The Wilkes' Week Blog

NaBlogPoMo 2009

2009-11-30T13:00:00.000-08:00

Lights on Temple Square

2009-11-30T07:38:00.000-08:00

Today is Monday, Nov. 30th - the last day of November and that means I did it! I reached my goal of posting everyday in November. Thanks to all of you who played along and acutally read each of the posts. And a bigger thank you to those of you who left comments - especially my top commenters Tamara and Emily. I appreciate all of you!!

To finish up the month I need to finish out our Utah trip.

Friday, after the movie and dinner the Jim Wilkes family headed up to Salt Lake to see the lights on Temple Square which had just been turned on that night. Tessa had never seen them. In attempts to be more green and environmentally conscious the display is not nearly as large or grand as it has been in years past but it is still beautiful.

There is a very sweet nativity presentation too between the Tabernacle and the Visitor's Center that we watched.

and I especially loved the floating lights on the reflection pool across the street from Temple Square.

Also, I loved the lumineres that lined the sidewalks by the church office building. They all had Christmas words (joy, peace, love etc.) punched in them in all different languages.

But of course the best part was being there with these people!!

The weather was great - chilly but not too cold. Afterwards we went to Hatch Family Chocolates up in the Avenues of Salt Lake and enjoyed some amazing hot chocolate. It was just like drinking a melted candy bar. Jim chose peppermint ice cream instead!!

Saturday was game day! The boys and Cali went to the big U of U/BYU football which BYU won!! I chose to check out a few quilt shops instead! The game went into overtime so the boys didn't arrive at the Blazer/Jazz game in Salt Lake until half time. I met them at the freeway entrance with a bag of McDonalds - and they headed up to Salt Lake. Unfortunately the Blazers lost that one.

All the girls got together while all the Wilkes men were at the Blazer/Jazz game at Emily's We ordered in pizza and Bajio and had a fun craft night together. We learned how to solder and made some cute necklaces from glass and wire - so fun! Thanks Emily!!

A fun day! I even got some Christmas shopping done!!

Home Safe and Sound

2009-11-29T20:07:00.000-08:00

We made it home safe and sound in about 12 hours! It was an easy trip with great weather. We were so blessed to have sunny weather coming and going.

It's good to be home but I am missing these faces already!!

We had a wonderful time!

A special thank you to David and Tricia for always making us feel so comfortable and welcome and to Tricia for all her hard work to create an amazing Thanksgiving dinner! Tricia is always a great shopping companion too.

Thanks to Eric for letting us use his bedroom and to Eryn for letting Tessa and Cali invade her space!

Thank you to Wynn and Emily for letting us borrow their car to Salt Lake and to Emily for hosting a fun dinner and craft night!! And for their continued love and kindness to our children!

We loved seeing the Wynn Wilkes family too and thanks for a fun basketball game!

Thank you to Grandma and Grandpa Wilkes for driving down to spend the time with all of us and to Grandpa Wilkes for great hugs - I love his big bear hugs the best!!

Thanks to BYU for pulling through and winning on Saturday (we wish the Blazers had done the same!)

Black Friday

2009-11-29T09:00:00.000-08:00

Jim and I ventured out to make one purchase on Black Friday. I have been eyeing the Cricut Inspiration machine for a while - for those of you who don't know what it is - it is a machine that cuts different shapes out of paper - great for scrapbooking, posters, banners, etc. I have some fun plans for it on my party blog so stay tuned!

Thanks to a Black Friday sale at Roberts and Grandma Wilkes' Christmas money I am now the proud owner of one! Now I just need to figure out how to use it!

Friday afternoon all the Wilkes men and two women (Mikala and Cecelia) had a family basketball game over at the church. It was the Wynn Wilkes family agains the Jim and David Wilkes family. The Wynn Wilkes showed up in uniform thinking they would intimidate the other team but it didn't work! We won!

They did look pretty fancy in their uniforms though - I think Micah wins the prize for the most stylish!

