Emily Choir Concert

Emily had her Christmas Choir Concert and did a wonderful job. This is a picture of her with her friend Aubrey.

This is how the season starts.

Seasong Greetings from James.

Raking Leaves with Dad

Sean came home early and spent the afternoon raking leaves. The boys helped. Can you believe this is the middle of December?

Thanksgiving

This year for Thanksgiving we went to Colorado. I flew out Monday morning with James and Chase, Sean drove out Wednesday with the girls. The first day I took a 3 hour nap. I don't know if it was the Dramamine, the cold I was getting or the stress of flying with two boys that really didn't want to be on a plane and who weren't afraid to let everyone know in very loud voices (see blog below). The rest of the time involved baking, bowling, movies, shopping, early Christmas gifts, lots of talking, and a blizzard to drive through. Overall, it was a great visit.

Flying with the Boys

This is James and Chase at the airport. I don't know if you notice how much stuff I was actually carrying, but it was an armful, plus a baby. This is the before picture; I didn't take an after picture, but this is what it would have looked like.

This is a picture of a bleeding ulcer.

I was so glad when I got to the Denver airport and saw my dad. He gave me a hug and then took the booster seat that James was carrying to help out. I'm sure James was grateful to have the burden lifted. I just followed behind with the large carseat, the backpack, the purse, the jackets, and oh yeah, the baby.

New Background

I had a few complaints about the background, mainly Sean, so here is the new winter scene. It may be 50 degrees outside but we are dreaming of snow.

Halloween

The best part of Halloween was listening to Chase laugh and laugh when seeing James' face after the makeup was put on. He thought it was hilarious.

New Heights

In preparation for Disneyland, we measured the kids to see what rides they could go on. I last measured their heights in June. Here are the results.

Anna coming in at 49", up 1/2 " (57th percentile) - shortest height gain

James coming in at 42 1/4", up 3/4" (64th percentile)

Emily coming in at 57 1/2", up 1" (95th percentile)

The winner is Chase!

31 3/4", up 1 1/2" (48th percentile)

Head: 20" circumference (greater than 97th percentile)

In the last 3 months my children have grown a total of 3 and 3/4"

September

Busted.

A possible career choice.

Hasidic Judaism is hot right now!

Watching the garbage trucks.

James Soccer

James had his first soccer game last night and was so excited. Those little boys are pretty cute. There was a lot of movement - jumping and running, but not much actual contact with the ball. James kicked it a couple of times at the end, but it was more of a running into the ball than kicking it, but he was really excited anyway. It was a great game.

Butterfield Canyon

Sunday evening we took a drive up Butterfield Canyon to see if the leaves had started to change colors. It was beautiful. Oranges and reds are starting to appear, but in a couple of weeks it should be even better.

Soccer Begins

Most of Emily's team has been playing together for almost 4 years now. They have fun and do well. Emily is great at defense and knows how to play smart so she doesn't have to run after every ball. The team played well, but lost 3 to 1.

Anna and a group of girls from her team have been together for 2 years. Sean coached for the those two years and is glad to just be able to sit and watch a game. This is the first year they are in an all girls league and they did really well. The score was 8 to 1, Anna scored 3 of those goals. She had so much fun.

Cecret (Secret) Lake

Took sandwiches to Cecret Lake up Little Cottonwood Canyon yesterday. The kids had fun feeding Cheetos to a squirrel and finding salamanders in the lake. Back at the trailhead, two moose (mooses? meese?) crossed the trail about 20 yards away.

Picaso

James's first drawing at preshcool, a family portrait, we couldn't be more proud; our little Picaso.

Back to School

First day of Pre-Kindergarten. As I dropped him off I could hear a few kids crying and wailing. James nearly forgot to give me a hug as he ran in the door. He is a big boy and potty trained (for at least 12 hours, I guess in 4 year old terms that counts).
















This was an exciting day. Not only was it the first day of 2nd grade, but also the first full day with no front teeth. Speech therapy, here we come!

Can you believe she is already in 4th grade? In the line at school she realized she already knew everyone in her class. She was quite excited to have all her friends in class with her.

Okay, nothing new here, just a little poke the tethered dog with a stick, isn't he cute?