Family Photos 2013

I absolutely LOVE how our family photos turned out this year.  Thank you, Fotofly!

David Turns 2!

My baby boy has now officially become a toddler.  There are times when I can't believe how fast he is growing.

David's Stats:

Weight: 29 lbs., 57% for his age
Height: 36 inches, 77% for his age

Little Quirks

• He is obsessed with letters!  He loves finding letters on random objects and trying to say what they are (he doesn't usually get them right).
• He loves flushing the toilet and turning off lights.  It can get pretty annoying at times.
• He has developed a new love for drawing.  He loves finding pen and pencils and drawing on random pieces of paper he finds lying around.  Sometimes he draws on the walls, too.  I do not approve of that.
• He calls all fuzzy animals "Sushi."
• He loves dancing and singing to music.  He mumbles the consonants and vowels from the words of the lyrics he hears.
• He calls bananas "cee-all" (cereal).  I'm not sure why he does that.
• He is very polite and always says please and thank you at the right times.
• He is very social.  He likes to greet everyone he meets.  He is not shy or scared of people.
• He has a fantastic memory for words and music.
• He growls at pumpkins.
• He is calm and easy-going about EVERYTHING.
• Lizzy is his entertainment, hero, and best friend.  Anything Lizzy likes he likes, too, including Barbies, princess movies, girly songs, and girly dress-up clothes. He looks really cute wearing Lizzy's pink sunhat and princess slippers.
• He LOVES to eat!  He's not picky about foods and likes to eat everything.  He is particularly fond of tomatoes and bananas.
• He likes to babble. He likes to say whatever letter sounds he wants to articulate at the time, along with the overall feeling or emotion he wants to convey.  He likes asking questions best.  Example:  "Ah, was? Wha-waa et is a-wadee sheee?  Oy-yoy oh-oh."  It's pretty cute.
• He stands right in front of me and wiggles his tongue back and forth quickly when he wants to taste whatever I am eating.  It's pretty funny.

Favorite (Real) Words and Phrases

• "Tank-u ma-much" (thank you very much)
• "Bye!  See-youuu!"
• "Izzy"  (Lizzy)
• "Sushi"
• "Cee-all" (cereal)
• "Yo gel-com" (you're welcome)
• "Eh-are-you?" (where are you?)
• "O you okay?"  (are you okay?)

Favorite Books

• He loves all of the Charlie and Lola books.
• The Fierce Yellow Pumpkin, by Margaret Wise Brown.
• Any version of The Three Little Pigs.
• Henry and the Buccaneer Bunnies, by Carolyn Crimi.

Favorite Movies and TV Shows

• Super Why
• Curious George
• The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That
• Tangled
• Brave
• All of the Toy Story movies.

Favorite Songs and Poems

• Batman
• This Little Piggy
• A Dream is Wish Your Heart Makes
• Baby Mine
• Five Yellow Pumpkins
• I'm a Mean Old Witch (With a Hat)
• A Whole New World
• Once Upon a Dream
• When Will My Life Begin
• True Love's Kiss
• Alphabet Song
• Itsy Bitsy Spider
• Open Shut Them

David's Birthday

We had a small birthday party for David with our immediate family and Grandpa North.  Lizzy and I bought some orange and green balloons, which David loved.  We had homemade chili for dinner, and angel food cake with whipped cream and strawberries for dessert.  David loved blowing out his candles and eating his cake.  He was in such a big hurry to blow out his candles that Brad was afraid he was going to get burned, but he didn't.  He loved his birthday present, too-- a VTech Little Apps Tablet.  His favorite part was pushing the buttons on the tablet and sounding out the letters.  He's such a smart boy!  

Happy Birthday, my darling boy!  I love you, Davy!

Highlight of My Day: September 2013

Celebrating Hobbit Day on September 22nd

Something good happens every day. Here's what happened in September 2013:

Sun 9/1/13: Today was a nice, quiet Sunday. I enjoyed having two helpers in my Sunbeam's class today. The lesson was on homes. I think the kids enjoyed seeing pictures of different homes from around the world. The lesson went very well.

Mon 9/2/13: We labored on Labor Day. Brad and I got done a bunch of chores that we had put off for a long time, like calking the windows, and weather proofing our door. Not exciting, by any means, but there's relief in knowing that it got done. Plus, it's nice spending the day together. I love hanging out with him.

Tue 9/3/13: Lizzy started her first day of preschool today. I had convinced myself prior to this day that I wouldn't be one of those mom's that cries on the first day of preschool. Boy, was I wrong! I cried all the way home. Lizzy walked right up the steps to Miss Nicole's house and didn't every turn around to wave at me. A part of me felt the pang of "oh no, my baby is growing up," to, "I'm so proud of her for not needing me," to, "oh no, she doesn't need me anymore!" Overall, I am happy that she's becoming more independent and loving her new school. She was so excited when she came home. Seeing her excitement made my heart swell with happiness. I love being a mom. It's the greatest job in the world.

Wed 9/4/13: It's nice having Scott home tonight. I am so proud of the man he is becoming. I love that he loves going to seminary, that he has a testimony of the gospel, and that he wants to serve a mission someday. It's great talking to him. That boy inspires me constantly. Gosh, I love him!

Thu 9/5/13: Brad and I left Scott and Emma in charge of the little ones tonight while we went shopping at Walmart and Sam's Club. It was nice getting out of the house without little ones. Later in the evening, after bedtime, Brad and I watched more Alias. It's a fun show! I'm hooked.

