Playing Catch Up

This is a really long post full of pictures but I needed to wrap up 2011 before I thought about getting started on what's been happening this year. 

August 2011

We went to Lake Powell this year with my family and the kiddos. It was fun but also a lot of work to pack and unpack 8 peoples' belongings (all of which over packed) into one boat, which I alone did every morning and night, or when anything was needed. The weather was great and the kids loved being on the boat and running around the beaches. Kempton learned to cliff jump and did that any chance he got. We had fun taking the kids on the water tube, Kempton enjoyed it more than Brooke, she wasn't so keen on the water spraying her in the face.  Brooke slept a lot, except at night, which meant I didn't sleep for 3 days. Almost lost my wedding band, it was literally 2 inches from falling into the drain/lake in the engine compartment, and it is a miracle that I found it! Curt's still mad about that one, as he should be.  

Enjoyed some nasty dust storms this monsoon season, and for whatever reason, that meant a jeep ride out into the desert full of loose, silty dirt every time. Kempton also started his first day of Montessori pre-school with Ms. Jill. He absolutely loved going and learned a lot in the short time he was there (until the neighbor shut this kind old lady down). He switched to Ms. Kindra's school in January.

Sometime before Curt and I started school we found time to drive out to Wilcox, AZ to visit a long time friend on his cattle ranch. The kids loved running wild and free, feeding the horses, finding dozens of giant caterpillars, driving around looking for cattle, getting a horse ride with dad, and for Kempton, getting to operate the tractor. I on the other hand had fun taking hundreds of pictures of all the old rusty stuff and windmills I could find. 

Last summer my mom got the kids a miniature horse named Daisy. This summer she got the kids a saddle to ride said pony. Kempton has since asked for, and received, cowboy boots, a cowboy belt, a cowboy hat, and his own brush (because all of grandma's were purple). They love taking care of this little horse and riding her any chance they can. 

Curt sold his street bike and got a cruiser which he treats like the pony. 

October 2011

It's a Moore family tradition to go to the State Fair every year, which has become even more enjoyable now watching the kids get to enjoy all the sights and sounds. This was K's third time going and Brooke's first. There were lots of fun tot rides for the kids to do together, and K made sure his sister wasn't too scared on some of the bouncier rides. However, the surprise of the night was the roller coaster that became Brooke's favorite. It was a ride that she was maybe a few inches too short for but I snuck her on anyways. We thought for sure she'd be scared since it went kind of quick and had some good hills to it. But the third lap into it, my little daredevil had her hands up the whole time, while her fearless brother only dared to raise one hand while gripping the bar with the other. It was hysterical but she loved that ride and you could hear her squealing every time they passed by. I think they did that coaster 3 or 4 times that night. The other favorite was the big slide. Then later that night, we went and enjoyed the little monster truck rally and RV demolition derby that they have every year, and this time K and Curt got to go for a ride in one of the monster trucks thanks to Grandpa. Brooke spent those two hours covering her ears. We ate lots of good fatty fair food and had a lot of fun together that day.

Our annual Halloween party at my aunt's house was another big hit. Kempton had been dying for months to go as Iron Man this year, and he had a lot of fun running around in that costume. Brooke was a butterfly who took some convincing to get her costume on this year. I spent a good portion of my morning carving some stinking intricate jack-o-lanterns that nearly crippled me from being hunched over my front porch all day long. They turned out better than I thought and I was very proud of them. I even got a lot of compliments on my witch pumpkin, which I made sure to let inquirers know was all mine. I was, like I said, very proud! It was a fun night filled with candy, family, and my aunt's famous glazed donuts that she passes out to the neighborhood.

I took another photo class this last semester which was more of an independent study with assignments. I  had a lot of fun getting these pictures of my grandparents and love how they turned out. There's also some pictures from another assignment about texture and creating photos out of ordinary, random things. 

