Playing catch up!

Hello, again!  It's been awhile, I know.  So, we'll catch y'all up! : )  Here is what we've been up to the past few months:

Nope, that's not snow out our window.  That was a hail storm we experienced in late February!

We went to the Living Planet Aquarium with Aunt Gabby and had a blast! 

 Joshua enjoyed splashing with the Stingrays!

 The new Penguin Encounter exhibit was lots of fun!

 We discovered that Matthew is almost as tall as an Emperor Penguin!

 Matthew said to me, "Mom, I've always wanted to ride a frog!"  So, he did. : )  It also happens to be the only *good* picture I got with Kennedy in it.

 We got to enjoy Uncle Ethan's futsal game!  Holy, fast paced game, Batman!  Ethan's team won!

It finally got warm enough to melt the snow and let us get out and ride the bikes the kids got for Christmas!

 Joshua got a series of injuries, including a concusion (complete with a trip to the ER) and {the very next night!} fell and cut his eyelid on the corner of a bookshelf.  It probably could've used a stitch, but it wasn't all the way through and I wasn't going back the the hospital!  He had some swelling and bruising and green-bugery eyes for a few days, but has made a full recovery.

Insert the pictures of Joshua and his 2nd birthday party here.  I went to take pictures, but the batteries in the camera were dead.  So, they're not here.  But our little guy did turn 2 on April 7!  We cannot believe it has been 2 whole years since our boy made his harrowing debut!  We are grateful everyday that he is so healthy and happy!  You'd never know that we almost lost him!  He is such a joy to have in our home!  He is so loved by (and so loves!) his brother and sister!  He loves to be the center of attention and has become quite a funny boy!  {He even knows a joke!}  We literally just watch him and laugh!  He's so stinkin' cute!  We celebrated his birthday by going to the Mayan with the kids!  They had a blast--didn't eat very much, but had fun watching the cliff divers!  A few days later we had a family party the Shop.  It was so fun to have everybody there!

Kennedy went on her first field trip with her Pre-K class to Wheeler Farm!  I was fortunate to find a sitter (thanks, Mom!) so I could go with her and her class!  They had a great time!  Again, no pictures.  I didn't want to be carrying around a camera.

Finally, last weekend, Jenny and I took the kiddos to the annual easter egg hunt at Grandpa Wayne's house!  The kids, of course, had a great time and made out like bandits!  By the way, Joshua and Kayson were with us, but didn't find it necessary to stand still long enough to get a picture with the Easter Bunny, whom they were a bit leery of in the first place.

 It has been a fun couple of months!  Hopefully, we will have warm weather to play in (and not too much flooding!) soon!  Thanks for catching up wtih us! : )

The Tooth Fairy's comin' to our house!

On Tuesday, Kennedy lost her first tooth!  Doesn't she just look so darn cute?!  (Pardon the chocolate smudges all over her face!)  She was so excited!  Literally, beside herself!  She just ran around all day saying, "This is the best day ever!" and, "This is my special day!"  It was adorable!  She had to call her dad and grandmas first thing to tell them and ran into school and straight to her teacher to show off!  She carefully put her tooth under her pillow and couldn't get to sleep for over an hour.  She woke up at 3:30 IN THE MORNING!!! to see if the Tooth Fairy had come!  (I thought it was like 6, but, no, it was insanely earlier than that!)  And then she threw a fit 'cause she didn't want to go back to sleep!  Oh, well.  How many times do you lose your first tooth?  : )

Beautiful Message

Found this message on a friend's blog.  It touched me deeply, so I'm saving it so I can watch it again.  Hope you find something in it, too.

A little black and white love...

Okay, it's no surprise that I love glass things and anything black and white.  It just makes me so. very. happy!  I've gotten a few new things that I'm pretty giddy about (like I walk in the room and just smile 'cause I love it so much!) so I'm sharing the happiness and beauty!  (Just indulge me...) 

The first is a footed bowl I found on clearance at Gardner Village about a year ago ($12, I think?) The next is an apron I received from my mother-in-law for Christmas this year (all the sister-in-laws got one, too! Fun, huh?) The third is a cassarole dish that I also found on clearance ($8!) and got with a gift certificate I also received for Christmas, and the last (be still my heart!) I found on the same shopping trip. It was $10 and it's huge! Aren't they pretty? I'm pretty much in love. Now you can be, too! : )

We wish you a MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

     We had an absolutely fabulous Christmas and hope each of you did too!
     It’s been another great year for us! We’ve all been healthy (that’s right, no major medical for us this year!) and have been so incredibly blessed! Kennedy began pre-K at the elementary school, where she is thriving! She has made lots of friends and is doing incredibly well! Matthew is attending a local preschool and is also doing exceptionally well! He is making his own friends and being a bit more outgoing! Joshua, lovingly referred to as “the terror” around these parts, is the cutest, busiest guy! This year, he leaned how to walk (run, really) and climb and is slowly learning to talk! In May, Kris graduated (finally!) from the University of Utah with his Master of Social Work degree and passed his boards in June—a huge accomplishment! Rachael has made the transition to a “school mom” and is amazed at the time required to just take kids to and from school! Let alone maintain nap and lunch schedules between the two different schools! But she wouldn’t have it any other way!
     We’ve seen an outpouring of love and support this year, for which we are incredibly grateful! The Lord is truly mindful of us. How blessed we are to live at such a time and be surrounded by such wonderful people!! May the Spirit of the Lord whose birth we celebrate be with you this Christmas season and always!