Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Gymnastics Gymboree

Alia has been in gymnastics this fall/winter and has absolutely L.O.V.E.D it! This past Sunday was a BIG event in her world... she got to show us all what she had learned at her end of the year gymnastic display!

Some of our closest friends came to watch her do her thing, which was a huge blessing to one little gymnast... and to her mommy and daddy!
 

Almost up... Alia's the one in the bright animal print leotard, by the way!



Waiting for the music to start...


... then off to do their thing!




I took a few videos for the grandparents! :)

Be forwarned, there is LOTS going on though! Just keep looking for the little lady in animal print... 


Monday, March 18, 2013

Waiting and warming

It's been a LONG winter around these here parts. And the fact of the matter is... there's only so much you can do in a little 1100 sq. ft. house for months and months on end! I'm SO thankful we have a basement to let the kids run around and burn off energy... but sometimes, we all just need a change of scenery.

This was one of those days. I didn't feel like loading the kiddos up and heading out in the freezing cold... so we got creative with our afternoon snack time. Marshmallows don't really count as a healthy snack, but they sure bring on the smiles!


Especially when roasted over an "open fire!"


Little C.P (our nickname for Caidre Praise) was just certain one of her sisters would share if she waited long enough!


And sure enough, the wait was worth it!


The event made the even longer wait for Daddy to get home, a little more bearable...


... and a lot more tasty!

Messy, messy... but oh so GOOD!

The classic messy eater picture... we're all got 'em. We've got several with the other two girls, and it's no exception with the last born!


You know the meal is good when there's some heavy duty "shoveling" going on!


And smiles, as big as these! :)

Monday, March 4, 2013

I Love Seeing...

... my baby...


... love on her baby!


Friday, March 1, 2013

A Bushel and a Peck




She's quite the little "doll" eh?! 

(A Bushel and a Peck is from the musical "Guys and Dolls"... I won't exactly be letting the girls see it any time soon, but it's fun to sing around the house! And where she gets her shows moves... I have no idea!)

My Last One...

... is a Mama's girl...


... and I'm soaking it up, all that I can!

Horse Drawn Sleigh

We are so blessed to live right outside a fun quaint little character town (okay, okay... I guess it just got moved up to city status!) and several times a year they put on free events for the community! A big harvest festival, a tree lighting/bonfire, a street rally, and most recently... a winter festival, among many other things!

We weren't sure if we were going to go but when we saw horse drawn sleigh rides on the "roster"... we knew the girls would love it!

But woowee, the temps dipped that day!




As we were waiting our turn, we grabbed an extra blanket from the Expedition and wrapped it around the girls to help keep some of the chill away. 



 Not fancy... but oh so practical!


Some of our neighbors/best friends were a couple of people ahead of us so I couldn't help but snap a picture of S's first sleigh ride too!


The excitement was overpowered by the wind chill, I think! It was WAY colder than we were expecting!


I asked my dear husband to get a quick shot of our little family on the sleigh... but because of my fixed 35mm lens, this was the best his "arm shot" could do! :) Proof that I was there, I guess!



The girls were quick to thank the driver... 


and then Larren was certain that the horsies would feel warmer if she gave them a thank you hug as well!


 We warmed up with some hot chocolate and a bonfire... then went on our way to check out more of the fun things going on!


One of which was an igloo that the girls could play in.


Guess what just got added to the girls "daddy do list" for next winter?!? :)

I'm just thankful it's an igloo and not a team of horses!


The Art Gallery's Newest Member...

The littlest lady of the bunch has officially joined her older sisters in the artist ranks!


Thanks to Auntie Erin and Uncle Josh's Christmas encouragement...


What do ya think... did she like it?! :)



This is what the club meetings look like...



Uhhh.... the littlest member still has a thing or two to learn...


... but we'll be sure to cover proper marker etiquette before the next show opening!