We LOVE November!!!

 Tess was having a bit of fun with the whipped cream, which we have in our

house in anticipation of numerous whipped-cream-requiring desserts. . .

like pie.

 So last week, the AFS club (which Marta and Tess are involved in) put on Fall Formal at the high school.  Mom, Dad, and Levi came in and helped put up various 2-D and 3-D decorations.  This rendition of the Parthenon was the greatest achievement of the evening!  Made entirely of old reused boxes, cardboard pillars, some ancient gossamer, and a bit of mylar, some fishing line, some paper clips, and a lot of tape, we worked for 5 hours to put this 9 foot high Parthenon onto the front of a glass case.  I am quite proud.  Also, we didn't get pictures, but within the gym, the 10 foot tall bleachers were covered with about 180 feet of blue paper, and then large silhouettes of the Eiffel tower, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, the Roman Colisseum, and other world monuments were taped up around the gym. We were there till past midnight, as you might imagine...

...and the next day, we went to the Oakland Temple!!!!!  After the temple trip, Mom and Marta zipped home to get ready for formal, while Tess hung out and waited until it was time to go to the Saturday Night Activity (youth dance) in Modesto, 

and Dad, Levi, and Eliza went home.  

Back at home, Marta got all spiffed up with some help with hair from Mom and makeup from Eliza, and then was off for the evening.

 Marta went with her date Andrew Blazzard, a friend from church, 

and had a grandios time!

Shhh!!  Don't tell anyone, but Marta turned 17 on November 12.  

Dessert was... pumpkin bread pudding, served over a bed of vanilla bean cream thing, 

with caramel shtuff drizzled on top, and whipped cream to top it off.  

Eliza is a really exciting chef, and it was delicious!

 BTW, the best part of this picture is really Levi's face in the background.  

We love that boy.

And per-request from said birthday girl, we had a Harry Potter marathon, 

although we only actually got through 4 movies...

Harry Potter is pretty much the best thing since sliced bread...

 So we also made some apple sauce...

 Thirty-two quarts.  We feel like squirrels settling in for winter.  

 Some recent humor we've enjoyed--

This is Dad's favorite picture from Eliza's favorite website- Sanitaryum...

Aaanndd this is our a favorite video for (some of) our family.  "It's literally contagious!!"

Love,

Marta

P.S. You know you want to do the sloppy swish...