Elli Turns Ten!

Oh Boy!  Elli is in the double digits now!  I remember thinking I was so old when that happened to me.  We made this cake and went to Friendly's.  She got colored duct tape, an Adele CD (that she plays constantly) and some Adidas slip ons.  With birthday money, she picked out roller blades and a book.  Not bad!  Happy Birthday Elli!

Birthday Lift

 For Elli's birthday, she wanted Riley to take her to school on the motorcycle.  I think Riley was more excited than she was.  

 Hold on tight!

 And away we go!!

Spring on the Farm

 Our friends, the Bauchers, have a farm.  Riley loves to go out any chance he can to help with whatever they need help with.  This last week, Patty invited us to come over and see the little lambs that were born just a week or so ago.  This white ewe on the top is named Amy.  She is very friendly and was the only sheep that hadn't delivered yet.  They also have a dog named Elli, but nothing named Adam.

 Patty explained the cycles of the sheep and how many times they can have babies and all that stuff.   It was a lot for Amy to take in.

 Although it was a chilly night, the barn was nice and toasty and the lambs were getting their warm glass of milk before bedtime.

A couple of them even played around.  I doubt the moms appreciated us getting the kids all wound up.

New Donkey

 The Bauchers always seem to have something new every time we visit.  This time it was a donkey.  Last time it was a Mastiff puppy.  The puppy is very big already, just after a few months!

 We learned that a donkey is a great protector and Patty wants it to protect her sheep.  First it has to be introduced to the man sheep and then it will be ready to meet the lady sheep.  Very interesting!  Adam was worried the donkey was going to get mad at my camera.

I had avoided using my flash so I would not scare the animals, which explains the blurry photos.  But, I decided to try it for this picture and it did scare the donkey.  It tried to get back and started taking Elli with it.  I wish I could remember the donkey's name.  I know it's not Daisy.  Anyways, we love the Baucher's farm and are so happy we have the chance to see what it is like.  Maybe someday we'll have a small one of our own....

One Hundred Things About Me

Alright, let's do this. I've been tagged. Hopefully it won't turn into confession.

1. I was born in Idaho.

2. I have 3 kids.

3. My 11th wedding anniversary is this year.

4. I love any kind of pudding.

5. I have a bad habit of popping my knuckles, toes, neck, back, and knees.

6. My favorite thing to do is play volleyball.

7. I am more afraid of moths than spiders.

8. I like to run.

9. I ran a half marathon. ( 2 times now)

10. When I was little, I pulled part of the soul of my shoe off and stuck it up my nose and have never found it.

11. I have the cutest kids.

12. I don't like most other people's kids.

13. I can play the piano.

14. I am shy.

15. I think Sponge Bob is hilarious.

16. I love math.

17. I am an early bird.

18. My favorite person is my Grandma Butler. I think about her everyday.

19. I am left handed.

20. My husband is left handed too, but all our kids are right handed.

21. I got to marry my high school sweetheart.

22. I've never kissed anyone but him. (romantically)

23. I love oldies music. Not so much 70's, but 50's and 60's.

24. I wish I could have lived in the 50's.

25. I can juggle.

26. I gave birth naturally.

27. I love to look at antique shops.

28. I'm not crafty, I copy.

29. I'm very conservative.

30. I enjoy being home with my kids.

31. I'm scared to go back to school.

32. I think TV is a waste of time.

33. I don't like to read.

34. I'm in a book club.

35. I've worn contacts since the 5th grade.

36. I occasionally get migraine headaches.

37. Water is my favorite drink.

38. I make my kids listen to show tunes and they love West Side Story.

39. I love to sing really loud when I'm by myself in the car.

40. I played the violin in the 6th grade. I liked it until I found out we had to go to the concerts.

41. I never thought I would live on the east coast.

42. I miss my family back home.

43. I had a happy childhood.

44. I can't wear yellow.

45. I cry easily.

46. I have very easy pregnancies.

47. I have lots of gray hair!

48. My dream car is an old Mercedes or BMW.

49. I can't wait until Riley and I can travel.

50. I have blue eyes.

51. I tan easily.

52. I'm snoopy.

53. I don't like secrets.

54. I'm sentimental and hate to throw things away.

55. I feel much better after I throw things away.

56. I love to recycle.

57. I don't know what I would go back to school for.

58. I like all my in-laws.

59. I think newly weds should move away.

60. I hate the way lotion makes my hands feel.

61. I rarely wear lotion.

62. My legs constantly need lotion.

63. I floss my teeth EVERY night.

64. I hate being cold!

65. I am a jealous person.

66. I like to play sports.

67. I am competitive.

68. I have a dog and want to get rid of her.

69. I had hair down to my waist in highschool.

70. I broke my arm in 4th grade.

71. Popcorn is my favorite snack.

72. I shouldn't eat ice cream or drink milk.

73. I get very grumpy when I'm cold.

74. I've been to Mexico twice.

75. I went to New York this year.

76. I love Mexican food.

77. I love Asian food, too.

78. I tried tofu and liked it.

79. I never weigh myself. (now I do...can't stop)

80. I have a better credit score than my husband and it drives him crazy!

81. I cut my hair short and I like it.

82. I find sideburn attractive on a man.

83. I am a P90X graduate times 3.

84. I like my nails short.

85. I like antiques.

86. My favorite store is Anthropologie.

87. I love babies.

88. Blush is my favorite makeup.

89. I have to shower everyday to feel good.

90. I like to wear perfume.

91. The kitchen is my favorite room.

92. I don't like to talk on the phone.

93. I teach Seminary.

94. I don't like Las Vegas.

95. I love Pennsylvania.

96. I never snore.

97. I am going to graduate in May! (just with an Associates)

98. I was recently on the news.

99. I try to cut my son's hair and think every time that it will look good.

100. I love my life!

This has taken me over 4 years to finish. Hopefully I haven't repeated anything or contradicted myself. Thanks for reading.

