece Kaitlynn was there to help and when Ray got home from work we were an apple cutting/bagging machine. 

The Halloween party was fun. Julie and Kaitlynn helped out with some games for the kids and Kaitlynn ended up with a bowl full of candy from the trick-or-treating parade. 

Sunday is the big day we have been preparing for. The kids are excited and leaders are nervous. The best parts of the presentation were that the kids wrote their own speaking parts and the special musical numbers involving sibling groups. The spirit was so strong and I was so proud of my primary kids! And because of the excitement and nervousness we decided as a presidency not to try to teach a lesson during primary and have a movie & cookie party instead (thus the peanut butter cookies mentioned earlier).

Sunday evening is the family Halloween party at Ray's parents home. Julie was asked to bring donuts, invite her sister Jennifer and Kaitlynn and plan some games. Where am I going to find time to plan games? So sometime last week Julie calls her sister, 

Julie: What are you doing Sunday evening?

Jennifer: I have to work until 6.

Julie: Dang it!

Jennifer: Why?

Julie: Because I was going to ask if you could plan some Halloween party games for Ray's family party Sunday.

Jennifer: Why is this my problem?

Julie: Well you and Kaitlynn are invited...

Jennifer: Oh! well you could have told me that first.

Julie: Right, I will still take Kaitlynn if you can't come.

Jennifer: I can see if I can change my schedule so we can go.

Julie: Yay! Thanks!

So Jennifer planned some games and changed her schedule so they could come to the party!

 

Julie as the Queen of Hearts and Ray as the Mad Hatter

Our nieces and Nephews.
A pirate, Pikachu, teenager and baby no costume, a Newsie,
 Elsa and Anna from "Frozen", a Grannie,
a Butterfly (forgot wings) and Sacajawea 

 We all had a lot of fun with the games and costumes. The indoor trick-or-treat is always a big hit at grandma's house on Halloween.
I am so glad everything turned out well and thankful for the people that helped me get my crazy, busy, fun to-do list done.

The End Of Summer

Today is the official first day of autumn which means summer is now over. I do enjoy the cooler weather and fall colors but I don't like that the sun goes down so early.
Let's take a minute to review our summer bucket list:

• Go camping (at least twice)- Done 3 times- once to Strawberry, once to Schofield, and once to Yuba. Julie also spent one night at Young Women's camp with our church.
• Finish painting the deck- not done
• Plant flowers- Done- With the help of our niece we planted our front flower bed.
• Go on a bike ride- not done
• Catch a fish- Done- At Schofeild on our camping trip. Julie ended up cleaning and cooking 8 fish for dinner.
• BBQ with neighbors- not done
• Go to a rodeo- Done twice- once to the Lehi Round-up with Ray's mom & dad and nieces & nephew from Colorado. And once with Julie's sister on Pioneer day.
• Take a road trip- Done- We drove our nieces and nephew back to Colorado after they spent 2 weeks in Utah with cousins and grandparents.
• Girls day out- Done- Ray's sisters and I went to dinner at Texas Roadhouse, Bowling, and shopping.
• Have a water fight- Done- At the park on Pioneer Day we got free water guns and had a water fight.
• Go on a hike- Done- We went on a beautiful hike to Stewart Falls near Sundance. 

We did get a lot of our list complete and we had a great summer. There is still time to do the rest before it snows.

Pioneer Day

Pioneer day is a state holiday in Utah when we celebrate Brigham Young and the first group of Mormon pioneers entering the Salt Lake City valley in 1847. We were both lucky enough to have the day off of work to celebrate together.

We started our day off with a parade!

The weather was a nice overcast that kept the heat away.

After the parade we walked around the craft fair and festivities at the carnival. We got some lunch and lemonade at the food vendors there. They had entertainment by local theater companies and we were able to watch some of our neighbors preform. A business was giving away squirt guns so of course we had a little water fight. 

We finished off our Pioneer Day at the rodeo with my sister. We had a lot of fun spending time with each other and the festivities of the day. 

Camping 2014

We went up to mud creek above Strawberry Reservoir last weekend and had a great time camping for a couple nights. These camp spots are rugged spots with no services (that's right....none.) Julie said she would rather not have a bathroom than have neighbors while camping and we all agreed. What's the point of camping if you're just paying for a designated spot with neighbors 30 feet away? We could stay home and have neighbors farther away than some camping sites!

 

Julie's dad, Julie's sister, and her daughter joined us. It was beautiful the whole weekend and we were so proud of our dog Toby! We took a leap of faith and allowed him to roam free with no leash or tether. He stayed close to the campsite the entire time and came when we called him. The only time he tried to run off is when I took our niece up the mountain for a 4WD adventure in my truck and he tried to follow. Also on this trip we learned the awesome power of s'mores made with Reese's peanut butter cups. Try it!

 

-Ray

 

Reese's s'more. Try it! 

Toby is such a good boy as he reminds us what camping is about.

 

 

Julie's dad and our niece making s'mores. 

 

Toby and I being lazy.

Julie's sister

Julie's dad's camp trailer.

Julie fishing.

