2 years! Woops...

I can't believe it has been two years already!  It is time for Annabelle's baptism and I thought I should post some pictures from her photo shoot yesterday.

Baptism

Abbi turning 8 has made me reflect on the principles I have taught.  Am I am doing all I can to prepare her for choices she will make?  Have I done all I can so she is prepared for this covenant and others that are to come?  I'm grateful for this time to reflect and renew my commitments to her as a mother to "try harder to be a little better". 

 I'm grateful for your choice to be baptized Abbi,

and I love the excitement with which you greet this opportunity.

Your passion is contageous... it motivates me.

Thank You!

Abbi is very competitive at whatever she is involved in whether it's soccer games,

or challenging her parents at the Wii.

Green is her favorite color, although it is situational, Taylor Swift backs-her-up singing,

 and home-made mac 'n Cheese (with Velveeta) would be her choice of plate.

Abbi has passion for everything...

She loves to jump-rope, hop around on the trampoline, play mommies, draw, and write songs.

Abbi is very friendly and never has a problem making new friends or reaching out to others. She is a caring person, and fantastic big sister. Abbi enriches our lives with her desire to choose the right. This little girl has brought such delight into our lives!  We love you Abbi...

December catch-up

I made this hat for a christmas gift, but I had to try it on for size.  Thankfully... it FIT!  Now I just have to make Brooks one :)

 When we traveled to UT for our family vacation lady thoroughly enjoyed her potty breaks at the park.  What a happy dog.

This picture is of the tree in the Provo library.  The kids loved it!  We spend a while reading books and looking around.

 Temple square lights.

 I LOVE these pictures of Mark and Brooks.  Like father, like son...  Aaawwwww ;)  Now all I have to do it wait for them to both grow up and use real man tools.  Then I can take another picture and have them side by side.  So cute!

Mr. Kriddle showed up just a few days before Christmas.  The "Elf on the Shelf" is such a fun tradition.  Kriddle is what the kids named our elf and he will show up every year from now on.  He comes around sometime after Thanksgiving to return to Santa nightly to report on the children's behavior.  Every morning it it fun to see where Kriddle is for the day.  It is hardly ever the same place twice...



Lightnight, Thunder, and Hail, OH MY!

So this is an older picture from a couple of weeks ago, but it was so fun I had to share.  There was a crazy storm here and of course the kids wouldn't go to sleep.... So Mark pulled up the blinds and the show went on.  Each time there was a flash of lightning the kids would shriek followed by 1...2...3...4.. waiting for the thunder.  Oh how I'll miss these days.  I love that the kids are entertained by the simplicities of life.  I hear the song by Darius Rucker, "It Won't Be Like This For Long".  This also helps on days where I'm pulling my hair out, and needing to use the restroom ALONE!  Listening to this song is finding my happy place...

You can listen to the song HERE  

Go To Your Room!!!

So Brooks was beside himself all day with whining, and being clingy.  Come dinner time, I couldn't stand it any longer!  Even holding and caressing him wouldn't soothe him.  I took him to his room and said he could come out when he was happy... 5 minutes later it became quiet.  I went to check on him and this is what I found.  Sweet little man.  OBVIOUSLY he was tired.  Little kids are so stinkin' sweet when they're asleep, it makes you instantly forget the torture they put you through with their shrieks and whines. 

Oh heavens I LOVE bed time...

HaPpY HaLLoWeEn

Abbi was the Tooth Fairy

 I had a great time being with the girls at their school dress up parade on Friday.  After school we stayed dressed up and took some pictures then headed to see Mark at the Pharmacy.  Later in the evening we attended a Trunk-or-Treat at the church.  What a day of fun!  Another year of no purchased costumes... I love frugality!

Brooks was Barry B. Benson (from a Bee Movie)

 Annabelle was Hannah Montana



More to come...

After moving back from summer work we took some family time and went camping in Island Park.  While we were there, I thought it would be great fun to drive to the top of Sawtelle.  It was beautiful.  Too bad we can't park our house up there.

So other than Mark and the girls starting school, my traveling between here and Idaho Falls and trying my darndest to figure out my own website, it is beyond hectic to say the least.  We are all alive and doing well.

CANADA

Mark and I woke up one morning, looked at each other and felt an adventure coming on. We decided to drive to Vancouver, BC Canada. It was pretty uneventful, but we enjoyed it. Brooks had the girls under control in the back seat, while Mark and I enjoyed the front. They are so much fun.

The city was really pretty.

I've not been out of the country since high school. I felt a profound gratitude for my country even though we were only miles outside the border. I feel such a security, and love for where I live. I LOVE THE USA!!! We are really blessed to have such a wonderful land to live in with freedoms unlike any other.

Swim Lessons

Annabelle has done so well in swim lessons. She is swimming on her back alone! She has really progressed and enjoyed every day. She is super hilarious too. One day this week she came into swim lessons singing "God is bigger than the boogyman, He's bigger than Godzilla or the monsters on TV" from veggitales. She is unpredictable, yet predictably unpredictable.

Abbi has really LOVED swimming this year. She started in the beginning class, but after the first session was moved up to the highest class. She is spending all her time at the deep end swimming from one end to the other. She can now do a few strokes very well. I'm so proud that they are both loving the water.

Coal Creek Falls

We took the kids to Coal Creek falls and it was beautiful! The hike was only 2 miles but it was a pretty steep up-hill climb and we wore flip flops. I never know where we are going until we are there... Mark drives.

Brooks was a trooper... or maybe Yoda.

He kept getting sticks and walking with them.

He walked the whole way back!

This bridge was so picturesque. I can only imagine what it would be

like with water flowing beneath.

The kids called this the cow slug because of it's spots. I thought that fit.

While we were up there I let the kids dip their feet.

The water was so cool and refreshing. Ahhhhh.

Gasworks Park

We were able to go to a dog show here in Seattle. The kids loved it! We saw this turtle there just roaming to advertise a reptile show in the kids arena. Super cool.

After the show we took the kids to gasworks park. The view of Seattle is by far the most attractive from this park. The kids spent a good while rolling down the hill (which is no small hill). Brooks, on the other hand, tried to run down only to face plant time and time again. What a dude.

After Gasworks Park we stopped by the Troll bridge on our way home.