Happy Halloween, Thanksgiving, & MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

Clint working in the computer world means that I hear a lot of technical jargon that I don't understand. One that he used more in the past was "zipping". I know that is pretty common, and yet, I don't understand it. I only understand that it takes something big and makes it smaller. So I hope this transfers well. I am "zipping" our holiday blog. You get three Sorensen holiday experiences for the price and effort of reading just one post.

Halloween was great! Mitchell wore his dinosaur costume from 2 years ago and it only looked a little too small for him. A few days before Halloween he participated in his pre-school Halloween program. Right before it was to begin he informed me that he had some business to take care of in the bathroom. I knew if he went he would miss the entire program so I asked him to wait the 5-10 minutes that it would take for it to be over. He was not pleased and spent the majority of the program either sitting on the floor or looking at it. (There were no accidents for those of you wondering. Mitchell has excellent control.)

Trick or treating was a success. The kids loved it. The best part was that after a few streets Mitchell told me that he had enough candy and was done trick or treating! Caleb did better than I thought he would do. He went to everyhouse in silence but as soon as he would close the door he would burst out "Drick or Deat" and "Dank doo". Maybe next year he'll speed it up and actually say it to the people handing out candy.

Thanksgiving was great. We spent the day at my parents home. I've always loved Thanksgiving meals but for some reason this year everything tasted more excellent than ever. I can usually eat a little sandwich later on in the evening but I had stuffed myself so full this year I could barely make room for a piece of banana cream pie. Thanks Mom and Dad for having us over!

The highlight for our kids the past few months has been the snow that has come (and melted away much to Mitchell's dismay). Mitchell thoroughly loves the snow. I've never seen someone get so giddy because it is snowing. He got into his snow clothes as soon as I would let him. Caleb didn't want to miss out on anything until he fell into the snow with his gloves off. Then he wasn't such a big fan. He still loves watching snow through the window from inside the house.

We are all excited about the Christmas season. We have enjoyed doing weekly advent that my uncle and aunt gave to us years ago. We have invited Clint's home teaching families over each week for dinner and had them stay for advent. Basically we just didn't want to sing alone. Mitchell really enjoys when the families have kids his age to play with. And they love taking turns blowing out the candles.

For our primary sharing time this year we had all of the kids participate in an advent. It was very cute and the kids really enjoyed it. Our music leader orchestrated the event and did a wonderful job. Mitchell had the part of a sheep. I made him his sheep hat the night before. He wasn't sure he wanted to wear it but did really well today. He wore it the entire time and was enraptured by the nativity. I've never seen him quite so attentive.

Even though I've been terrible about blogging (and taking pictures) when I got the camera yesterday to take Mitchell's picture Caleb came running up to get his picture taken. He definitely has NOT forgotten how to cheese for the camera!

I think that our biggest present of the season is that Clint got a new job. His last day at Energy Solutions will be January 31st. He starts at Overstock.com on January 5th. The pay and insurance are better, it's closer to home, and (my very favorite) he won't be traveling. We are very excited but will miss the good friends that he has made at Energy Solutions.

Merry Christmas to you all!! Have a wonderful holiday!