Brooklyn Turns One!

Today, my baby turned one year old. I can't believe that first year has already gone by. It's amazing what they learn & how much they grow in that time. She has been so much fun in our family. She makes everyone so happy with her cute smile, blowing kisses, giving hugs or waving her arms all over when someone comes home. It was fun to watch her try to figure out what to do with her presents. She really had no idea what to do & had very little interest until we got it open to where she could see something was inside. She got so excited over such little things (great lesson for me to remember). One of her presents was a stuffed monkey that laughed when you touched its foot. She held onto that monkey & hugged it like it was her best friend she hadn't seen forever. She also got a toy train with animals that played songs & rolled along the floor. She had so much fun watching it move away from her & then she would catch up to it. She also liked dancing to the music. She just sits on the floor & twists her body back & forth to the beat. Brooklyn, we all just adore & love you so much. You bring so much happiness into our home. Happy Birthday Princess!!

Trans-Siberian Orchestra--Really, a rock concert?

A month or so ago, Jake & I bought tickets to go to the Trans-Siberian Orchestra. We didn't know a whole lot about them, but thought they were probably similar to Mannheim Steamroller. We were very excited to go. When we got there & they were just about to start, the leader was introduced. We were told he used to be a part of the Mega Death band. Jake just started to laugh & I just thought "What a change for him to go from that band to this one". Next thing I hear is "Are you ready for a rock concert?". I started to realize that it was a rock concert. I wasn't quite sure what the rest of the night would be like, but little to my surprise, I really liked it. As one person explained, it was like Mannheim Steamroller on acid. The music seemed somewhat similar just rocked out. Anyway, the show was very loud, the lights were very bright at times & we got to see these musicians play their electric guitars like a rock band does. I actually thought it was kind of funny at times watching them play their guitars while standing with their legs stretched apart, their guitar hanging as low as it could go, their hair long & straight & they'd swing it all around & then at times just lean their head back like they were so relaxed. After taking this all in I started to feel the rocker in me wanting to come out. It was really a great concert. They did a great job with their christmas message to be kind to your neighbor, they had an amazing light/laser show with their music and the concert lasted 2 1/2 hours (no intermission). I'm not sure I recommend my parents go to the concert, but I can see most of the rest of my family going. Jake & I even thought Melissa & Brittany would find it very entertaining. We definitely had a new experience, but as usual, we find that if we give something a try we may just end up liking it.

Festival of Trees

After the parade, we headed over to the Centre on the Grove & walked through the Festival of Trees. It's indoors, thank goodness, & many businesses & other people decorated trees & displayed them. Some were up for auction while others went back to their owners after the festival. There were so many different themes--I was impressed at how creative people can be. I told the girls to look at all of them & them pick their favorite one. There were over 100 to choose from. I love seeing all the trees. It really starts putting me in the Christmas mood. I get all excited to go home & decorate my tree, but I know it won't look anything like the ones I saw today.














Allie's favorite tree had all the rubber ducks
Nicole liked the Barbie tree
Brittany liked the blue tree with the birds




















Melissa just liked this tree
The candy tree was a favorite for both Jake & I--I was surprised it wasn't my kids favorite

Boise Christmas Parade

We took the girls downtown for the Christmas Parade. We got them all bundled up cause it was cold!! We found a spot right on the curb & enjoyed the good ol' hometown parade. It's always fun to see the kids get excited about different things. Some of the favorites were the big balloons, the old-fashioned cars, the royal courts (they loved the tiaras sparkling in the sunshine), the conehead paramedics and, of course, Santa Claus. Our toes got cold, but fortunately the rest of us stayed pretty warm.

Nicole's Thanksgiving Feast

Nicole had her Thanksgiving Feast in her Kindergarten class today. She has been so excited about it. It's fun to see what little things can make someone so happy. The families were invited & so I took Allie & Brooklyn with me. All the kids had either a pilgrim or indian costume on--each made by themself. The Kindergartners each took a turn & showed a picture they had made about what they are thankful for. Then the parents took a turn--of course we all said we were thankful for our child in that class. =) Next we had a little feast consisting of lunchmeat turkey, rolls, apple slices, goldfish crackers, cheese, popcorn & a piece of pumpkin cake. Finally, the kids played letter BINGO. It was a fun little party & I'm glad Nicole has so much fun in her class.

