Nielson News

Gwendolyn Marie

2012-01-27T10:28:00.000-08:00

~Gwen~

January 21, 2012

Eric's News!

2012-01-26T08:59:00.000-08:00

Eric had some exciting news this week! Last Wednesday he interviewed at BYU for their Executive MBA Program. He felt that the interview went well and we figured it would be a couple of weeks before we heard anything from them. He got to work Monday morning and had an email waiting for him from BYU. He was accepted into their program!

All his hard work paid off and we are grateful that he will have this opportunity to expand his horizons. We are not quite sure how we feel about being students again, especially with 3 kids, but it will all be worth it!

3 Weeks Old

2012-01-25T09:00:00.000-08:00

Yesterday little Gwen turned 3 weeks old. We can't believe how much she has changed in 3 weeks! Her cry is louder, she cries tears now, she looks for noises, she makes funny faces, she squeaks and grunts like crazy, and she would eat all day if I let her. Eric and I were talking the other night about how it feels like she's always been with us. We are so grateful she is part of our family!

I love her little elf ears! Adam loves when she makes any kind of noise, even a sneeze. He often says, "Listen Mommy, she's making noise like a human!" The kids just love her to pieces! They are dying for her to play with them.

All About Me Interviews

2012-01-23T14:10:00.000-08:00

I am a bit behind with life. I wanted to do these interviews with the kids at the beginning of the year, but I decided to have a baby instead:) We got around to it last night and we video taped the kids giving us their answers. They were pretty funny, so I am glad we did!

Adam

What is your name? Adam Richard Nielson

How old are you? 5

What color is your hair? Blonde

What color are your eyes? Green

What is your favorite food? Cinnamon Rolls

What is your favorite song? I Am a Child of God

What is your favorite treat? Candy-banana laffy taffy

What is your favorite color? Green

What is your favorite animal? Cheetah

What is your favorite book? My children's encyclopedia and Crash Course

What is your favorite store? Walmart-cause they have Hot Wheels

What is your favorite thing to do with Daddy? Going out with daddy to Provo Beach Resort

What is your favorite thing to do with Mommy? Helping around the house

What is your favorite movie? Cars 2

What is your favorite TV show? Curious George

Who are your friends? Gavin, Treyvon, and Anni

What is your favorite thing to do outside? Play football

What is your favorite thing to play inside? race cars

What is your favorite toy? Hot wheels-El Super Fasto!

Poor Tess has a bad cold and got her hair stuck in a tent zipper last night...hence the look. She looked pretty crazy last night, but she had us all laughing with her silly jokes during dinner.

Tessa

What is your name? Tessa Ann Nielson Marie

How old are you? 3

What color is your hair? Red

What color are your eyes? Blue

What is your favorite food? Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches

What is your favorite song? Mickey Mouse Clubhouse

What is your favorite treat? Chocolate

What is your favorite color? Red

What is your favorite animal? Giraffe and cats

What is your favorite book? Little Einsteins

What is your favorite store? Macey's-cause they have ice cream and candy (samples are at Costco)

What is your favorite thing to do with Daddy? Hug him and play dolls and go to Costco

What is your favorite thing to do with Mommy? Be Mommy's helper

What is your favorite movie? Princess Songs

What is your favorite TV show? Mickey Mouse Clubhouse

Who are your friends? Gabby and Zeke

What is your favorite thing to do outside? Play soccer, smell flowers, and ride my scooter

What is your favorite thing to play inside? Play pretend, dolls, and kitty cats

What is your favorite toy? My doll kitty cat

Tessa's Art

2012-01-18T18:40:00.000-08:00

Tessa's first self portrait.

She only asked for help with her pigtails and she was so proud of how she drew her hands. She's going to be a good little artist!

Two Weeks Old

2012-01-17T20:21:00.000-08:00

I can't believe how fast 2 weeks have gone by! Little Gwen is growing like a weed. She had her 2 week check up today. She now weighs 7 lbs 2 1/2 oz and is 19 1/2 inches long. So, she is gaining weight like crazy and has grown an inch since she was born! Not terribly surprising news seeing how she eats non stop all day long! Other than being constantly hungry, she is perfect and adored by her brother and sister.

We tried sizing up the kids. It was a difficult task, but it showed us how big Adam and Tessa are and how little Gwen is.

Tessa is still striking her princess pose

The other night Gwen found her thumb and went to town sucking on it. I was grateful for the break!

She loves to snuggle on chests! It feels so good to have a baby to snuggle again.

Who do I look like?

2012-01-11T10:39:00.000-08:00

Everyone is trying to figure out who Gwen looks like. Each of these pictures were taken within the first hour or so of each kids birth. What do you think?

Adam

Tessa

Gwen

Gwen's Bath

2012-01-11T10:34:00.000-08:00

On Sunday we gave Gwen her first bath at home. Adam and Tessa were so excited to watch and "help".

Before we bathed her, we checked her weight. She didn't lose a lot in the hospital and by Sunday she was back up to 6 lbs 7 1/2 oz.

I love Tessa's crazy eyes in this picture!

Gwen hardly cried through her bath. Adam tells everyone, "She didn't really like washing her bottom, but she was really relaxed when we washed her hair."

Adam has been so happy to see her with her eyes open. Every time he came to the hospital she was asleep and he was so anxious to see the color of her eyes. He was convinced she was nocturnal.

I had to put these pictures on to compare. This dress is newborn size. Gwen wore it at 5 days old. Tessa (in the bottom picture) wore it at 3 months old.

Hospital Stay Days 2 & 3

2012-01-10T12:17:00.000-08:00

On Wednesday we decided to play dress up. She looks so pretty in pink!

Adam and Tessa came back for another visit!

We had more visitors over the next 2 days. My Mom came and spent the mornings with me while Eric went home and got Adam off to school. Mamma would pick Adam up from school, then bring the kids by to visit, and then watched them in the afternoons. My sister Katy spent the nights with them. We had so much help from everyone and we so appreciated it!

Gwen and Uncle Ryan

Gwen and Uncle Alex

Gwen and Uncle Andrew

With her Bampa:)

Our other visitors included Katy, Uncle Ben, Livvy, Mindee, Kara, Maggie, Eliza, John, and Jodi.

My nurses during they day were less than helpful, but my nurses at night were amazing! My nurse the last 2 nights was Dina and she was fabulous! She took such good care of us, I can't even begin to write enough good things about her. She will never see this, but I just had to express how grateful I am for her kindness. She was one awesome nurse!!

On Friday we loaded everything up and once they plucked the staples out of my tummy, we brought our beautiful baby girl home. Our lives are forever changed, and for that, we are thankful! We feel so blessed to have 3 healthy and happy kids! We couldn't ask for anything more.

Birthday Day at the Hospital (Tuesday)

2012-01-10T11:42:00.000-08:00

We were grateful to be so close to family for Gwen's birth! We had so many visitors during our hospital stay and felt so much love and support from everyone!

A very proud Daddy!

Gwen and Ma

Gwen and Pa

Gwen and Mamma

Gwen and Bampa

Adam and Tessa have been so excited to meet their new baby sister! They even brought her flowers when they came to the hospital!

My 3 beautiful children! I can't believe I am a mother of 3!!

Gwen and Aunt Dee

Gwen and cousin Ares

Gwen and Uncle Danny

When my youngest brother Andrew was born, my other siblings used my Mom's hospital bed as a jungle gym when we went to visit her and the baby in the hospital. Matt and David found they could make a lot of noise by blowing into the bottom of the bed. This drove my Mom crazy and she eventually asked my Dad to take everyone home because having my brothers there was far from relaxing. We all had a good laugh when my kids discovered the same noise maker in my hospital bed and went to town making all the noise they could. It's nice they make hospital beds to kid friendly!