Us down at the reservoir.



Our niece caught a butterfly.

#TBT

Okay so I'm not really into the hashtags or throwback Thursday stuff but I was cleaning out the closet in our office and came across our wedding album and it seamed to fit since today is in fact Thursday and this is a "throwback".

The first snowfall of the year happened to be on our wedding day, November 1st 2003. A Korean friend told me that if it snowed on your wedding day you would be financially wealthy, though that isn't exactly true we have been blessed to always have what we need. 10 years and 8 months ago we had no idea what life had in store for us. We have made it through many good times and some bad times and look forward to what lies ahead.

A birth mother's story

I have seen her speak at a United for Adoption conference and she is an amazing woman! I am so thankful there are women like her willing to share their stories of placing their child for adoption. I have so much respect for them.

 

Our Summer Bucket List

Even though we don't get a 3 month vacation like the school kids do I still get excited for the summer. I love being outside and and enjoying the warm weather. Here are a few things I want to do this summer:

• Go camping (at least twice)
• Finish painting the deck
• Plant flowers
• Go on a bike ride
• Catch a fish
• BBQ with neighbors
• Go to a rodeo
• Take a road trip
• Girls day out
• Have a water fight
• Go on a hike

~Julie

Happy Easter!

Just a few thoughts...

 

Because of Christ I can be with my family forever, I can repent and be forgiven, I can return to live with my Father in Heaven, and I can be resurrected like He was. I know Christ came to earth to be our savior and redeemer and that He died for us and was resurrected 3 days later. He is the Son of God.

~Julie

Not An Expectant Parent Letter

This post is meant for those considering placing a baby for adoption. I don't know you or how you found yourself looking at this blog, faced with this decision to place or parent your baby. But I do know that you are a strong and amazing person for even considering adoption. God knows you and loves you. With His help and your faith I know you will be guided to make the choices that will be best for you and your baby. Know that we pray for you without yet knowing who you are.
Adoption is such a personal and unique experience for all involved and is different for each case. That's why this is NOT a typical expectant parent letter. I believe the specifics of adoption are between the people involved and not for the general public. We do have a letter for you that has more information about us, our ideas on parenting, our families, our open adoption plans, and where you fit in. We want to get to know you and in doing so we can discuss more openly what adoption looks like to each of us.
Thank you for taking the time to look at our blog. I hope you will be able to get to know us through our posts. If you want to read our REAL expectant parent letter please email us at stewartshopingtoadopt@gmail.com and we will send you a copy.
With love- Ray and Julie

Every year for my birthday I'm crazy enough to wake up at 6am and start smoking pork. This is the latest edition of my birthday pork shoulders. Don't be confused at the burnt look of it. It is supposed to look like that and that slightly spicy blackened crust on the outside is the best part! I also made homemade coleslaw and my own barbeque sauce, which I think is getting close to how I want it to turn out. We've done this three years now and it looks like it's a tradition, which means I will never get to sleep in on my birthday.  For the record, it's worth it. mmmmm!

Ray

I saw this video online and I love it. I thought I would share.
~Julie

February 2002 a.k.a How we met

On KSL News they have been doing a segment called "On this day in 2002" were they go back in time for a few minutes and relive the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. Well the Olympics is not the only amazing thing that happened in February 2002! I might not have the exact days right but here we go. (Italics are Ray commentary and probably what REALLY happened!)

Friday 2/1/2002 10:00 pm: My friend Kandie and I were just finishing up our patrol of the neighborhood (we were volunteers on the neighborhood watch) and stopped in at the local 7-Eleven to get our last Big Gulp re-fill of the night. While we were on our way out I noticed the guy behind the counter was pretty good looking and he was always nice when we went in. We sat in Kandie's truck finishing up our paperwork when I told her that I thought the guy inside was cute. She was surprised because I had never really been interested in a guy before. I had friends that are guys but never a real boyfriend before. Anyway we finished up the night and she took me back to my house. (so when Julie said she thought I was cute Julie insists her friend said, "really?" because she hadn't ever been that interested in a guy before but I know because Kandie couldn't believe that Julie had said that about me - or anyone - in a 7-Eleven smock. Even my family was a little concerned about what kind of girl would look at a guy in a green 7-Eleven smock and say to themselves, "yeah I want to see more of that!")

Saturday 2/2/2002 9:00 am: I was working at the U.S. Post Office delivering mail and was just about to start my route when I checked my voice mail and had a message from Kandie. It said "You know that guy from 7-eleven last night? Well I went back after I took you home last night and gave him your phone number. So he is going to call you." What?! I didn't even know this guys name and now he is going to call me??? So as I was delivering the mail I just kept thinking of how this phone call was going to go. A few hours passed and my phone rang (I still remember that old gold Kyocera cell phone)and it was him, what's his name. Of course I followed all safety precautions and put the mail truck in park and answered the phone. "Hello?" "Hi Julie this is Ray from 7-Eleven, your friend gave me your number." "Oh, Hi. yeah I remember you" "There is a Superbowl party at Diamond Lil's Stake house tomorrow and I was wondering if you would like to go with me?" "Yeah that sounds great, see you tomorrow". I gave him my address and hung up. I have a date tomorrow!  