Fri 9/6/13: We had a fun night with the Moons! We had taco salad for dinner and played Forbidden Desert while the little ones played in the backyard. It was our first time playing Forbidden Desert. The desert won this time, but that's okay. I'm sure we'll get the hang of it the more we play it.

Sat 9/7/13: Today was our last pool party of the season! My favorite part of the day was chatting with Bruce, Loralee, Marian, Brad, and James. We had interesting conversations about religion, human behavior, family, and marriage. I like hearing insights from Brad's side of the family. Everyone is so smart and eloquent.

Sun 9/8/13: I am so grateful for my wonderful kids. Scott, Emma, Lizzy, and David bring so much joy to my life. It was nice having Family Home Evening with them tonight. Scott gave a lesson on reading the scriptures. I am so happy that he is gaining a testimony of scripture reading.

Mon 9/9/13: We started the second season of "Alias" tonight. I was glad to see that Agent Vaughn did not die.

Tue 9/10/13: I made my delicious homemade lentil soup tonight. I added fresh lettuce and tomatoes from my garden to add more flavor. It was so yummy!

Wed 9/11/13: I enjoyed watching the show, "Extreme Weight Loss" on Hulu. It's such an inspirational show. I like seeing people change their lives around and work hard to overcome the challenges they face when they make such drastic life-style changes. The transformations are amazing!

Thu 9/12/13: Brad and I took the little ones for a walk around our neighborhood tonight, since they were so full of energy. We stopped at the park for Lizzy and David to play. They were having so much fun they didn't want to leave.

Fri 9/13/13: Tonight was our ward's annual Soup Cook-off and Cake Auction. I loved seeing all of the cute cakes on display. There are some very talented people in our ward. We ended up bidding on Christine Westerns yummy guava cake and won. MMM! It was soooo good! The soups were yummy, too. My soup won "The Heartiest Soup Golden Spoon Award." I made my delicious creamy chicken and mushroom soup.

Sat 9/14/13: I loved shopping at the DI today! I bought 4 pairs of shoes and 9 cute outfits for Lizzy and David, and spent less than $50 on everything total. It was a great deal! Lizzy was very happy with the shoes and play-dresses I got her.

Sun 9/15/13: It's amazing how good an ordinary frozen pizza can taste after being covered with fresh toppings and extra cheese. My family loves it when I do that. I added some mushrooms, bell peppers, olives, red onions, Parmesan cheese, and cheddar cheese. It was so good! Lizzy and Scott were, of course, the picky ones and requested only bell peppers and cheese for Scott, and olives and cheese for Lizzy. Crazy ones!

Mon 9/16/13: Brad and I stayed up late watching the Season Finale of the first season of Downton Abbey. Gosh, I forget how much that show makes me cry. So good!

Tue 9/17/13: I was surprised to see that my Alias holds were ready to be picked up from the library today. Brad and I watched some more tonight. Still on Season 2.

Wed 9/18/13: I've been enjoying babysitting Valenne on Wednesdays. This was her third week at our house. They played outside, watched movies, played with toys, and ate noodles, blueberries, and cheese sticks. For some reason, those were the hit today.

Thu 9/19/13: My husband was my highlight. I loved watching the BYU Women's Soccer game with him tonight. BYU played against Oklahoma University. OU scored 2 goals within the first half of the game, and stayed ahead for most of the next half. Their winning streak died when BYU scored 3 goals within the last eight minutes of the game. The winning kick happened right at the very end. It was so exciting! I haven't cheered like that in a long time.

Fri 9/20/13: Emma and I went for a walk to the cousins house with Lizzy and David tonight. Lindsey made some yummy garlic and pepper popcorn. It was very yummy!

Sat 9/21/13: Scott had a Minecraft-themed birthday party with his friends today. I used Pinterest to give me ideas of how to decorate and prepare the snacks and cake. It meant a lot to hear Scott say how much he appreciated my hard work. That made me happy.

Sun 9/22/13: We seemed to have a long afternoon together, since it was Stake Conference today. I prepared a large feast of hobbit food tonight, since today is Hobbit Day. We had roast chicken, sauteed mushrooms, greens, homemade Artisan bread, and berry cake with homemade whipped cream. Mmmm! It was YUM! To end the night, we watched "Concerning Hobbits," and "Bilbo's Birthday" on The Fellowship of the Ring special edition disc. It was so much fun!

Mon 9/23/13: Lizzy and Brad had a funny conversation tonight at dinner time. Lizzy came to the dinner table and said, very dramatically, "Oooh, my tummy is hurt." Brad responded by saying, "Why does your tummy hurt?" Lizzy's very serious response was, "Because I have a baby inside. OH!"

Tue 9/24/13: This morning Lizzy and David had fun watching home video clips of themselves when they were babies. We watched clip after clip accompanied by lots of giggles and laughter. I love my babies so much! Can't believe they've grown so much in such a short amount of time.

Wed 9/25/13: It was nice having Scott and Emma home tonight. I could tell that Emma missed being here and that she was happy to be back. We had German Pancakes, watermelon, and bacon for dinner. Scott and Emma went to their YM/YW activity as usual, and when they got back, we all gathered around the computer monitor and watched the new Marvel show, "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D."

Thu 9/26/13: It was nice having time to myself to go shopping tonight. I bought some more yarn to make some minion hats.

Fri 9/27/13: Lizzy blew soap suds in my face today while I was washing her hair. Apparently, that was a really funny thing to do to Mama. She couldn't stop laughing about it.

Sat 9/28/13: We had grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato bisque for lunch today. David was a huge fan of the bisque. He ate all of his and most of Lizzy's, too.