It was a busy day and exhausting day! I was so thankful to have a wonderful Nurse (Cami) that night who gave me and Gwen some much needed tender loving care.

Baby Gwen

2012-01-09T09:31:00.000-08:00

We have a lot of pictures to post and our hospital stay to get caught up on. Here are some pictures from the first hour or so of Gwen's life. Daddy did a good job of juggling the video camera and the digital camera.

Our New Addition!

2012-01-08T20:18:00.000-08:00

Introducing.....

Gwendolyn Marie Nielson

Born: January 3, 2012 at 11:49am

6 lbs 9 oz and 18 1/2 inches

We are so thrilled and thankful to have our little Gwen here safe and sound!

She is perfect!

Happy New Year!

2012-01-01T20:25:00.000-08:00

Our New Year's Day didn't start out like we planned. Eric left for meetings at church first thing in the morning. I called him a few minutes later to come home and take me to the hospital due to some bleeding I was having. We spent the whole morning in the hospital and then were sent home without any answers. Frustrating!!

We got home from the hospital just in time to get the kids to Primary. Our Tessa Boo is now a Sunbeam and she was so excited to go to Primary! Adam is a CTR 5 now! How do they grow so fast?!

More Christmas Fun!

2011-12-31T09:23:00.000-08:00

More pictures from Christmas at Ma and Pa's house.

Cannoli's here I come!!!

Tessa loves to take pictures now. She's surprisingly good at it!

Tessa helped Ma dip peanut butter bon bons one afternoon while I had a doctors appointment. I am 100% sure that more chocolate ended up in Tessa than on the bon bons! She loves to help be a "cooker".

Our Christmas elf!!

It wouldn't be a true family gathering without a nap from Uncle Mattman! We are glad he is home so we can take more pictures of him sleeping!

Christmas Day!

2011-12-28T11:00:00.000-08:00

We had a wonderful Christmas day with each other and with our families. We got to talk to Uncle David in Brazil and that was a highlight! The kids were spoiled rotten and had lots of fun opening all their gifts!

Before we went downstairs to see what Santa left, we read the Christmas story from the Bible and had family prayer. They kids were so excited, they could hardly sit still through all of that.

Santa left scooters and piggy banks!

Tessa was so happy to get her princess piggy bank!

Adam was thrilled to get more cars!

Unloading their stocking loot

From Mommy and Daddy, Tessa got a toy cash register, a baby doll, and a princess key board.

Adam got some new legos, a pirate ship, and a race track. When he opened the race track he said, "Awesome, awesome, awesome, awesome, awesome!!!" He was a happy boy!

Some family presents to share

Daddy got a sound bar for the tv!

Mommy got a griddle for lots of pancake making!

We spent the afternoon at Ma and Pa's house and then the evening at Mamma and Bampa's house. We are so thankful to live so close to both families! We are sad it is all over, but grateful that we had such a merry Christmas!

Christmas Eve

2011-12-26T14:35:00.000-08:00

We had a wonderful Christmas! Christmas Eve was spent with the Nielson crew and then we got to come home and have some time together as a family which was really nice! The kids were so excited to get ready for Santa, but both were really good at reminding each other of the true meaning of Christmas. As a family, we are so thankful for our Savior and for His sacrifice, making it possible for our family to be together forever!

Ellie and Tessa are kindred spirits....

Adam, Ellie, Roxy, Tessa, and Zeke

Adam sang "Baby In a Manger" for everyone and then the grand kids led us all in a few Christmas carols

Opening some new coloring books from Mamma and Bampa

When we got home, the kids got to open their new Christmas pajama's and their Christmas Eve books from Mom and Dad.

Daddy got a book on business and Mommy got a book and motherhood

Adam was so thrilled with his book and we spent a good 20 minutes discussing all of the skyscrapers he found throughout it. He was thrilled to find out earlier in the evening that Big Uncle Ben has been inside the Sears Tower, the Chrysler Building, and even the Twin Towers!

The kids got some yummy treats and milk ready for Santa and some carrots for the reindeer. Tessa made sure Rudolph had 2 carrots.

At school, Adam made magic reindeer food that sparkled so the reindeer would see our house. Both kids took turns spreading it on the lawn.

They went to bed and to sleep SO fast! When we told them to get ready for family prayer before bed, Tessa jumped to her knees, folded her arms, closed her eyes, and said as fast as she could, "Heavenly Father, thank thee for this day. Thank the for our blessings. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen." Then she ran to her bed and covered herself up. Adam was still brushing his teeth during all of that, so we made her come back out and have a "real" family prayer with us.

In his bedtime prayers, Adam has been so good to remember to ask Heavenly Father to help him remember that Jesus was born even when Christmas is over. He has slept in his Santa hat every night this month. I will be sad to pack it away in a couple of days.

Adam the Elf

2011-12-21T15:18:00.000-08:00

A couple of weeks ago we find out that Adam's teacher was going to have an Elf Party the last day of school before Christmas break. The kids were told they could dress up for it if they would like. Adam has a very nice Aunt Dee who made him an entire elf costume for the party! He loved it and looked super cute! Mrs. Hales said it was the cutest thing she had seen!

Adam came home with a present from Mrs. Hales and he couldn't wait to open it!

More Christmas Fun!

2011-12-19T15:19:00.000-08:00

We have been having lots of fun counting down the days until Christmas! This is such a fun time of the year and we have been trying to take advantage of it! Despite Mommy getting the flu, we have been able to keep up with our activities pretty well. The pictures are a bit out of order, but here is an idea of what we have been up to.

~We made reindeer cookies~

~We had lots of fun with our Nielson family up at Spring Haven~

Adam and Ellie

~The kids were so excited about their new camping chairs from Aunt Jan and Uncle Lynn~

~Every night before bed we have been reading Christmas stories~

~The kids wrote their letters to Santa and left them in their stockings for Christopher to deliver ~

~Adam wrote his entire letter all by himself!~

~We went to the mall to visit someone very special! They were both giggling with excitement!~

~Each year we make a new ornament for the Christmas tree. This year they both painted snowflakes~

Sunday Snapshot

2011-12-18T14:26:00.000-08:00

Today was Tessa's last day in the Nursery at church. I can't believe our baby is so big! She is SO excited to go to Primary with Adam and be a Sunbeam. When I picked her up from Nursery today she yelled, "Now I'm a Sunbeam!!"

Adam sang in Sacrament meeting today with his Children's Choir. They sang "Baby In A Manger" and they did a beautiful job.

Festival of Light Pictures!

2011-12-13T13:18:00.000-08:00

(Post by Adam)

Yesterday we went to the Festival of Lights! We had so much fun there and we saw a lot of lights!

These were some of our favorite lights to see!

We loved the volcano and the crazy light tunnel!

Weekend Review

2011-12-12T11:00:00.000-08:00

On Saturday morning the kids got to visit with someone special! Santa stopped by our ward Christmas party and the kids were so happy to see him!!

Tessa told Santa she wanted a "princess kitty".

Adam couldn't stop giggling. He asked for a race track.

Sunday night Adam performed with his choir at our Stake Choirside! He looked so handsome and sang so well. He didn't even yawn:)

Tessa got all dressed up for Adam's performance. When we told her she had to leave her sunglasses at home, she decided to leave the rest of her accessories as well. Our little diva!

Christmas Activities

2011-12-07T12:53:00.000-08:00

We have been having lots of fun this week with some of the Christmas activities I planned for us to do this month! On Sunday, we made more candy cane ornaments for the Christmas tree. Tessa took all the the existing candy canes from our tree and decorated her bedroom with them. She told us, "I need a Christmas room!" She is so my daughter!!

Tessa's candy cane came out very big and very colorful!