November 2011

Thanksgiving wasn't spent in Payson this year so we went to my aunt's house where there was a lot of food and a lot of great company. It also gave me a chance to play with the new camera lens Curt got as an early Birthday present to me.

December 2011

We had a great Christmas this year with our little family. We had some great family parties and a trip to the Temple to see the lights. Christmas Eve the kids got their new pajamas which they are still wearing even though it's not cold enough at night for flannel anymore. Brooke got a cabbage patch doll, some clothes, another pair of pajamas for both of them (my kids love their pajamas), a Little People house, a rocking horse, a Tinkerbell costume and some movies. Kempton got his own bright green controller for the Xbox Curt got on Black Friday, a Kinect, some shoes, more Cars, Cars legos, and a T-ball set. Curt and I didn't have much to open that morning considering we had taken care of all our wants on Black Friday and had already been enjoying them since then. It was a great day and we are so blessed to have Grandparents who love us and our kids and enjoy spoiling them when we let them. 

As for me, I wanted to make something this year for my kids, and so I spent months scheming, cutting, sewing, ripping out seams, basting, quilting and binding two lap quilts for my kids. I am so happy that they loved them as much as I loved making them. It was definitely a learning process with lots and LOTS of trial and error. I didn't have actual patterns, but saw quilts that I liked on the internet, and for the most part figured everything out with some graph paper and colored pencils. And then, I figured while I'm slaving over those, I might as well throw some aprons together for the both of them since they're always wanting to help in the kitchen. I'm very happy with how everything turned out, and now I'm addicted to sewing and can't wait to finish start finally decide on one of the 7 patterns I have changed my mind back and forth on for Brooke's quilt for her bed.  2011 was a great year for us and we are excited to see what the rest of 2012 has in store for our family!

Ice Cream Party

Last month (where did all that time go) we had Brooke's second birthday party. We kept it smaller this year with just close friends and family. We celebrated with an ice cream social.

We had lots of yummy toppings and mix-ins.  

The birthday girl received some really great gifts. Her favorites being a pillow pet, a hippo sleeping bag/pillow combo, two Bambi movies, and a pink tricycle.

During the party we had a random storm blow through leaving the streets full of water, which meant an after party ride for the birthday girl and her brother. 

{2}

On Sunday my little girl, my baby, turned 2. There are not enough words to describe how much I love this child. She is my smaller half and brings so much joy (and frustration) into my life. She has an attitude the size of Texas, but she keeps it in check with all the hugs, kisses and snuggle time she gives me. Brooke is my little doll and lets me dress her up with "pretties". She is the light in her daddy's eye and has him wrapped around her finger. She is our princess and we wish her a happy 2nd birthday!