Sun 9/29/13:  Lizzy was very enthusiastic to practice her part for the Primary Program rehearsal today.  She asked me to help her memorize it before church, while we were driving to church, and right before sacrament meeting.  Her line was: "Jesus Christ taught us how to serve others."

Mon 9/30/13:  My husband is so wonderful.  He cleaned up the bathroom tonight and made it look so nice.  I love being married to someone who notices things that need to get done around the house and does it without being told to.  I admit that it makes me lazy at times, but it also inspires me to do my part and get things done, too.  I love being married to Brad.

First Day of School Photos

Scott and Emma started school a few weeks ago on Wednesday, August 21st.  I can't believe Scott's already in High School.  He's getting so grown up!  Emma officially started her first year of Junior High, too.

 Lizzy started her first week of preschool on Tuesday, September 3rd.  That was an emotional day for me.  I had convinced myself prior to that day that I wouldn't be one of those moms that cry on the first day of preschool.  Boy, was I wrong!  I cried all the way home after dropping her off.

I am so proud of my children for turning into such wonderful "bigger" people.  They amaze me every day.  I love them very much.

Scott's 16-Year-Old Interview

What makes "16" such a special age?

 I get to drive, date, and I get fun jobs!  I hope...

Who are your best friends?

 Jordan, Brett, Patrick, Kyler, and my cousins.

What do you like to do when you are with your friends?

 Play/design video games, or just games in general.

What makes you laugh?

 Just being with friends and family (or watching Studio C).

What is your favorite classes in school?  Why?

Art.  I have the freedom to do anything.

Seminary.  I get to meet friends and make friends.

What are your favorite books?

 Any mystery books like Encyclopedia Brown or the Haunted Bookshop series.

What are your favorite movies?

 Castle in the Sky, Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Pixar movies, and Studio Ghibli movies.

If you had a million dollars, what would you do with it?

 Pay tithing, buy a computer, save for mission, take trips to England or Japan, go to Southern California and Seattle.

Describe your perfect day.

 Sleep in, get amazing ideas to draw, have lots of people.

What do you want to do when you grow up?

 Be a graphic designer, Police Detective, or attorney.

What is your favorite family activity?

 Watching Studio C, visiting extended family, FHE, baking.

What is your favorite holiday?  Why?

Halloween.  Similar to art there are no boundaries.

Random Facts About Me

My nickname is Sissel.

I'm a stage designer for a musical project.

I'm ambidextrous.

My teacher thought I was a girl from seeing my handwriting.

Minecraft and Portal 2 are my favorite games.  I also like Half-Life, the Phoenix Wright series, and Ghost Trick.

Scott's Minecraft-Themed Party

The Highlight of my Day: August 2013

Something good happens every day. Here's what happened in August 2013:

Thu 8/1/13: Brad and I got called back to see a member of the Stake Presidency again tonight. Looks like Brad is being called to be the first counselor in the Elders Quorum presidency with Brad Moon as president. It's a big calling, but I know my husband is qualified to do it. He'll do great.

Fri 8/2/13: We had a great drive to St. George this afternoon. The kids had a blast playing in the splash pad at Town Square Park and swimming at the hotel pool. We had Papa John's pizza for dinner and watched Gravity Falls in our hotel room.  David loved all the water play and learned a new trick: jumping in the pool. He's fearless in the water, which I both love and hate. He's just like me when I was little-- a little water fish.

Sat 8/3/13: We made it to Long Beach by 4:00 pm! I loved seeing my family, especially my new little niece, Claire. It was sweet holding her for the first time. The kids loved playing in the backyard together and getting presents from Aunt Rachel. It was cute seeing Lizzy and David playing with Eric. I loved seeing Susie & Chris, too. Chris showed us his boomerangs and Scott became very good at throwing them.

Sun 8/4/13: Today was little Claire's baby blessing. It was nice seeing all of the Montgomery family and getting our pictures taken. I love being with my family in California.

Mon 8/5/13: Today was Disney Day! Shauna got us into the park for a great price, and we had a blast going on rides, watching the Rapunzel show, meeting princesses, and walking around the park. Lizzy's favorite ride was Star Tours: The Adventure Continues. I was very impressed with the new improvements to the ride. It was awesome riding it twice and seeing a new story the second time. FUN!

Tue 8/6/13: We went to Bolivar Park with Rachel, Eric, and Claire this morning. The kids had fun playing together. We had lunch at Costco and went to a new bookstore called Bookoff, where we bought some new DVDS and Blu-Rays.

Wed 8/7/13: Walking round the El Dorado Nature center today was both fun and nostalgic. Being in Long Beach in general reminds me so much of my childhood and young adulthood. I loved going to the nature center and taking photos of my family there. It was cute seeing Lizzy and David drink out the same drinking fountain that my sisters and I used to fight over as children. Some things really haven't changed much at all.

Thu 8/8/13: Miniature golfing with Rachel & Craig was so much fun! We went to Camelot Golfland, in Anaheim. Brad and Rachel tied for 1st with Craig coming in 2nd and me in 3rd. I managed to get a hole in one, too!

Fri 8/9/13: My mom rented a water bouncer today and Lizzy LOVED it. David was feeling a little too sick and overwhelmed to play in the bouncer, but he liked splashing in the water on the side. I played five rounds of chess with Brad this afternoon, because I couldn't stop until I won a game. I'm glad I was more careful on the last round and beat him good. YAY!

Sat 8/10/13: Today was beach day! We headed over to Cabrillo Beach in San Pedro and went to the museum first before playing in the water. The museum let us hatch some baby grunions while we were there, which was fun to do. All we had to do was shake little jars with sand, water, and eggs for the grunions to hatch and swim around. They were cute. In the evening we joined the Montgomerys again and had fun playing at Heritage Park. I love seeing Lizzy and David have so much fun with Eric.