Sunday 2/3/2002 3:00 pm: Superbowl Party at Diamond Lil's, St. Louis Rams vs. New England Patriots, all you can eat ribs and salad bar. I was routing for the Patriots to win although we didn't really see much of the game. We talked a lot and learned a lot about each other. We enjoyed each others company and laughed at the ads. The Patriots won and he took me home. He asked if we could go out again and I said yes.
Here Julie is being nice to me. I talked the whole time. Her first impression, or I guess the second impression (7-Eleven smock being the first), was that I never stopped talking. She was just too nice to include that here. Thanks, and I love you too Julie!


Wednesday 2/6/2002 7:00 pm: (Okay I will let the Olympics take some of the credit) The Olympic torch passed through Provo in front of the Provo Temple. We set some blankets along the route and waited for the torch to pass. We sat there talking and getting to know each other more. The torch came and went, we cheered and it was over. Now what? So we decided to go to a movie. We saw "A Beautiful Mind" with Russel Crowe and Jennifer Connelly. The movie was great and at some point during the movie he reached over to hold my hand for the first time.


A few other dates scattered throughout...including going to Salt lake to attend a medals ceremony and see all that was going on downtown during the Olympics. It was cool. Even when it wasn't snowing they had some kind of fake snow coming down from the tall buildings every night at the Olympic Plaza

Thursday 2/14/2002 Valentines Day 5:00am: As I was leaving for work before scraping the ice from the car windows I removed about 30 little valentine cards that were placed there by Ray sometime during the night. It was really sweet! Each card had one word on it and the envelopes were numbered. When put in order the cards formed a cheesy poem. It was a lot of fun and I felt pretty special that he would go through the trouble of doing that for me.

Later that day: We went to dinner at Ottavios Italian Restaurant. After dinner we hung out downtown and enjoyed some of the Olympic festivities in the area. Later we went to a park where we danced outside to the car radio and had our first kiss. (I know 2 weeks in and finally a first kiss). For the record, I tried to kiss Julie a few times before that but apparently she had been practicing the turn-the-head-right-before-my-lips-find-hers maneuver because she was a master at it. First kiss was wonderful and romantic though.

I'm sure there were more dates here...

Thursday 2/21/2002 dinner time: We thought we should take advantage of having such a historical event as the Olympics so close to home so we went to Park City to enjoy more of the festivities. While there we ate dinner at Texas Red's BBQ. The portion size was huge and I ate way too much. Later we were walking down the streets of Park City and I was sick to my stomach. I had to find a bathroom quickly. The closest bathroom was in a bar called The Fat Tire Saloon (I was 20)so we went in and I made it to the bathroom. While I was tossing my cookies Ray was watching  the final moments of the U.S. vs Canada Women's Hockey game(by watching the Hockey game she means that I was pacing outside the bathroom worried that this awkward moment might make her want to just be done with the evening....and with me. Puking in a bar underaged isn't exactly a girls dream date.). It was a sad moment for me and our country.


That about sums up our iconic dates in February 2002. I must say that we lasted longer than all of the restaurants mentioned above. We dated for almost 2 years before we were married but every two years when the Olympics start I feel a little nostalgic of our first month together as a couple.

~Julie

Just when I think I'm normal I decide to grab a photo album.

Now that you're an adult do you look at teenagers and think, "they're so weird!"  Well sorry to burst your bubble but you were weird in high school and so was I. I was looking through some pictures of my high school years and have come to realize I didn't make a single normal face as a teenager. Embrace your inner weirdo.

Ray

Christmas & New Years & Birthdays! Oh My!

I spent Christmas Eve at my parents house because Ray worked the night shift both Christmas Eve and Christmas night. Nick and Katie and their girls were there Christmas Eve to open gifts with us and play games. Christmas morning Ray got off work and joined us for an hour or so to open gifts before he went to sleep while the rest of us went to Grandpa Doug's house. It is our family tradition to have breakfast at grandpa's house every Christmas morning. It is really fun to see all the cousins, aunts, and uncles celebrating Christmas together. On the 26th Ray and I went to Naomi's house where his mom and dad had spent Christmas so we could spend a little time with all of them and exchange our gifts. 

Another tradition that we have is our New Years Eve party at our house. (If you can call 3 years a tradition). We invite our extended family over to eat and play games and eat some more. We always have Siagon Subs, my Great Grandma Zina's Cheese ball, chips and dip, and a veggie tray. This year we added sugar cookies to the party which the kids really enjoyed. Those who stayed until midnight rang in 2014 with fireworks! 

January is a busy month for birthdays in our family. We have Kaitlynn (niece) on the 13th, Nick (Julie's brother) on the 17th, and Nick's daughter Sarah & Jennifer (Julie's sister) share the 18th. Kaitlynn turned 10 this year and we had a skating party with her friends and cousins, and aunts and uncles. We love getting together to play games so for Nick and Jennifer we had game night at my parents house. We played a few games of poker and a new game called "Bang".