Our Easter

I love Easter.  It is a wonderful holiday where we get to spend time together as a family and reflect on the life and resurrection of our Savior.  We always have such good and uplifting discussions all day long about the Savior and the resurrection and what it means for us in our individual lives.  Not that we don't have wonderfully spiritual conversations on other days, but the spirit just seems to be so strong on Easter.

We did attempt another public Easter egg hunt.  This one was for the neighborhood we live in put on by the Home Owner's Association.  It was raining lightly so after the kids got their usual one egg we went home.

The kids love to color eggs as well and it is a tradition that they do with their father.  They love going to the store to pick out which coloring kit they are going to use.  They have decided though that next year they don't need a kit because they can just use food coloring and get the same results.  I like that idea too.

What a good looking group about to make some good looking eggs.

Lizzie loves this tradition and had some cool new ideas this year to try.

Rebecca patiently waiting for her eggs to get nice and bright.

Dakota and her rainbow of spring colors.

Megan thought the eggs were fun until she put faces on them
and then she thought they were hilarious.

Alex is still in apprentice mode but he had fun watching
the others and learning what works and what doesn't so
he will be a pro by the time he colors his first egg.

Easter morning was nice.  The kids woke to find their treats from the Easter Bunny.  The bunny even left behind a few foot prints.

I found a recipe for Easter Rolls a few years ago and it has become a traditional Easter breakfast treat.  The girls really look forward to these rolls.  We take a marshmallow and dip it in butter then roll it in cinnamon sugar, wrap them up in a crescent roll, then bake them in the oven.  When we take them out the marshmallow is not there anymore.  This reminds the kids of how Christ's body was laid in the tomb and how the tomb was empty when they went back.  There are many other symbols we talk about but you get the idea.  While the rolls are good, the thing they look forward to most is talking about what everything represents as they make the rolls.

Easter Rolls (plus a few non sugary ones for Daddy.)

While the kids were busy coloring the eggs with daddy I did an Easter project of my own.  Okay, so it's not really an Easter project but it is something I have been wanting to do for a long time and this was the perfect time for me to finish it. 

Prophets, Seers, and Revelators

I wanted the family to become more familiar with the living Apostles of the Lord and the best way I thought to do that was to hang their pictures on the wall so that we could see them everyday so I hung them on the wall along with the Prophet.  It doesn't look that big in the picture but the pictures are each 8x10 so it nearly takes the whole wall.  The kids love it and I think that it has helped to bring a special spirit in to our home. 

Finals Week

Next week is finals week at school for me.  I am so stressed out right now!  I only made it through this semester on a wing and a prayer (more prayers than wings though.)  I hope I do good on the finals.  One final exam is do or die, if I don't pass the final I don't pass the class, even though I have a 91% in the class right now...no pressure, right?!  The girls are a little jealous, they still have another month to go before school gets out for them, sorry girls.

Not just for hollidays anymore

This is a really silly post but I was so excited I wanted to remember it.  We have always loved the hot rotisserie chicken you get at the deli in the grocery store.  Many years ago we decided that since we loved the rotisserie chicken so much we should by a rotisserie machine, and so we did.  It was a small machine, only holding up to a 5 pound chicken, but our 3 kids were small at the time so it was all we needed.  We loved it!!  I would rotisserie chicken all the time and it always came out perfect.  Over the years as our family has grown in size as well as age we realized that one 5 pound chicken was no longer enough.  We needed a larger rotisserie.  I have been thinking about a larger rotisserie for a long time but just couldn't bring myself to look at it because I knew it was costly.  For our anniversary this year CJ told me to buy the rotisserie since it would be great for both of us.  I really wanted to but still wasn't sure so we didn't get anything.  We really needed a bigger machine so I started looking at them and after learning that not only can we rotisserie two 5 pound chickens at the same time but we could also cook a 15 pound turkey as well I was sold.  It has been 3 months since our anniversary but I finally decided to go ahead and splurge and finally get our anniversary present.  It didn't hurt that I got a brand new one for 70% off on Amazon with free shipping either.