Sun 8/11/13: We went to Long Beach First Ward for Sacrament today, which was nice. Kristen and Kathy Ward were there with their families, too. We picked up Anissa after church and visited with her for a while. The Montgomerys joined us for dinner and afterward we all went up to Signal Hill and went for a nice long walk.

Mon 8/12/13: It was sad leaving Long Beach this morning, but I had fun driving from Baker, CA to Mesquite, NV while Brad rested his head. It was my first time driving on the I-15 for so long. Cruise control is awesome.

Tue 8/13/13: We made it home today. Gosh, it's so nice to be back! Sushi was so happy to see me that she wouldn't leave me alone all night. She kept rubbing me and meowing. It was as if she was saying, "Don't ever leave me again!" Cute kitty.

Wed 8/14/13: The sunset tonight made the sun appear bright red due to fires in the Tooele area. When Lizzy saw the bright red sun through the octagonal window in the living room, she ran up to me yelling, "Mommy, Mommy, the sun is sick! Come see!" Made me laugh.

Thu 8/15/13: Lizzy decided that her Rapunzel doll needed a hair cut this morning, since her hair was all tangled and didn't look so pretty. I wasn't too happy when I found out, but thought it was funny later when I observed it. Lizzy sliced it the same way it looked in the movie when Flynn Rider cut off Rapunzel's hair. Oh well! Guess that could still work. Maybe we should dye it brown.

Fri 8/16/13: I spent the whole day uploading, organizing, editing, and posting photos from our vacation last week. Wow, I sure did take a lot of photos on our trip!

Sat 8/17/13: Today was Brad's 20-year high school reunion. We walked three miles along the Jordan River Parkway with other alumni. We had lunch at the park where Lizzy and David had fun eating popcorn and snow cones. In the evening, Brad and I went to the Hilton Hotel for dinner. My favorite part was getting our photos taken in the photo booth. That was fun!

Sun 8/18/13: It was fun visiting with Brad's family tonight for dinner at Brad's dad house. I loved Loralee's clam chowder and Amanda's delicious bread salad. I like all the good chefs in Brad's family.

Mon 8/19/13: Brad and I watched a little big of Shogun tonight. Brad loves the story. I'm not very familiar with it, but I'm enjoying the TV mini-series so far. The Japanese culture is interesting.

Tue 8/20/13: I took Scott to his High School orientation this morning. We toured the building together, mapping out his classes on his map as we went along. A lot of girls were observing him. Can't believe how fast he's growing!

Wed 8/21/13: First day of school! I took photos of Scott and Emma before they left this morning. They looked pretty neat wearing their lab coats together. Emma was so happy to begin another year of school.

Thu 8/22/13: I was reading "The Three Little Pigs" to Lizzy and David tonight. When we got to the part when I used my Big Bad Wolf voice the most enormous lightning bolt lit up the whole sky and shook the house. I cried out in alarm when the lights when out. Scared the crap out of me! The electrical storm was amazing, though. It gave us quite a show.

Fri 8/23/13: Scott went to a tailgating party at his school tonight for the first time. It's nice that he lives so close to the school that he just walk on over whenever a special even occurs.

Sat 8/24/13: We celebrated Grandma North's birthday by having a family get-together at Marian's house. We were afraid it would be too cold since it was so overcast, but it ended up not being too bad. About a half hour after we got out of the pool for dinner a huge storm came in and began dumping buckets of water and hail into the pool. Took us by surprise.

Sun 8/25/13: I liked seeing my Sunbeam class today! I went three weeks without seeing them. Our lesson was on forgiveness.

Mon 8/26/13: Family Home Evening to the library was fun! We did sweets and sours on the way back. I like that Scott and Emma are happy to be back in school again.

Tue 8/27/13: It was nice having a late night outing to Dee's Restaurant with Bruce and Loralee tonight. Brad and I ordered cheese fries and a giant hot fudge sundae. It was yum.

Wed 8/28/13: I harvested a bunch of garden-grown tomatoes this evening and made a yummy homemade salsa with them. It was a nice day for chili, chips, and salsa.

Thu 8/29/13: My little ones are so cute. Today they made up a game where Lizzy was the "mommy" and David was the "daddy." Lizzy would run around the house saying, "Daddy... Daddy!" David would then reply, "Yes?" It was so cute. Kept them busy for awhile.

Fri 8/30/13: I had a bountiful harvest from my garden tonight! I picked some orange squash and some tomatoes and sweet peas. Lizzy and David helped me. I love having my own garden!

Sat 8/31/13: Brad and I took the little ones to Liberty Park in the afternoon. They had so much fun playing in the Canyon Lands water-feature. They loved all of the granite rocks and the little waterfalls and streams they could play in. I wish I had something like that to play in as a kid! I would have been in heaven.

Family Vacation to California

FRIDAY 8/2/13

We began our family vacation to California by stopping for the night in St. George.  It was a great way for us to split the trip in half and rest on our first day of driving.  There's always something free and family-friendly to do St. George, which is one of the main reasons why we like stop there.  One of our favorite spots to visit is Town Square Park, right in the heart of downtown St. George.  They have a fantastic canyon-style splash pad there, with refreshing knee-high pools of water, complete with streams and red-rock waterfalls for the kids to play on.  Lizzy and David loved playing in the water and cooling down after 5 hours of driving.  They would have stayed there for hours if we had let them, but us big people needed to rest, too.  We played for about 40 minutes before grabbing some Papa Johns pizza and heading back to the hotel to eat dinner and swim in the hotel pool.  David LOVED swimming at the pool.  He learned how to jump from the side of the pool into the water all by himself.  He's fearless in the water.  I think he's going to be a great swimmer someday.  After swimming, Scott and Emma enjoyed watching a new episode of Gravity Falls in our hotel room.  They were very excited about that.

