The McGraths: Fall is here

Can you believe October is here? That means Fall has been here for over 2 1/2 weeks. My time off is sure going quickly. I only have 4 1/2 weeks left, so I'd better make the most of it. It sure has been fun to see Nyles grow and develop, even in these first couple months. He's changed a lot these past couple months and I know there is much more to come. He'll be officially 2 months old on Friday so I'll post more then and show the pictures Pauline took last week (they are sooo cute). Here's a quick update on some other things that have been going on.

On Sunday the 23rd we went to the Brigham City Temple dedication at our Stake Center. We had originally planned to go to the noon session, but after struggling to get Nyles to bed the night before we decided to go to the 3pm session. That way we were able to sleep in a little more per say and get all of us ready. Dave and Joann we kind enough to come and sit with him while we went so we could go together (since kids under age 8 we not allowed). Since they watched Nyles for us I decided to make them dinner. I made sweet and sour chicken w/ rice then molten lava cake for dessert. I made plenty so we decided to take it down to LuDean's house to visit her and Diane also. She had made a roast and rolls, so we all shared each other's meal; it was all very yummy. It was fun to visit with them also.

4 Generations...LuDean, Dave, Steve and Nyles

On Wednesday the 26th I had a home and visiting teaching meeting. This was the only night all the others could meet and since Steve has class on Mondays and Wednesdays from 6-10pm, I just took Nyles with me. Thankfully he was really well behaved and actually slept through the whole thing.

Cute little Nyles sporting his big boy clothes :)

The next night I had my RS Presidency over for a meeting. We got a lot accomplished, mainly getting new sisters callings. We have had a lot of people move out so we have needed to change almost every calling. We are just about "refilled" per say. With having a new branch president it might take some time though.

Nyles in his cocoon Grandma VaLere made for him

Steve and I also had a dentist appointment that morning and neither of us had cavities...yeah!!! Steve said that was the first time ever for him. He might be exaggerating though ;) We brought Nyles of course. The receptionist let me know that she is a grandma and if he starts acting up she could hold him for us ;) All the hygienists wanted to see him and the Dentist. They all said he was so precious.

Nyles in his cute pjs

On Saturday the 29th Steve left in the morning w/ his dad and brother/brother-in-laws up near Logan to go pheasant hunting. They went last year and wanted to go again this year. Last year they had snow and cold weather, but this year they went earlier and had rather warm weather, 80 degrees I think. While he was gone I ventured out and went to WinCo w/ Nyles. He was really fussing going over there, but then fell asleep right before we got there and stayed asleep for a while after we got home. I got some items to make monster cookies w/ miniature M&Ms for Conor's baby blessing the next day, then made them one I got home. They turned out pretty good I think. That night was the Relief Society General Conference. Steve didn't get home until right before, so I just pulled it up on the Internet and watched it.

Nyles taking a bath...he loves his bath time :)

On Sunday the 30th we decided to go to our sacrament meeting, then head up to Conor's blessing. We were going to ride w/ Dave and Joann, so I left a little early to go home and feed Nyles in order to leave in time. As soon as Steve got home we drove up to their house, got in the Tahoe and headed out. We first stopped by LuDean's house to get more tables and chairs, then headed up the rest of the way. We got there in plenty of time so we could save some seats. I also was able to feed Nyles some more which allowed him to sleep most of the afternoon actually. We went to a park after the blessing for food, stayed and chatted some, then cleaned up and headed back. We stopped by LuDean's again to say hi and ended up staying most of the night. We played a game called "The Game of Things" which was really fun!

Steve and Nyles all ready to go for Conor's blessing

On Tuesday October 2nd I had some RS visits, so Steve watched Nyles. On Wednesday the 3rd Pauline and Charlotte came up to visit and take pictures of Nyles. They turned out REALLY cute. I'll post those pictures in a couple days.

On Thursday the 4th we decided we'd go up to the cabin. We waited until Rob Daniels got off work, then met him at Dave and Joann's house and headed up. Rob drove his own car behind us. We stopped in Heber to get some groceries and a bite to eat at Arby's. By the time we got to the cabin it was about 9pm. It definitely was cool up there. We had to start a fire right away so we weren't freezing. At least so Nyles and I weren't freezing. Steve and Rob seemed to enjoy the cold.

We slept in the next morning, then I made breakfast (bacon, hash-browns and toast). Steve and Rob then went out fly fishing behind the Dam. The wind was REALLY blowing which made it pretty cold, but they said they still had a good time. Dave and Diane came up that night. We played "Ticket to Ride," then went to bed.

River behind the Dam that Steve and Rob fly fished

On Saturday it was a little cool, but at least the wind wasn't blowing as bad, so they all went out on the boat to fish. They stayed out until 2pm, then came in since the wind was picking up. I stayed in the cabin and listened to General Conference. There were so really good talks. I especially liked the one from President Uchtdorf called "Of Regrests and Resolutions." I like this quote, "We shouldn’t wait to be happy until we reach some future point, only to discover that happiness was already available—all the time! Life is not meant to be appreciated only in retrospect. “This is the day which the Lord hath made … ,” the Psalmist wrote. “Rejoice and be glad in it. Brothers and sisters, no matter our circumstances, no matter our challenges or trials, there is something in each day to embrace and cherish. There is something in each day that can bring gratitude and joy if only we will see and appreciate it."

Nyles loving life at the cabin

After they got back we had sandwiches for lunch, then the guys got ready for Priesthood. They then drove down to Heber to watch the session. Diane and Nyles and I stayed at the cabin and talked and watched "The Vow" which was on tv. After they got home we had Diane's yummy stew for dinner and watched "Dirty Rotten Scoundrel."

On Sunday we just watched General Conference and played a couple more rounds of "Ticket to Ride." It was a lot of fun. Dave made his famous ribs for lunch; they were yummy. We also went for a drive around behind the Dam to where Steve and Rob fished. We were having so much fun we didn't get out of there until after 7pm, so we didn't get back until about 8:30pm.

Nyles enjoying life...driving over to the Dam