On Monday, we started a new tradition. Thanks to a good idea from The Friend, we decided to put up a paper tree in our kitchen and make ornaments for it. On the ornaments we wrote things about Jesus. We will add more ornaments to our tree every week for family home evening during the month of December.

Both kids did a good job thinking of things about Jesus, although Tessa really wanted to write "pancakes" on one of her ornaments. She is still thinking of her blessings for Tom the Turkey.

On December 5th, we have more fun family traditions! Father Christmas comes that night (my German heritage) and we added a little twist in our family and that is the night Christopher Pop-in-Kins comes to our house. Before bed, Daddy read Christopher's story and then the kids got their shoes ready for Father Christmas.

They were so excited to wake up Tuesday morning and find treats in their shoes!! They both got some candy and Adam got 2 new cars and Tess got some princess nail polish!

Seeing how excited they were made me so excited for Christmas morning!

They were SO happy to see Christopher! He stays at our house until Christmas Eve. He hides in a different spot everyday, so each morning the kids have to find him. He is Santa's special helper and watches the kids closely while he is here, making sure they are being good!

While Adam was at school on Tuesday, Tessa did this to the Nativity Scene that the kids have. It brought a tear to my eye. A good reminder of what is truly important!

Tuesday we made Santa beards and the kids had a blast with them! Their new favorite thing to do is try and trick people into thinking they are Santa.

Wednesday we made reindeer with their hands and feet. They really love it when we do these kinds of projects because they love having me smear paint all over them!

They both turned out pretty cute!

Christmas Time Is Here!!!

2011-12-01T08:46:00.000-08:00

We finally decorated for Christmas last night! The kids have been so excited to get our Christmas tree up and we had a fun evening getting the house all festive!

I love watching Tessa try and put the branches on the tree.

Adam was a good branch fluffer!

After 7 years, we finally got a star for our tree. We told Eric he was our Bumble:)

Tessa was so helpful with the tree....her bunch of lights all got put in one general area.

Baby ornaments!

Tessa's spot on the tree where all the ornaments ended up. I let the kids decorate the tree and then "fixed" it a bit after they went to bed.

Reading stocking notes!

Having our traditional cinnamon rolls and egg nog

The last 2 years Adam has worn a Santa hat all December long...even to bed! He was so happy to find his hat in one of our Christmas boxes. Tessa got in on the fun this year. Adam was pretty bummed when I told him he couldn't wear his hat to school today.

We are so excited for Christmas this year! Not only is it my favorite time of year, but we are that much closer to holding our sweet new baby! Only 5 weeks to go!

Family Outing!

2011-11-29T08:17:00.000-08:00

Yesterday we decided to surprise the kids with a family outing! Eric took a half day off of work and the kids were so shocked to see him come home earlier than dinner time! We surprised them by taking them up to Salt Lake for the afternoon and evening.

Our first stop was the Living Planet Aquarium. It was a free admission day, so we thought we would take advantage of that. The kids LOVED it!

We cannot get her to keep her eyes open or look at the camera when taking pictures. But, her hand is on her hip and her bum is sticking out-that's what she calls her "princess smile".

Adam loved touching the sting rays! He spent a good 10 minutes petting them. Tessa didn't want to touch any, but helped Daddy touch a few.

The penguins were a hit! We had so much fun watching them swim around.

Adam's piranha face!

After the aquarium, we surprised the kids with a train ride on Trax into downtown!

We spent some time at Temple Square, the Church History Museum and then treated the kids to a dinner out. It was so nice to get out and do something fun together! My favorite part of our evening was while we were at one of the Visitor Centers at Temple Square. Adam asked what we were supposed to be doing and I told him just being reverent and thinking about Jesus. His reply, "Well, it's really hard to think about Jesus when you are this hungry!" I love the honesty of children!

A Very Happy Thanksgiving Weekend!

2011-11-28T08:36:00.000-08:00

We had quite the weekend! It might take several days to recover from it, but it was fun! We had lots of family activities going on and we kept very busy!

Thanksgiving day Adam and Eric played in my family's traditional "Turkey Bowl". Adam was so happy to finally get to play some football.

Aunt Katy and Eric trying to catch Adam

My cute boys!

Running for the touchdown!

Adam and Tessa tackling Aunt Katy

We had a yummy Thanksgiving dinner thanks to lots of hard work from Mom and Dad!

Tessa's dinner consisted of a roll, some mashed potatoes, and 3 pieces of candy corn. A perfect Tessa dinner!

Friday morning Eric left early to go skiing with his family and the kids and I headed up to the mall to see a very special person fly in on Chopper 5!

They were so excited to see Santa! Adam couldn't stop giggling.

We were so thankful that it was warmer than last year!

Santa came around and said hello to each boy and girl. He got a hug from Tessa Boo.

Later that day all the cousins came over to our house to play for a while. Baby Rees got lots of attention from them!

Friday night we celebrated Mamma's birthday!

All the grandkids helped blow out the candles and then had to help pull all the candles out of the cake!

Saturday we went power tumbling! The kids had so much fun!!

After power tumbling, we headed back up to my parents house to decorate for Christmas. This was always a big tradition for my family, and even though most of us have moved out, all the kids still come home to decorate for Christmas each year.

Ares and Tessa got tired of waiting for everyone, so they started on the tree by themselves. It looked like a palm tree by the time they were finished.

After decorating we always have our traditional decorating dinner and then doughnuts, hot chocolate, and egg nog.

There was so much to be grateful for this weekend! We were happy to see so much family, spend time with so many cousins, hear big announcements, and are so thankful that Heavenly Father was watching out for Jake and Angel and their family. We are so blessed to have such loving and happy families!

More Thanksgiving Fun!

2011-11-22T10:55:00.000-08:00

We have been trying to squeeze as much Thanksgiving fun in as we can before the big day comes and goes! We have been thankful for the time we have taken as a family to think about all of our blessings this Thanksgiving season!

We played some fun rounds of "Don't Eat Tom!"

We made Indian headbands and played a fun turkey alphabet game.

For part of the game the kids had to act like turkey's.

Today Adam had a Thanksgiving Feast at school! I love helping out in his class!

Adam and his soccer buddy!

A final look at our Tom the Turkey. He got lots of feathers this year and there are many more that we could add. This week Tessa added "pancakes" to her "chocolate pudding" and "marshmallow" feathers. I love what the kids come up with!

We realize how blessed we are as a family and are so grateful that we have each other and that we get to be together forever! Eric and I feel so blessed to be parents and realize what a blessing that truly is. We couldn't ask for anything more than our beautiful children! I am so thankful for Eric and the wonderful man, husband, and father that he is. I seriously hit the jackpot with him and I will never know what I did to get so lucky! He is my rock and my best friend and I love him like crazy!

We as a family are so thankful for the gospel and our Savior and for the foundation that gives our family. I am thankful that we have the truth and that I am able to teach my children that we have a loving Heavenly Father and Savior. We are so thankful for the Atonement and for the chance we have to repent and change. That is the greatest blessing of all!

I could go on and on. Our families, our parents, our jobs, Jodi:), all the things I take for granted....my list might never end. I am thankful as always for this season and the chance it gives me personally and us as a family to remember how truly blessed we are!
Happy Thanksgiving!!

Thanksgiving Dessert Night

2011-11-20T19:26:00.000-08:00

The weekend before Thanksgiving, my family and extended family gather for a pre-Thanksgiving dessert night. We used to have Thanksgiving dinner together, but with kids growing up and getting married and families growing, it became difficult to work out all the different schedules. So, my Mom decided to start hosting a Family Dessert Night the weekend before Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving has always been a big family holiday from the time my Mom was a kid, so it's nice to continue to get together with everyone. I still miss going to Bakersfield every year, but this is almost just as good.