SATURDAY 8/3/13

Our drive from St. George to Long Beach went smoothly.  I always get excited once we hit the Riverside County boarder and everything starts looking familiar.  It's so nice coming home!  We arrived in Long Beach in the early evening.  The Montgomerys and the Alcudias arrived not long after we did, and it was nice seeing my parents and sisters again with their families.  The highlight of the evening was meeting my new little niece, Claire.  She is adorable!  David was very fascinated by her and kept calling her "Beebee."

The highlight of our trip was meeting Baby Claire.  She is such a sweetheart.  I loved loved holding her for the first time.   David was fascinated, too.

SUNDAY 8/4/13

We went to Claire's baby blessing on Sunday, August 4th.  It was fun seeing all of Rachel's in-laws there and many of her friends.  She has such a fantastic support group of family and friends in Southern California.  It was an amazing turnout.  We took many photos in front of her ward building, including a photo of me with my sisters.  I love them so much!  After taking photos, we headed to Rachel's sister-in-law's house where we had a late lunch and watched the kids play on the swing set in the backyard.  Eric was thrilled to spend time with his cousins.

MONDAY 8/5/13

We took Lizzy to her first trip to Disneyland on Monday, August 5th.  My friend, Shauna got us all in for under $200, which was a fantastic price for five of us (David stayed with Grandma).  It was fun seeing Lizzy's excitement while she watched the Tangled show and when she got her picture taken with Rapunzel, Flynn Rider, and Merida, from Brave.  Her favorite ride was the new Star Tours ride, which surprised us all.  We weren't expecting her to like that ride so much.  Scott and Emma enjoyed Pirates of the Caribbean ride, Indiana Jones, and Splash Mountain.  We loved watching the fireworks late that night, even though our feet were tired and sore from walking all day.  It was a fun time!

TUESDAY 8/6/13

We met up with Rachel, Eric, and Claire at Bolivar Park on Tuesday morning.  It was fun watching all the big children and little children play together on the swings, in the sand, and on the play equipment.  They got along so well.  Claire enjoyed resting in her stroller while the bigger kids played.  It was cute watching her smile and coo at the talking faces that would greet her from time to time.  We had lunch at the new Costco at the Lakewood Mall.  It was my first time going there.  We saw Bishop Bob Ward and his wife, Diane Ward, ordering pizza and drinks at Costco, too.  We talked to them briefly.  After lunch, we went to a new movie and bookstore called "Bookoff" inside the mall. We bought Kiki's Delivery Service, Castle in the Sky, and The Last Unicorn on DVD, and we bought Batman Begins and The Dark Knight Rises on Blu-Ray.

WEDNESDAY 8/7/13

Wednesday's adventure was walking around the El Dorado Nature Center.  It was one of my favorite childhood places when I was growing up, so it brought back many happy memories. Walking on the familiar trails and seeing the trees and lakes instantly brought out the inner child in me.  I took lots of snapshots of plants and wildlife, and of course, lots of my family as well.  My children are my favorite photography subjects.  After walking on the 1 mile trail, we headed to Rachel's house and had lunch.  We watched "Jack, the Giant Slayer" and played Phase 1 Card Game.  Lizzy enjoyed holding her little cousin, Claire.

THURSDAY 8/8/13

Miniature golfing with Rachel and Craig was a blast today!  David and Eric stayed with their grandmas so we could play without the distraction of little toddlers running around.  Lizzy came with us, and LOVED it!  Scott and Emma had lots of fun, too.  We went to Camelot Golfland in Anaheim, not too far from Disneyland. I went there once as a teenager.

FRIDAY 8/9/13

We spent Friday at home.  Grandma Whitcomb ordered a bounce house with a water-slide for all the children to play in.  David wasn't brave enough to go on the slide with all the other children, but Lizzy was, and she loved it.  David had fun splashing in the puddles and playing in Grandma's water tray.

SATURDAY 8/10/13

Saturday was beach day!  We went to the San Pedro Cabrillo Marine Aquarium first, to see a variety of native marine life.  Lizzy's favorite creatures were the sea stars.  Some of them were huge!  We hatched some baby grunions while we were there, too, which Lizzy also enjoyed.  All the kids enjoyed running up and down the beach, playing in the water, and digging holes in the sand.  David just couldn't get enough of the water.  He loved the waves, except for when they pushed him over.  Then he was a little more hesitant.  We had lunch at In-n-Out, then we met Rachel's family and Grandma and Grandpa at Heritage Park in Cerritos.  We love Heritage Park!  Lizzy, David, and Eric loved going down the cool slides on the park's island.  Rachel and I took many photos.

SUNDAY 8/11/13

The highlight of the day was definitely seeing my friend, Anissa.  Gosh, how I love that girl!  We picked her up after church and had dinner with her at my parents' house.  It was nice talking to her and reminiscing the good old days when she and I would see each other every day.  She was so young then.  After lunch we headed over to Signal Hill to go walking together.  Our main goal was to walk to one of the new parks on Signal Hill, but none of us could remember where it was, so we kept walking and walking, and never actually found it until we drove away.  It was a nice walk, though.  We needed the exercise.  We said goodbye to Rachel's family while we were there.

