Our Christmas Elf

I haven't made a blog post for several weeks because it's been fairly quiet in our household.  My sister Shellie gave me a hard time about not seeing any updated pictures lately so I am making this post for her!  Clara was playing around with our Santa hat the other night so I put it on her and tried to take a picture.  She had a hard time looking at the camera and she squirmed and fussed.  I sat her down and looked at her and said, "Mommy wants to take a pretty picture!"  She sat right down and looked at the camera and I got this great shot.  What an angel!

Halloween 2012

Halloween this year turned out to be a family day which was pretty great.  The girls had no school so Mark took most of the day off of work so we could do some activities together as a family.  We hadn't had a chance to visit the pumpkin patch yet due to the non-stop rain we had been having.  The day was cloudy, but dry, so we decided to check it out.  We were worried that the hay maze would be soggy and run down because of the rain but it turned out to be in fairly great condition.  Plus, we were the only ones there so we had free reign to play to our hearts' content.

This was Clara's first time at the maze so her big sisters made sure she had a fun time exploring.  She ran around so happy and excited to be there!

Here is Daddy and Clara at the top of the hay stack!

The pumpkin patch is a family owned operation that is right on their working farm.  It is out in the country and in a really beautiful area.

There even happened to be a little fort for the girls to play in.

By the evening it was time to get our costumes on and get ready for the trunk-or-treat!  Clara was REALLY not interested in having her picture taken.  She was adorable as a little bumble bee but these are the only two pictures I was able to get that somewhat showed her costume.

I think she was just sick of being in front of the camera all day. :)

Samantha was a "Vampire Gypsy."  She put her own costume together and was very proud of her accessories!

 Here she is looking very fierce!!!

Emma was a Vampire as well.  She also put her own costume together and especially loved her cape!

SPOOKY!!!!

It was a fun day but then we were tired from our adventures.  We came home and got in our PJs and watched "It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown."  Then we were off to bed dreaming of Halloween candy!  Now we are on sugar overload and I'm trying to figure out how to get rid of all the chocolate in the house!  We hope you all had a Happy Halloween, too!

Food Preserving 2012

It was that time of year again - time to can and stock up on fruit and get our food storage taken care of for the winter.  This year I really wanted to work on getting a large amount of applesauce preserved.  We did several batches.  Thankfully we had friends give us LOTS of apples which we were so grateful for.  It ended up being a family affair and everyone helped which made the work go faster.

Here is what my storage room looks like downstairs - peaches, pear sauce, applesauce, jams, butters and relish.  I'm so thankful that we have been blessed with abundance and it will be wonderful to have fresh fruit for the coming year.

Temple Open House

Today we had the wonderful opportunity to travel to Boise, ID to participate in the temple open house there.  The temple was closed for renovations over a year ago so now the church is making it available for tours before it is rededicated.  We were especially looking forward to taking Emma and Samantha through it so they could understand more about the importance and beauty of the temple.  It was wonderful to watch their faces as we went through each room.  It really DOES feel like heaven.  The estimation was that 13,000 people were going to be passing through it today so there wasn't time to talk and ask questions - but the feeling was there and that was what was important.

It was so beautiful inside and except for the six hours of Clara screaming on the drive there and back, we had a lovely day. (Clara just doesn't travel well, no matter what we try.)  We are very grateful for the temple and for the blessings that it brings to our family!

Battle of the Books!

Last week Emma was invited to participate in the Oregon Battle of the Books!  She was very excited to be one of five kids in her class who were asked to participate.  It's a great program to encourage kids to read and learn so we are thrilled for her.  She has already finished her first book and the battles begin in January.  If their school does well enough they could go to the state competition next April.  We are keeping our fingers crossed!  It's one more reason for us to be SO proud of miss Emma!

Tucson Trip!

This past weekend I was able to take a trip down to Tucson, Arizona!  My brother, Todd, and his family live there and my nephew was being baptized.  Todd moved there a couple of years ago and I had yet to see him there.  So..... me, along with my other sisters decided to make the trek.  However, I went by myself and left Mark and the girls at home!  I was a little nervous about this but I figured it would be good to have a few days away from home. :)  I flew with Hollie and her girls out of the Tri-Cities airport.  My niece, Karlie, and I sat by each other and had a wonderful time!

She kept me very busy with lots of activities which I loved!  At one point, Karlie said "We need to spend more time with each other!"  (Love that)

Lillie was having such a happy time on the airplane!  She was so excited to be there and to have an adventure!  She kept everyone around her giggling while she sangs songs for all to hear!

We flew to Phoenix and met Shellie and Tracie.  Shellie brought her baby, Jackson and we all hunkered down at a hotel for the night before heading to Tucson the next morning.  Here is Jackson playing in the hotel room.  What a cutie!

We made it to Tucson on Saturday morning.  Todd had yet to even meet Jackson so they had an introduction and then were inseperable the rest of the weekend!

Todd has a cat and Jackson was fascinated with her!

Luke is a monkey!  He has lots of energy and was literally climbing the walls with excitement at having all the family there!

Aunt Hollie and Aunt Tracie kept the kids occupied with puzzles and games.

Todd and Jackson really developed a special bond that was so precious to see.

Hollie and Karlie having a quiet moment together....

We all went to the Stake Center on Saturday afternoon to watch Luke be baptized!  What a special occasion.  Watching Todd pick up his son after coming out of the water was so touching and at that moment I was so happy to be there to witness it!  Everyone was teasing me that I was taking Mom's place by being the one to shed all the tears. 

Mom and Sissy were very proud!  Katie was so adorable - she told me she couldn't wait to turn eight so she could be baptized, too.

Cute family!

Uncle Todd with his nieces....

All the cousins....

All of us together - sure wish that the rest of the family could have been there, too.

On Sunday after Church we took a drive to the Saguaro State Park.  The desert was gorgeous!  The visitors center had lots of information and we drove to the "Old Tucson" studios.  Since it was Sunday we didn't go in, but we wanted to take a picture to remember that we were still there!

The desert sunset was breathtaking, along with the thousands of Saguaros we saw.  I had no idea that the desert had such beauty.  The sun went down way too fast - we wanted to stay and see so much more.  We were missing Stephanie and Jon with their families, and Mom and Dad.  They were with us in spirit, though. 

We had to leave Monday morning to come home so it was a short visit.  We said our goodbyes to everyone and then Hollie and I and the girls decided to hit "Red Robin" for lunch before our return flight.  It was loads of fun and the little ones had lots of energy.  Man - I love this girl!!!  I love being an aunty!

Mommy and Lills - so sweet!

We really had an amazing time - I wish the visit could have been longer.  It makes me miss my siblings and my nieces and nephews.  We just don't get to see each other enough unfortunately and I can't wait to go back!