Cousin Fun

James's Lunch with Mommy

Today was the preschool day for one of the classes at AFJH. James was invited by a ward member as her buddy. He loved it and even got to eat lunch with Mommy.

Lilly's Birthday gifts

Lots of love shown through presents yesterday. Thank you for all your thoughtful gifts...Lilly's thank you will come later too.

Rising to new heights

Lilly's new height mark

Birthday cupcakes

Picture by Lilly

Dream Come True

AF has a new (or will really soon) ice skating rink!

Only 2-ish blocks from my house!!!! I think Santa loves me this year. Even if it is lousy, I will still love it. 

My Little Box Troll

Feed the birds

Potty Training, part 3

We finally got it right after what seems like an infinite amount of trying.  Thank goodness for bribery.

Details available upon request.

A princess and a gorilla...

Big Stinker

Friends

Tortuga

Who was so kind as the let us stare at him for about 2 minutes before he took to his watery hideout.

Fruit Personification

Meet our pets for a day - The Bernies.

Who needs a puppy when you can just draw faces on fruit?

Patriotic M&Ms

We received a care package from Aunt S, Uncle R and boys. It contained two boxes of presidential M&Ms. Thank you! They loved them and enjoyed them. (All except the blue ones that James decided needed to go and out of his nose. No one at those ones.)

Messes

Are great...as long as you clean them up, too.

Lilly Cracked Corn

Because Jimmy would NOT cooperate and sit on the bag!

Travel Entertainment

On long trips, we often...well....give our kids a treat with movies and us a treat with uninterrupted conversation,. Win-Win.

Cowboys

James and Lilly were able to have a riding lesson from the daughter of a friend of mine. It was there first time on a horse, so I had to record as much of the fun as I could.

My favorite part:
James: "This IS fun." (over and over in tones of incredulity)

Throwback: Ogden Open House

We went. Loved it. Took lots of pics of the kids, as usual.

Garden Make Over

What's this, you ask?



Our new project for this last week. Not all the way finished. I still have to finish the sprinkling system and fill with dirt, but they are IN! Brian was a champion and was the bulk of the labor. I did what I could but really did so much less than what he did.

Plans, in case you wanted an aerial view

Throwback: James out of the kitchen

Who says children and demolition work don't mix? Me! So, James was able to add to his list of reasons why mom and dad are mean when I locked him out of the kitchen while we were tearing up the floor.

He found a way to get over it, as you can see by the last pic.

Throwback: New Kitchen Floor

A few months ago we were able to find the humor and blessings in a yucky situation. I was scheduled to teach a lesson on Sunday on gratitude, which came in handy.

Long story short: dishwasher leak = new floor.

It was a process, but Brian and I managed to laugh more than usual about it. I think the other pics are on my old phone, but this gives you a bit of the idea.

We now have some cheapy stick tiles that should hold us for a few years until a new kitchen is borne from the ashes, I mean drips, of the old.

Bringing Home Daddy's New Chair

How do you get two children and one office chair from the parking lot to the car without losing your sanity, a child, or making multiple trips?

Post Tantrum Self Exile

Daddy's Idea of a train track

Will help bring joy and never be boring.

Couch Fort

Throwback Post: Walking to School

Fun umbrellas from Uncle Jon and Aunt Angelina...our children really do have such fun relatives.