I love our family trips to California!  Crossing my fingers that we get to go again in the near future.

The Highlight of my Day: July 2013

Something good happens every day. Here's what happened in July 2013:

Mon 7/1/13: I'm going to miss having the big kids gone for two weeks. They make such yummy desserts while they're here. Tonight we had berry shakes. YUM! Perfect for a hot sunny day.

Tue 7/2/13: The kids were excited about sleepovers with their cousins tonight. It's nice having the Bruce Clan home for the 4th of July week.

Wed 7/3/13: Shopping without kids is a real treat for me. It was nice having Emma and the girls watch Lizzy and David while I shopped at Walmart and Sam's Club.

Thu 7/4/13: I had a very enjoyable time face painting at our ward's Independence Day Breakfast at the park. It was my first time face painting, and I thought it was fun doing that for the kids. In the afternoon, we headed to Marian's house for our annual pool party and BBQ. I brought a fruit casserole ("Buried Treasure"). Turned out really yummy! Definitely a hit!

Fri 7/5/13: We had dinner with the Hills tonight. I made enchiladas, Spanish rice, homemade salsa, and black beans. It was good! We had fun playing Ticket to Ride (Brad won for the first time), and watching Plan 9 From Outer Space.

Sat 7/6/13: Brad and I took the little ones to Murray park to go for a walk and swing on the swings. We had Wendy's for lunch, and spent the rest of the day watching the 5th season of Lost. Such an addicting show! We are loving it.

Sun 7/7/13: My husband was definitely my highlight tonight. He's almost always the true highlight of my day, but today was even better than usual. All I can say is WOW-- I love watching movies with my husband alone, without children around. Nice stuff happens.

Mon 7/8/13: Brad and I went for walk with the little ones for FHE and came back with a bag of fresh radishes. Thank you Hydes! I love living in our neighborhood.

Tue 7/9/13:  I had fun watching a video Bradley took of me reading to Lizzy and David last night.  We have been reading a lot of Charlie and Lola lately.  I've noticed that Lizzy likes to mimic my not-so-excellent British accent sometimes.  It's cute to hear her.

Wed 7/10/13:  Scott and Emma stopped by tonight after they went to their youth activities.  I love them!  They are such wonderful kids.  I'm glad their mom lives close by so they can still attend their Wednesday night activities during the summer.

Thu 7/11/13:  I appreciate all the things Brad does for me to help me feel happy.  Today he helped clean up the messes Lizzy and David made.  He's such a good husband and father.

Fri 7/12/13: I harvested some beautiful tiny red bell peppers from my garden today. My very first pickings!  We also had a fun evening with the Moons tonight.  We had dinner, played games, and had fun watching the children play in the backyard together.  We played one of our favorite games, Forbidden Island, and a new game called Lost Cities.  It was fun!

Sat 7/13/13:  The little ones and I went with Brad to get his eyes checked today.  Brad wanted me there to help him pick some new frames for his new glasses.  I like being his wife.

Sun 7/14/13:  Michaela Clark helped babysit Lizzy and David this morning so Brad and I could go see the Stake Presidency.  They wanted to see us to get to know us better.  I'm glad we weren't there for them to give us a big calling on the spot, but that doesn't mean we won't get one in the near future.  Scary! As we were leaving we saw that the Moons were waiting in the waiting room, too.  Michelle looked at me with big eyes like, oh crap, what are they calling us to now?

Mon 7/15/13:  We got to see the Polaks tonight!  They have temporarily moved into Brad's Dad's house until their new place is cleaned up.  Amanda made a spaghetti dinner that she shared with us, which made Lizzy and David happy.  It's so nice having them back!

Tue 7/16/13: David made me laugh this morning when he grabbed a zucchini, held it up like a wand, and said: "b-bop-boo!" (bibbity, bobbity boo). Definitely Lizzy's influence.  Charlotte and Aksel came to visit us today so Amanda could shop and get some things done around the house.  The kids watched movies together and played games, like Operationand Mouse Trap.  It was nice talking to Amanda later in the evening.

Wed 7/17/13: This morning I made my very first vegetable omelette with fresh produce from my backyard. It was delicious!

Thu 7/18/13:  Brad and I finished watching Lost together.  Kind of a lame ending, but it was still enjoyable and worth watching.  What are we going to watch now that it's over?

Fri 7/19/13: It's so nice having Scott and Emma home again! To celebrate, we headed to Provo and watched the first live taping of Studio C, season 3. It's going to be another great season! Lots of laughs for sure!

Sat 7/20/13: Brad, Scott, Emma, and I headed downtown to watch "An Evening of Music," the live Pioneer Day Concert at the Conference Center. It was awesome listening to Nathan Pacheco sing and Lindsey Stirling play the violin. Beautiful artists! It was great watching them perform it all in person.

Sun 7/21/13: Scott received his patriarchal blessing today. It was a beautiful blessing. Amanda and the kids came over for dinner and games in the evening. Amanda, Brad, Scott, and I played "Ticket to Ride" while the younger children and Emma played hide and seek and watched Narnia. Brad scored the biggest score he ever has on Ticket to Ride: 138 points. Amanda just barely came in 2nd with 135 points. Great game!

Mon 7/22/13: Brad and I challenged Emma to a round of Ticket to Ride for FHE tonight. It was fun spending time together.

Tue 7/23/13: I taught the Activity Day girls a quick and easy way to make homemade ice cream. It was a fun activity, with a delicious reward.  I bought too much whipping cream, though, which means I'll have to think up some delicious things to eat in the near future.  YUM!