The kids and I made Pilgrim hat cookies for one of our treats.

Eric and my siblings played several rounds of Nertz. We haven't played Nertz since Eric and I started dating. He taught it to my family 8 long years ago!

Tessa had everyone laughing as she showed off her "princess smile".

Adam loving some goodies!

The spread! We had some yummy stuff to enjoy!

Jason and Bryan

Chris and Dad

Angel, Sophia, Melissa and Devin

There were a lot more people there, but I didn't take very many pictures. It was fun to visit and laugh with everyone! Family makes the holidays wonderful!

Thanksgiving Fun!

2011-11-14T15:03:00.000-08:00

We have been having fun with Thanksgiving activities!

We colored turkey pictures

Adam helped me make baked apples. He is a good helper in the kitchen!

We played the dice game and built, Pilgrims, Indians, and a turkey

We made popcorn pictures

Each week we add more "thankful feathers" to Tom the Turkey.

I love what the kids come up with! You know which feathers are Tessa's. They usually have something to do with junk food.

Daddy helping Tessa write what she is thankful for.

Adam writing his blessing all by himself! He sounded out the words and got them all correct!

Tom the Turkey is looking good this year!

Adam came home from school today with his Turkey hat. He loves doing art with Mrs. Dimick.

We are thankful for this time of year and for the opportunity it gives us to slow down and really think about how blessed we are. We have so many things to be thankful for!

Christmas Wish List

2011-11-10T19:09:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite memories of Adam is last November when the Toys R Us catalog came in the mail. He circled everything in that catalog to put on his Christmas wish list. It reminded me of being a kid at Christmas. My siblings and I would spend hours it seemed going through the JC Penny and Sears catalogs that always came around Christmas time. I don't think we ever got anything we circled, but it was always fun to wish.

This year we got two catalogs and the kids went to town yesterday circling what they want! We have made progress from last year. Adam has narrowed his list down to 13 things.

Adam's City

2011-11-06T09:31:00.000-08:00

Adam is our little architect. He loves to build buildings and for weeks now he has been building his "city". He adds to it and changes things constantly. He is pretty clever with what he comes up with. We are impressed with his good imagination!

Empire State Building, Walmart, a Museum, The Great Wall, an Ice Cream Shop, and a couple city statues.

A Police Station, the Twin Towers, a castle, Burger King, a gas station, and an airport.

A movie theater, a traffic light, and the Eiffel Tower

A better view of the city statues and the Ice Cream Shop

Since I took these pictures he has done some renovating to his twin towers and added a football stadium. He loves his city! I don't know if he will ever take it down!

A Happy Halloween!!

2011-11-01T08:46:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween!!!

On Sunday night we carved pumpkins!

Adam knew exactly how he wanted his pumpkin to look.

Daddy helped Tessa draw her pumpkin face. She told us, "make it as mean as can be!".

Tessa wanted nothing to do with the pumpkin "brains". She said, "It's too confusing in there!"

Adam did a good job getting his "brains" out.

This was the sketch Adam made for his pumpkin face.

They turned out pretty good!

Halloween morning we made some spooky pancakes for breakfast.

I helped out in Adam's classroom for their Halloween party and then watched the Kindergarten Halloween Parade! Adam was a very cute Cowardly Lion!

We took the kids trick or treating in my parents neighborhood with their cousin Ares.

A huge thank you to Aunt Dee for making such amazing costumes!

They loved trick or treating! Tessa announced after every house, "I have so much candy!" and she had us rolling on the floor at one point as she threw her arm in the air and yelled, "Candy, here we come!!!!"

With all of their Halloween loot

More Halloween Fun!

2011-10-30T20:54:00.000-07:00

On Friday evening, Eric got to take the kids Trunk or Treating at church. Before they went, Mamma and Bampa stopped by to see the kids in their costumes.

They had so much fun Trunk or Treating!

Getting some loot from Bishop Martin.

The Cowardly Lion and Dorothy headed home with LOTS of candy!

Zeke, Adam, Ellie, and Roxy

On Saturday night, we got to go see Hotel Frankenstein with the Nielson crew. Tessa spent the evening with Ma and Pa and Adam went to the play with us. He loved it and loved seeing Frankenstein! The cousins looked so cute in their costumes!

More Halloween Fun!

2011-10-28T11:32:00.000-07:00

Quick Mommy and baby update:

I saw the doctor last week and he said everything is looking and sounding great. Yay! We discussed the ridiculous amount of contractions I am having and he said his best guess is that I am a busy mom who doesn't know how to sit down and put my feet up every once and a while. (How does he know me so well?) I am working on doctors orders, but find it quite difficult to be honest. I usually waddle into bed at night because my back hurts so bad! He said if resting doesn't stop my contractions, they will have me come in for testing to see if I am at risk for early labor. But, I doubt that will happen as long as I sit once or twice a day. I have also been feeling quite blah again! I will have a couple of good days and then a couple of bad days where I feel like I have morning sickness all over again. That kind of puts a cramp in my life as I don't have time to feel sick right now! With work, school, church, family, holiday preparations, and baby preparations, there is plenty to do! Overall, things are good and we are both healthy. We are all are anxiously counting down the weeks until we get to meet our little princess!

Speaking of plenty to do, we have been keeping up with our Halloween countdown calendar and have been having more Halloween fun this week!

On Sunday, Adam helped me make Oozing eyeball meatballs to go with our pasta!

We made our traditional "Ghost Feet"!

We baked and decorated Halloween cookies to treat our friends and teachers with!

We played pumpkin bowling! The kids played this happily for about an hour until the pumpkin cracked open!

We had another ghostly dinner!

Only 3 days left until the big day!!

Adam's First Report Card

2011-10-27T11:18:00.000-07:00

Today was Adam's first parent/teacher conference. I was excited to hear what his teacher had to say about our boy! Mrs. Hales said he is doing amazing well! He is ahead of where he needs to be and she is impressed with how well he can read, write, and count. She said he is a model student and a joy to have in her classroom!

Good job Big Guy!!!

Culture Shock!

2011-10-26T09:32:00.000-07:00

Elder Lemley finally received his Visa last week and the next day was on his way to Brazil! We got our first email from him this week and while we feel bad for him, it also made us giggle. He is experiencing what every missionary gets to experience and it will only make him a better person and a better missionary! Here is some of his first email from Brazil.....

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!! Where the heck am I????? For having 3 people in our family serve in Brazil and four learning a new language, why do I feel so unprepared?!?!?! Brazil is freakishly different! There is NO dress code in Brazil! AND bugs apparently like to eat humans alive! Especially if they are American! Blegh....things are different. It will take time to adjust to everything. Of course I have been sick since I got here. Cold, sore throat, now sore throat and upset stomach. Yup, exciting. My companion is Elder Blend (Blen-gee). He is from Sau Paulo. He speaks NO English AND we are white washing the area. We are in uh, Cordeiro or Cardeiro....something like that. It is right next to the city, so we are only like a 5-10 minutes bus ride from the mission office. Our President speaks barely any English, so our first night here was interesting. And no, I don't understand much because people speak SO fast!!

I am not looking forward to the next few months. Church yesterday was interesting. Didn't understand anything. I just feel awkward all the time. Wanna know something else? Guess who the ward/primary pianist is here? That would be me...cause I was messing around on the piano at church. I CAN ONLY PLAY THE RIGHT HAND!! So, add that to my stress list. I know I need to have more patience, that is my weak point. Just pray for me! Forgive me, I won't get a letter off today cause I am trying to learn the ropes of everything here and need to figure stuff out. But I will get letters off next week. I promise! I love you all!!! Love, Elder Lemley"

Eric is SO excited that David is finally there and after reading his email Monday night, Eric spent like 45 minutes looking on the computer figuring out where David is, how close he is to the temple, and how close he is to any areas where Eric served. We are excited for David and know with time he will learn to love Brazil and adjust. Hopefully the bugs don't eat him alive in the process!

