First Snowfall

Early this morning I found myself in Hyrum's bed snuggling Joe. Hyrum had taken over my spot somewhere around 4:30am, so we did the old switcheroo. The room was dark and the wind was howling outside. It sounded like a cold winter's wind. When Joseph woke up, the first thing he did was fumble to a standing position to peek out the window. He immediately started pointing and babbling. I love that baby babble.

We had gotten our first snowfall over night. Although the temperature change isn't my favorite, there's something about the very first snowfall that fills me with excitement! Christmas feels like it's just around the corner. Cool evenings call for hot chocolate and blankets. Early mornings can be spent cuddled over a vent warming up toes and fingers. Christmas cards will soon be sent and the baking and chocolate making will begin! And lets not forget the overwhelming feeling of Joy and Love that always seems to accompany this white season.

Soon we were joined by Hyrum who smothered his little brother in morning hugs and kisses and excitedly peeked out the window to see the snow for himself. Seconds later Camilla hopped on the little single bed for some snuggles and lovin'. Hyrum asked her how her sleep was in his cute little lispy voice. They gave morning hugs and began talking excitedly about snow forts and Santa and Christmas. As I listened, my heart filled with gratitude and love. How grateful I am for children who love each other and for the excitement that comes with the ever changing seasons!

All Tuckered Out

Today was a pretty long day. Hyrum ended up missing out on his nap since we were busy outside constructing Halloween costumes and doing yard work. He did pretty good! Just before dinner, I ran to do a quick errand and came back to this...

Boots and all...

Owies and Wii

Poor Camilla had a little mishap with a kitchen chair at dinner last night.

When I took her sock off her toe was bleeding and turning purple. 

She kept taking deep breaths and giving herself a peptalk. 

"It's okay Camilla. Just breath. But I was fine a minute ago!! I'll be okay! Mommmmmyy!"

She was pretty cute.

She didn't like the ice I gave her, so she ran it under cold water while I bathed the boys.

She's a trooper!
The red on her nail is actually nail polish.

She's not really up for doing a whole lot today. 

Currently she and Hyrum are playing some Wii, MarioKart to be exact.

It's pretty hilarious watching them.

Every time they do something amazing they take a 60 second cheer break!

Good thing this race isn't for reals.

On a side note, you'll never guess who dumped a try of melted ice,

a bag of shredded cheese and his bowl of milk and cheerios all over my 

freshly cleaned floor at 7:00 this morning...

It's a miracle he made it to see the sun rise.

Artwork on my Refrigerator

This morning everyone slept in until 7:44am. Hyrum, however, was back and forth between our bed and his about ten times last night! His newest favorite shoes are his sisters light up sneakers. When he steps they light up, so imagine my surprise when these little red lights blink across my bed room floor at 2:00am. Sometimes I just give in and let him snooze with us, but when he sleeps sideways and has a pair of sneakers on, it's not always the comfiest. 

Instead of homemade cinnamon buns, the littles wanted cheerios for breakfast. Things were going great until Camilla accidentally knocked her bowl into her lap, soaking her favorite Jammie shirt in Milk. I calmly, and quietly cleaned it up with a towel reminding myself that I was going to wash the floor today anyhow. Then Hyrum left his spot at the table and his stuffed animal knocked his bowl of cheerios clear across the kitchen and into the wall. I may have lost my patience as I mopped up the SECOND bowl of cheerios and milk before 8:00am. I'm sure I will look back on this day down the road and laugh.

I fixed our computer this morning for like the tenth time! I was so relieved when the screen finally turned on. I had put about ten hours into a blog book that I hadn't yet had a chance to publish. I quickly typed a little dedication in the front and published it first thing. I was glad that my hours of work spent organizing the pictures and blog posts wasn't lost. I am also going to be updating my hard drive today with all of the recent pictures and videos on this old computer.

Camilla and Hyrum made use of the little table downstairs that we are borrowing from a friend. They drew a whole bunch of stuff. Hyrum mostly scribbled all over his paper and then went upstairs and proudly hung his work on the bottom half of the fridge. Camilla has gotten pretty good lately. The things she comes up with make me laugh. Yesterday she started drawing giraffes, and they are pretty hilarious. Although I save most of the good stuff in a shoebox under my bed, I thought I should post a few in here for safe keeping. The first one is of Me, Camilla, and Daddy. The second one is Camilla and I going on the swings. The third one is an elephant that I drew (don't laugh) and she colored. The last one is one of her many giraffes. I love watching her work grow and change. I love the way that girls get eyelashes while boys get eyebrows. Fills the space nice on my fridge!

Fall Favorites

Today the weather was pretty warm, so we took advantage of it and spent the afternoon outdoors. We raked the few leaves in our back yard into a pile to jump and play in. The kids had a lot of fun with it!

 Camilla picked out the funniest little outfit for the day, I wish I had snapped a picture of it before she put her coat on. She wore a frilly red shirt with another long sleeved red shirt underneath it. Paired with her pink polka-dot tights and jean skirt, it was pretty cute. I also love when she pairs her bright yellow rubber boots with tights.

 Hyrum cracked me up all day with funny little things he would say. Out of the blue this morning he says, "I don't swim under water though, Mom, because I'm a GUY!"

He sure loves playing with his sister! 

 Camilla kept leaping from her stool doing spins or other funny tricks. She misses our deck and giant pile of leaves we used to get at our old little white house.

 And then there's Mr. Joe, so serious!

 Camilla's a pretty great big sister to have.

 I just loved watching and snapping pictures of the fun...