Wed 7/24/13: Today was Pioneer Day. We had a great time at Aunt Marian's house, swimming with the Polak kids, eating good food, and playing Ticket to Ride. We did fireworks in the evening at our house. We introduced Lizzy to smoke bombs and ground flowers. She loved that! David was in love with the pop-its, as usual.

Thu 7/25/13: Brad and I started a new TV series, since we finished watching Merlin last night. We are now watching "Alias." The pilot episode was pretty good.

Fri 7/26/13:  Brad and I had some time alone tonight, which was nice.  I love my husband!

Sat 7/27/13: I got done a van-full of shopping today, in preps for our California trip. Can't wait!

Sun 7/28/13: David has figured out how to open the fridge.  He opened it, grabbed a baby carrot, and took a bite.  Me:  "David, did you find a carrot?"  David:  "Mmm... YUMMY!"  I'm glad he likes carrots.  Not so glad that he figured out how to open the fridge.  As long as it's the carrots and the the eggs, right?

Mon 7/29/13: Kaylie and Emma are excited to go to their first YW camp. We did a lot of packing today, and I drove the girls to drop off their stuff at Sister Taylor's house. They spent the rest of the evening having fun together and planning their trip. They are very excited.

Tue 7/30/13:  Lizzy was sad to see Kaylie and Emma leave this morning, but I'm so happy that Emma gets to share her first Young Woman camp with her cousin.  I know they will have a fun time together.

Wed 7/31/13:  Looks like Jason got his mission call in the mail today.  Brad found it when he picked up Bruce and Loralee's mail.  I'm assuming we'll find out where he's going when the Bruce-Clan come home this weekend.  YAY!  So happy for Elder North!

The Highlight of my Day: June 2013

Something good happens every day. Here's what happened in June 2013:

Sat 6/1/13: Today was Del Sol's annual Lagoon Day! We had a great time with all four children coming with us this year. We went on lots of rides, including The Sky Ride, Ferris Wheel, The Ody-Sea, Rattle-Snake Rapids (not Brad & David), merry-go-round, The Roller Coaster (Scott, Emma, me), and the train ride. We got a lot of free Del Sol t-shirts at lunch time that were Marvel themed. Pretty neat!

Sun 6/2/13: Jason received his Eagle at his Eagle Court of Honor tonight. We helped the family transport people and items to the church to set everything up, since they were having van issues. Luckily they found out what the problem was with the van at the end of the night.

Mon 6/3/13: We celebrated Brad's birthday for FHE tonight. Loralee made a fabulous pina-colada cake for us, which we all loved and devoured quickly. Scott drew an awesome "Super Papa" sketch with Brad in superhero gear. Emma made him a funny card, accusing him of cheating at card games even though we all know he doesn't really do that. Both of them together made decorations using Batman signals with U2 signs. Pretty neat! I bought him some new clothes, which he asked for. It was a good night.

Tue 6/4/13: I finished painting Lizzy's "Lights" painting, inspired by Disney's Tangled. It's a rendition of the painting Rapunzel paints in the movie.

Wed 6/5/13: So excited that my mom is coming tomorrow! Started cleaning the house a little today. Still got a lot of work to do tomorrow!

Thu 6/6/13: My mom arrived at the airport tonight! Lizzy squealed with joy when she saw her. She has been talking about her coming every day for weeks. We took Grandma to Virg's for dinner and stayed up late having Lizzy model some new dresses Grandma bought her, as well as looking at photos from my mom's trip to Chile in April.

Fri 6/7/13: We had fun going places with my mom today. The little kids and I drove Grandma to the Jordan River Parkway and went for a walk. We also went to Jamba Juice and had lunch at Sam's Club. In the evening, Brad joined us and we went to the International Peace Gardens in SLC. My mom and the kids especially loved the gardens. They seemed to have so much fun running around together and exploring all the pretty spots.

Sat 6/8/13: Rachel had Baby Claire today! She was born at 5:16 pm, weighing 8 lbs, 9 oz., and 19 1/2" long. She's a beautiful, healthy-sized baby! Rachel had to have a c-section this time, since Claire decided to go breech at the last minute. Naughty girl. But we are very grateful that everyone is doing fine.

Sun 6/9/13: Today my beautiful daughter turned 4 years old! Happy Birthday, Lizzy! We had a Rapunzel-themed birthday party. I made a cute tower cake out of white donuts, a cupcake, and an ice cream cone, with yellow frosting flowing down the tower like hair. My mom of course was there, and we also invited Grandpa North and the Moons to come over. Lizzy loved having Brooklyn there. They were so cute together, running around the couch with Nolan. Lizzy loved all her presents, including the hat and painting I made for her. It was a cute party.

Mon 6/10/13: We drove Grandma to the "mountain park" in the morning. She loved the pretty houses there. We spent most of the afternoon eating empanadas while watching "Cranford" together. We didn't have enough time to finish it before Mom had to leave for the airport, but it was fun watching it, and she told me she wants my dad to watch it with her sometime.

Tue 6/11/13: I've started crocheting Emma a Grumpy Cat hat so she can wear it next week at the Mad Hatter Tea Party. I'm looking forward to that!

Wed 6/12/13: Watching Jane Eyre with my husband tonight was lovely. I love watching classics with him. The newest Masterpiece Theater version of Jane Eyre is our favorite.

Thu 6/13/13: Emma loved the Grumpy Cat hat I made for her. I took photos of her and Lizzy trying it on. Turned out really cute!

Fri 6/14/13: I had a busy day driving the kids around. The big kids each got to see their friends from our old neighborhood, which made them very happy.