More Halloween Fun!

2011-10-20T20:22:00.000-07:00

Yesterday the kids turned each other into Mummy's!

They had so much fun with a simple roll of toilet paper!

Afterwards they had an awesome "snowball" fight.

Today we took pictures with our favorite scarecrows. During the month of October, several businesses display scarecrows up and down Main Street. Another reason we love Spanish Fork!

Adam was trying to get Tessa to look at the camera, but the sun was so bright, neither of them could look stand to look up. It looks like he's trying to pull her head off!

More Halloween Fun!

2011-10-19T10:11:00.000-07:00

Since I work every Tuesday, Friday, and Saturday, we are busy with Halloween activities the other days of the week. The last couple of days have brought more Halloween fun to our house!

Last night the kids went to our neighbors pumpkin patch and each picked out a pumpkin to bring home.

Sunday night we made our traditional Mummy Dogs for dinner!

Monday brought ghost stories! I told them about "The Chocolate Chip Ghost". A favorite from my childhood and the most innocent story ever told. It totally freaked Tessa out though!

Ghost Pudding was on the menu for Family Home Evening Treats. Tessa said her ghost was too scary to eat. She went straight for the chocolate!

Adam's Story

2011-10-16T16:20:00.000-07:00

Last week for one of Adam's homework assignments, he had to tell us one of his favorite stories using things we had around the house. He decided to tell us one of his favorite Curious George stories. He used his George doll and one of his other dolls to make The Man With the Yellow Hat. Tessa LOVED it and couldn't stop laughing!

Halloween Fun!

2011-10-16T15:49:00.000-07:00

We have had a busy October! We have been having fun with our Halloween countdown calendar and the kids are loving all the different activities we have planned for the month. Here's a quick look at some of the fun things we have been up to.

The kids really want to use the camera on their own. The top picture Tessa took and the bottom picture Adam took.

We had some fun with fall leaves.

I love my little kitchen helpers. We tried a new fall recipe for our Family Home Evening treat.

Caramel Apple cheesecake. I'll post the recipe on my food blog.

They did a good job! It was delicious!

We painted pumpkins.

We made some spooky treats and "Boo"ed our neighbors. The kids have loved driving around the neighborhood to see how far our "Boo"ing has gone!

We made our traditional "Mummy Braid" for dinner one night.

The kids played some intense rounds of "Don't Eat Frank!"

We made mummies and monster puppets.

My cousins held their annual Halloween Party this weekend and the kids got to show off their costumes! Aunt Dee is amazing and made both costumes! She got in on the fun last night too.

Dorothy, the Cowardly Lion, and the Wicked Witch

Watching Charlie Brown with their cousin Jason.

The Chicken Dance!

They loved hitting the pinata! These kids never complain about getting candy:)

We have a lot more fun planned for the rest of the month! The kids can't wait for Halloween night!

More Tessa Randomness

2011-10-11T08:34:00.000-07:00

The other night when Eric got home from work, Tessa greeting him at the top of the stairs and then asked him to help her. This is what he found! I was making dinner and had no clue she had a truck stuck in her hair.

After several minutes of Eric and I trying to twist the truck out of her hair, she just grabbed it and yanked it out! Out came the truck and out came her hair....roots and all! Luckily, we had been able to get most of her hair out of the truck, so she didn't lose that much!

Adam was able to participate in our ward's Primary Program a couple of weeks ago. He did so well and said his part loud and clear! We loved watching him yawn through all of the songs.

Tessa had several people laughing during the beginning of the program. When she saw all the kids sitting on the stand and she was stuck sitting with boring Mom and Dad, she announced (fairly loudly), "Hey! What about me?! I'm a kid!!"

BYU Game!

2011-10-09T07:19:00.000-07:00

We were lucky enough to have a couple of extra tickets to the BYU football game last night, so Adam and Katy were able come with us and watch the action!

Adam was so excited! He couldn't stop smiling!

He stood on the bleachers with an arm around each of our necks the whole time we were there. I think he loved having both Mommy and Daddy all to himself.

My favorite part of the game was watching him. He had us laughing when the marching band played the San Jose song. Adam said, Hey! Why are they playing their song first? This is BYU's country!"

During the first half Adam announced, "Run, tackle, run, tackle. Hey! It's a pattern!"

Although he loved being out with the big people, his very favorite part of going to BYU games with us.....eating his Cougar Tail!

His half time "nap".

Go Cougars!!

Tessa Randomness

2011-10-06T09:07:00.000-07:00

Dinner time with Tessa is always a challenge! She cannot sit still, or politely for that matter.

Her favorite activities to do while Adam is at school is paint and puzzles! She is so good at putting puzzles back together!

An Update

2011-10-03T19:46:00.000-07:00

I feel like I have so much to catch up on, but really, we have just been living our crazy life! Adam is loving school and I love seeing his happy face run to me every morning when we pick him up. Tessa and I have been walking to pick him up while the weather is still so warm. Adam loves his teacher and has made so many friends in his class.

Tessa keeps us on our toes. Her strong willed personality amazes us and she will not give in unless it is her idea first. She keeps us on our toes and keeps us laughing! She had us laughing during General Conference this past weekend. Every time they would show the organ she would say, "Hey! There's that crazy piano again!"

Eric and I feel like we are just trying to keep our heads above water most days. Eric is loving attending BYU games, but wouldn't complain if they were playing better. He is preparing to apply to the Y this month for his Masters. He is busy at work and with church. We are thankful for how hard he works for our family!

As for this Mom, I am tired. I don't remember being this tired with the other kids. I love feeling this little one wiggle around in me and her favorite time to be active is at night while I am trying to sleep (just like her big sister). Should I be worried? I have been trying to get clothes and other essentials ready and feel like I have so much to do still! Hopefully everything on my "to do" list will get finished soon.

Today the kids and I prepared the house for Halloween. We are so excited for the holidays!

Tessa decided to wear our decorations

The kids got to carve pumpkins with Uncle Matt and their cousins yesterday. Adam is in love with his Lightning McQueen pumpkin!

The dreaded pregnancy pictures......Some people tell me I'm hardly showing and others still ask me if I'm having twins. Guess it depends on what I wear. We are on the countdown! Only 13 1/2 weeks to go. I am tired, hot, and uncomfortable. I physically feel like I am already 9 months pregnant. I can't wait to hold this little girl! Adam and Tessa are so anxious to see her and are constantly asking how much longer till she gets here.

The other night, after several nights of horrid sleep, the thought came to me that I am so excited to have this baby so I can spend one night alone in a bed! Between the baby beating me from the inside (I swear she does flips all night long) and Tessa sleeping all over me, I don't get much sleep anymore. Everyone thinks it's pretty pathetic that I am looking forward to labor and delivery just so I can get a good nights sleep.

Happy Fall Ya'll!

2011-09-23T15:49:00.000-07:00

Today was wacky hair day at school for Adam's class. He has been so excited to make his hair super spiky. I didn't get pictures taken until after school, so his hair had deflated a bit.

We have been so anxious for Autumn to arrive! We love watching the colors change on our mountains, cooler weather, football, and yummy fall food! To welcome the first day of fall, we made a treat! The kids made acorns out of doughnut holes.

Tessa was the official taste tester

Love the tongue!

The finished product!

Pajama Day!