And then Wynn's headband was pretty sweet - it says Pooh and Friends on it and it is actually the elastic waistband from a pair of underwear - way to repurpose Wynn!!

They even let our old man into the game for a few minutes!

Clark couldn't play because his knee is messed up - he's going to the doctor to have it check out next week!

I think my favorite photo I took is this one of Eric doing his little ballet leap!

After the basketball game we munched on leftovers for lunch and then went to the movies. A group of the girl cousins went to see New Moon (a repeat for several of them) and 9 boy cousins and Jim and I went to see Blindside. I HIGHLY recommend this movie. It is one of the best I have seen in a long time.

I must admit I am rather partial to one of the main character's names - the one played by Sandra Bullock - her name is Leigh Anne - spelled the right way.

It is definitely a feel good movie and will move you to tears. It was Logan's second time seeing it and he cried again. Of course Jim cried through most of it - go see it!

After the movie Grandma and Grandpa treated us to dinner at Five Guys Burgers and Fries. Our family then headed up to Salt Lake to see the lights of Temple Square as Tessa had never seen them before - pictures of that posted soon!

Thanksgiving Dinner

2009-11-28T09:27:00.000-08:00

There was lots of food and lots of people for Thanksgiving dinner - 35 people to be exact. Thanks to David and Tricia our gracious hosts for a fun and yummy day.

Before the eating began there was the official weigh- in. Most of the kids and a few of the adults weighed themselves before they ate and after to see who would gain the most!

I chose not to participate :)!!

There was plenty of food with a ham and a turkey and all the fixins! Pots and pots of mashed potatoes and hundreds of homemade rolls!

Little cousin Carter especially enjoyed his meal! Aren't those eyes amazing!!

And my cute boy

Here's Logan's plate - he didn't go hungry!!

And of course there was pie - lots of pie!! Apple, Banana Cream, Key Lime, Pecan/Cranberry, Raspberry Cream, Lemon Truffle, Chocolate and apple dumplings!!

Hope your Thanksgiving was a happy one!!

The Best Part of Thanksgiving

2009-11-27T13:08:00.000-08:00

What's your favorite part of Thanksgivng?

I think the best part of Thanksgiving this year was cousins! Lots of cousins! The biggest benefit of spending Thanksgiving in Utah is getting to share it with lots of our Wilkes cousins!

Logan and his new girfriend Jacky!

Lots of cute girl cousins! Cali, Tessa and Eryn

Cali, Tessa, Cece

lia and Mikala

Llittle Miss Jacky

and her handsome brother Ward!

The newly engaged cousin - Eric and his fiancee Diane. We enjoyed meeting her for the first time! Way to go Eric - you got a good one!

Some of the college, almost college, and just graduated from college cousins

and some of the boy cousins patiently waiting for dinner.

And best of all we got to see Grandma (and Brendy)

and Grandpa Wilkes!

How to Survive a 13 Hour Car Ride to Utah

2009-11-26T09:39:00.000-08:00

Tuesday after school we left for Utah.

Bye bye Portland!

We had been praying all week for good weather and it was a beautiful, sunny day!

Mt. Hood was gorgeous as we headed out of town. We made it to Ontario by about 9:30 p.m.and spent the night there. We saw a little snow along the roadside but the skies were clear!!

With all the car drives we have made to Utah over the years we have learned there are some crucial items you must have in order to survive the 13 hour drive!

The first is a sack of good treats! I made a trip to Trader Joes before we left and we had lots to snack on! Austalian red licorice and maple cookies are a must!

Tessa had her i-pod and a few new magazines and she was a happy camper. She also liked the fact that she got the back seat all to herself!

A portable DVD player with a season's worth of Gilmore Girls and the movie Clueless also help!

A book on tape - Twenties Girl - also kept all three of us entertained!

