In the Christmas Spirit!

This is what I caught on tape when I looked over to see Nicholas sitting on top of the garbage can jamming out to the music. He loves when he touches the Ipod and the screen lights up or the song changes. He is so proud of himself! This little boy is so cute to me! I think I'll keep him for today!

It's That Time of Year

Macy had her Christmas Program at school last week. It was the sweetest thing EVER! She was one of the sheperds. Apparently, I didn't get the memo that I was suppose to MAKE her entire costume as some mothers did. The note home said a dish towel would be fine! So a dish towel it was! I'm just glad she wasn't one of the donkeys. I would have been in trouble coming up with something for that! It was such a cute program! Her little brother and sister were so HAPPY to see her afterwards.

Next came decorating ginger man cookies with her class. That was the fun part! Karlee totally wanted in on the action and Macy was so sweet to let her help! Karlee is so ready for preschool. She sits and colors and totally thinks she is BIG! We left with her kicking and screaming.

The finished product!

Macy also had a half yearly ballet recital where all the moms and dads where invited to come and watch. The little ballerinas showed off their bar work and their leaps and jumps. They finished by dancing a beautiful snowflake dance to the Nutcracker! Each girl had a small solo part. Some were very graceful and full of twirls, others just ran through it! Macy did a little of both! She looked so beautiful out there! One thing is for sure, she LOVES to dance!!!

'O Christmas Tree

After six years of good use, we said good-bye to our Charlie Brown Christmas tree we bought at Walmart for $20 and splurged on a 9ft prelit tree from Costco. I've been feeling guilty about buying an artificial tree when we live in the state that produces the most Christmas trees in the country. I feel like I'm robbing my children of some sort of holiday tradition but to me, a tree that doesn't need to be picked up after or fed and watered is priceless.

Macy burst into tears when she saw that we didn't have a star for our tree. We're working on that one along with maybe some ribbon and garland? I found my Christmas balls at Tai Pan Trading Company in Utah. Utah has all the great decorating stores. I am so envious! We have been loving Christmas around our home with holiday smells, music, drives around the neighborhood to see the lights with the kids NOT buckled in to their carseats and bedtime Christmas stories.

Lights and garland in the kitchen

I'm still looking for stocking holders. I really would love these framed picture stocking holders from Pottery Barn but they are $30 a piece. I need five! Do you think they'll go on sale after Christmas? Here's to hoping!

Oh, and don't you love that sweet T.V.? It's ancient. This is the only T.V. Mark and I have ever owned in our 9 years of marriage. We're hoping Santa delivers after Mark builds some shelving for an entertainment center. That gaping hole is such an awkward space.

Happy Holidays!

Have fun decorating!!!

Pictures of the Month

Holy Smokes! Where did November go? Instead of writing a novel and boring everyone, here are a few of my favorite pictures from the month. Hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving! We spent ours in Utah with family and loved seeing everyone.

The Oregon Coast Aquarium in Newport

Celebrating my Mom's Birthday at Maddox Restaurant

Macy holding her new cousin, Kennedy

Fun at the Cache Valley Fun Park

And then there is Karlee...

Halloween Pics

Our little spooks! Macy dressed up as Fancy Nancy (the girl who LOVES to accessorize!) Karlee was a fluffy chicken and Nicholas, the cutest dragon!

Transportation for the night. The wagon ended up being more of a liability as Nicholas and Karlee caught on to the whole idea of trick-or-treating. We could not miss one house, even if the lights were off, the twins still wanted to go up and get candy! That part they didn't get!

Aren't they cute?

Our stylish Fancy Nancy "Princess"...RED shoes and all

All three Trick-or-Treating.

I LOVE Halloween!!! It is such a fun holiday! We had so much fun this year with our kids. They were totally in to it. Friday afternoon we went Trick-or-Treating downtown in Corvallis and filled our buckets full. The twins could not eat their candy fast enough. They were shoveling it in! They wanted to eat every piece they got. We had to skip a few stores just to give them (and us) a breather! Saturday we went around our neighborhood which is the dream neighborhood for Trick-or-Treating. The houses are close together and all decked out with lights and a few scary people answering the doors. Macy was running from house to house with her friends. Mark and I were running equally as fast trying to keep up with the twins who were each going in their own direction. It was some crazy fun! I just love the excitement kids bring to the holidays. I even decided to dress up myself...

Party in the USA

This is too cute not to share. We have serious talent at our house when it comes to some pretty awesome dance moves. We always have music playing and there is a whole lot of singing and dancing going on. This is when my kids are the happiest. Macy sits on the garbage can and manages the Ipod. What's on our playlist? Miley Cyrus "Party in the USA." Buy it! You'll love it!

First Big Day

Macy had her first day of preschool! It wasn't long enough (for the both of us)! She was so mad when I came to pick her up at 11:30 am. She wanted to stay longer. I had to pick her up and carry her out of there. She is just so happy to be back. Good thing she has a whole year of it!

Macy had been looking forward to this day for a long time. She got up first thing and made her bed and got dressed all on her own. Then we had a little hair drama. Supposedly, there was a part that looked "messy" and she put her face in her hands and cried. Oh, my goodness! What am I going to do with her? I can't complain because I was just like her when I was little. Everything had to be perfectly in place. My poor Mom. Picture days were the worst. It looks like I got one just like me and she is only 4!


Macy also had her first day of dance lessons at the Corvallis Academy of Ballet. It was precious to see the little girls twirling, leaping and bounding across the floor. So graceful! She has a darling, darling teacher. It's very professional, the whole studio and all. I've been very impressed with it and so happy we found it. I took the twins to watch and they layed on their tummies and watched at the door. I wish I'd had my camera to capture that moment.

