Happy Thanksgiving!

We had so many things to be Grateful for this holiday season! The three at the top of the list of course is the Gospel, our Friends and Our Family!!
So from Our Family to Yours, Happy Thanks Giving!!

Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

So the snow came just in time for the Holidays! Starting on Saturday we were pounded with our frist REALLY heavy storm of the year! We did have a smaller one before we left on a vaccation but it did melt quickly. It came down hard! Lots of winds! TONS of snow! And of course we live in Idaho so Wayyyyyy below freezing temperatures! Most of us hunkered down and listened to Holiday music! But not this man! He waits for this all year and comes up with reasons to go out!!

Look closely he has icicles on his goatee and mustache!! So handsome! ( He can't even see me holding the camera!!)

So it was a good storm! But as everyone knows its the calm after the storm and the beauty it brings that is always incredible!!
Our windows look Stunning!!

The crazy drifts!!

Our buried swingset

The snow pelting our kitchen window!

The sunset the day of the storm!!

Stay warm!!!

Potty Training! #4

This face is cute!! This is the face of our baby! She knows she is the baby and yet she over all has been the easiest of all 4 of them! Which is irony because Dan and I were not wanting to be pregnant yet and her pregnancy was my hardest. And yet it delivered her to us! the sweetest cutest little girl! Ahhhhhhhhh................... ( thinking about her as a tiny baby!)

Sorry got off on the cute face! This cute girl is potty training! She is (not shocking) the easiest of all of them on that too! There is something soooooo cute about going from the big bulky diaper to the cute little panty bum! So wish us luck this week and weeks to come that MOM will stick with it and lilly will too!!

9 years flew by fast!!

I can't believe my baby is 9 years old! I still remember all of his First's! Of course the day he was born was the most incredible and amazing experience of our lives!! He was healthy and perfect!
Then when he started to learn to walk. His first Christmas! His first trick or teating Halloween! Swimming in Arizona and jumping in! Potty training (I thought it would never happen!)!
And now here we are, 9 years later! When they tell you it goes to fast it does! I am sad that those baby years are over with him and yet sooooo excited to see him growing into a little man!! He and I have a special bond that I am so thankful for! He makes me laugh all the time! And he is always quick to help me with something!! So here is to the next 9 years, may they slow down a little more, but be filled with the same kind of joys and excitment!!

Family Pictures

So I love family pictures! I love the way my walls are covered with Pictures of my family and watching them grow with each new one! I love trying different looks and ideas and I love framing them and putting them up!!
However, I hate actually trying to be in and take our family photo! someone usually doesn't want to smile or act normal or hold still! And someone is usually yelling and screaming and freaking out! And that someone is usually me!

It's one thing taking a picture of someone and asking them to do something or trying to get them to do something! it is another thing all together being on the other side of the lens and having NO control of my kids and their faces and body positions (not to mention my sweet husband!)! Oh it makes me crazy!!!!!

So even though I Have a beautiful family, family pictures are a crazy event at our house!! No matter how "Beautiful" the end result is, the memories are not so sweet and loving! Lots of bribes, cussing, yelling, begging, crying, and fake smiles goes in to them!

And if we hung up real family pics, one of these would be on my wall! Instead we have some that turned out a little less honest!!

First days of schools!

Dallin and Emma started first! and like most kids who have done this before mom taking pictures was not what they were excited about!! But they are so cute and groing up way too fast!!

I told them to look happy! ok maybe too happy!

Aliya was next This was her first school day EVER!! She was sooo excited! We love the pre-school!! she picked out her clothes the night before and she asked for curly hair! I think we were ready an hour before we needed to go ( no that did not last long!)!

I love this picture! It captures her excitment!!

Not sure if I am ready for all of this! She had the best first day ever!!!

ANd then the littlest of them all! Some women in our subdividsion started a little pre-pre-school, and asked if Lilly would like to come! it is only 1 day a week and for 1 1/2 hrs! but she loves it!! This is her first day ! She knew exactly what was happening since she watched everyone else go before her! she could barely hold still!
Oh she is growing up too fast!!!