We arrived in Salt Lake about 2:00 p.m., made a quick stop at Tai Pan (I was in and out in about 45 minutes) and then headed down to David and Tricia's where Logan and Cali met us. Clark worked until 6:00 p.m. and we met him at Cafe Rio for dinner.

Cafe Rio and all my kids - it doesn't get any better!!!

Fashion Shoot

2009-11-25T09:38:00.000-08:00

After church on Sunday we decided to have a little fashion shoot in the backyard.

Tessa got the camera first and I was the model. Showing off my amazing purchase I made a couple of months ago. I have become such the bargain shopper. Here is my $358.00 dress - except that is not what I paid for it!! I only paid over $50.00 for it. Added my $20.00 Target sweater to it and not bad!

I guess Tessa thought his was my best angle!

My new tights looked pretty cute too - don't you think!?

Now it was Tessa's turn. I am going to take this as the highest form of flattery - when your 16 year old daughter wants to borrow your dress! Look at the cute outfit Tessa put together with my dress!!

So I did fill it out a little more in certain places but how cute is she!!

She put it on over a vintage petticoat she has, added a black leather belt and a totally different look!

And by the way - it was cold outside!!

Jim was feeling a little left out so we took a picture of him too - his outfit wasn't nearly as cute!

Turkey Bowl

2009-11-24T15:00:00.000-08:00

Cali's ward had a Turkey Bowl last Saturday.

The day started out with a little snow!

A little snow was not going to stop the fun though!

Not sure which team won but they had fun! Love the hats girls!

Look at that form - what a girl!!

The Sensous Sandwich

2009-11-23T09:00:00.000-08:00

Saturday night Cali and a group of her roomates and friends went out to dinner.

They had dinner at the Sensous Sandwich in Provo.

They have a special wall there -

this wall is covered with photos of people who have been able to eat an entire 24 inch sandwich in 30 minutes!!

Not only do you get your photo on their Wall of Fame but you also get a t-shirt.

Everytime you wear the t-shirt to the shop you get a free drink.

Well, Cali and her friends decided they wanted a t-shirt - they wanted their photo on the wall!

Why not - all you have to do is eat THIS!!

No problem!!

Well... they ate....and they ate....and they ate.....

Ok so this picture is before they ate - they look a lot happier in this photo!

Not quite so happy here.

or here....

Well....Cali didn't make it - she did eat 18 of the 24 inches though.

Her roommate Amanda was successful though and two of the guys! They got the t-shirt!!

Cali said it would be a long time before she was ready to face another sub sandwich!!

Good try Cali!!

College Kid Update

2009-11-22T18:43:00.000-08:00

As my college kids like to remind me it has been a while since I have done a College Kid Update - so here goes!!
Logan - Logan is still in a holding pattern with his job - waiting for financing to be cleared through Homeland Security. A few extra prayers in his behalf would be appreciated!! He is managing to keep himself busy though. He has helped his buddy Mark out by DJ ing a few dances for him and also painting Emily and Wynn's piano. This weekend he went to the BYU football game with his buddy Lincoln.

After the game they elebrated his roommate Lane's birthday with dinner at California Pizza Kitchen and a get together at their apartment afterwards.

Logan also gave a talk on Gratitude in Sacrament today - he shared a copy of it with us and we just wish we could have been there to hear him! Love ya boy!!

Clark - Clark played in an Elder's Quroum football game Saturday morning. We are hoping it is not too serious but he heard his knee pop and has had quite a bit of pain and stiffness since then. He will have it checked out tomorrow. It is not the knee he blew out before his mission - we are hoping he does not now have a matching set!! Despite the pain, he went on a group date Saturday night up to SLC and went ice skating on it! He is now thinking maybe that wasn't such a good idea.

Friday night he and some friends went to the Thrice concert in Salt Lake.

Cali has been keeping busy as usual!! Friday night she attended a photography exhibit at the HFAC that features photos taken of students and faculty from the deaf school in Provo. She was able to spend a couple of hours signing with people, which she loved! After that she had a date - the majority of the date was spent watching the Boise State football game - she was thrilled!!

