October

I LOVE October! Fall doesn't seem to last long enough here so I cherish everyday and the oncoming season of scarves, boots, the leaves changing colors, pumpkin flavored everything, and the crisp autumn air!

 

As if October isn't good enough, it's my church's Semiannual General Conference, where church leaders (a modern day prophet and apostles) speak and give such uplifting messages. Needless to say, I love all things October! Here are some well put together quotes that were some of my favorite excerpts from some of the talks given at General Conference:

The beginning of October my friend Kasie was a doll and hooked me up with two tickets to a private concert by Imagine Dragons put on by Vivint. Although I had already seen them perform once this year, a second opportunity to hear the Night Visions tour and have much closer seats than my last attendance was amazing!! Kasie had other tickets so I invited Sandi to be my date. 

It was great as always, even if the crowd acted like they were too cool to sing along at first, by the time Radioactive was performed they loosened up! I relished every moment, singing and dancing along, and just feeling carefree. Here are some of my favorite pictures of the night. Thanks for being my date Sandi and for the tickets Kasie!

 

It's not everyday I get to see my family, as they live 1300 miles away. So when Kassidy (my oldest, younger sister) came into town to tend our niece and nephews for the weekend, it was a special treat. Our sister and brother-in-law went on a quick weekend getaway so we got to spend some time together and with the little ones.

On one particular day, we were attempting to get the Kaden (4), Leighton (2), and Cohen (11 months) dressed to go on a hike and we were feeling a little overwhelmed. They are SO well-behaved but they are still children. It can be overwhelming when you and your sister have just finished a long week of full-time school and work and they aren't exactly listening to you, haha. Kass and I looked at each other and I said, "How does Tasha do this by herself?" We gained a lot of respect for our sister and mom realizing they do/did this kind of thing all the time. Kass and I agreed we were happy being single and that just getting ourselves ready on time was hard enough haha.

Once we got the kids dressed we met up with their Uncle Devin and took them around Bridal Veil Falls for a hike, that really just turned into a walk. We had a blast enjoying the brisk weather, gorgeous trail, and the ever changing leaves that day. And oh we must have been a funny sight to see as we tried our best to strap the ever pleasant and content Cohen into one of those strap-on baby carriers/holders. The poor guy was such a good sport and I suppose you just had to be there to see how ridiculous we looked trying to get him strapped in just right, haha.

During Kassidy's visit I got to put little Miss Leighton to sleep for her naps and bedtime, which was such a special treat because usually her Dad puts her to bed. Since she is my only niece and clings to me despite her shy demeanor, she is a girl after my heart! I love her so!

We certainly had a great time with these kiddos we love so much. We had a fun time dancing around the house and and once they went to sleep we were able to hang out and chat like sisters do.

Of course, since it was October I tried to do as many Halloweenie activities as possible. My employer sponsored a night at Cornbelly's which I attended with a date. We went through the corn maze, played some games, and I went on my first hay ride! Also that month I went on a double date with some friends to a haunted house and we upgraded to the "hands-on" experience which meant the actors could grab you. Miranda and I were talked into it and quickly regretted it. One of my favorite memories of the haunted house were when the vampires ran at Miranda and she screamed so hard, buried her face in Ian's chest so deep, that the actors actually laughed and left her alone. The most hilarious event to watch was probably when we were lead into an shaking elevator and the lights were flickering on and off. I had kept my cool up until this point but after the scary actor came at my face and backed away, I screamed bloody murder after a five second delay. My knees went weak and I thought I was going to pass out from being so frightened. The boys thought that was pretty funny, haha.

I made some great new friends in September, who I spent a lot time with in October. Here are some pictures from when we carved pumpkins together (pic credit to Miranda M.):

My work family is always amazing! I work with the best people so having a staff retreat complete with a tasty lunch and pedicures was nothing to complain about. I especially enjoyed the cactus pear lemonade. Yum! Of course we trained afterwards but here are some pictures of our fun activities:

  

I made it up the canyon for a few bike rides (aka on the back of a bike of course) in October which are one of my favorite pastimes. My last ride up the canyon turned into a spontaneous and beautiful hike up Bridal Veil Falls. I've always seen people hiking up the falls but never tried it myself and I'm so glad my "guide" convinced me to do so. Here are some pictures from that day:

 

 

As for the end of the month, on Halloween I dressed up as a pirate at school and work and had a fun time being festive. Here are some pictures from school and work. I certainly get spoiled from the wonderful Realtors of our Association. As far as the night believe it or not, I went to my first dance party in years, haha. I had a good time since I was with good company and hope you all had a fun Halloween as well :)

(Not the best lighting but it's the only picture I have of us girls on Halloween)

Thanks for sharing in my fun times in October with me. Hope you all had a great month as well!

Love,

Calissa