December happenings...

Last year Nate's mom gave us all of Nate's ornaments from when he was a kid and we hung them on our tree. This year we decided to get the kids their own tree for his and their ornaments. They were very excited!

Laura was the "Hero of the Day" at school this week. I got to go and tell her class about her and why she's my hero. She has such a great teacher and I was more than happy to go and talk about Laura. Laura is a great helper at home and is so cute with Josh and Megan. She's also doing really well in school, which I am really grateful for!
Lia made this gingerbread house at school. She was looking forward to making it for weeks. She's also doing well and has a great teacher, who probably thinks we are stalking her because every time we go up to Traverse Mountain she wants to drive by her house (she's in our stake). Lia is getting more and more grown up everyday. I love it, but I also love that she still wants us to read her stories and likes to curl up in our laps.
My sister Katie plays the cello in the Murray Symphony and had a Christmas concert last Sunday. The music was beautiful and the kids were thrilled to see Katie. Can you tell they love her?

My friend Lisa asked me to make the top of her sister's wedding cake last week. I'd never done a cake for a wedding and was really nervous about it, but I think it turned out all right. I don't think any of the cakes I make will ever be perfect, but I still like making them... at least every now and then. Lisa's husband built the cupcake stand and Lisa and I decorated the cupcakes.

Josh and Megan

Megan gave me a kiss on my forehead the other night and I was so excited! Nate and I have been asking her to give us kisses for a while now and she finally figured it out (or just gave in to our pleas). She is such a sweetie.

Josh has decided he is grown up enough to wear deodorant. He's asked about it several times (what it is, what it's for, etc.) and decided he wanted to put some on about a week ago. I told him he couldn't put mine on but he could use daddy's (I don't want him smelling like a girl, after all). So everyday since he's told me it came off and he needs to put some more on. I'm so glad we have Josh, he definitely keeps us entertained.

Mater, Thanksgiving, and Snow Days

After a lot, lot, lot of begging I agreed to let Lia bring home her class pet Mater (a guinea pig) for a weekend. Thankfully the weather was good so he was able to spend all day outside and slept in the laundry room at night. I told the kids they could hold him as much as they wanted outside, and they did. I'm surprised Mater made it through the weekend with as much bouncing around as he got. I even cleaned out the cage while he was here (that was part of the deal). As much as I was a nervous wreck all weekend about washing hands and not touching Mater in the house, I have to say it was totally worth it. I now see why parents give their kids pets. Everyone loved Mater, especially Josh. He cried and cried when we took him back. That doesn't mean I'm ready for one though... my kids will just have to enjoy other people's pets, like Mater.

I'm afraid I don't have any pictures of our Thanksgiving or the Christmas wagon ride we went on with my family the day after, you'll have to look on my sisters' blogs for those. But we had a great weekend. It was so nice to have Nate home for so many days in a row and to spend lots of time with the kids and our families. We are so grateful for them and everything they do for us. The kids had a great time playing in the snow over the weekend too, even Megan... for a few minutes. Do you remember that snow outfit Kathie? We've put it to good use for years now. It's kind of an ordeal to get the kids ready to play everyday and get cleaned up when they come in, but I love watching them outside. And I'm always up for a cup of hot chocolate after.

Halloween

I decorated my Christmas tree today so I thought it was probably time to post my Halloween pictures. Nate was able to come to the parade at school this year and then he stayed home with Josh and Megan so I could go to Lia and Laura's class parties.

We had a good time, in spite of the rain. Nate is such a great sport to take the kids every year. I wouldn't mind going with him, but someone needs to hand out the candy and when the weather is bad, I'm happy to volunteer. I might regret this down the road but my philosophy on Halloween candy is get it gone as soon as possible. So, I let the kids go crazy when they get home and the next day, and then we toss all the leftovers (which normally means the candy no one cared to eat the first two days). I love Halloween...I love the cooler weather and the leaves changing and the smell of candles burning in jack-o-lanterns (which is weird, I know), and I love how excited my kids get. But I really love what follows Halloween. We had a great Thanksgiving, which I'll post about next time. Maybe sometime around New Years.

Pumpkin Carving

October

We took Megan on her first bike ride.

It was also Josh's first time around our neighborhood on his two-wheeler. He did great! He kept up with everyone and didn't complain once. Josh needs a nap just about everyday, but I don't always let him take one so he'll go to bed at a decent time. But, he just couldn't hold out any longer on this day. I'm not sure why he crawled under the picnic table, but it made for a cute picture.

This is one of Josh and Laura's favorite places in the house.

Megan loves this hat, not any other hats... just this one.

New Pictures

First Days of School

Everyone but Megan and me started school this fall. Josh started preschool, Laura started kindergarten, Lia started second grade, and Nate started the MBA program at BYU.

I love this picture of Josh. He's smiling kind of silly, but he looks so cute and grown up!

I was a little hesitant to do preschool for Josh, but when the girls got their letters in the mail saying who their teachers are and he asked who his teacher was going to be, I was really glad I decided to do it. It doesn't cost me a dime and I love the other moms and kids he's doing it with. I miss Josh though while he's gone. He may be a big kid but he seems too little to be going to school already!

And then we have cute Laura...

Her teacher is Mrs. Burk and she is great! Laura likes school and things are going well. I love to hear her say she made a new friend and to hear the new songs she's learning.

Laura and a few of her friends from our ward.

I'm not sure where Nate stood to take this picture, but it's totally Lia. She loves school and couldn't wait to start this year. She also loves her new shoes. Luann, do you recognize the hands like last year's first day of school picture?

And finally we have Nate. (Just pretend I'm not in the picture--I don't think I'll ever wear that shirt again!) After an eight year break, Nate is back in school. He quit his job and is a full time student. We couldn't be more excited! He loves his program and I love the fact he's at BYU. He's taken a lot of razzing for that since we are after all "U" fans, but we know it's where he's supposed to be. The last few weeks have been really kind of crazy, but it will get better...or maybe we'll just get more used to it. Either way, I'm really proud of Nate, I'm grateful for the opportunity, and I'm excited to see where this new adventure will take us.

Fishing Trip

Nate, his dad and his brothers borrowed a raft and went fishing on the Green River right before school started for Nate. The fishing wasn't as good as they had hoped, but they had a great time. I wish they could do things like this more often.

Megan's Bed

So I mentioned we took the crib down and Megan has been sleeping--if you can call a few hours a night sleeping--in a bed. Well, the other night I put her to bed and she actually slept in there by herself for a couple hours. She woke up once and cried for a few minutes, but I decided to wait and see if she'd go back to sleep, which she did. When I went to check on her and Josh before Nate and I went to bed, I found her snuggled up in Josh's bed. I was pretty sure I hadn't moved her and Nate hadn't either. She must have crawled up there in her half asleep state when I heard her cry. It was so cute I had to take a picture, which woke her up so I moved her back to her own bed.