Saturday she had a dance rehearsal for the dance show she will perform in in February (Feb. 6th) she then went to the BYU football game. Afterwards a group of her roommates and friends went out to eat. This experience deserves a post all of it's own so you are going to have to wait until tomorrow to see and read all the details! Beware - it involves A LOT of eating and the photos might make you nauseous!!

So Tessa is not a college kid but she is a student so you get an update on her too. School and homework keep her pretty busy with her two AP classes and honors. She is on the countdown for her boot removal- only two more weeks to go!! Of course the highlight of her week was going to see New Moon so Friday night was spent hanging out at home and catching up on her sleep.

Saturday she helped out with a National Honor Society project and distributed toy collection bags through different neighborhoods. After that the three of us went out to dinner and checked out a new restaurant - Cha-Cha-Cha, a local Mexican chain that was in the Pearl District. We all liked it and will definitely go again!

Our neighbor Katie hired Tessa to be a party helper for Molly's 12th birthday party. Tessa was there most of the evening Saturday helping out with the 15 girls in attendance. I helped Katie set up the cupcake and candy bar which turned out great - pictures will be posted on my new party blog in a week or so!!

After the party Tessa hung out with Kat, one of Cali's friends. They made homemade banana ice cream and brownies and watched a movie.

We are getting ready and excited to head to Utah on Tuesday - can't wait to see our college kids. We will hopefully make it to Ontario Tuesday night and then arrive in Provo mid day on Wednesday. Hoping to make a stop at Tai Pan Trading on the way into town!!! We are so excited to see everyone!!

New Moon College Style

2009-11-21T15:45:00.000-08:00

Tessa and I weren't the only family members crazy enough to go the midnight premiere of New Moon!

Cali and her roommates waited in line OUTSIDE for two hours - in cold Utah!!

But when you are sporting a stylish Snuggie you don't need to worry about the cold!!

Those Snuggie's sure come in handy! I bet Brittany wished she had one too!

I guess all the standing in line paid off when they scored great seats in the theater!

Fortunately for Cali she doesn't have classes on Friday so she could sleep in!

New Moon

2009-11-20T09:52:00.000-08:00

The first midnight premiere of a movie I ever attended was Twilight. It was a fun and crazy experience!

After it was over though I added it to my list of "Things I'm glad I did once but don't need to do again."

Well - I lied. I did it again.

Last night Tessa, Hannah, Molly and Olivia and I attended the Premiere - Midnight showing of New Moon, the sequel to Twilgiht.

Never say never!

The girls all headed over about 9:30 and I hung at home until about 11:00 when Jim dropped me off.

We had a great time and enjoyed New Moon more than Twilight.

We are thinking we may all be joining Team Jacob!!

Now to catch up on my sleep!!

Jim's New Boss

2009-11-19T10:45:00.000-08:00

Wanted to introduce you to Jim's new boss today.

Isn't he cute?

Yes - Jim is working for the Duck.

We are excited that he has a job! He started last week and has been busy with training and learning everything he needs to know.

He has gotten off to a strong start and has his first sales under his belt which is a good thing since he is TOTALcommission. Yes that means no base salary - nothing - no sales equals no money!

We have done that before and we can do it again. The job also comes with no benefits which is something new for us. We have never had a job before with no benefits.

Fortunately we can stay on our Cobra until next June so I am sure we will figure something out by then.

He will still have a home office but spends a lot of time at the main office and out talking with businesses so I must admit I am enjoying my quiet house again!!

So if you know of someone or a business/company that might be interested in supplmental insurance give Jim a call - he'd love to talk to them!

Book Club

2009-11-18T19:31:00.000-08:00

My book club met today and discussed our most recent read - Sarah's Key.

I loved the book. I read the whole thing this weekend while we were at the beach. I had a hard time putting it down.

