Valentines Day!

I think one of my favorite holidays as a kid was Valentine's day. It seemed like there was always a party at school.....loads of candy around.....fun Valentine mailboxes to make.....and it was the one day you could secretly confess your love to the cutest boy in class (by that I mean, put some extra candy in his Valentine!) It was great!  My girls had fun this year making Valentine's for their classes', too. Brielle worked so hard on her cards for her 12 preschool friends. I think she made it to about #8 before she got tired of writing her name. And Emma was very specific about choosing the card with the pictures that she thought her classmate would like. Unfortunately, Valentine's day fell on a Monday (which is the hardest day for our family to do anything fun) so our Valentine treat to the girls was a Happy Meal for dinner!

Discovery Gateway Fieldtrip

In January, Brielle's preschool headed to the Discovery Gateway for a field trip. Nick had a quick appointment at the U, so he dropped Brielle and I off early to the Gateway to walk around and shop. Once the field trip started Nick was back, so we both got to follow Brielle around and watch her play. There was a ton of kids there, but Brielle still had a great time. Her favorite spot is riding the horse and she tried it several times. She also spent a lot of time putting together a alphabet floor puzzle. Later, we grabbed lunch at the food court and then headed home. It was fun way to spend a dreary January day!

Brielle's Birthday!

Brielle is FOUR! Brielle's birthday was on a Sunday this year and for some reason, I felt very unprepared. Emma had been sick since Christmas and I felt like our house was just barely getting back to normal when we started the birthday celebrations. She took Fruity Pebbles rice krispies as her preschool treat right before her birthday and we went out to eat at Fat Cats for her birthday dinner the next night. On her birthday, we had family over for cake and ice cream (the giant Oreo cake was her pick because she LOVES Oreo's). She stayed in her church dress for her party as well because she loves to be in dresses! Unfortunately we  forgot to charge our camera so we have only a few essential shots but she had a great birthday. She got the white kitty she wanted, a Fancy Nancy purse, books, play dough, Polly Pockets, and a Little Pet Shop mall. She is growing up so fast! I'm grateful she is still physically tiny because helps me think she is still my baby!!

Christmas 2010

 

We had a great Christmas this year. The girls had fun opening their presents and playing with their toys.  We were able to visit my family and Nick's family and eat all day long!  The only downfall was when all the presents were dropped of at our house and the real work of putting everything away began. We are very fortunate to have generous families that give us and our kids so much! We are totally spoiled!

Like Father, Like Daughter

Ha Ha Ha! These pictures make me laugh! They are real and not photographed "fake sleeping". Every time I took the picture they were totally asleep.  You see, my kids like to read a book by themselves after we read a book to them. The rule is: you read one book (or one chapter in Emma's case) and then throw the book on the floor. So we hear "thuds" a few minutes after we put them to bed.  One night I could not figure out why Brielle was still reading because she had been up for an extra half hour. Finally, after checking a couple times through the door crack, I walked into her room to find the "Frosty the Snowman" book propped up so I couldn't tell that she was totally asleep! It was so cute! The next week, I found Nick asleep with his book propped up, too! Then, Brielle wanted to sleep in the dollar hat that Emma gave her for Christmas so I saw another fun picture opportunity.  And the most recent time we found Brielle asleep after reading, the book was completely resting on her face! I love sleeping pictures!

December Dash

December is crazy! This year especially because I had a brother get married and another brother leave on a mission the month of December as well! Nick got hit with a sinus infection/TMJ combo right after his birthday that kept him down for about 2 weeks. I also got called to be the Primary President the first week of December (when Nick was sick so it felt a little like deja vu). This month we also had 5 family birthdays, a school-sing-a-long and we did the 12 Days of Christmas for someone. It was insane but with some good memories!

December Extras

In addition to the crazy month of December, we added a wedding and a mission farewell into the mix. Before Christmas, my middle brother (Connor) got married. It was a busy day with the sealing in Bountiful and the luncheon/reception in Brigham City. It was fun to have everyone together though. Then, the day after Christmas my youngest brother (Caleb) had his mission farewell. The following week he was set apart and off to the MTC. His mission call is for the Mexico City, Mexico mission, but Visa's are taking a little longer right now, so we will see how soon he gets there.  My girls (and I) miss him so much. He is a great brother and an awesome uncle. But we know he will do a fabulous job on his mission as well.