As soon as we got it we put a 15 pound turkey in it to see if it would come out just as perfect as the chickens.

The turkey begins to cook.

Looking scrumptious.



A beautiful turkey for dinner.

The turkey did come out just as delicious as the chickens.  After dinner I put the leftovers in the freezer so that we could enjoy this yummy turkey twice.  It was so fun having a candle lit turkey dinner just because we could.  I can't wait to do two chickens at the same time.

Long post about soap.

I am always trying to find ways to cut spending any where I can.  I had read on the internet about a family who made their own laundry soap. They said their clothes were clean and it saved them a ton of money.  I thought it was cool, but wasn't motivated enough to run right out and make my own though.  Last year however, a neighbor of mine shared the recipe with me again and said that she personally used it.  I got more excited and decided it was time for me to give it a try.  The ingredients were easy enough to find and only cost $22 (I bought some scented oils to add to the soap to make it smell more traditional) plus I already had a 5 gallon bucket on hand so I followed the instructions and made my first batch of homemade laundry soap.  I was very proud of myself.  I now had 5 gallons of laundry soap with enough ingredients left over to make 10 more gallons. 

The instructions came with a usage guide as well.  Following their suggested usage guidelines for my HE (high efficiency) washer I should have had enough soap to last me for 3 years with the amount of ingredients I bought.  This made me very excited to think that I would only spend a little over $7 a year for laundry soap.  I washed my first load and was not sure if the soap really worked or not.  The clothes smelled okay and the clothes looked clean enough but something just didn't feel right.  The next load was the whites and when they were finished I could tell that the soap just wasn't cleaning as well as I hoped and I realized that must be what was causing my uneasiness.  About the same time I had trouble with my dishwasher.  After listening to suggestions on how to fix it the problem was discovered...Payson city just has some of the hardest water I have ever known.  It took a while to get the hard water deposits off the inside of the dishwasher but I did it and with the aid of a wonderful product added to the dishwasher, along with extra dish soap the dishwasher was finally cleaning the dishes again.  That's when I figured out the solution for the laundry soap problem.  The extra hard city water combined with the super capacity size of our washer meant that we weren't using near enough soap in the washer.  After some experimenting with the amount of soap I had to use with each load I finally felt comfortable using it again and began using my own laundry soap and feeling proud. 
Unfortunately the whites never did recover and they just seemed to be getting worse.  After the second batch of soap ran out, about a year since I began making it, I was too busy to make more (see my posts about school for reference) so I broke down and bought a jug of laundry soap.  It had been so long since I needed to buy it that I felt a little guilty for not just making more.  However, after I washed the whites in the store bought soap I didn't feel guilty anymore.  It made my whites look almost new again in just one wash.  I have been debating on what to do since I now know for sure that my soap cleans okay but I could be getting a better clean.  A year's worth of commercial soap is about $48 (if prices don't get any higher) vs. $15 for my own soap (since I have to use more it didn't last as long.)  With money being so tight I hate to think about spending the extra cash.  Not a lot when you spread it out over a year I know, but every penny counts. 
I don't really know why I am even putting this down in our family's history but I guess it could be a small reminder to how tough times were...at least I hope they get better in the future.  I have decided to go ahead and buy my laundry soap for now, but I have enough ingredients left to make another batch of soap should the store prices go too high.  For now I will keep looking for other ways to stretch our dollars until they scream for mercy.