The book is tragic and sad but well written. There are two story lines occuring at once. One that begins in
1942 in Paris when all the Jews in the city are rounded up and sent to live in horrible conditions in the Velodrome d'Hiver. The children are seperated from the parents and all eventually end up in Auschwitz except for the very few who escape. The other story line begins in Paris in current day with an American living in Paris and married to a French man who is asked to write a story on the anniversary of this horrible event in Paris. Julia becomes obsessed with something she discovers and in the end the two stories come together. .

It is a heart wrenching story of the impact the events of 1942 had on so many lives for so many generations and how we must never forget the horrors that happened during that time.

I have always been fascinated with the time period around WWI and the Holocaust. Some of my favorite books I have read over and over again are Diary of Anne Frank and The Hiding Place.

This last year I also read a few other books that deal with this same time period. The Zoo Keeper's Wife is about what happened in Poland during this time and then the Book Thief is another intriguing book told from the perspective of Death. I highly recommend both. The Zoo Keeper's Wife reads a little bit more like a history book than a novel but I enjoyed it a lot.

Our next book club pick is The Hunger Games.
Would love to hear any book recommendations you might have for me!

An Invitation

2009-11-17T09:24:00.000-08:00

When we were at the beach this last weekend I found this darling card....

I fell in love with it and several others ones they had in the store.

I decided that this card should become the theme for the Wilkes Family Manzanita Beach Reunion 2010.

Every party needs a theme doesn't it?

I thought Grandma Wilkes would approve....

Memories to Last a Lifetime.

Our family has certainly created memories to last a lifetime at Manzanita Beach!

So Wilkes family - this is your official invitation to

Manzanita Beach - Memories to Last a Lifetime 2010

For those of you who don't know the official dates are:

July 9 - 14th

We hope to see you there!

A Study in Driftwood

2009-11-16T11:58:00.000-08:00

On our Saturday morning walk along the Manzanita Beach Jim and I were amazed by the amount of large pieces of driftwood that had washed up. Not only was there a lot but they were very far up - almost to the sand dune. They must have had some pretty big waves to get those where they landed!!

I had fun taking pictures of it while trying to catch the morning light and Jim had fun playing on it!!

There is some good bonfire wood to be had!!

Back from the Beach

2009-11-15T16:11:00.000-08:00

The three of us spent a very relaxing weekend at the beach!

We got a little later start than we had hoped Friday evening. With a road closure thanks to an accident and having to be re routed (thank goodness for our GPS) and then some snow going over the top of the pass we didn't arrive until about 8:00 p.m. We had picked up a Papa Murphy's pizza on the way out of town and cooked it when we arrived - we were hungry.

Saturday was a nice day at the coast - no rain or wind! Jim and I got up and went for a lovely walk on the beach. Tessa slept as walking in the sand with her lovely boot would be difficult!

We spent the rest of the day hanging out at the house. I worked on a qulit top and almost finished it!

Tessa spent a lot of time here - working on homework and taking a nap now and then!

Jim did some work on his computer. We took a trip into town and browsed a few of our favorite stores, including the bookstore and ate a late lunch at one of the Mexican restaurants in town. We just snacked for dinner.

That evening we watched Guys and Dolls - the musical they are doing this Spring at the high school and played our favorite new card game..

I was able to start and finish the book we are reviewing at book club this week - I loved it!!

All in and all it was a productive yet peaceful, relaxing weekend. Nice to escape for a couple of days!

Your Homebased Parties

2009-11-13T07:23:00.000-08:00

Those of you who read Your Homebased Mom have already seen the announcement but I am excited to let you know that I have a new blog! I'm sure your first thought is - another one? Yes, another one!

This blog was a natural extension of Your Homebased Mom and something I love to do - put on parties.

If you haven't visited the new blog yet, please do.

Your Homebased Parties is a result of inspiration - Clark and I are still debating over who had the inspiration first!