All in all, it's been a productive but exhausting day and it's only Monday. Summer spoiled me but a routine will be good. Maybe I'll get more done. Yeah, right! Not with my little tornadoes running around (a.k.a Nicholas and Karlee). I cannot turn my back for one second. They are busy, busy bodies that deserve their own post. To be continued...

Go Beavers!!!

We were able to get tickets to the other OSU game last Saturday (as in Oregon State University). It was extremely toned down from the Ohio State games but very family friendly. We had great covered seats and our kids just loved being outside and watching the game. Macy spend the whole time looking for Benny the Beaver Oregon State's mascot. Nicholas and Karlee loved hanging on the banister. I ran out of snacks after the 1st quarter but suprisingly, we made it through the whole game. It was a blow-out! Go Beavers!!! Now, all we can think about is the Ohio State game on Saturday against USC. We'll be cheering for the Buckeyes!

BYU Jerusalem 10 YR Reunion

It'll be 10 years this coming Fall that I spent a semester abroad studying at the BYU Jerusalem Center. Having the great husband that I do, and all the support around me to help with my kids, I was able to fly home to Utah (ALONE) to attend my 10 year reunion. It was an excuse to see some good friends and to have a little weekend away. After missing my flight out of Portland due to the most horrible traffic I have ever been in in my life... I did eventually make it to Utah. It was great to catch up with roommates and friends from that time in Jerusalem that I had not seen in years. You can imagine how close we all got. The center was like living in one big house with 170 roommates for 4 months. We were one of the last groups that BYU took over before they closed the Jerusalem Center due to the state of unrest in the surrounding areas. It has recently reopened.

On the flight there, I had time to read back in my journals and to reflect on the whole experience. Every day I wrote how I never wanted this experience to end. It was absolutely incredible. I also wrote about how tired I was. We had field trips where we had to be on the bus by 6am and we'd fall into our beds at midnight. We traveled to Jericho, to Jordan, to the Sinai Pennisula and spent two weeks in Galilee and Egypt. I took classes in the Old Testament, the New Testament, Acts, Near Eastern Studies, ANCIENT Near Eastern Studies, Islam, Judaism and studied Hebrew. One of my favorite places to be was at the Garden Tomb or sitting on the shores of Galilee. I wrote about getting up at 2 am to hike Mount Sinai and freezing almost to death on top of the mountain, waiting for the sun to rise. Seeing the sun come over the horizon and lighting the valley below will always be one of the most amazing views I think I will ever experience. It was simply breathtaking.

I made such wonderful friends at the Jerusalem Center. Everyone was so great and we were all there because we wanted to be. I came to know my Savior in such a personal way as we studied His life and walked where He would have walked. There is an incredible spirit in those sacred places such as the Garden of Gethsemane and the Garden Tomb. The scriptures literally came to life as we read them on location and the meaning of them became so clear.

A flood of memories have come back to me as I've been able to reflect on everything I learned and felt while studying in the Holy Land. It's made me stop and reflect on my life and my testimony and where my priorities lie now. It's good to have these little reminders every once in a while of where we should be. I am just so grateful for this amazing opportunity and the foundation it has given me of the gospel of Jesus Christ and of our Savior's Atonement.

A few of us at the reunion dinner.

Sweet Friends

A House Full of Princesses

So, I now have a 4 year old! I can hardly believe it but oh... what a fun age to be! This little girl is all PRINCESS so of course, we had to have a PRINCESS PARTY to celebrate. For two hours, I had a house full 12 dancing and singing princesses and it was absolutely CRAZY! I have never been so exhausted. Birthday parties are so much work and if you know me, I don't know how to make anything easy. To see the smile on Macy's face and how HAPPY she was to be with her friends made everything worth it. I love this girl! Anything for her! She's completely spoiled.

The girls arrived at 1pm. It was requested that they arrive in their BEST PRINCESS ATTIRE or they could dress up when they got here. They all looked so beautiful in their dresses and it just added to all of the excitement. By the end of the party, I think they had all changed into at least one different outfit and it was all we could do to make sure everyone left in the same clothes they arrived in. We decorated princess wands and party bags with glittery stickers and jewels. Note to self: Stick to stickers in the future and stay away from glitter, glue and anything that is wet and sticky! The girls loved it though! Next came the games: Pass the Slipper (similar to Hot Potato) and Pin the Crown on the Princess. Then the Dance-off-Freeze Competition where the girls danced their little hearts out to "Happy Birthday Princess" and froze when I stopped the music. I got them good and tired. Next came cupcakes and presents and the grand finale...the Princess Pinata. It was a hit. Another side-note: don't put rings and candy bracelets in the pinata that could get busted. You get what you pay for!

It was such a fun birthday DAY all together! I just love my little Macy. She is my little best friend. I love our conversations together. I love playing dollhouse and our little time at night when just me and her read stories together and talk about our favorite part of the day and all the fun we are going to have tomorrow. Macy is such a sweet little girl. She doesn't come without the drama of a 4-year-old, that is for sure, but we love her none-the-less. The twins adore her and she is such a great big sister to them. They follower her everywhere. Nicholas is ALWAYS by her side playing, but mostly bugging her like little brothers do. We are working on patience.

Here's to the birthday girl! Macy, we love you!

The Party Invites!

The Princess Barbie Cake! No, I did not make this. The sweetest girl, Lizzie, did! The girls were all in love with it! I wouldn't serve it because it was just too beautiful! I served cupcakes instead. I think the girls were definitely disappointed.

Stars in the Entryway!

The Beautiful Princesses

The sweet birthday girl opening her presents!

Princesses gathered all around.

This Tinkerbell outfit was so cute!

Macy riding her new scooter! She was so excited!