Sat 6/15/13: Swimming party at Aunt Marian's house was a blast! Emma's friend, Makenna, joined us this time. The older kids and Lizzy had lots of fun playing in the large rubber boat together. David had the most fun climbing in and out of the pool.

Sun 6/16/13: Today was Father's Day. We gave Brad a big breakfast in bed and showered him with little gifts throughout the day. Grandpa North came for dinner. We had chili and homemade salsa. Scott and Emma made a cake for their dad and grandpa. They used fruit slices to make a shape of a tie on the cake. It was yummy!

Mon 6/17/13: Brad and I celebrated our Wedding Anniversary today! 7 years together! It was nice playing Ticket to Ride with Scott and Emma tonight. The game was my present to Brad this year.

Tue 6/18/13: The girls and I went to the Madhatter Tea Party at church tonight. Lizzy and Emma looked adorable in the hats I made them. They received many compliments and won a prize for the their hats.

Wed 6/19/13: Brad and I started watching the 3rd season of Lost tonight. Could it possibly get any more strange and confusing?

Thu 6/20/13: We took movies of David saying, "Bess 'ou" tonight. He's just so cute and funny!

Fri 6/21/13: Brad and I took Lizzy and David to Hunter Park for the first time. We liked swinging on the swings and climbing the hills at the park. It's a good size park. We liked seeing the early version of the super moon. It will be even bigger on Sunday.

Sat 6/22/13: Brad and I spent most of the day watching the third season of Lost again. My purple crochet blanket is almost done!

Sun 6/23/13: I made my yummy fresh topping pizza for my family today. Emma loves it when I add extra ingredients to the pizza. I added mushrooms, bell peppers, fresh basil, cheddar cheese, olives, and Parmesan cheese. It was fun eating lunch with them while watching Studio C and Divine Comedy.

Mon 6/24/13: It was fun going to the library tonight and eating ice cream together as a mini-family. We missed Scott and Emma, but it was still fun.

Tue 6/25/13: I had fun editing photos from Marian's pool party on the 15th and photos from Father's Day. I love taking photos of my family. They are my favorite subjects.

Wed 6/26/13: I woke up this morning with the idea that I wanted to count how many times Brad kissed me today without him knowing I was keeping track. He kissed me 8 times before he left for work, and after he came back I counted 7 more times before I lost track. Too many kisses! Pretty good for a typical day, if I do say so myself. I love being in love with my husband.

Thu 6/27/13: I bought some wreath making materials at Michael's today. I'm going for a nest theme, with purple flowers and vines. Totally my style. I'm excited!

Fri 6/28/13: Scott and Emma came home tonight after being gone for a week. We had yummy homemade tacos for dinner and played Ticket to Ride as a family. I'm happy I won this time. Yeah!

Sat 6/29/13: We had a fun Saturday! We watched Monster's University together as a family, then we had a water fight in the evening. I had fun chasing the kids around the backyard with the hose and water guns. They had fun getting me wet, too. I was soaked by the end. It was a great way to stay cool on this very hot day.

Sun 6/30/13: Heat wave today! It was nice having the AC running in the van each time I climbed in. My husband is very thoughtful.

Lizzy Turned Four!

My little girl is now a four-year-old.  I still can't get over how fast time has gone by!  Lizzy is a very happy and energetic preschool-age child.  She stays busy all day long, running around outside with the neighborhood children, and using her imagination skills at home.  She has developed a knack for memorizing lines from movies and books, and she is very good at remembering lyrics.  She reminds me of myself in many ways.

Lizzy loves to watch movies.  Her favorite movies are Brave and Tangled, but she also likes all of the Pixar movies, and even some more mature movies like The Chronicles of Narnia and The Princess Bride.  She also likes to watch PBS Kids in the mornings.  She loves Curious George, Super Why, Word World, Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That, and Sid the Science Kid.

One of Lizzy's favorite time of the day is bedtime.  She loves me reading to her and singing to her every night.  Her favorite book right now is Henry and the Buccaneer Bunnies.  That was one of Scott's and Emma's favorites when they were young children.  They would check it out at the library almost every week, so Brad and I bought a copy for Easter one year.  Lizzy and David love it when I read it to them every night.

Lizzy's favorite song list right now is:
"A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes," from Cinderella.
"All the Pretty Little Horses," my grandma's version.
"Animal Crackers in my Soup."
"Baby Beluga."
"Baby Mine," from Dumbo.

 I love my little girl so much.  She certainly puts a smile on my face every single day.  She follows me around the house and always makes it a point to stay close to me.  I'm not allowed to close any doors on her, including when I'm using the bathroom or taking a shower.  I guess she likes knowing that she has full access to me whenever she wants it or needs it.  She likes having conversations with me, and talking about how she thinks and feels.  She's a smart little girl with a great sense of humor.

We celebrated Lizzy's birthday on her actual birthday this year.  Scott and Emma were with us this time, and we invited Grandpa North, the Moon family, and my mom to come.  It was really fun having my mom in town for the weekend.  Lizzy had been looking forward to her coming for weeks.  The party was a Rapunzel  themed birthday party.  I crocheted Lizzy a Rapunzel hat, made her purple sun banners to decorate the room, braided a long yellow braid out of yellow yarn, painted a lantern painting for her room, and made an adorable tower cake out of donuts, a cupcake, and ice cream cone.  Lizzy had a blast playing with her friend, Brooklyn, and Brooklyn's little brother, Nolan.  They were all very cute together.

Lizzy's Tangled painting.

I love you, my sweet Lizzy!  You are such a sweet little girl.  You amaze me every single day.

I love you!