Family Pictures

Last weekend we had our family portraits taken. FINALLY!! I have been wanting these forever! I was nervous because last time we had our pictures done I absolutely loved how they turned out. I worried I wouldn't like new ones as much. Well, let me just say I don't know what I was worried about! The kids were (fairly) good and we got some great ones of them and a several family pictures to choose from. I am so happy with how they turned out and can't wait to get some printed up!

First we went to this little walkway that was covered in these gorgeous red leaves.

Next we went to this apple orchard in someones backyard. No apples left but still such a fun place to get pictures done. I love how they look!

A special huge thank you to Peggy for sharing your talents with me and my family! We are thrilled!

Catching Up

We did a little fishing at East Canyon. We even caught 8 or 9 fish!
Celebrated my Grandma Olsen's 80th birthday. This is a book that my mom and Emily put together. Aren't they the cutest old people ever! 4 Generations
We got a new driveway poured.
Stella's dance recital up Big Cottonwood Canyon. Cold, but fun!
The chair dance was adoreable!
A little backyard campout on a Friday night! My kind of camping. Full utilities and cheap.
Telling ghost stories before bed. Does it count as a ghost story if it starts with "Once upon a time..."?

Spent the day at Antelope Island. Did a little hiking. Played on the beach. Beautiful.
First grade field trip to The Museum of Ancient Life.
2 More weeks of school until summer! Yea!!!

One Fun Week!

Stella has been off track for the past 2 weeks and we have had a very busy and fun week together as a family. We are total movie fanatics(as you'll see by the end of this post)! Last week we took the kids to see Gnomeo and Juliet. Then this week we took them to the Jump 'n Bounce house as a their reward for getting a whole punch card complete. They had so much fun! We seriously need a few of these to release some of Tristan's energy.

Staticky Hair

Patiently Waiting


Valentines Day was pretty relaxed. We woke up to love notes on the mirror from Bill. Stella thought that was pretty cool. Then we spent some time with our play group friends, which is always enjoyable! Then we came home and made pink heart-shaped waffles for dinner. Followed by some V-Day Bingo.





Then last night Bill took Tristan to the Monster Truck show along with Bart, Kaden & Tyler. Bill said Tristan was so excited he didn't want to eat anything when they were waiting for the show to start and said he couldn't wait when he heard the trucks revving their engines. I love his passion for everything! Bill took him to the store afterwards to let him pick out a new monster truck.



While the boys were out doing their thing, Stella got to choose what she wanted to do. She decided to see Never Say Never - yes, the Justin Bieber movie. I'm not gonna lie, I did enjoy it more than I thought I would! Mostly because Stella was so into it the whole time and I enjoy seeing her that happy and excited about stuff! Plus just learning about other peoples lives fascinate me. I love our girls-night-outs!


Today Tristan had his first ever soccer practice/game. It was just a practice today, but they had a little game with the other team that was there practicing. Tristan totally rocked if I do say so myself! Once he learned you couldn't touch the ball he tried really hard to be aggressive without touching the ball. He even got a goal which he was so thrilled about! Me too! When the game was over he came up to me and said, "I was awesome Mom." I laughed and agreed. Such a fun week! I'm so proud of my kids and love seeing them grow up.

A Day in the Life of Us...

 

Go Jazz Go!

Bill has ALWAYS been a big Utah Jazz fan. I have too, but usually if there is nothing else on T.V. This year has been pretty fun so far to watch them! They tend to have a pretty big finale' at the end of each game. Makes things interesting. We have just recently started reward punch cards for the kids and once they reach 16 punches they can choose something they want, whether it be a small toy or time with us they can pick. It has worked really well! Stella even comes and asks us if we need help (knowing it will earn her an extra punch on top of the one for doing the chores). She's catching on fast! Bill thought it would be fun to take them to their first Jazz game to start out the rewards. They had fun for the first half then started asking when it was time to go home. Bill and I had a great time though! They did like the Jazz Bear quite a bit. He was pretty entertaining this time. Next time we're sticking with ice cream rather than overpriced (but still worth it) tickets!

What We're Thankful For...

So this year we decided to do something different for Thanksgiving. We made a "Thankful" jar and for 2 weeks wrote what we are thankful for. It was a lot of fun and something I want to carry on as a tradition. Next year I want to be sure to start it at the beginning of November. I loved to ask the kids everyday and hear what they would list. Here are our thankful cards all put together.





I love that Tristan is thankful for Tyler, Jesus, his "gun shot" & Lightening McQueen. And that Stella is thankful for art, snow, Duke and Princesses. Of course we are all most thankful for each other, but had to make sure to think of all the other things we are thankful for. I love this month for the very fact it heightens our gratitude for all of the blessings we enjoy everyday.



We enjoyed 2 Thanksgivings again this year! We spent Thursday afternoon with the Duffin's and Friday evening with the Robbins side. It was so much fun and so yummy! The kids had so much fun playing with their cousins, Stella was so disappointed it had to come to an end. The whole weekend was such a blast catching up with each other, playing games and watching some sports. I know I loved every minute and I hope everyone else did as well! Happy Holidays!

Fabulous Fall

We have been enjoying all the beauty that comes with fall. It is in my opinion the best season in Utah. We have driven in the mountains to check out the colors changing and we went at just the right time, not the right time of day. We only had a little over an hour of light. The colors were so vibrant. I took the kids to Cornbelly's and they had such a blast! We'll have to go again next year!




Bill has been hunting as he does every fall. He hasn't had any luck so far. He just left for 6 days to try and get a buck. It's what he loves to do so I guess I just wish him luck and hope he enjoys himself. His dad went down with him which he was glad about. Hopefully they don't freeze to death!