2011-09-21T11:09:00.000-07:00

Adam has been so excited for today! He got to wear his pajama's to school and he also had to take a baby picture to share with his class. He chose a picture from his first birthday "cause it's just so cute". He thought not getting dressed to leave the house was pretty cool...although I think he was annoyed that I still made him make is bed and brush his teeth.

Mommy Moments

2011-09-15T09:14:00.000-07:00

My favorite thing to see every morning!

Remembering....

2011-09-11T14:30:00.000-07:00

This weekend has been an emotional one for me. September 11th is always a difficult day for me to relive, but for some reason, this weekend being the 10 year anniversary has been even more difficult. I think a lot of it has to do with my children and having Adam now old enough to understand what happened that day. I have a book of pictures from September 11th and Adam loves looking at it and asking questions about what happened. It is hard to explain to a 5 year old the impact that day had on my life, my family, and our country. That day changed everything.

Yesterday we went to the Healing Field or Freedom Field. Every year on the anniversary of September 11th, a flag is placed in a large open field for every victim of those horrific events. It is a humbling sight to see. Each flag has a tag with the name and age of each victim and a small paragraph telling something about that person. I wanted Adam and Eric to have the chance to see the flags and learn something about the innocent people and the hero's that were lost that day. Eric was on his mission on 9/11/01. He says it was difficult not knowing what was really going on in our country at that time and not having accurate information to understand the impact it had on us.

As I have reflected on that horrific day over this past week, my heart aches for the innocent people that lost their lives that day. I hurt for the families that lost loved ones, and I am frustrated for those who are alive but still suffer physically, mentally, and emotionally from the events of that day. I pulled out my journal this morning to see what I wrote about September 11, 2001.

I told of the events that occurred and how horrible of a day it had been. I remember that being the longest day I have ever had at work! I just wanted to be home with my family. Before I went to bed that night I wrote,

"I watched the news from 8:30am to 11:00pm. I was so scared this morning cause no one knew what was going on. The country has literally shut down. All the Federal buildings and skyscrapers have been evacuated all over the country. It is amazing when you realize how close you are to losing your freedom, how fast you appreciate it. It has been an indescribable day! President Hinckley held a Memorial Service tonight and the Mo-Tab sang. Grandma Wanlass called freaking out saying how it was just like Pearl Harbor and Grandma Lemley called freaking out about Danny being shipped out. At this point Danny is on standby. We just have to wait to hear if, when, and where he will go. (He later served a tour in Iraq and a tour in Afghanistan.)

I never thought I would live through something like this. We have seen history in the making. I've seen movies where New York or DC get attacked, but the movies are nothing like real life. It's a scary day for our nation, but one that will bring us closer together. This is an amazing country and I have no doubt we will overcome and come back stronger!

Ten years later we still have not forgotten. I am thankful for the brave men and women who serve our country, fighting and giving their lives to keep us free! To my brothers, Danny and Matt and to my Brother-in-law, Jake, and their families, a special thank you! Thank you for your time and service and being willing to leave your families behind to serve your country!

September 11, 2001 will be a day I will never forget and a day that holds a special place in my heart. It is a day that reminds me to be a little kinder, to be more gracious, and to never take my loved ones for granted! I am thankful to know, that no matter what happens, we have a loving Heavenly Father who wants us to be happy and who wants the best for us. Even amid tragedy, there is always hope and thanks to the Atonement of Jesus Christ, healing.

"Great necessities call out our great virtues"

~ Abigail Adams~

God Bless America!

Oktoberfest!

2011-09-11T14:07:00.000-07:00

We had a fun day with the Lemley's yesterday celebrating our German roots!

Every year we try to get up to Snowbird to celebrate Oktoberfest. The whole family hasn't been able to go together for a couple of years, so it was nice to spend the day together.

The whole crew! We are only missing David-pretty good for all 15 of us!

(Tessa is behind everyone, refusing to be in the picture.)

Tessa feeling Daddy's "sprinkles". She calls his stubble "sprinkles" cause it glistens in the sunshine.

Almost everyone got to ride the ski lift and slide

Eric had a hard time convincing Tess that she was not allowed to ride all by herself. Her quest for independence is too much to handle sometimes!

Adam and Katy

Tessa loved the polka music! She just wanted to dance all afternoon! Her uncles were good sports! Uncle Ben is pretty good at the polka.

Uncle Matt dancing with Tess

Adam and Tessa doing the polka!

The best part of Oktoberfest-German food! So yummy!!!

Tessa enjoying her pb&j sandwich and string cheese. My German grandparents would be so disappointed!

Labor Day 2011

2011-09-07T08:55:00.000-07:00

We ended the summer by spending a few hours on Utah Lake in Pa's canoe. It was a beautiful day for canoeing and everyone had lots of fun!

Adam got to take the first ride of the day with Aunt Katy and Uncle Matt.

Katy, Adam, and Matt

Katy and Adam

Tessa was so anxious for her turn! She waited so patiently!

Tessa ready to go!

Aunt Katy and Uncle Matt played "Chicken" with the kids.

Adam and Pa

Tessa is finally in the canoe! She was pretty mad we wouldn't let her paddle.

My brilliant siblings decided to capture a floating log in the middle of the water. (The water was freezing!)

But they got it!

Katy, Adam, Matt, Tess, and Ben

Our sunbathing beauty!

Then they decided to turn the log into their own canoe. Adam was pretty bummed when they didn't go anywhere on it.

Uncle Ben getting sunburned

While Tessa waiting for her turns in the canoe she decided to start digging for treasure with a paddle. We asked her what she was doing and she said, (like a pirate) "I need treasure!!"

Ares decided to get in on the action too.

Thanks everyone for a fun Labor Day!

Davey Baby

2011-09-06T09:06:00.000-07:00

My brother David left the MTC this morning and headed to the great state of Texas where he has been reassigned while he waits for his visa to come through. He and his district never got their visa's for Brazil, so while they wait, some of them get to share the gospel in Texas. David was grateful he wasn't reassigned to Utah or Idaho. He called me from the airport this morning before his flight to Texas. It was good to talk to him and hear him sound so excited! He said it ws weird to be out of the MTC and see people wearing "normal" clothes.

He is anxious to get to Brazil, but realizes that the Lord is in charge and will send David where He needs him. We are proud of him for making the decision to serve the Lord for 2 years and are anxious to hear of his adventures while he is in Texas. We hope he isn't there too long cause Eric is really anxious for him to get to Recife!

We love you Elder Lemley!

V for Vacation!

2011-09-01T08:40:00.001-07:00

Last week Adam had us laughing when he looked out the window and saw birds flying in a V formation. He said, "Look Mommy! The birds are flying in a V! V for vacation!!" Now when he spots birds flying this way, he tries to guess where the birds are heading for their vacation. He makes us laugh!

Adam's Big Day!

2011-08-29T14:23:00.000-07:00

Today came. He loved it. I cried.

He was surprised to find his favorite breakfast waiting for him this morning. Homemade cinnamon rolls and sausage ("the not spicy kind"). He gobbled it up and got ready for school so fast I could hardly keep up with him.

Our boy all grown up and ready for school!

Tessa had to wear her backpack to drop him off this morning. She really wanted to stay at school with him. She even shoved her backpack in a cubby and tried finding her name on a seat like Adam did.

At his new school~Riverview Elementary

He found his cubby and his seat and was ready to learn!

Before we left, Tessa ran back to Adam and gave him a hug and a kiss. Mrs. Hales saw it and almost let Tessa stay because she thought it was so cute.

Thankfully it was cleaning and laundry day, so I had things to keep me busy for 2 hours and 40 minutes. I only cried for an hour after dropping him off. My Mom told me to call her when I felt composed enough to talk. I finally called her at noon-after I had Adam back.

He loved his first day and was SO excited that he got to have recess! He told me on the way home that he can't wait until tomorrow!