Happenings

It feels like it has been forever since I have last posted.  School is keeping me really busy with all the other things I have going on.  We are mostly doing the same as always.  Elizabeth and Rebecca are keeping busy with school.  They are such a wonderful help to me.  They have started walking home from school on nice weather days.  Not a big deal for them I know but for me it is a big deal.  They do enjoy the exercise and sunshine on the days they walk so that is good.  Dakota has spring fever and goes outside whenever she can but it is still pretty cold so she can't wait for warmer temps.  She is counting the days until she is in Young Womens with her sisters.  Megan is growing like a weed.  She is so sweet and funny and she just melts my heart every time she flashes her sweet smile at me and tells me that she loves me.  She still has a hard time when Alex touches her or her things but she loves him.  I love to watch her teach him something and then tell him he is a good boy and pat him on the back when he does what she says.  Alexander is growing too.  He is such a busy little guy.  He loves to touch and play with EVERYTHING.  Typical baby stuff yes, but it is still so fun to watch.  It still amazes me how fast babies grow and learn.  He is still so little that I just want to hold him and rock my little baby but he quickly lets me know that he is not a baby anymore no matter how little he is.  CJ still works for the same company and we are grateful everyday that he is able to go to work.  They have threatened to close his department so many times but still have not done it so we feel blessed. 

Being so far from both of our families I always fear when the phone rings and it is family.  I love to talk to them any chance I get but you never know when it is not going to be good news they are calling with.  The morning of March 9th I received a call from my mom and this time it was not good news, in fact it was one of the calls I fear the most.  She called to tell me that my father had a heart attack at work and was just rushed to the hospital and she would call again when she knew more.  My first thoughts were how to get to Arizona as quickly as possible, I couldn't stand being so far away at a time like this.  I am so thankful for the effort my mother made to keep me up to date on his condition.  She knew how hard it was for me not being able to be there.  She even had him call me when he was able just so that I could hear his voice and know that everything would be okay.  Because he got to the hospital so quickly they were able to treat him and stabilize him before any major damage was done.  I was able to go to Arizona with all the kids this last week to spend time with him.  What a blessing that was.  He is doing very well and has even returned to work.

The weekend that we were in Arizona happened to be the date of my niece Heather's wedding.  She and I had talked about the wedding and I really wanted to be there so I was very excited that I got to be there for her on her special day. 

Engagement picture.

Heather with her Bridesmaids and Sydni as the flower girl.

Heather



Patrick and the Groomsmen.

 

Heather and Patrick.

On the day of the wedding the girls got together with some of their cousins to hold a charity lemonade stand and bake sale.  I was busy helping to decorate for the wedding so I didn't get any pictures of the lemonade stand but they did a great job.  Together they earned $112 that they donated to the Red Cross for relief efforts in Japan.  They all signed a letter and sent it to the Red Cross with the money.

Elizabeth, Rebecca, Dakota, Maxi, Sami, Megan, and Dani
with the money and letter for the Red Cross.

UNCLE!

Just thought I would post a couple videos that I thought are really cute.

This is one that Dakota took while I was doing the laundry.  Alex is so funny.  He hears music and he will just start dancing.  I thought it was funny how Megan and Gavin (the little boy I babysit) started dancing Alex style.  Too cute.

The second one cracks me up every time.  Alex learned how to blow zerberts on his daddy's tummy and he loves doing it any chance he gets.  Last night Alex decided to give Megan a zerbert on her tummy and we actually got it on video.  Remember when you were a kid and your big brother was torturing you and he wouldn't stop until you yelled UNCLE!?  Megan wants Alex to stop but he doesn't so she says uncle.  It's hard to hear but it is so funny that she even knew to say it.  I love Alex's mischievious little laugh.

Megan

Here are just a few things that Megan has said recently that make me laugh.

I took Megan with me to run a quick errand and on the way back this is what she said.
Megan-"Are we going home now?"
Me-"Yes"
Megan-"Do we have to?"
Me-"Yes.  Why don't you want to go home now?"
Megan-"There are too many sisters there."

One morning I was busy and forgot that I hadn't fed Megan breakfast yet.  She said she already had breakfast.  I asked her what she ate and she said, "peoples."  I said you ate people for breakfast and she said yes, she was very serious even though I was about to crack up.  I looked at Elizabeth who had been with her most of the morning and Lizzie said that she had given Megan some Sour Patch Kids.