So please go on over and check it out and subscribe via email so you can get updates. I'd love for you to share it with your friends too. Also, if you have any great party ideas and/or photos to share I'd love to feature you on the blog (Michelle - how about that Harry Potter party you did??)

This is it!

2009-11-12T08:53:00.000-08:00

Yesterday Tessa had the day off of school for Veteran's Day. I think in November they have a total of 6 days off school!

We had wanted to see the Michael Jackson movie, "This is it". Since Wednesday was the last day it was in the theaters we figured This is it!

We loved it!

I have to admit I have never been a huge Michael Jackson fan but his movie really showed what an amazing talent and performer he was. Despite what you may think of him as an individual and his personal life he was incredibly talented. Dare I say - possibly one of the most if not the most talented performers we have ever seen.

Tessa and I loved the music and the dancing and both agreed that it was a tragedy that this show was never performed or seen by an audience in its entirety - I am sure it would have been AMAZING!

The Thriller number alone was incredible. I especially liked the tribute he paid to the Jackson Five and the numbers he performed of theirs. Michael was only a year older than I am and I remember watching him as a small boy, when I was a small girl, perform on TV. Although I always loved Donny better!

When it comes out on DVD - rent it.

Blazer's Edge

2009-11-11T09:03:00.000-08:00

Several weeks ago Clark told me about a website he frequents often - Blazer's Edge. I guess it's a pretty big deal as far as Blazer blogs/websites go - gets a lot of hits every day! They were raising money to buy tickets for disadvantaged children to go to Blazer games.

If you donated money or bought some tickets they would give a shout out to your website or blog. Since my boys have such fond memories of going to Blazer games as kids with their dad I was happy to purchase some tickets for other children.

Today Dave over at Blazer's Edge gave a really nice shout out to my blog. He even said I rock!! How fun is that!

I did a blog post featuring some fun foods to snack on while watching the blazer game and some old pics of the boys dressed up as Blazer fans. Fun!

Check it out!

Here I am on Blazer's Edge!

Here is my Blazer's post.

Roll Tide!

2009-11-10T13:54:00.000-08:00

Last weekend Logan was a jetsetter! He and his buddies Lane and Mark and Annalece Boothe were treated to a weekend in Alabama for the big Alabama/LSU football game. Crimson Tide vs. LSU Tigers.

I guess it was a big game - at least that's what I was told.

They flew out of SLC Friday and back in on Sunday! A quick but fun trip.

A family that Annalece had lived with the last couple of summers while she performed in Jackson Hole were their gracious hosts. The boys had gone up to Jackson Hole this summer to visit Annalece and stayed with her friends also amd gotten to know them. What kind and generous people to treat all of them to a trip to one of the biggest football games of the year!

Don't the boys look handsome in their new Alabama t-shirts!?

According to Logan the whole football game was quite a party! Complete with some yummy ribs and banana pudding!!

The kids had a great time - Roll Tide Roll!!

Thanks to their kind hosts!

NHS Inductions

2009-11-09T18:39:00.000-08:00

Last week Tessa was inducted into the National Honor Society.

Jim and I had tickets to see Ragtime downtown at the Center Stage Theater so we weren't able to go. The theater had found me through my Homebased Portland blog and offered us free tickets to the show. The show was amazing! I had seen Ragtime once before years ago with Logan. It is a wonderful show and the music is great! The costuming and lighting were wonderful but the set was the most amazing - all it was - was wooden chairs. They created an amazing show with just a few chairs!

Hannah filled in as Tessa's mom and photographer for the evening.

As a member of NHS you are required to give so many service hours each semester. Tessa is already busy loggin her time. Tonight she is at a blood drive at one of the local churches volunteering! Yeah Tessa!

Thanks Hannah for helping out!

Let the Holidays Begin!

2009-11-08T18:07:00.000-08:00

I found egg nog in the cooler at the grocery store this last week and I found these on the shelf....

My favorite!! Candy Cane Kisses!!!

It's official - the holidays may begin!