Winter Break

Snow, snow, and more snow, and a blizzard.

Football with half-time entertainment

Hives consisting of lots of benadryl and very swollen ears.

Legos

Iowa's Childrens Museum

Learning to Ice Skate. I got to share something I learned as a kid (thanks Dad for all the shoveling you used to do on the pond so we could skate).

A Season of Joy

Christmas Eve

Easton's first Christmas - it's all about the paper!

The timing was perfect on this picture.

Christmas Eve we spent together doing our family traditions (a good mix of Mark and I's upbringings). It's always a very special time together talking of Christ and the gift of His example and love that He shares with us.

Christmas day was so much fun! I love being the parent and seeing it all through my kids eyes. As a kid I thought the fun was getting the presents, as a parent I realize the true fun is in watching my kids. We spent the day in our PJs playing and enjoying each other.

Snowed In

BLIZZARD!!!! So the thing you need to realize about these pictures is that yesterday morning none of it was there. See the 7 foot snow drift, when we had dinner last night, it was NOT there. We get this snow drift every year, but it typically takes months to build up - it took less than 24 hours this year. When I say snowed in, I mean literally...we cannot get out of our driveway. Until the city comes which may not be for another day or two we will be staying in.

Trick-or-Treat

Obi-won, Harry Potter, and a Clone Trooper geared up for a cold and windy night of Trick-or-treating.


Carving pumpkins a few nights before Trick-or-Treating.

8 months

Easton is 8 months now. He has these eyes that are so bright. When he smiles his whole face lights up. He loves his brothers. When ever a brother walks in the room he immediately gets excited. Easton cut his first tooth about a week ago and he is always tucking his lip so that he can feel that little tooth. I love going in to get him in the morinings when he wakes up. He just smiles and his whole body starts moving in excitement. He has so much to say, it is the perfect start to the day.

This picture says a mouthful!

Love those big eyes.

Brotherly love. Moments like these are what it's all about.

A is for Apple, P is for Pumpkin

On Saturday we made our way up to our favorite farm for apples and pumpkins. We ran up and down the rows in the apple orchard to find the perfect apples and then walked over to a huge pumpkin patch. It is always fun to see what each boy finds. Drew was about finding the perfect pumpkin to hold in his arms, Dallin searched according to the right color, and Mason was all about the bigger the better. I love fall!

Summer Endings

We are made vastly aware of the end of summer by the sound of the combine going by our backyard. And I do mean right by our yard! I got this picture right before the dust cloud came rolling over our home. Drew and Dallin and our next door neighbors enjoyed watching and waving to our farmer neighbor. It is a sight to watch the crops (this year it was soybean) come full circle. From the seeds going into the ground to the harvest, we get to see it all.


Our neighbor working well into the night. The combine and the sunset were spectacular.


Here are a few pics taken in the last month that tell our story. This picture of Easton says it all, "seriously guys, is this really neccesary?"

Drew's first day of preschool (Sept.15th). Drew was so excited, especially since Mason and Dallin had been in school for 3 weeks.

Big D playing flag football. He really enjoys it!

For Homecoming weekend in Urbandale the high school cross country team helps to sponsor a mile run for all the school districts elementary aged kids. Mason ran a good race. I'm hoping that in the next couple of years I'll gain a running partner for my Saturday mornings.

This is a funny little thing Easton did with the paci. He did it for several weeks, but in the last week or two he has stopped. It just made us all giggle.