Dakota has a whoopee cushion she likes to play with.  Megan picked it up and Lizzie asked her what it was.  She replied, "that's Dakota's whoopin."

I found Megan and Alex in my bathroom where she knows they are not supposed to be.  As we were leaving the bathroom she told me how she had gone in there to get Alex and bring him out.  I thanked her for being such a big girl and helping me, she looked at me and said, "I am his sister you know" like it was her job as a sister to help the baby.

Goals

Lizzie gave the lesson for our family home evening tonight and the lesson was on setting goals.  She used the Preach My Gospel manual to prepare her lesson.  She did such a wonderful job!  I was so impressed with the ideas she came up with, the handouts she made, the scriptures that she included, and the activities she used not only for the big kids but for the little ones as well so that they could be included.  She was so confident in her teaching and everyone was so excited to participate.  We talked about making personal goals and even set two family goals together, one was long term and one we actually accomplished before the end of the lesson.  One of the handouts she made was from a handout she had received from her Young Women class that hangs on our fridge.  She made us each a personal copy so that we could have it with us every time we sit down to write or evaluate our goals.  This is what it said:

Make "SMART" Goals!

S: specific
M: measurable
A: attainable
R: record & report
T: time-based

The other handout that she gave each of us was a quote from the Preach My Gospel manual.  One of the talks given in Church yesterday talked about this quote and it really struck me, so when Lizzie used it in her lesson I was so excited.  I was especially excited that she made me a copy of the quote so that I could see it every day.   Here is that quote:

"I am so thoroughly convinced that if we don't set goals in our life and learn how to master the techniques of living to reach our goals, we can reach a ripe old age and look back on our life only to see that we reached but a small part of a full potential. When one learns to master the principles of setting a goal, he will then be able to make a great difference in the results he attains in this life."

                                                                         - Elder M. Russell Ballard
 
For our treat afterwards she had made everyone their own "dirt cup" and even put them in to the cups that I bought for ice cream sundaes so that they would look special.  It was so much fun sitting around the table with everyone talking and enjoying the evening.  Thank you Lizzie, for all of your hard work.

Eating woes

The first thing Alex wanted to do when he was born was eat.  This kid is one hungry eating machine.  Unfortunately eating has been a challenge for him since the day he was born.  First he had to struggle to get enough milk because I wasn't producing as much as I thought I was and I didn't supplement him enough to make up for what he wasn't getting from me so he was very hungry for his first 4 months.  I had to start feeding him formula full time when he was 4 1/2 months which was also about the time we introduced cereal to him so he was happy for a little bit because he was finally learning what it was like to feel full.  At about 6 months he started eating vegetables and some fruits.  That's when he also started getting a bad diaper rash.  I thought it was a yeast rash at first because the medicine for yeast cleared it up.  Unfortunately the rash kept coming back.  Eventually nothing would clear it up and diaper changes became torture for both of us, although he got the worst of it.  I didn't want to go to the doctor.  I guess I felt that it was just a diaper rash and that as a mother I should be able to handle it without running to the doctor.  Hind sight is always 20/20.  Anyway, I did pray much about it for help on what to do.  I got the answer that he was having an allergic reaction.  The only experience I had with allergic reactions was when Lizzie was an infant she had to have soy formula because she would spit up too much with regular formula but that was about it so I didn't realize that this rash might be a food allergy. 

