Happy Thanksgiving!

The reunion continues! What a great Thanksgiving we had! All the family that came for Julie's wedding stayed for Thanksgiving. Plus Toby came so we set the table for 26! I am thankful for each and every one of them!

Tammy and the girls made the cutest place markers. Pilgrim hats made from black party cups. They had a lot of fun the night before Thanksgiving being creative. My favorite part was setting the table all pretty.

What would we do without Chet and Mike? Every year these guys pull the leftover turkey off the bones and we have yummy turkey soup, sandwiches and leftovers for 3 days at least. (No cooking - I love it...)

I have so much to be grateful for. Most of my thoughts turn to my family and the joy it is to be a wife and mother. As well as being a daughter and sister. What a wonderful plan to send us to earth to be in a family. Eternity will be one big family reunion.

The gospel brings so much perspective into all of my thoughts of thanks. I am "encircled about" by the many blessings that come from living Heavenly Father's plan.

Each day I wake up and take a deep breath of life with a great husband, wonderful and healthy kids, a beautiful and safe community and home to raise them in, the foundation of the wonderful family that guided me, the chance to live close enough to family to have them be a part of my everyday life, the absolute beauty of this earth that was created for me, the goodness of so many people around me, the patience of Heavenly Father to allow me to continue to learn, the knowledge of a Savior and a plan for my journey that includes learning, discovering, making mistakes, experiencing troubles, and moments of great joy all mixed together. I am grateful for all of it!!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I am happy to give thanks!

Julie's Wedding

Julie and Ryan ChangWe had a mini family reunion and celebrated a temple marriage with Julie and Ryan. They had a beautiful November wedding and it was so wonderful to see all the Walkers together. Justin and Tiffany and Avery came from Colorado and Jessie and Clinton came with the superstars that we all look forward to seeing - Calvin and Addy! (How can Diane have 3 grandkids?) Linda and Chris came too and Mom and Dad. Tammy was here with Dallas as well. And with the resident Gradys and Mullins we had 3 houses full! Family galore and we loved it.



Julie was absolutely beautiful and they both looked very happy -and silly. I don't think anyone had more fun all day than those two. Diane and Chet threw a great party. All of the hard work paid off - it was a fun and beautiful celebration!

All the "Clark" aunts were there for support!

We had a wonderful time at the reception - yummy food, dancing, pictures etc. Thanks for a great party Diane and Chet.

Mom looked so pretty! I think Mom and Dad enjoy a good party!



Carol spent hours, days, weeks even.... altering this dress! It was beautiful!

Happy Birthday Katie and Andrew!

November 21st is quite the day in our Mullin family.

It is Mike's Mom's birthday and Andrew and Katie's birthday. Mike always jokes that he used to have a hard time remembering when his Mom's birthday was. Now it is much easier. Funny how having a family changes you.

After Katie and Andrew both came on November 21 - people were starting to wonder....When I was pregnant with Megan, someone asked David "When is Debbie going to have her baby?" He replied. "Doesn't she usually have her babies on November 21st?"


This year Katie shared cake and ice cream with the family. She got to go to Phantom of the Opera one month ago for a awesome birthday surprise. Andrew got to enjoy hamburgers and friends. I made him an awesome ice cream cake. They all went longboarding until 11 pm. Easy to please.

Happy Birthday guys! I love you!

My Kids Made Their Beds

Well, it is a miracle. A normal morning, getting everyone off to school. I went upstairs after they were gone and WOW! Each of my kids has made their bed!

This is how it happened. I told them that they are in charge of making their beds as a normal part of daily chores. If they fail to make their bed, that is okay, but then I must hire one of their sisters or brother to make their bed for them. And on Friday, when I pay them allowance, then they must pay $1 to any person that made their bed for them. They can do it themselves in a timely fashion, or they will hire it done.

It is the second week and it is working like a charm.

Andrew has been doing a lot of hiring.... He leaves before the girls get up and going and they check everyday for a money making opportunity. But he is wising up. He has only missed once this week!

One day last week, I had to hire Melissa to make Andrew's bed. She was thrilled! Well, in the excitement, she forgot to make her bed, so when Andrew came home from school, I had to hire him to make her bed! Then she had to pay him. She collasped on the floor overcome with grief and tears. But she has not missed making her bed since.

Happy Birthday Mike

Not quite as lean

Not quite as mean

But still a MARINE!

Mike said that, not me....

Marines are all the same- they wish each other Happy Birthday on November 10th every year. Once a Marine always a Marine they all say. Well, today is that day. The birthday of the Marine Corps.

Happy Birthday Honey!

Marine Corps Birthday Ball

This weekend we went to Seattle for the celebration of the 233 Marine Corps birthday. They have a ball every year and Mike and I have been going together for about a million years. He always wears his dress blues and looks terrific. (I have to stress every year about what I will wear. Something black and fancy and modest!) It is always fun to see the ball gowns and of course the guys always look so sweet in uniform. Because it is always in November - I have had the opportunity to go 9 months pregnant - TWICE - once with and Andrew and then 3 years later with Katie (they both were born Nov 21.) Lucky me!It is a big deal how many medals and ribbons you have. The guys are checking each other out more than the girls. There is always a fancy dinner and ceremony and then a dance. They give the first piece of birthday cake to the oldest Marine to show honor and respect and then the second piece goes to the youngest Marine present to show hope for the future. This year, the youngest Marine was about 1 year older than Andrew - just 18 years old - he enlisted in July.

This year we did something fun with our pictures. We have like a million of them standing there smiling! So we broke the tradition acted goofy.

My favorite part of the uniform is the white cover (not a hat - Marines wear covers.) But the rules are that you can't wear the cover indoors so I never have any pictures of us with Mike in full uniform. So we pulled a "Tammy and Toby style" photo in the parking lot (outside) and Mike held out the camera at arms length and snapped a photo of us before we went home. It turned out pretty good. (Mike has long arms...)
The kids went along just for the hotel stay. They love swimming and eating at McDonalds. (Yuck!) This year we went to a family fun center by our hotel and played Laser Tag and Mini Golf during the day on Saturday. Our team rocked at Laser quest! My score was 41 thousand! (I guess I can point and shoot more than a camera!)

Trick or Treat!

What a great Halloween we had - it was Friday night and warm! How great is that? Not to worry about the kids freezing and staying up too late. All the kids dressed up and went out trick or treating. Dress up and Candy - can there be a better holiday?

The kids got enough candy so that Mike and I can steal from them and they never notice. Mike goes for the Tootsie Rolls and I go for the Almond Joys.