If Tomorrow Never Comes.....

2011-08-28T19:59:00.000-07:00

If tomorrow never comes, I would be happy. Tomorrow is the first day of Kindergarten for our Adam. Where does the time go?! I have been dreading this day for 5 years. I can only imagine what a mission is going to do to me. He is so excited though, and that makes it a little bit easier. I swear this picture was taken only a couple of months ago! They grow up so fast!

Mommy and Adam (May 2007)

Last Thursday, Adam went to his new school and met his teacher. He will be in Mrs. Hales class and she will be wonderful! Adam did some testing and she was impressed with how well he did and how much he already knew. She said he was the first student she had who knew how to write his first and last name!

Tonight was our big "Back to School Party". Since it is Adam's big day, he got to choose the menu. We had some of his favorites, taco's and Shirley Temple's.

Tess was just happy to have soda!

He ate 3 tacos! We have a growing boy on our hands!

After dinner we went over some instructions that Mrs. Hales sent home for the students and parents to read. Then we gave the kids their new school year presents. Adam got a new backpack and both kids got new school supplies.

Tessa got a princess backpack for her birthday from Ma and Pa. She is really disappointed that she doesn't get to go to Kindergarten with Adam.

He is ready to go!

Daddy helped him sharpen some new pencils.

I told Tessa to look at the camera. She had to look through one of the holes on her bucket.

I have had this cake on file for years waiting for this momentous occasion! The kids thought it was fun to eat a pencil for dessert!

Adam had an assignment to complete before the first day of school. We had to make a collage of things that make him a super kid! He included building legos, playing baseball, playing dinosaurs (he knows the names of almost every dinosaur...most of which I still can't pronounce), and racing cars!

After a father's blessing, pajama's, brushing teeth, and family scriptures, Mommy read a book called "The Night Before Kindergarten". He loved it!

Eric laughed at me tonight when I refused to pray for family prayers because I knew I would cry. I will have plenty of tears this week I am sure. Doing this while pregnant isn't helping!

Our lives are about to change forever.

Kindergarten, here he comes!!!

Blessings!

2011-08-24T16:39:00.000-07:00

Today I feel so blessed! Blessed to have the technology we have and blessed to have another little spirit joining our family! I was so nervous about this ultra-sound. Luckily, everything looks perfect! Everything with the baby is developing beautifully and things are looking right on track with my due date. My placenta is positioned right above my belly button. Thankfully this means no placenta previa with this little one! I am in great shape for a VBAC (vaginal birth after c-section) and we will go forward with those plans!

I have had such strong impressions for a couple of years now that we had a little girl (a little Gwen to be exact) that needed to come to our family. Part of my frustration with not being able to get pregnant for so long was due to these strong impressions. However, I have learned that patience and faith in the Lord's timing is a must in my life and everything works out just as it should.

I am happy to report that baby Gwen is on her way and looks beautiful! Adam and Tessa are excited to have another sister! We feel so blessed and are so thankful for the 3 beautiful kids that we get to call our own!

Bear Lake Trip

2011-08-22T09:25:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we spent up at Bear Lake with the Nielson clan. We had so much fun spending time with family and going to the lake! We missed the family that couldn't make it though! The kids had so much fun and are already planning our next trip!

During our drive, we stopped in beautiful Logan to see the temple.

We rented a cabin for all of us to stay in. That worked out so well! This was the view of the lake from the cabin.

Tessa loved playing at the cabin! She was a handful most of the weekend, but she kept us laughing.

Tessa and Zeke could have dug in the sand all day, everyday if we had let them!

Eric and Adam in front of the water.

Mamma was smart and brought some air mattresses that the kids used as rafts. They were a hit!

Tessa loves to wrestle! Uncle Jake was kind enough to wrestle with her.

The kids had an awesome dance party and then we played the candy bar game.

Showing off their candy!

Early Saturday morning we had a crazy storm blow through! This is a picture I took of the storm and the sunrise over the lake.

Another fun day at the beach! Mamma, Uncle Matt, Tess, and Roxy.

I buried Adam and he loved it!

The cousins had lots of fun playing together!

I loved the boat rides! They were relaxing for me and they put my kids right to sleep almost every time they got on.

Adam and Zeke were showing each other how big they could open their mouths.

Ellie, Adam, and Eric on the tube.

Tessa, Eric, and Roxy

Tessa is our water baby! She would have lived in that boat if we had let her!

I even got to go with the kids on 2 boat rides. It was fun to ride with them and see how much they loved being on the boat. They loved when Uncle Jake played the Pirate song!

Our last big activity of the weekend was going to get famous Bear Lake raspberry shakes! We finally had to head back to the cabin after each of the kids had had their turn crying over something. Most of them were injuries. However, Tessa's tears were over brownies in her ice cream. What crazy kid doesn't like brownies in her ice cream?! That would be our Tessa for you! Luckily, Mamma saved the day and shared her plain chocolate shake with Tessa. All the other kids had accidents of some sort that ended in tears. It isn't a good family vacation until all the kids are crying, right?

Thanks everyone for such a fun weekend!

Sick Day

2011-08-17T19:52:00.000-07:00

Poor Adam came down with a raging fever late last night. He felt pretty miserable most of the day. His fever finally broke about 21 hours after he started burning up. Even when he is sick he is so polite and easy going. As long as I was close and he had his Teddy Elephant, he didn't complain about anything. We are thankful he is feeling better!

And of course Princess Tess had to get in on the action. She insisted on laying next to Adam on the couch and wanted just as much, if not more more attention than he got. Here she is doing her best to look sick for the camera after she saw me take a picture of Adam. Oh the drama with this girl!!

Our BYU Day

2011-08-16T20:27:00.000-07:00

We have been excited for this day to come!! We spent the day gearing up for football season! We love our Cougars and can't wait for September 3rd!

This morning I took the kids to an open practice for the football team. Adam was so excited to see "Luigi" play!

This evening we went back to campus for the big sports kick-off night! We got to meet the team and enjoy other fun activities. Here is Adam having his helmet signed by McKay Jacobson.

Tessa was excited to see the cheerleaders. They actually stopped her to tell her how cute her hair was.

Adam and Tess with the George Q. Cannon. They fire this after every touchdown!

Adam got 7 signatures on his helmet. He is excited to find their numbers while we watch the games this season. In this top picture Adam is telling the football player that he likes football, but he is actually a baseball player.

We had lots of fun with our Cougars. We even got to see Bronco on our way out!

GO COUGARS!!!

Cascade Springs

2011-08-15T19:22:00.000-07:00

On Friday before I went to work, we took the kids up to Cascade Springs for another summer adventure. These kids LOVE waterfalls! They were excited to see so many waterfalls in so many different sizes. It was a beautiful drive and so nice to go do something up in the mountains.

On our way back down the mountain, we stopped in Heber for lunch. I have always wanted to take Adam to Dairy Keen, so that is where we went. They loved watching the train ride around the room and were even more excited to find train toys to play with.

Happy 7th Anniversary!

2011-08-14T15:25:00.000-07:00

It is hard to believe that 7 years ago today we were getting married! In some ways it feels like it just happened, and in other ways it feels much longer than 7 years.

In 7 short years, we have finished school and prepared for grad school, started careers, moved 8 times, had 2 1/2 kids, bought and sold a house, started a 401K, traveled to foreign countries, lost jobs, served in major church callings, and had many, many other wonderful adventures.

I am grateful for our temple marriage and the blessings that has brought to not only our marriage, but our family. We have been through good times and bad, but have always felt so blessed! We are blessed to have each other and I am grateful that Heavenly Father saved such a wonderful guy just for me!

To celebrate, we ran away for the weekend. My family took the kids (thank you Katy, Mom, and Dad) so we could go have some alone time!