This is her running to the car!!

And this is her running into preschool! she was sooo happy and loved going to school! she now says, "drop me off!!" all the time!!

Meet George!

This is George!! He is our beautiful new puppy! He is 1/2 Standard Poodle, and 1/2 St Bernard. (If you want to goodle him he is called a St Berdoodle)

After losing Buddy it was really hard to think of getting another dog, but we felt a HUGE hole in our everyday lives! So we started looking. We tried a dog from the humane society and it was not a good fit ( more like a nightmare!!). So we kept looking. After a lot of thought about what type of dog we wanted and my allergies we settled on a type of poodle ( I learned so much about them! WOW! they are a cool type of dog( not the yippy small breed but the standard poodle)!)! Than after looking for a long time we fell in love with a picture of George!

We have had him for a month now and I forgot all of the puppy things puppies do and how frustrating they are!! But we love him and are loving the dog he is becoming! he doesn't bark much, loves playing in the water, and is quick to learn ( except potty training!)!! we are not replacing Buddy but adding to our family! We still miss our Buddy and with George here it is easy to see what a special dog he was! We are very excited to have George in our family!!

Aliya

Wow have you ever looked at one of your kids on their birthday and thought, "Wow I can't believe how old that are! time has flown by so fast!"! Well that is not this little girl! When we looked at aliya yesterday on her birthday we were shocked she was only 4! Most days she either seems 6, 10, or most days 17! She is so much personality and girl that I am always amazed at what she says or how she acts most days! We really do love her and who she is ( most days)! We are so thankful she is a part of our family!!! So to our baby girl HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!! Lets hope the next 4 years are a little less dramatic!!

skiing

Well I survived! Dan took me skiing for my very first time yesterday! And I have to say, Dan is the most patient and loving husband EVER!! He literally skied backwards most of the day so I could feel more comfortable! He took so much abuse from me all morning, I yelled at him telling him his "hobby" is stupid and crazy and I hated him for making me come ( ok so obviously I chose to come) He didn't yell back or call me bad names he knew this was hard for me and that I was trying to do something so out of my comfort zone I regretted it instantly! But by the afternoon I was more confidant and I was skiing sections on my own! I never really left the bunny hill but that bunny hill was intense, so all good! I do have to say that Dan is great skier, but I knew that before we went! But I am amazed at how good our kids are!!!! Dallin and Emma are amazing and did graduate from the bunny hill and from their wedgies (things that hold the skis tips together so they don't do the splits all the time)!! They were awesome!! The graduated from their class and and ran a race and won gold medals! Emma came down and the first question she asked was, " What place am I?"! They of course said first and she went off so excited! Dallin the older and wiser brother told her later in the car that she was not first place because everyone was first place! Funny! They love skiing and didn't want to stop at the end of the day! So I guess the good news about me is that I am willing to go back and try again! Dan says it takes three times befoer you really enjoy it! And yes I am veryyyyyyy sore this morning!!! One last note I am thankfull I am married to the greatest man in the world! It does make a difference!
Dallin after he won his gold medal!!

Me waiting for Dallin to come down the race. It was a hill and Dan let me take my skis off while I waited so I wouldn't keep sliding down the hill!

Emma waiting for her class! SHe was just tired so she kept laying down on the snow! SHe was sooooooo cute! And brave!

No picture of Dan he took them all and I wasn't thinking about taking pictures of him until the end and he had the camera! He looked great though!!!!

The most beautiful 2 year old in the world!!!

We feel so blessed with all of our children! And bringing Lilly into our family was no exception! She is such a joy and integral part of our family! She is already such a help and wants to learn everything she can to be the big girl in the family! She trys to be the mom to all the other kids and will "yell" at them if they get in trouble! She loves to sing and loves going potty in the toilet! Dan constanly tells me what a happy thought she is for him! Happy Birthday to our beautiful Lilly Kate!!!