I stopped giving him all solid food except for rice cereal because I knew it was safe.  His rash did get better so I started giving him solid foods one by one to see what he reacted to.  It seemed to be any "orange" foods would cause a reaction like carrots, sweet potatoes, and peaches.  I cut all those out of his diet and things were okay for a short time and then the rash came back.  After a while I cut him from all foods again out of frustration and just gave him formula deciding that I should just call the doctor and ask for help.  It had been about 5 months since we had started battling the unknown allergy.  With more prayers I again got the answer that it was an allergy but this time it was a little more specific.  The one thing I had not cut out of his diet was the one thing that he was allergic to.  The cause of all the misery and frustration was the formula.  I immediately went and got a can of soy formula.  The result was immediate.  His rash had started going away with the first bottle of soy and was completely gone by the next day.  I felt like such an idiot.  What a simple fix and because of my stubbornness my son had to suffer much longer than he should have. I'm sure the doctor could have told me right away to try soy formula.  A little back story on that though.  Because Lizzie had to use soy formula I just gave all my children soy formula without really giving much thought to it other than it wouldn't hurt to be on the safe side.  When Alex's doctor asked what formula I might need to supplement him with I told him soy and he asked why.  After telling him that it is just what I've always done he said that it wouldn't hurt but usually soy is only if the child needs it.  I thought about that for a while so this time instead of giving him soy I started him on regular formula since he wasn't Lizzie and he was just fine.  Things seemed to be okay so I didn't think anything more until the day I switched back to soy.  Now looking back I can see that he had a problem with it from the start.  He used to spit up so much we called him the spit-up king.  I now remember that was the reason Lizzie was switched to soy.  Because he was only supplemented with it in the beginning and I didn't give him full time formula until he started eating food I didn't see the connection between the rash and the milk.  If I had just given him soy in the beginning like I always did and not second guess myself then this all could have been avoided. 

With all the formula issues solved one month before he is old enough to not need formula anymore...ahhhh...I thought his eating woes might be over...nope.  Not wanting to give him regular milk, now that he can drink milk, I give him soy milk.  Unfortunately he is allergic to that too.  Poor little guy.  I did talk to his doctor at his one year check up and he said that I could just keep giving him the formula in a cup for now so that is what we are doing.  He is still a little eating machine.  He will eat as much as Megan at mealtimes and be hungry five minutes later.  I have a hard time keeping him full because he is hungry all day long.  I knew boys ate a lot but I didn't realize just how much "a lot" was. 

Beauty and the Beast Jr.

The first week of school started of with a bang for Rebecca.  That week she had auditions for her school's major musical production.  She had never auditioned for anything more than a part in a class play before so this was all new to her.  She had to come prepared with a musical piece and then recite lines as well.  She was so shy in elementary school that I was surprised at how excited she was to audition.  She really wanted to be in the show though so she prepared a song and set a goal to do her very best no matter what.  She did a great job and I am so proud of her for accomplishing her goal. 

This year the school chose "Beauty and the Beast Jr." which is the high school (or in this case Jr. High) version of the stage play for Disney's Beauty and the Beast.  I couldn't believe how early in the year the auditions were since the show wasn't until January.  I also didn't realize how big of a production this was and how much time they would really need to rehearse.  She was very excited though and being cast as a member of the chorus her rehearsals started right away.  They rehearsed after school for 2 or 3 days every week.  It was a grueling schedule for her but she enjoyed every minute of it.  She was so dedicated to the show and was so enthusiastic that she was given extra characters to play and even two speaking parts.  In the village she was a villager, outside the castle she was a wolf as they attacked Maurice then Belle and the Beast (she was one of the wolves who actually attacked the Beast), and inside the castle she was a dancing napkin.  One of the two speaking parts was in the tavern just after Gaston sang his big number and the other was as a narrator near the end of the show.  If I remember right she had to change costumes 6 times. 

About 3 months before the show Lizzie announced they were going to do a real pit orchestra this year for the musical and she wanted to be in it.  She has only been playing the clarinet for a little over a year so this music was difficult (impossible at times) for her skill level but she went to rehearsals every week as well and did her best.  She didn't like it at first but as she became more familiar with the music and was able to play more and more she came to love it.

Opening night finally came and the girls were so excited.  We all were because we were finally going to get to see this musical that we had been hearing so much about for so many months.  We got a babysitter for Alex and went to the show as a family.  I was blown away!  The set was wonderful, the costumes were great, the students were fantastic, and the pit orchestra rocked.  The kids had really worked hard and we really enjoyed the performance, no one more so than Megan I think.  I just beamed with pride as my Rebecca performed each of her characters flawlessly and got a little nostalgic watching Lizzie play in the pit (technically the school doesn't have a pit so they were just off to the side of the stage, but they made it work.)  I am so proud of both my girls!  They worked hard and it showed.  Congratulations Lizzie and Rebecca!