Amy's Baptism

There are a lot of things that you do for the last time as your youngest child grows up. I bought our last package of diapers when Amy was finally potty trained, went to our last playgroup when Amy started kindergarden, and I recently planned our last baptism.

The program was simple. Adam said a prayer, Elli gave a short talk and played the piano, and Kathy gave a talk. We had lots of friends come to support Amy, which was so nice of them to get all dressed up on a Saturday and travel to the church an extra time that week! It meant a lot to us.

Kathy flew out all the way from Montana to be here, like she had with Adam and Elli. We got to spend 2 whole days with her until she had to go back to her busy schedule.

Here's Riley with Amy after everything was over. It was a such nice day. We are very proud of Amy for choosing to be baptized!

Bear Creek Hike

After the baptism, we headed out to enjoy the beautiful day. We are lucky to have a fun trail so close to our house. Riley comes up here often to run with Sandy or steal some boulders for our fire pit.

Sandy is getting better and better at listening and coming when we call, so she gets more time off the leash to run free. But, we have to let her know we have treats so she will be sure to obey.

I love catching Adam when he doesn't know I'm taking a picture. He is a cute boy when he is not ducking.

The girls enjoying the view from the top.

President's Day Off

Today was designated as a big clean up day. There were bathrooms to clean, garbages to be taken out, stairs to vacuum, rooms to organize, piles of laundry to be folded and put away, etc. The kids worked pretty hard all morning and got their jobs done. Their reward request was a trip to the park. It was very sunny out, so I said "Yes". Too bad it was not as warm as it looked. We played a little bit and got some cute pictures. Adam stayed home, but vowed he would take Sandy for a walk instead. Riley washed my car for me and restacked some wood in the backyard. Not too bad!

Happy February Hearts Day!

Honestly, this is probably the last entry for February. Just not a lot going on. The girls exchanged Valentines at school and Adam did not. Too bad for middle schoolers!

Here is Amy with her class bag full of Valentines, wearing everything hearts. Those tiny dots on her shirt are in fact hearts. Her belt has a heart buckle and the holes are hearts. And her socks had hearts all over them.

Elli went for the pink shirt and had already dumped and sorted her treats.

Adam refused to look or make a heart with his hands or crack a smile. He claims the heart sign is Justin Bieber's and would have no part! He was also trying to sneak a sucker.

Amy Turns 8!

For Amy's 8th birthday, she wanted to have a shark cake, go to Texas Roadhouse for dinner, and have her friend, Kaitlyn, spend the night. I think we can handle that!

After Texas Roadhouse, the girls set up their beds and were ready for cake. Too bad the shark turned out purple.

Amy had been planning the big day for weeks! Here is the schedule she came up with. I think they stuck to it exactly as written.

Happy Birthday!

Only Christmas Photos

I did a horrible job at taking pictures this Christmas. This is all I came up with. Here is Elli in our friends' manger scene. We had never had the kids in a manger scene before. I'd heard of people doing them, but I thought it was old fashioned or something you did at church. I guess people do them with their own kids! So I brought a towel to the Christmas Eve dinner/party we were invited to and Elli got to be Mary. I really liked it! It was so sweet to see the kids be the parts and to watch their excitement. Must do again. Thanks Stacia, or Codi for sharing that tradition with us!

There is the baby! Only the most important person!

And this is the only picture I took on Christmas Day. Here are our fuzzy slipper sock feet after a fun morning of presents! Thanks Grandma for keeping our tootsies warm! They all fit great!

Christmas Eve Hike

Riley had the idea to go for a hike on Saturday morning and sent out an invite to all the locals. We were happy to have two families join us, the Willardsons and the Lauberts. I am so glad they decided to join us. Otherwise I probably would have complained most of the way. It was a bit chilly.

We started off at about 9:00. Here's Nash, the dinosaur/dragon king. He walked a lot and got rides a lot. Makes me remember trying to do things when our kids were little. It's a little easier now.

Walking, walking. Riley said the trail was 4 miles long and that we would be done by 11:00. I had a lot of baking to do!

Amy taking a break.

Alice in the pack.

As we climbed higher and higher, the ground suddenly changed to frosty frozen. There was no snow, but frost all around everything.

Brr!

Then we reached the top and found snow! I think it was made by the ski resort, but fun to play in for a while. Sandy was let off the leash and loved running all over.

Elli couldn't resist a cartwheel. I stayed as much out of the snow as I could. I know from cold Idaho winters that once you get wet, you never get warm! No cartwheels for me!

Riley so happy that we all came out on this crazy hike.

Sandy likes to run right passed people as fast as she can and here she comes!

"Mom, no pictures of me! Seriously!"

All the kids except for Adam and Alice. Let's see if I get this right... Annika, Elli, Ariel, Amy, Dallin, Nash, and Adriana.

And the rest of the group minus Nikoli and Alice, and Christina.

Dallin was surfing down the ramp.

Darin almost got Riley to sit next to him on the chair lift.

Christina couldn't resist a ride with her sweetheart.

So cute!

"Now how do I get off this crazy thing?!"

Coming down was much faster and easier. The Lauberts split and went a way we thought was longer, but they beat us down! We stayed on the trails thinking we were going so fast, while they shot right down the ski lanes. They were enjoying a snack in the car when we walked up. It was warming up a little by then and it turned out to be a great way to start the day. Thanks for joining us Willardsons and Lauberts!