Melissa's first violin recital

Melissa started taking violin last year when she was at Joplin Elementary. They had an orchestra & she wanted to learn to play the violin. She picked up on it really fast & has enjoyed playing since. She is now at a new elementary & they don't have an orchestra program. We found her a violin teacher for private lessons & it's gone really well. Mrs. Da'Nell Cannon is her teacher & she is great!! She is very talented herself & is always praising Melissa on how well she is doing.
Friday night was Melissa's first recital & she was so nervous. It was a small group, but it's still hard to play in front of any kind of audience. She had 2 songs to play & did an amazing job. She put so much emotion & feeling into her music. I was very proud of her & so was her teacher. Brittany decided she wanted to learn to play the violin, too, after listening to all the students. I love music & love that my children have an interest in it, too.

Melissa playing one of her songs during her recital...


Mrs. Cannon & Melissa after the recital...

I love my children's quotes

My children are so cute! They can come up with some great comments that I just need to jot down more often. Here's few things that have been said recently...

1--Jake & Allie were driving home one day. Jake asked Allie how she could get clean when they get home. Her response was to get baptized.

2--Brittany chose to share her testimony a couple of weeks ago. It was sweet & short, but had a lot of meaning. Here is what she said. "I love my family. I love the gospel. I know we are here on earth to be tested." There were several others who had already shared their testimonies in church, but I got more out of what Brittany said than most of the others. I love the spirit that children can bring into a room.

I've been tagged!

So, thanks to my friend, Autumn (www.joelandautumn.blogspot.com)--I've been tagged & get to think about some odd facts about myself to share with anyone who chooses to read this blog. Here we go...

1--I love to travel!! After living in Europe, I have loved going to other countries & seeing beautiful places, trying new things & learning about different cultures. It has stirred something inside of me to want to continue to travel anywhere & see more things.
2--I LOVE popcorn! I eat it almost every night. I am not a fan of microwave popcorn--it has to be airpopped. And of course salted & buttered. I also have a glass of cold milk to go with it. Lately, when I'm done eating my popcorn I need some chocolate. I wonder if I'll ever put the two together?
3--I get panicky when my house is not clean. I feel myself stress, the walls closing in on me & I try to plan out in my mind how to get all the jobs done.
4--I'm addicted to TV. After my kids go to bed, I sit on the couch & start watching the shows I've DVR'd. I've got my bowl of popcorn as my companion with me. My favorite show is "Without a Trace".
5--I love my family!! If I had a day to do anything, I would want to plan something with my husband & kids. I love our family outings. Even though evening time can be the most stressful part of the day, it's the best part of the day when we are all home together & have no where to go for the rest of the night.
6--I'm not that great at it, but I like to decorate my house. I like learning about different things to do & try to figure out what my style is & incorporate it into our home. I am always thinking of what room I can work on next. Unfortunately, I don't have unlimited funds to do whatever I want!
7--I like my day planned out so I know what to expect & have a schedule for the day. Especially when I have a lot going on for the week. If it's not planned out then I worry about how I'll get it all done. Being spontaneous is not a strength for me.

Here are the lucky ones I am going to tag...

RULES:

1. List the link to your tagger (like I did with Autumn), and also post the following rules.

2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog - some random, some weird, etc.

3. Tag 7 people at the end of your blog also leaving the links to their blogs.

4. Let them know they are "Tagged" by leaving a comment on their blog.

Sorry if you've already been tagged...I just didn't remember.

Lisa Dana www.dailyjotandtittle.blogspot.com
Julie Danielson www.danielsonschatter.blogspot.com
Jen McDonough www.jenanddavemcd.blogspot.com
Megan Heathen www.jaymegan.blogspot.com
Lacey Leishman www.rickandlacey.blogspot.com
April Clark www.tylerclarkfamily.blogspot.com

Brooklyn turning into a toddler!