A few fun things about Brooke:
  1. She is LOUD!
  2. She REFUSES to give up her plug (pacifier), and I'm too chicken to take it away from her, because she gets mean. (Refer to number 1)
  3. She is in love with Bambi at the moment and asks to watch the deer movie every morning. Her favorite scene is when they are exaggerating the pronunciation of the word bird, she runs around saying     bir-DA. Other favorite movies are Tangled and Tinkerbell.
  4. She repeats funny sayings all the time, usually things K says often such as... "come on people" "oh me goodness", "you kidding me?, "crap"(well it's funny when she says it), "that's not nice", "scuse me I burp", "I'm naked", "that's yucky_____ I don't like it"(which she has picked up from K who says it about every food item we put in front of him regardless if he likes it or not)
  5. She loves flannel blankets and always has one or five with her at all times.
  6. She wants to go to school every time we drop off Kempton.
  7. She loves to swim but would prefer to just hang out in a little tube and float around the pool.
  8. Says Hamma instead of Grandma but can say banana better than Kempton, he still thinks it's manna.
  9. Loves to scream "rock and rooollll" when in the car. Both my children apparently prefer rock to any other form of music and get pretty upset when it's not playing. Loud.
  10. Likes books about animals and can name pretty much every common animal. Her go to names when she can't remember an animal are always camel, kitty cat, bunny rabbit, and horsey. She says ostrich now, but that's not how it sounds coming out...ah shiz.
  11. She loves Kempton and wants to play with him, but doesn't want him to hold her hand, hug her or kiss her. However she has no problems showing affection to any one else. She's mean.
  12. She has a BIG personality and a BIG attitude and sometimes the two are not so pretty. We deal.
  13. She is 85% potty trained. Better when out then at home, go figure.
  14. She loves to eat and is not too picky despite her brother's bad influence (see #4). Loves Otter Pops and cereal.
  15. Brooke is very polite, she will yell bless you from the back of the house if she hears you sneeze.
  16. Can count to ten but more out of recall from hearing K do it when they play hide and seek.
  17. Knows some of her colors, especially pink and purple.
  18. She talks a lot. Really well. Really loud.
  19. Everyone around her loves her, the neighborhood kids are always doting on her.
  20. She will not sleep anywhere but her own bed, it can literally take her two hours to fall asleep when we spend the night somewhere else or when camping. It's miserable!
  21. She outgrew the "terrible two's" excuse, two months ago. It's ok to not scream and bite and hit and spit and shoot lasers out your eyes. Really, it is.
  22. Brooke is very helpful and likes to put dishes and cups in the sink for everyone, help unload the dishwasher, load the laundry. She also likes to empty her drawers and shelves on a daily basis.

Happy Birthday Brookie, your family loves you so very much and we look forward to watching you grow even more this next year!

Kempton's 4th Birthday

Earlier this month we celebrated my little man's 4th birthday with a big bash. Over the years as we have gained new friends with kids, the number of children at these parties has doubled, and we had a great group of friends and family helping us celebrate!

We swam in the pool and watched the kids (and Curtiss) do tricks off the diving board. Enjoyed seeing the little ones, who were babies last year, bobbing around the pool and having fun, and just enjoying the good food and good company.

For the main event we gathered all the kids 6 and under for a Power Wheels race. Curt had set up a track out in the cul-de-sac and after assigning drivers and passengers, we lined up the 5 cars (out of the 8 PWs we have acquired over the last year through garage sales and thrift stores) for a 3 lap race. This was such a highlight for everyone, even the adults witnessing the madness that was occurring. Some kids could drive better than others, and then there were a few who preferred to make their own course. 

There were collisions, spin outs, fender benders, side swipes, barricades barreled through, and pile-ups oh my! We did several "heats" and switched up the cars and drivers each time. Brooke even took a turn driving but she was under a lot of pressure and wasn't at the top of her game, i.e... she missed nap time, resulting in a tired fit of rage, and refused to let anyone sit in the driver seat of her pink jeep. She kept screaming at everyone "GET OUT, MY JEEP!"

So she got to drive in a few races but spent most of the time running into hay bales, trash cans, and the other cars. We finally had to take her battery out and put it in another vehicle so the older kids could have a turn since she wasn't sharing anymore. 

And what's a race without parents and grandparents nailing you in the face with super soakers and water balloons as you drive by. At one point, Kempton was more interested in that part of the race than driving. Overall it turned out to be a lot of fun for all the kids but also for Curt and I to see all the cars in motion at once. You don't see that everyday!

After the races we came in for cake and ice cream. It was so fun seeing everyone crowded in for Happy Birthday and knowing just how loved and blessed our family is. We are truly grateful for all the people in our life and for the chance we had to spend K's special day with them. And if you can't tell, Kempton loved his cake and all the new CARS characters he had driving around on it. It was a perfect birthday party and the perfect start to another year with this kid. 

Things to remember:

At 4 years old Kempton is 36 lbs, 39 3/4 inches tall and wears a 4T and size 10 shoe.

He is such a sweet and caring kid who loves his family and makes a point to always let us know that. 