We filled the day by doing thing we don't get to do very often. We started by going to this wonderful place. We always go to the temple and do sealings on our anniversary.

Then we went to the movies and saw the last Harry Potter movie. IMAX 3D! It was awesome!

We had some yummy food in downtown Salt Lake for dinner and then went to an amazing concert by Josh Groban. Love this guy!! It was a wonderful concert and I am so glad we got to go!! We realized we haven't been to a concert since I was pregnant with Adam. So it has been a while!

Today we slept in!!! That was our big treat! We had a delicious breakfast and enjoyed Temple Square for a couple of hours. Now we are home with the kids and I think that is the perfect way to spend the rest of our anniversary. ( I think I missed them more than Eric did.)

The last 7 years have been full and wonderful! I can only imagine what the next 7 years hold for us and our little family.

Happy Anniversary!

Visiting the Golden Spike

2011-08-11T18:08:00.000-07:00

Our summer adventure for the day took us out to the middle of nowhere to visit the historical site of the Golden Spike. We joined my family and traveled up to Promontory Point in very northern Utah.

Our diva princess ready for her day out!

We had a lot of fun seeing the trains! The actual Golden Spike is at the Smithsonian. It was fun to learn about what an event this was back in 1896.

Sitting on the "golden wood".

The kids had fun playing on the train tracks.

See, purse and crown everywhere we go.

Tessa loved talking to the birds.

Tessa and Ma

Tessa liked the red train, because red is her favorite color.

Ares and Tessa

Ma and Pa

Adam had fun watching a train robbery movie with Aunt Katy.

Uncle Ben got a lot out of the movie too.

Showing off their new train penny's.

On our way back home we stopped at ATK to see some rockets. We were being eaten alive by mosquitoes, so we didn't stay very long.

Adam and a rocket booster

Uncle Ben helped Tessa find her echo inside the giant rocket.

Adam and Uncle Matt

It was a fun day and another fun summer adventure!

Zucchini Jungle!

2011-08-11T18:06:00.000-07:00

We have a small garden this year, but it is growing so well! Adam loves hunting for zucchini in our "zucchini jungle". He was so proud of our huge zucchini he got to pick last week!

Tessa's 3rd Birthday!

2011-08-11T17:46:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday Tessa turned 3 years old! We had quite the day with lots of celebrating. She has been talking about her birthday for months and so we have been planning for months! She requested a "Princess Birthday" and we did our best to make that happen.

We started the day off with her favorite breakfast-pink pancakes! Tessa is our very picky eater. She loves pancakes, but only with butter.

While I was cleaning up breakfast, she gave me a hug and said, "Mommy, thank you for singing my birthday!" Too cute!

After breakfast we headed to the doctor's office for her check-up. She has been so excited to see the doctor since Adam got to go in May for his birthday. She was so quiet and was so still! Not a side of Tess we see very often. After I answered a few questions for the doctor, she declared Tessa a strong willed, but healthy little girl!

She was thrilled to get her popsicle stick and a sucker from the doctor. (Her new favorite thing to do is wear her crown and carry her purse everywhere we go.)

After seeing the doctor, we met Daddy for a birthday lunch at Wendy's. Then we rushed home so Mommy could finish her Princess Castle cake. (It only took me 4 hours to make...but it was yummy!)

Last week we were shopping and Tessa saw this dress and started calling it her "party dress". So we had to get it. She has been so excited to wear it!

Princess Tessa all ready for her party!

We all enjoyed a yummy dinner of sloppy joe's, salads, and fruit. Tessa's birthday dinner consisted of a hamburger bun without the sesame seeds. Sadly that's a very normal Tessa dinner.

She got lots of fun presents!

She got all 3 candles!

Like any normal 3 year old, she enjoyed her ice cream and frosting.

Testing out her new roller skates with her new purse, necklace, and mirror.

Playing with her kitty's before bed.

She was wiped out by the time she got into bed. Her kitty's slept right beside her. When I put her to bed she said, "I am so happy everyone came to my Princess Party!"

She had fun playing with all of her new toys the next day. Happy Birthday Princess Tessa!

We love you!!

Father and Son Overnighter

2011-08-10T12:56:00.000-07:00

Two weekends ago, Eric and Adam went camping with the other boys and dad's from church. Adam loves going camping with Eric and woke us up at 7:00am on the Friday they were going to leave, to ask if it was time to pack up the car.

Adam spent hours playing with the other boys at the campsite. Eric said they stayed occupied by throwing rocks into the river. As long as they could find rocks, they were happy campers!

On their way out of town, they stopped at the store to get some treats. Adam loved his rock candy and loved that his mouth turned blue!

Happy Birthday Tessa!

2011-08-10T09:30:00.000-07:00

Yesterday our Princess Tessa turned 3 years old!

We love you so much Tessa Boo!!

2008

2009

2010

2011

Thursday Fun

2011-08-04T18:40:00.000-07:00

Today was another busy day! We had lots to do, but managed to squeak in some fun. We went to our last Story Time of the summer. The kids love going to Story Time at the library and all summer long they have been learning about different countries. Today they learned about China and got to make dragon masks.

It was a big day for the Bug-a-Boo. He got his very first library card! He can't wait to go buy a wallet to keep it in.

In the afternoon the kids and I headed down south for an ice cream treat. We have been wanting to go to the "big red barn" for a while and today seemed like just as good as any.....until the storm rolled in.

We had just ordered our treats and went outside to enjoy them and the scenery when a huge storm blew in. By the time we got back inside, poor Tess had more ice cream in her hair than in her cone.

She managed to find every last drop of ice cream in that cone. Some of it made it to her tummy, but her hair and face got the majority! I love watching kids eat ice cream cones!

Adam was thrilled with his choice of Strawberry Cheesecake ice cream. I think he has a new favorite flavor!

Family Night at the Bean Museum

2011-08-02T12:58:00.000-07:00

Last night for Family Home Evening we went to the Bean Museum to check out their new African Safari exhibit. They had a lot of fun activities for the kids to do and even though it was super crowded, we had a good time!

Tessa being a pill. We have to document those moments!

They had a coloring activity for the kids as well as a scavenger hunt.

When they completed the scavenger hunt they got to pick out a prize.

We watched part of an animal show and at the end the kids got to touch a tortoise shell, a snake, and a crocodile head.

Both Adam and Tessa love watching the Road Runner cartoons. At the museum they have a Road Runner and the kids love looking at him.

We ended our fun evening with Little Miss Tessa throwing a royal fit over not getting the exact piece of brownie she wanted. Gotta love the terrible 2's and 3's. We decided she is a very normal child and we were spoiled with Adam who hardly ever acted like this. Despite the fits, she is still cute and we love her to pieces!

Zoo Day!

2011-07-26T15:26:00.000-07:00

Today the kids and I spend a good chunk of our day at the Hogle Zoo. We had a wonderful time, but missed having Eric with us.

Zoo Day July 26, 2011

My brave children touching a snake!

Their favorite part of the day was watching the baby elephant.

There is a fun dinosaur exhibit at the zoo right now. They have different dinosaurs all over the zoo that move and make dinosaur sounds. One even spits at you. Adam LOVED them!! Tessa wanted nothing to do with any of them!

I finally convinced Tessa that this dinosaur was a statue. That is the only reason she got close to it.

Both kids have grown since our last visit to the zoo!

We spent a long time watching the giraffes. Two of them came right up to us!

Watching a squirrel monkey play with its tail.

We saw a show while we were there and the kids got to touch an opossum and a snake after the show was over.

This was Tessa's immediate reaction every time we got near a dinosaur. Even if it wasn't making noise. We had a fun day and are thankful we are getting to do so many fun things together this summer!