Catch Up

Here are a few photos of the fun we've been having...in between getting sick with the flu and working on house projects.

Abby enjoyed playing with Alex's scooter so much we gave in and got her one of her own. They ride their scooters everyday!

Alex waving at his school's Halloween parade.

My baby turned one!! Here she is in her cute birthday outfit from Grammy.

We discovered recently that Anne has an egg allergy and so for her first birthday I made my first egg-free cake. It actually turned out delicious and Anne dove right in!

A hole to China?? That is where Alex said he was trying to dig to in his sandbox. He worked for days on this hole and it was so deep that at times I couldn't even see him working in it.

Fall Happenings

We've been enjoying fall with its cooler temperatures and beautiful foliage. Here are a few things we've been up to.

We went apple picking at a nearby orchard. The apples were damaged by hail and therefore were very cheap. I was amazed at how much damage a hail storm only lasting a few minutes can have on an entire orchard. No apple went unharmed and each one had some sort of damage. I felt kind of bad for the apples, but we made good use of them in some yummy apple crisp and apple pie.

Alex waving through the apple trees.

Mike was nice and carried Anne the whole time.

The kids liked the pond next to the apple orchard.

The kids enjoying some backyard leaves.
Typical picture - Anne can't sit still, Alex is being silly and Abby is distracted.

Taking a rest in the leaves.

Painting pumpkins. The kids did a great job.

Notice the John Deere shirt. Abby still wears it night and day.

Not So Extreme Home Makeover

Here is our attempt to makeover our living room. It didn't go quite as planned. It took A LOT longer than we thought it would and the paint color wasn't exactly what I had envisioned. It is a nice change though and as soon as we can muster up the courage we'll attempt a few other rooms.

Before

After

GO COUGARS!!!

We are loving BYU's football season this year. Mike has taught the kids the cougar fight song and the kids love to yell "First down!" after Mike says "That's another cougar..." Keep up the winning streak BYU!

The kids are in their "BYU pajamas" for the Oklahoma game last weekend.

Off to a Great Start

Alex had his first day of school today and he did great! He loved riding the bus, going to gym class, checking out his own library book, drinking from a juice pack and playing with the toys. His favorite part he told me was seeing his good friend Carter. We are happy that his first day went so well.

Moments before the bus came.

Mom and Dad are so proud.

Poppy came to see Alex off on his big day.

Finally...Alex has been dying to ride the bus for years! We were happy to see that a nice man from our church is his bus driver.

Bye...take good care of him.

A Little Piece of Heaven

One of my favorite places to visit in the whole wide world is my parent's home. Not only because it is the home I grew up in but also because it is BEAUTIFUL. My parents have done so many wonderful things to the property around the house and I love to visit and go on the trails and enjoy the wildlife. Here are a few photos from my last visit. The pictures don't even come close to the real thing.

The house

View from the porch of the house of the Hudson River.

A baby deer I ran into on my walk.

Can you find the Mama deer?

Some turkeys I also ran into while walking around.

The beautiful pond my Dad made.

Some of the beautiful wildflowers that cover the land.

Beach Babe and Company

It was a beautiful day today and summer is quickly coming to an end so Mike took the day off and we headed to Grafton Lake. A great time was had by all even little Anne. She loved playing in the sand, trying to eat the sand and splashing in the water. Alex and Abby also had a great time digging in the sand and playing in the shallow water. Hopefully we can fit in one more day at the beach before school starts!

"I Wanna Stay at Grammy's FOREVER!"

These were the words frequently spoken by Abby on our recent trip to Utah. We had a great time in Utah going to a Bees Baseball Game, Lagoon, waterparks, taking Alex and Abby to their first movie, attending the Oquirrh Temple Open House, seeing old friends and most importantly being with family. It was fun to see Alex, Abby and Anne interact with their cousins. We were sad to say good-bye to loved ones and already can't wait to visit again.

We Love Him!!

For Father's Day this year, I took the kids to the local dollar store to pick out a couple of gifts for Dad. The kids had so much fun shopping for Dad and did a good job of picking out things Dad would enjoy like his favorite snacks and some tools. They could hardly wait for Father's Day to give him their gifts. Here's a few pictures of this year's Father's Day.

Alex placed this warning note on the door of the closet containing Dad's gifts.

Alex was so excited to finally give Dad his gift.

Abby also elated to give her gift.

Mike admiring the card Abby made for him.

Happy kids with their happy Dad!

Hose 'Em Down!!

Alex and Abby LOVE to play in the backyard, especially in the sandbox. "Can we go outside?" is frequently asked by them throughout the day. Lately, they have been getting extra dirty making bath time a daily necessity. On this occasion, they were so dirty we had to hose them down so that they could actually go in the house.