Kempton is an amazing big brother to a sometimes stubborn sister, but he is always loving on her, helping her out, and cheering her on. 

He is growing in so many ways and has become such a big help to me. 

Kempton has a very silly personality and says the funniest things sometimes. Lately he likes to tell strangers (or people we know but he doesn't necessarily) that they're weird. We're working on that since it's not always nice, but I snicker every time. 

He's very smart and very active and loves to ride his bike, swim, and lately he's all about shooting things (dart guns, water guns).

When he grows up he wants to be Iron Man.

K sometimes (um all the time...) thinks he is on the same level with us so it's hard to be stern with him when he tells you he's going to count to three, and if you don't get his otter pop then he's going to spank your bottom. I think he even told me to go to time-out once for not doing something when he asked. Seriously, he says things back to me that I have told him and I just crack up.

The kid likes to push the boundaries and sometimes it's funny (other times it's really not) but it shows that he has a strong personality and that can be difficult at this age, but it runs in the family. What can you do?

He loves to going to the lake and proved once again that he has no fear when he went on a rope swing that was too high for me to go on, and refused to let go. He liked swinging out and back over and over again. 

He is OBSESSED with Angry Birds. 

He sneaks into our bed on occasion when he has a bad dream, and then will either cuddle with me, or spend the night kicking me in the ribs. 

He loves to rough house with his dad.

He is protective of his sister, sometimes too much when strangers are saying hi or smiling (enter "you're weird, don't talk to my sister").

He knows his whole name and the first, middle, and last of his parents and Brooke.

He is great with number recognition and counting, he knows all of his shapes including octagon (good ole Mickey Mouse Clubhouse).

Doesn't care too much for the alphabet but is getting better with recognition, his favorite letters and the one's he knows best go figure are W M K and O.

Kempton knows his way around a computer and no matter where he is can get on the internet and to the Disney site to play the games. He can play several games above his skill level and even though he can't read the directions on how to play, he figures it out. 

He is my little buddy and I am so excited for this next year in his life when he starts full day Pre-K and hopes he loves learning as much as I did at that age. Too bad Brooke and I are going to miss him.

We hope you had a great birthday Kempton, we love you so much!!

18-21

It's been so long since I've posted updates on the progress of the kids I decided I needed to do one for the last few months with Brooke since she has grown so much. So from 18 to 21 months this is what she has been up to!
*At her 18 month check-up she was almost 27 lbs and 32 3/4 inches tall.
*Wears 2T clothing but is closer to a 3T (sometimes 4T) on bottom, and size 5/6 shoe
*At 21 months she is 29 lbs and with a shoe size ranging closer to 7 now
*In April, Curt took her crib front down and she has been loving her "big girl" bed


*This girl can talk and you can actually carry on a conversation with her
      -"Mommy, I want appey juice and water...in my cup"
      -"Kempton don't touch!"
      - the typical "no" "mine"
      -"Bye, see ya later"
      - she's very polite and very good and articulate with "thank you" and "your welcome" but has started
      prefacing it with "say" (we'll remind her with "what do you say?" and she comes back with "say
      your welcome"
      - Curt was giving her a hard time the other day and threw some cheese at her cause she was whining
      about it and she sternly looked at him and said "Daddy, don't hit me with cheese!" It's hard to take
      her seriously sometimes.
      - "I can't go sleep, I'm tired,  I sleepin', I go potty, poo poo all gone, stinky (waves hand in front of
      nose), I want hug kiss, Where'd Harley Tug go, I want cereal, I want waffles, where ____ go?"
      - We got her to tell me dad this one day and now she only says it to him "papa, oh no you didn't"
      - C'mon lets go outside, (she's knows all the neighbor kids' names Hailey, Riley, Kenzi, Jace,
      Gunner) and loves to go play with the older kids who dote on her.
      - In case you haven't noticed yet, she's very sassy and likes to boss people around and put them in
      their place... I took a piece of her cereal and she says to me "mommy, don't take cereal my
      bowl"
      - "Daddy that's not nice, don't do that, I want story book ducks
    

