Welcome to our World

 I'm overjoyed Kaelah is taking to liking the worms we find as we do work in the garden.  With Dan beginning his master's degree I am trying to do every bit of yard work I can so that he doesn't have to.  Thanks to the how-to videos of the internet, I can now say I know how to turn on the automatic sprinklers all by myself -- no man necessary.  Well, except for the ones on the videos.  Danny is also learning new tricks.  He was standing on his head a lot this spring.  Daddy also grew a beard for fun this late winter and the children had fun feeling it.  The above picture is of when he shaved off the beard and left a go gotee.  It was entertainment for all of us, actually.  Just different to see my clean shaven husband not be clean shaven.  I have known the clean shaven one for almost 11 years now.  Check out these beauties.  So nice to see the handsome spouse grilling on the bbq again.  He has a lot on ...

 Here we are at the zoo again!  You may think this is the only thing we do outside the house! We rented 2 wagons b/c Kaelah & Michelle weren't fully recovered from their stomach flu.  We thought it would be very relaxing for them.  Kaelah looks pretty pampered, right?  I love pandas!  Lemurs always make me want to watch Madagascar.  Danny was a natural at the drums!  Here's a shot of the zoo map b/c in June it will be very different!  We are having a hard time waiting for the Toyota Elephant Passage to open up!  We were fascinated by this Secretary bird -- and all sorts of birds we've been missing for years b/c they are tucked away in a corner by the duck lake -- which I don't think I've seen since before Kaelah was born.  Shannon took great care of Kaelah the whole day.  Too bad we were in Denver to drop her off at the airport!  We love you, Aunt Shanny!

 We have a really nice middle school aged neighbor down the street who is super nice to our children.  His name is Daniel & he's adopted so I think it's super easy for him to relate to Danny.  On April 6th he came to our house with an invitation to go to his church's Easter party the next day.  Dan had to work but Shannon was in town for Lorine's wedding so we were able to have a great time!  Most of our time was spent in the bounce house that was made to look like a church on the outside.  I liked the air Kaelah was getting in this picture along with Danny about to lift off. Although we did not throw wet sponges at their pastor, we enjoyed our friend Larry the cucumber for a photo op.  The easter egg hunt was divided into ages, so we were in the 0-4 bracket (how convenient!).  There were a bunch of eggs just laying out on the grass but Michelle wasn't sure what to do with all those people around.  Danny and Kaelah were more th...

Twice a year we get to enjoy some of my favorite weekends, when our church holds what we call General Conference.  We believe that the original church at the time of Jesus Christ has been restored and we have a living prophet and 12 Apostles just as in days of old!  What a blessing!   During General Conference we get to hear all of them give special talks and it is always a wonderful experience.  However, in the last few years, Dan and I have had to take turns watching b/c the children can only get through about half an hour before they get too squirmy.  Luckily the video is available almost immediately on lds.org.  This year Conference fell on Palm Sunday, so we dressed the children up in the Easter clothes Grandma Karyl bought them and walked to our neighbor Darrell's church for the Easter Cantata he was singing in and luncheon afterward.  I'm glad we did b/c the weather was so much better that Sunday and the girls were sick on Easter Sunday wi...

I wanted to do something huge for my parents' 40th wedding anniversary, but they don't like parties and refuse to take a nice vacation until the 18-year-old cat is pushing daisies.  I couldn't even get them to go on a date b/c they are moving from their apartment to the house they bought, so this is what we did early in the morning to surprise them and let them know we love them.  Later, my mother brought over an anniversary cake to our house.  She even spoils her grandchildren on her 40th Anniversary! I love my parents so much and am truly grateful for all the wonderful things they have done for me and how they love my husband and children as their own. Happy Anniversary, Grandma & Grandpa!  We love you!

Dear Michelle, I am so grateful to have you as a daughter! You are fun and sweet and your smile is simply grand.  I'm very impressed with your vocabulary and super shocked you are potty trained already -- at 24 months! I admire your ability to stay out of fights with your older siblings but instead earn their adoration. I admire how you can play contently all by yourself when I need you to most. I appreciate how on days when I feel unloved, you brighten my day and make me feel like I'm doing ok.  Thank you for liking the toys and clothes I buy you. Thank you for being forgiving and concerned for others. Thank you for being my amazing "big little girl" as you've been saying lately. I am incredibly grateful for you, my miracle child. Love you, Mom At Michelle's check up the doctor and nurse had to go mainly off of my reporting due to Michelle's unwillingness to cooperate (a new experience with her).  I guess she found it strange that the first thing s...

Last year I fell apart, repeatedly, on Michelle's birthday.  Waiting to celebrate until Saturday was a big blessing b/c on her birthday, I just kept telling myself not to think about it until the weekend.  Then the day came and we were too busy having fun at Disney on Ice for me to cry.  Perhaps we should do this every year!  Super happy about her Minnie Mouse cupcakes Grandma Karyl made.  There was a special one with 2 candles to blow out as well.  I like how this shot captured the split second where one was already out & the second one was about to be.  Michelle is the best candle snuffer I've ever met.  Michelle is very loved by both her siblings.  They were very happy to celebrate her special day.  No jealousy, just happiness about cake and new toys in the home.  Look at how happy Grandma is to help open the presents she bought.  She loves making her grandchildren smile.  Need I say more? Michell...

What great luck that the only time Disney on Ice would be in Loveland in 2012 was on the weekend of Michelle's birthday!  It was like a mini trip to Disney World but without packing or high prices.  We figured since our children are so small & it was so cheap compared to Florida, we would get seats close enough to really see the skating & shake hands with the characters afterward.  Best decision we made in February. Danny was our #1 enthusiast.  He makes a great fan & appaulded & smiled like the best of them.  Friends have asked me if there was "real" skating, so I included the above picture of Belle & the Beast once he turns back into a prince.  Looks good to me, and I did live in North Dakota for 4 years, so you have to take my word for it. Michelle loves Minnie Mouse so we had a Minnie Mouse dress made for her birthday via Etsy.  It was a big hit.  (Still is.)  This is Michelle smiling as Minnie skated toward her...