I think though that the best benefit they got from doing the play was all the new friends they gained.  They have this little circle of friends they hang out with at school now and that is something that both of them have needed for so long.  Because we move so much and they are usually so shy friends are something that has never come easy.  I am so happy to see them interacting with such a great group of kids. 

Obviously flash photography was not an option so I couldn't get any pics of the performance, but here are the pictures that we did get.


This is Rebecca on the night of her first dress rehearsal. 



Rebecca with "Madame DeLa Grand Busche" (the talking wardrobe.)

Rebecca with "Gaston".  He really played the part so well.

Rebecca with "Lafou", Gaston's sidekick.



Lizzie with her friend from pit orchestra and "Lafou".



What was I thinking?!

I was sooo excited to start school this year.  It has been something I have been looking forward to for a very long time.  I knew that it would be difficult with a baby so I waited until we were done having kids and the youngest kid was at least a year old.  That time is finally here and I couldn't believe I was actually going back to school myself.  We are only four weeks into school now and I am sooo not excited anymore.  If it were just a matter of making it to class, taking good notes, and taking tests it wouldn't be a problem but there is one thing that I forgot to factor in...homework!  I forgot how much homework each teacher likes to assign.  With everything else I have going on right now...what was I thinking. (Lest you think that I spend all my time blogging and not enough time on homework, I do all my blog posts on the weekend and just schedule them to come out during the week.)  I am going to finish this semester and do the best I can hoping for good enough grades that they let me go back, but I am seriously reconsidering whether or not this was the right time for me to go back to school.

Too excited.

Ever since we knew we would be buying a house with an unfinished basement we have been trying to figure out how we want to finish it.  I made copies of the plans of the basement we got when we first started building and we have sketched many different ideas, some of which we liked but couldn't really visualize any of them enough to choose just one.  To help with that problem we bought a program for the computer that let us design our basement (and landscaping too) and then showed us in 3-D what it would look like so we had a better idea of which plans would work.  We had so much fun playing with that program that it became a little addicting.  It did it's job really well though and we were able to settle on one plan that we all love very much.  It will add 3 more bedrooms (Rebecca and Dakota would share the big one, Lizzie would have her own room and I will use one as my craft room), a full bathroom, an entertainment room, and lots of great storage when its done.  The problem is that we can see the finished product and really want it done now so we can start enjoying the new rooms.  We are a little too excited for what will be the basement that it is frustrating to know it won't be done for a long time.  We plan to start buying the lumber here and there and work on the basement as time permits so we know it could take years before it will look like the pictures we are seeing now.  The saddest part is that if it takes too long the rooms we have planned for the girls won't be done before they are able to use them.  I am hoping for a miracle that somehow we are able to get it done soon.  Anyway, here are a few snapshots of our future basement complete with furniture.

1 year old

Yup...I blinked and my tiny baby boy is one year old.  What a joy it has been watching this little boy grow.  Oh how I love him sooo much!  He is so sweet and funny.  His personality is really showing now.  He loves to play, sing, dance, cuddle (toys and blankets...not so much mamma), eat, run, and do anything for a laugh.  Even surrounded by so many girls he is all boy.  He is really trying to communicate more.  His favorite thing is to point at things and say "ohhhh" like it's the most amazing thing he has ever seen.  It sounds so cute.  He also is learning that he has some power.  When anyone, especially Megan, has something he wants he knows just what to do and how loud he needs to yell to get it.  It's funny because I keep telling him to use his words, like he actually has a vocabulary, and sometimes he will settle down and just grunt instead of yell.  He does repeat "uh-oh" when we say it and he likes to hit his head on objects or fall down and say "ow" just for laughs.  He doesn't do it often but he will say da-da when he sees CJ.  His newest ones aren't words but he did finally start waving bye-bye, and he shakes his head "no" when he doesn't want something.  He loves to give high-5's and will even grab your hand and put it up so he can give you 5.  He also loves to give hugs to every child he meets.  Oh yeah, he did finally learn to run unfortunately his coordination hasn't quite kicked in yet so he can't run for longer than a few seconds.  His balance is still developing as well so he is constantly falling and he is getting so frustrated with falling.  I could go on and on but I won't, I'll stop talking and put up some pics of this little guy growing so big.