*Her favorite things she like to have with her are her plug (only at night), flannel blankets, and her cup, she wants her cup with her at all times 

*She loves to dance and will grab Kempton's hand when music is playing and say "Kempton, come dance

*She likes dressing up and whenever you do her hair or let her wear a necklace she says "I cute" or "so pretty" and she's obsessed with shoes

*She likes to eat and will try just about anything. She's gotten pickier about meats, but loves spicy foods and things you wouldn't think she would try...pepperoni, enchiladas, salsa, stir-fry

*Loves animals with a passion. She is always smothering the dogs and loving on them and has to kiss and hug them at night before she goes to bed. Brooke even spoiled my mom's two dogs who didn't care too much for her attention but she eventually won them over.

*She can ride Kempton's 3-wheel razor scooter thing as well as he can. 

*Loves riding around in the power wheels and can even drive the quad one by herself. 

*Brooke started swim lessons last week and absolutely loves the water. She will put her face in the water as your gliding her around and can hold her breath for a good amount of time for her age. We know cause she is constantly wanting to swim under the water to get toys. She has to ask before she can jump in and says "pool pease, ready?" in a high pitch little squeak.

*She loves her brother and loves to follow him everywhere, lucky for her, Kempton loves her too. He even had her dress up in his smaller Buzz Lightyear costume so they could be super heros together. 

There is just so much about this little firework I wish I could write down but she is just growing and changing so much it's hard to keep up with all the silly things she says, can say, how she says it, and all the things she is capable of doing at her age. She is a spitfire with a STRONG personality and lots of attitude, but she is also one of the sweetest and goofiest kids too. We love this little girl with all her dramatic moments, outbursts, and crazy dancing, but we especially love the times when she just wants to snuggle and tells you "mommy, I hold you"!

March-April

In March we had the opportunity to go camping with some friends, and since the weather was surprisingly warm and perfect for that time of year, we couldn't turn it down. There was a creek right next to our campsite with enough water running through it for all the little kids to play in, and for the big kids (our husbands) to reroute, dam off, and build a huge ramp and puddle to jump the quads over.  The kids had fun watching, and K and his friend didn't mind being duped into standing right next to the pool of water when the guys came crashing through it.

The second day we were there we piled all the little ones onto the back of the hunting quads our friends brought and we all went for a little drive up the creek. Brooke loves to explore and was such a great sport the whole weekend. As always, K is happiest when running free outdoors.

During Spring Break we went to the zoo a couple of times. The kids loved seeing all the animals, especially since they recognize and can name almost all of them. One of the highlights for both of them was Stingray Bay where they could stick their hand in a pool of water to "pet" the stingrays. I don't care for sea life and have no desire to touch them, but Curt and the kids had a lot of fun.

























Later in March we got a visit from the Vanderwalkers who were in town for their spring break. One night we all went out for pizza and bowling. Surprisingly, Grandma Lax is a pretty good bowler and had more strikes then most of us younger kids. The little ones had a lot of fun too, except for Brooke. She was a brat since she was tired and frustrated that she couldn't run around the place. Kempton did pretty good and it was fun trying to teach him how to throw his ball down the lane. The kid was so ecstatic when even just one pin would fall down, and would rush you for a celebratory hug whenever it was anyone else's turn.

At the end of their trip we met up with Greg and Sandy for a little day trip at the Grand Canyon. Despite the beauty and grandeur of the place, it's a frickin' death trap for my kids who apparently have no fear or concept of cliffs. I literally had a mini heart attack about every five minutes with most of those occurring while they were in the care of their father who thought it was great to walk out onto every ledge with them so K could throw rocks. I finally had to walk ahead I was panicking so much. Seriously, is it too much to add a fence or something? So scary!!

