The Family Rockstar

A couple weekends ago Adam Kump (Mark's 1st cousin) performed his own songs for all who were present at the bookstore Borders that evening. We were so glad we had the opportunity to go and see Adam's talent. He sang all his own songs which were really great and of course we bought a cd.

When we arrived Adam sang "Something", a Beatles song just for me! Of course my smile reached ear to ear and I loved every minute of it!
It was a good opportunity to catch up with Uncle Dow and Aunt Luara as well.

List of Fictional Rich

Rounding out the Fictional 15:

1. Uncle Sam
2. Scrooge McDuck
3. Richie Rich
4. Gordon Gekko
5. Jabba The Hutt
6. Ebeneezer Scrooge
7. Tony Stark
8. Thurston Howell III
9. Bruce Wayne
10. Adrian Veidt
11. Jed Clampett
12. Artemis Fowl II
13. C. Montgomery Burns
14. Lara Croft
15. Mr. Monopoly

You can read the entire article here.

Up Close and Personal

Last Wednesday my sister won tickets to visit Studio C in Tucson on Thursday. With her unfortunate timing getting stuck in jury duty, I was able to run down there and take her place. The radio station had Augustana visit for a private show (four songs) with lots of questions between the songs. When the concert was over the audience members had the opportunity to visit, get pictures and signatures. It was a lot of fun.

I had been to two of their concerts and have both of their albums so getting to ask them my own questions was fun. Of course I asked about the influence of "The Beatles" in their music and I was not disappointed!

Denver

We made a trip to Denver two weeks ago for Mark's best friend's baby blessing. We have been present at all three now and we love any excuse to spend time with them.

Couldn't resist running downtown to see some of the sights. First we visited the Denver Mint and then a tour through the Capitol building. Both really interesting.

Monday night it snowed and Tuesday morning we got to play with the kids.

Tuesday afternoon we went through the Denver Temple. This made our 20th temple in North America!

Ward XMas Party

Many of you know that I have been working for months on a ward garden which was planted to be harvested for our Ward Christmas Party. Well, last Saturday we had the big day and it was a hit. We had approx 270 ears of corn which were roasted as well as cucumbers and zuchinni squash from the garden which were fried. We pulled a ton of pumpkins which were used to make our pies and they were delicious.

Here is our pig, whom I named Bacon. He was so big one person estimated him to be approx 375 lbs. I wasn't present when they quickly stabbed him in the heart but just after I remained at the slaughter location for a lesson in pig butchery. It was a little hard to watch but interesting.

I decided to leave off the really graphic pictures :(

Thanksgiving

We spent the Thanksgiving holiday with Mark's family in Mesa.

Lots of good food and time spent visiting with loved ones.

Mark (above) and his brother Aaron (below) hold the newest member of the Christensen family.

Growing the Family

On November 22nd my only brother married Jessica Hart. We just love her and her six and eleven year old sons that have now become part of our family. It was a beautiful ceremony and reception and we are beside ourselves to see Steven so happy.

This is me (above) and my sister Misty (below) with our adopted grandpa John.

Thank you Vets!

This morning I got together with my friend Lauren and her little boy to go see the Veterans Day parade in Phoenix. We really enjoyed the overwhelming feeling of love and appreciation for those who currently serve or those who have served previously in the Armed Forces. The balloons, floats and marching bands were a lot of fun.

Monday Night Football!

Last night we went to Monday Night Football with Mark's friend Roy and his dad. The game was exciting and we had a great time.

With Veterans Day being the next day there was a lot of patriotism at the game. Guess who sang the national anthem? Jordan Sparks!

They gave out free Cardinal's hand towels so the crowd looked like this.

The game is over and WE WON!

Bridal Shower???

Last weekend we had a somewhat bridal shower for my brother's fiance and everyone was invited. We had BBQ and played a game on the couple. It was nice to meet their friends, co-workers and school buddies.

Here is Steven with the younger of his two soon to be children.

Halloween

My sister invited me to join her at the Halloween party at her work. They went with a Beatlemania theme and of course I was all about that.

Isn't she adorable!!!

Friday night I was Glinda, the good which from The Wizard of Oz. My mom went with me to the Queen Creek Trunk or Treat event and we worked a photo booth for my friend. I love every minute I get to spend with my mom!

An update on the ward garden

Here he is...the pig! It's been a little more then two months now and our pig is good and ready for slaughter. He is hungry all the time and he lets you know it.

It's amazing how fast it grew! So beautiful.

Below is our squash and cucumber.

Havested all this at one time.

A Day On The Lake

Our friend Christopher recently bought a yacht and invited us to spend the day with him out on Lake Pleasant. We had a great time.

The boys hung out and visited.

And the girls visited while dipping feet in the cold, cold water.

So Tiny!

Mark's sister Amy gave birth to Kylee Amann, her second child a couple weeks ago. What a gem!

Mark has a hard time letting anyone else have a chance to hold her.

Fun in NYC

While in New York we arranged to go on a Photo Trek Tour. This was a two hour tour with a personal guide to a few areas of the city. The guide told us historical information, pointed out certain buildings, gave tips on how to get around town and also acted as a professional photographer. We had a great time getting shots here on the Brooklyn Bridge as well as Central Park and Times Square. This was a highlight of the trip.