Later in the afternoon I put my multi-tasking skills to the test. With dinner sizzling in the slow-cooker, and bread dough rising on the counter, I whipped up our favorite Ginger cookies. Auntie Emma helped us roll to get them done in time for me to roll out the bread dough falling over the edge of the dish. Camilla's cookies were perfectly round, with no cracks in them. She works so hard to make things perfect, I love that about her. Hyrum's job was to roll them in the sugar and put them on the plate. As he placed each one on the plate he would say, "One for Dad, one for me, one for Dad, one for me, and one for me too!" My sister and I laughed pretty hard at that. Once we finished I rolled that dough into a dozen buns for dinner, a loaf of bread and a pan of Cinnamon buns! The house smelled amazing. Baking is definitely a Fall favorite!

Cinder-illa

My children are always the happiest when they are helping.

They frequently ask to help with things like vacuuming, sweeping, and dishes.

Camilla volunteered to sweep the floor after breakfast today.

She did a pretty good job too! 

Most of what she found came from under Joe's highchair.

She's getting so big!

Close to Home

Tonight there was a house fire near our home.

Mike and I were reading together in the front room when we heard all the sirens.

We didn't think too much of it, sirens go off frequently in the city. 

Soon a bunch of cars were parking near by and people were walking down our block.

We looked out the front window and saw orange flames reflecting in the house across the street.

We went out back and looked down the block to see fire fighters battling a huge blaze four houses down.

It was super sad to think about that family losing their home and belongings. 

Everyone made it out safe thankfully!

I snuggled next to Mike before bed feeling a bit emotional.

I was also feeling ever so grateful for our many blessings and safety which we enjoy.

This week hopefully we will hear of some way we can help the families involved.

Our prayers go out to them.

Find a Penny, Pick it Up

My sister has been doing some theme photography in between her family shoots. She asked if she could borrow my little blondie for a few hours and came back with these great shots!

Eleven Months

Dear Joseph,

Today you are ELEVEN months old! Only one short month away from a year. You have grown and changed so much in just the last few weeks that it's hard to document every little thing. But I will try my best!

I think that your biggest accomplishment this month is learning to sleep through the night. I didn't push it, but you were getting pretty heavy to rock and I was in desperate need of some extra rest. It didn't take much to coax you into sleeping through the night when you were finally ready to do it. Now, you go to sleep all on your own for every nap and each bed time. We usually put you to sleep first since you're the youngest, and usually the most sleepy. After a bottle, some snuggles and multiple kisses goodnight, we simply lay you in your crib and then listen to you sing yourself to sleep on the monitor. Moments after you settle in for the night, Hyrum and I will sneak in so that he can go to sleep too. You are getting used to sharing a room and hardly wake up when your brother has bad dreams anymore. 

You are getting pretty steady on your feet. Whenever we play downstairs on the carpet you will crawl over to me, stand up and then let go and balance on your own. You get quite excited and like to show off. This week you even took TWO steps all by yourself. We are anxiously awaiting the day you decided to start walking. 

You love playing with Camilla and Hyrum and always try to get in on whatever they are doing together. You're pretty rough and tumble lately and don't mind so much when they smother you in hugs and play on the floor with you. Whenever you are part of the action, you are happy.

You really enjoy being outside and get grumpy with me when I let the older two out to play and keep you inside. We usually end up joining them. Your favorite thing to do is push the car around or dig in my garden. You are getting better at keeping the dirt out of your mouth and in the garden. 

At eleven months you like to talk and visit with anyone who will listen. You recognize when people are leaving and will often wave and shout "Ba-Byeeeee!" It melts our hearts. You are super goofy and giggly. The other day you and Daddy kept shaking your heads at each other and you were laughing pretty hard. 

You love toast, cheerios, peaches, pears, cut up bananas, small pieces of chicken, chili, spaghetti and all sorts of food. You will eat pretty well anything we put in front of you and are a pretty solid kid to pick up.

You have such a great attitude and are a joy to be around! You are often smiling, babbling and checking things out. Thanks for bringing so much happiness to our little family! 

Love ya Joe,

-Mom

A Morning Walk

 The littles woke up a bit grumpy this morning, so I knew it was a day where I needed to keep everyone busy and happy. We made up some colored goop with cornstarch and water, which turned out to be super fun for quite a long time. The science of that stuff still amazes me. Once the sun came out and warmed everything up, we went out for a walk down the trail to our favorite little bridge. 

The Fall colors were amazing, the bright blue sky, the golden glow of the sun and the bright leaves.

 

 The littles love looking at the reflection in the water and throwing rocks over the edge.

My sister was around for the day and made sure to join us! It was great to visit as we walked, and have the extra help with everyone.

 Hyrum is a pretty handsome little man. I adore his big blue eyes and blonde hair. We frequently get stopped on the trail and receive many compliments on his hair. He has such a quiet, pensive personality. He just likes to observe and think. 

 Joe is super close to walking and has even taken a few steps on his own! Lately he is a giggly ball of energy. It makes me want to squeeze him tight and kiss his cheeks all day long. He has become pro at going to sleep on his own which has made both nap and bedtime that much easier for everyone involved. I adore that ball of boy.

 Auntie Emma was great at multi-tasking, holding hands and pushing strollers. I was also super impressed with Camilla's little legs. She peddled a long ways!

In order to walk up to speed I had to lift Hyrum up like this sometimes or else he would end up peddling his legs off to keep up with the speed I was walking. He thought it was hilarious though and compared it to being on a motor bike. The sound effects this boy produces are priceless. We are hanging onto days like these and jumping on opportunities to get outside and have fun!