Anyhow, we stayed all day and got see an amazing Arizona sunset. Brooke once again was a stinker since we were always having to hold onto her, but she found Sugar, grandma Sandy's dog, and she was once again in toddler heaven walking that old dog around. It was great getting to spend time with the girls who have just grown up way too fast. Lexi was so sweet with B and watching the two goofballs, K and Anna play was so fun. The kids missed them as soon as they were gone the next day.

P.S. I just love that pic of Brooke giving Grandma Lax a big kiss!

























The next morning, Brandi and the girls left from Flagstaff to go straight to the airport the next morning, and Greg and Sandy were headed back to Utah, we decided to take a detour home and stop off at Slide Rock in Sedona. This place is so pretty and this one section of the Oak Creek where the water has created these slides and pools is a great place to play. That is unless your me and don't care to play in 52 degree water. Seriously I couldn't even put my foot in the water it was so frigid, but not Curt.

Curt braved going down the "slides" a few times since there literally were not that many people willing to be submerged in that freezing ice bath. Kempton watched from the sides and after seeing his dad go a few times he wanted a turn. Curt asked him over and over if he was sure since it was so cold, but the kid wanted to go. That decision didn't last long. If you follow the pics from left to right you can see the change in the kid's expression. As soon as they dropped into that first slide he started panicking, whether from the cold water or fear of going under were not sure, but he was freaking out. By picture four, he was done and trying to jump ship. He was arching his body so much and screaming it was so sad, but since your in a channel you can't exactly just stand up and get out. Curt held him for as long as he could until he could get him to the side where I had a towel waiting. He just kept saying that was scary, but still didn't know if he was just shocked from the cold, or if he was really concerned that Curt was going to let him go. Poor kid, he was fine after that and spent the rest of the day just throwing rocks in the water.

Since I wasn't letting Brooke in the water, despite her great efforts to go swimming, she learned how to climb up the steep side of the rocks that were there. She just went where ever she wanted and had fun doing it too. I swear my children have no fear of climbing.

























Easter Saturday we spent at my mom's and had a little egg hunt for the two kids (since my dad wouldn't be in town the next day for the big family one). We learned two things that afternoon, Kempton can run and run and run and run and never tire. And Brooke likes to lay in the grass and pose, and I mean hilarious calendar girl poses. It was a fun day and we are forever grateful for the wonderful relationship our kids have with all their grandparents.

Easter Sunday we went to my aunt's house for dinner and a big egg hunt with all the second cousins. Brooke had fun getting eggs and since everyone else bolted straight for the grass, she cleaned up all the ones on the porch herself. I may be bias, but I think my two cuties looked adorable in their Easter outfits, but then again I made everything Brooke was wearing (dress, necklace, hair clip) so I am extra bias!! 

One day I'll be current again!

So in the mean time this is really long...

December 2010

At a work party Curt's dental office was invited to, we found out just how much Brooke HATES Santa. She's never been overly clingy about other people, but trying to set her down in Santa's lap was like trying to put a cat in water. I have never felt her hold on so tightly or stiffen up so much. Poor thing would also scream anytime we walked by after that, which we did just to get a good laugh at her expense (we're cruel like that). On the other hand though, we learned how much she likes throwing snow. Oh and all Kempton asked Santa for was a Jessie doll.

Christmas 2010

Christmas morning was great this year. We woke up early just the four of us for our family presents and the one's from Santa. Kempton got some really great gifts this year, a bike, a golf club set with 3 clubs and a bag, and a Jessie doll to round out his Toy Story collection. Brooke got a baby doll, a little shopping cart full of groceries to push and scatter all over the house, and some clothes. Curt got a longboard to get him around campus and I made out with some new dresses. Kempton was fascinated with his "shark" bike although the first thing out of his mouth when he saw it was "this isn't Lightning McQueen bike"! 