I love my Brooklyn! She is such a delight with the cutest, funnest personality. We all just adore her. She is growing up so fast, though. Tonight as we were reading scriptures, she is standing there trying to say something to all of us to get our attention & next thing we know she takes 3 steps! We couldn't believe it! She has been cruising around the furniture, but hasn't tried to take any steps on her own. We all just cheered & clapped. She thought it was so funny that she started yelling with us & clapped her hands. She was so excited! We got her to stand up some more & tried coaxing her into taking more steps. She thought it was so fun. She is really funny cause she sticks her tongue out as if it helps with her balancing. It's also funny to see how she puts her arms out as far as they'll go. I love seeing her learn more about her body & life.

She has also taken a liking to our pantry. Anytime the door is open, she heads straight for it & looks for any food she can find to eat. The cereal boxes are on her level so she usually gets a couple of those & starts eating out of them. If she sees me coming towards her she'll start shoveling the food in her mouth as fast as she can. She really gets mad when I pick her up & take her out. I'm just waiting for her to dump the cereal out of the boxes all over the floor. I'm sure it won't be long before she figures that out.

Working Out as a Family

I have been trying to get into a good workout routine. I've done really good to go to the gym twice a week, but I've been wanting & needing to do more. I talk to my kids a lot about being healthy & eating good so when I say anything about doing exercise they want to join in. Usually I try to do a workout in the mornings right after I send my older kids out the door to school. I decided to do it on Saturday morning. I turned on my workout DVD & they all came in & wanted to do it with me. They did a great job keeping up & they wanted me to choose more workouts from the DVD when we finished one. We ended up doing 3 different workout programs that morning. Jake got quite a kick out of watching all of us exercising together. I'm sure it's quite entertaining seeing me try to exercise with Brooklyn climbing on me & Allie sitting as close to me as she can. With all the girls there it makes it a little cozy trying to move around. Anything to build memories. =)

Enjoying a little sunshine

Jake had the day off as well as the kids, so we thought we should do something fun. My niece, Abi, was over for the afternoon playing with Nicole. We wanted to get out & enjoy one of the last good sunny days before winter sets in so we decided to head to one of the city parks. We thought we'd feed the ducks & play around. We went to Kathryn Albertson Park. It is a beautiful nature park. When we got there we noticed signs to not feed the ducks so we walked around & watched the ducks swim. The girls had a lot of fun choosing which pathway to follow & see where it would take them. Even though the leaves on the trees have died, it still is a beautiful park. We had a great time being outside & watching & listening to nature. I tried taking some pictures of the girls, maybe get a picture done for the Christmas card. I was all excited about it, but after a few pictures my batteries died & I didn't have any spares. I was so bummed! You think I would learn to always have extras with me.


We headed over to another park, Ann Morrison Park, & let the kids play on a great playground. The Boise River was nearby so we walked along the bridge for a bit & then made a big pile of leaves for the kids to jump in. It's so fun to see them enjoy being outside & find little things that entertain them for a long time.

Good Days!!

I love these days when it has just been a great day!! Nothing special or out of the ordinary happened--it was just a good day. My kids had the day off from school & sometimes that makes the day seem kind of long. Today was just the opposite. It flew by! Jake had the day off, so he did a few things on his list this morning, then after lunch he & I (along with Brooke) went grocery shopping. I know it sounds kind of weird, but it was really nice. Someone else was pushing the cart, I only had one child with me (& she happens to be my quietest child), I had a more grown-up conversation while walking up & down the aisles & I didn't worry about my kids getting ready to throw a fit, knock things off the shelves or block the rest of the aisle cause they are oblivious that anyone else may be in the store, too. We went home, the other kids were happy & playing well, we had a nice dinner together & then watched a fun movie as a family, "Evan Almighty". It was a cute movie & I just love listening to my kids laugh. They all went down to bed with little whining & now it's peace & quiet. I love looking back at my day & even though not much was accomplished, I feel like my kids know they were loved today & went to bed happy & we enjoyed spending time together. I have been focusing a lot more lately on how I talk & treat my children & how they may feel when I am frustrated with something they may have done. I realize more & more that when I put myself on the other person's side then I have a greater understanding & more love for that person. This helps me so much in my parenting. I have been more calm & have seen my children happier as I have tried harder to be a better mom. I love my girls & want them to know & feel that everyday!!