Christmas Day 2011

Christmas morning the boys slept in till around 8 o'clock. Emeline had been up a lot of the night so I was grateful but David was dying! He was so excited to have the kids get up and we just sat in bed waiting for them to walk past the door. We decided to let them open up their presents from Santa before church and they were so excited. Our friends gave us their GeoTrax set and we had it set up under the tree when they came down. Both boys received robots from Santa and then we got dressed and went to church. I loved that David didn't have any morning meetings and was home to help me get everyone ready. It was so nice to drive together and the Christmas program was beautiful. David's barbershop group sang "Do You Hear What I Hear?" and the primary sang "Far Far Away on Judea's Plain". I loved going to church on Christmas day and it was nice to celebrate with our ward family.

When we got home we opened the rest of the presents. We were so blessed to receive many packages from our family and friends. Thank you so much for helping to make our day so much nicer. We appreciated all of the gifts and had so much fun opening all of the boxes.
Beautiful slippers that my mom made for Emmy and Me. I screamed when I opened the box, I was so excited!

Emmy and her new friend.
We gave both of the boys Morphibians this year. They are awesome! They are remote control cars that drive on land and in the water and they were so excited to test them out.
Emmy and Me dressed up for church. I was so excited to have a girl to find a dress for this year.
Jacob's favorite present this year was the Batboat. Caleb's favorite present was his robot, Spykee Vox. Emeline liked all of her presents equally.
We were so blessed this year with the birth of Emeline Rose and watching our wonderful boys grow even bigger. We are so grateful for our wonderful, supportive family and friends and for the birth and Atonement of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve night was very mellow and calm and I loved it! We started a new tradition this year from an idea I got from a friend. We decided that it would be fun to be shepherds for the night and have a "shepherd's picnic" on the floor. We also thought it would be fun to have our own tent, so we hung sheets from the ceiling and listened to the Christmas story in our cozy space. I think it was really good for the kids to imagine what the night of Christ's birth was like and they both asked a lot of questions. We were able to teach them the story and we could really feel the spirit as we talked about everything. I can see us continuing this every year. Now to think up some new Shepherd foods. Any suggestions?

City Museum

We had a great Christmas Eve playing downtown at the City Museum. What an interesting place! We decided to repeat last year's tradition and go with our church friends for a discounted price. It was so nice to be surrounded by our ward family and no matter where we went in the museum, we were surrounded by friends. We had a lot of the museum to ourselves for a while because most people don't want to get up that early on Christmas Eve.

It was amazing the difference in the way Caleb and Jacob played this year. Caleb was much more confident in his climbing and sliding and Jacob actually explored a bit. Maybe next year we can get him to go down a slide! Emmy just enjoyed looking around at everything and visiting with all her friends. This year was different for me too because I got to explore a bit. Last year I was pregnant and couldn't fit anywhere. I also had fun taking even more pictures. Everywhere I turned there was something interesting.



David sometimes thinks he is a monkey. He tried this last year too and informed me that this year he is "getting old".
This sign cracked me up. I think I need it for my kitchen.
I played around with my shutter speed a bit and the white blur is David sliding down the side of the ramp. The boys had so much fun running and running and running and....you get the idea.
I swear I was the one chasing him!

I think the best part about this place was the floor. Everything at the museum is made from recycled materials.




My version of a Picasso.





See you guys again next year!

6 Months

Emeline is half a year old and I am wondering where the time has gone. I can't believe she has grown so big already. I am sad when I fold up blankets that are now too small for her, but so excited when I open up a new box of hand me downs in the next size up. She brings so much joy to our family and we cannot imagine things without her.

Here are the stats:
Weight: 13lbs 9oz 10%
Height: 26 1/4in 60%
Head size: 42 1/4 cm 50%

Emmy is a pro at baby food now. Her favorites are sweet potatoes and pears. She lets me know when she is still hungry and likes to hold the spoon when she is done. She still loves to play with her brothers and they are so sweet to her. Sitting up is becoming easier now and she can now sit for a few seconds on her own. Emmy has discovered books and loves to point to all the babies' eyes.
Emeline has such a silly and sweet personality. She gives the best smiles when she wakes up in the morning or after her naps and I love how she can barely contain herself when she sees me. She loves her daddy too and gets so excited when he gets home from work.

I love this picture! Emmy is teething like crazy and makes this face while smacking her gums. It's so sad but so cute.

Temple Lights

Last night we went up to the St. Louis temple and took some pictures. We were going to do some family shots too but it was freezing and Jake fell asleep on the way there. Caleb and I had a great time though, taking photos while David hung out in the warm van with Jake and Emmy. I think it was worth the frozen hands and wet toes! Thanks David, for indulging me and for creating such a beautiful light display. The lights turned out beautiful, all 2 and 3/4 Miles of them!

I love how all the lights lead up to the temple. "There's a double meaning in that."
David's favorite one.
David's favorite angle of the temple.

My favorite one.
I love how the flag is blurred in this one.

BatDash and other sentiments

My sister sent Jacob this BatDash (Bat for Batman and Dash from Incredibles) car and he was absolutely thrilled! He has been keeping it safe Michelle, and driving it all over the house. He loves that it is his favorite color too. He rediscovered his goggles the other day and sometimes I just giggle he is so cute. He still refuses to sing in primary and eats his cereal without milk, but he has the best imagination. Watch out world, a new super hero is in the making!

Tender, Mother!

Oh how these two tug at my heartstrings! They are both growing up so fast it scares me. I just couldn't resist taking some pictures of their playtime.

I just love the toes at this age...and the armpits. Oh, and the belly... and.....well, everything!