Later that morning we had all of our parents over for breakfast and then did gifts with my family. The rest of the morning was spent playing, resting, and getting our dinner ready for that night.

We had dinner with Curt's side of the family but also had my family over too (we were all about family this day, all our parents, all day). Curt made a great prime rib and we had all the yummy extras to go with it. 

This year I wanted to make necklaces for each of my "moms" and so I took some pictures of the kids, made some charms with colors they liked and a few trinkets that represented each lady in someway and made each of them a unique piece. I think they turned out really well, and liked the idea so much I later made one for myself. 

So what started out like this...

ended up like this

           Merrilee's                                   Sandy's                                              My mom's

After Christmas, while Greg and Sandy were still in town we had some fun golfing. We took the kids out to the driving range for some fun one evening and then the next day the adults went and golfed the ASU course. It was my first time, and though I will never be recruited by the WPGA, I didn't suck too bad. 

January 2011

After Christmas we had to exchange a gift from Grandma which was a very flimsy Lego train set. The thing would fall over if you just looked at it, let alone try to run a train along it.  So once we got this beast of a thing home, Kempton and I were able to put together his new train table. I was doing great and almost had the whole thing together on my own, until Curt realized later that night that I had flipped a crucial piece in the very first step which meant we had to take it all apart and put it back together. Oh well, I still say I did it myself! So now K has a massive train table taking up his room which he, Brooke, and the neighborhood kids love.

New Year's was spent up in Payson when we had a pretty big cold front pass through which meant lots of fluffy snow to play in. Unfortunately, we forgot the camera, but the kids had a great time sledding and throwing snowballs at each other. Kempton was even kind enough to take his sister down the hill a few times on his own, which she loved. Curt was very proud of the snow he brought home on top of the car. 

We had some pretty cold weather for a few weeks so K spent a good part of it riding his bike in circles in the house. One night I found him like this. I went to see what he was doing in his room because it was awfully quiet, and found that he had fallen over and fallen asleep. So strange!

Back in November I was called as the 2nd counselor in the Relief Society which meant I was in charge of all the activities. So for my second activity, we planned and set up a craft night with a Valentine's theme in January. These were just a few of the crafts we made that night. It was a lot of stress getting all the supplies, but was so much fun to see so many sisters come out and enjoy themselves. 

January was also our 7 year anniversary and unfortunately Curt was sick and then it passed between all of us for the next month so we weren't able to celebrate in any exciting way. 

January also meant the start of school for Curtiss and I. He is taking Chem 2, Physics, Exercise & Wellness, and an online business class. This semester I am just having fun taking another photography class.

February 2011

The weather has been so nice and warm that we decided it was time for my dad to cash in his Christmas present and take a ride in the biplane thanks to Curt's dad. He had a great time and was way more adventurous than I would ever dream of being in the open seat of an airplane where there's only a couple of straps between me and the ground. My dad has always wanted to be a pilot but because of poor vision never had the chance, so he loves when the pilots will dive, flip, and roll the plane (no thank you)! The kids found a small pedal plane to entertain themselves while we waited. 

Kempton has been loving his bike and rides it as much as he can. One day Curt thought he would take the training wheels off and see how K would do, and much to our amazement, he could ride it just fine, so long as he was in the grass. He was doing really well but it didn't quite translate on the pavement. K likes to lean into his turns and over exaggerates his posture because he thinks he is a super fast race car and must ride accordingly, so he kept falling over. We'll have to give it another try once he has a helmet. 

I, on the other hand, have been enjoying these two and watching their relationship grow. Brooke is becoming quite sassy and makes some hilarious faces, my favorite being the squished nose, puckered lip look. 

Oh and the little miss has also taken some interest in the potty, so we're hoping she'll have herself trained by her second birthday. She's pretty smart and knows when she has to go, she's usually just a few minutes early and gives up sitting on the toilet. But she gets it and I'm sure it won't be long!

Next up is March, and then I will be up to date. YEAH!