Sweet baby feet.



This is the outfit I've had since Lizzie was born and we didn't know if she was
a boy or girl.  I have been waiting a long time to put this outfit on a little boy.



6 weeks

3 months

5 months

7 months

10 months

1 year

Isn't he soooo sweet?!  His sisters just adore him and love to show him off where ever they go.  His daddy keeps planning all these father-son activities and even bought him his first set of Hotwheels for Christmas.  I love to hold him and wonder what he will be like in every stage of his life.  We all love him so much and are so grateful that he chose our family so that he is ours for eternity.  Our family definitely was not complete with you Alex.

Alex's 1st Birthday

We celebrated Alex's 1st birthday a little early so that we could share this most special day with family.  Everyone gathered together at my mom's house for cake and ice cream and to watch this little guy dig into his very own cake.  He was very intimidated by the huge number of people all gathered around him just watching his every move.  He grabbed at the cake when I first put it on the table but I had to tell him no because we hadn't sang the birthday song yet so after the song was done he didn't want to get in trouble and didn't touch the cake.  I felt bad because normally he would have had the cake gone in 60 seconds but he just sat there with a very tempting cake in front of him not knowing what to do.  I put a little frosting in his mouth and that seemed to do the trick.  The taste of frosting was more powerful than the fear of getting in to trouble.  He lightly touched the cake to see what our reactions would be.  Not looking at the cake but instead watching every one's faces he began to put his fingers in the cake.  Little by little he put his fingers deeper in to the cake until his whole fist was in it and since no one was taking it away he finally trusted his instincts to eat the cake.  He took a few big bites and then decided it would be fun to play in the cake while eating it so he grabbed on with both fists and just smooshed until there was no resemblance of the original cake.  He did eat quite a bit of that smooshed cake and even dove in face first to eat more.  It was so much fun to watch.
 

On his actual birthday we kept singing happy birthday to him all day. My favorite was listening to Megan just burst out singing to her little brother at odd times throughout the day. He got a ball pit for his birthday and couldn't wait to play. He likes to play in the balls but he likes to throw them more, it's a good thing he isn't that strong yet.

 Happy 1st Birthday Alexander!!

Happy New Year!!

We were originally going to leave Arizona the Tuesday after Christmas and I was so sad because I really, really, really wanted to spend New Year's Eve with my family too.  We always have such a good time with them and I didn't want to leave so soon after getting there.  Just as we were getting in the car to come home a miracle happened, so instead of going home we were able to stay for the rest of the week, so we unpacked the car and celebrated. 


Decorating for the big celebration.



Starting a new tradition of New Year's Eve fondue.



Lots of food is needed for 23 people and a 6 hour party.

I knew Alex wouldn't be able to stay up till midnight but I was surprised when I couldn't find Megan and when I did find her she had put herself to bed and was fast asleep.  My brother had gotten a writing pad accessory for the Wii so we played Pictionary on the Wii until it was time to watch the ball drop.

When the clock turned 2010 into 2011 we made tons of noise.  I think this has to be right up there as one of Dakota's favorite holidays because she went outside and screamed at the top of her lungs until she just couldn't scream anymore.  It's the only time she can do that (especially at midnight) without anyone stopping her and she took full advantage of the pipes she was born with.  What another great celebration with the family.  How grateful I am that we were able to stay and enjoy.