The kids couldn’t wait to go out and play in the snow again.  Bree was so excited to build a snowman.  She build one that that was about 12 inches tall.  She had brand bring her raisins & baby carrots so she could finish it off.  It was super cute.  I love her creativity and excitement for life.   Andrew is always a tease.  He started throwing snowballs at Bree and got her frustrated.  What cuties.  I love them so much.

These pictures are my new favorite Christmas decorations!  I took the pictures to get pictures with Santa.  The shoot was setup so the kids didn’t know when he would peak out.  They were definitely surprised.  I loved it!  Bree was tickled pink that she got to see Santa and tell him what she wanted for Christmas.  Andrew was quite nervous.  I loved their Christmas jammies this year.

We had a great Halloween.  I picked up some cute outfits at Children’s Place.  I picked them up early in the season because one thing I’ve learned over the years is that the cutest Halloween costumes get swiped up early in the season.  I should have got Andrew’s costume a size larger – he is growing like a weed!  He is already a size 5.  In fact, I had to cut and otherwise modify his hat so it would fit his head.  I love Bree’s sparkly pink princess shoes.

Our ward does an annual Trunk-or-Treat Halloween carnival.  It was freezing cold this year.  The kids were only able to make it around once before it was time to run in and get warmed up.  Bree was adamant about not wearing a coat – because you wouldn’t see her costume.  I love doing the trunk-or-treat.  It is quick and allows the kids to get their treats in.  That way, when Halloween comes we don’t spend the whole night out in the cold getting treats.  That may change as the kids get older, but so far we have been able to go do fun stuff with the family in addition to the door-to-door treat hunt.

I like my sweet coat…   We need to get more family pictures of us!

On Halloween, BJ, Ranell & Capri and Mom came over.  We took the kids trick-or-treating.  I made some homemade chili and we had pumpkin pie.  We had a great time.

We also carved pumpkins.  The kids enjoyed pulling out the gooey seeds.  Bree was very specific with how she wanted her pumpkin’s face to be cut.

I volunteered at Bree’s Kindergaten Halloween party.  She was so excited that I came to help out.  I was in charge of the craft.  We painted and decorated pumpkins.

My cousin Andrea & Lauri put together an awesome Halloween party that we went up to.  The kids had so much fun.  They put a lot of work into the party – lots of games, activities, food.  It is nice to get together with the extended family.  I wish we could see everyone more often.  Bree had fun playing with their second cousins.  Bree wants us to setup a play date with Cole.

I love to take fall pictures of the kids. Fall is my favorite time of year.  This year, I kept getting distracted with the busy-ness of life, so it was getting towards the end of October and I knew if I didn’t get them done or I would miss it. 

We went right after church and knew that with the days getting shorter, I was working against the clock with light.  Needless to say, light was the least of my worries.  Trying to get 2 tired, burnt out kids to cooperate when you need them to is next to impossible.  Bree would throw a fit, then Andrew would throw a fit.  Apparently, they thought playing on the toys would be more interesting than getting pictures.  Luckily I was persistent and able to get some cute ones!  I also had my mom and Kenzie there which may have helped as well .

We were lucky enough to make it up to Island Park a second time this year.  It was at the very beginning of October, so it was starting to get chilly.  In fact we were there in between snow and rain storms!  There is a fire in the cabin, so we were able to stay plenty warm - nice and cozy.

It was really nice.  I love going up and getting away for a few days.  Riding four-wheelers, watching movies, eating treats, sitting by the fire – fun times!

We learned at Bree’s well-child check that she might need glasses.  Once we took her to an optomolgist, we learned the she really needs glasses.  She was diagnosed with bilateral amblyopia (aka lazy eyes).  Once they finally arrived, I was surprised at how thick they were.  When you look through them, things are extremely magnified and look very blurry (to me).  I am glad we found out that her eyes were so bad early on.  She never complained about her sight and the pediatrician was even questioning if we really need to go to the optomologist or if we should wait until next year to see how she is progressing.  It was very frustrating selecting the glasses.  Bree’s eyes were dilated and she couldn’t see anything so she was getting frustrated with the different options and being able to select which ones she wanted. 

Note the color-coordinated headband, dress & t-shirt.  She picked it out.

When we took Bree to her annual well-child check-up, there was a promo for a kid’s 1K fun run.  I asked Bree if she wanted to participate and she couldn’t wait.  She would go “train” with Brand and Andrew at a little park across the street.  We got her some running shoes and some running clothes she was all set to run.

The day of the race came and she did really well.  I was super proud of her.  Andrew also participated.  After about 50 feet, he got too tired so I ran with him on my back for the rest of the race – harder than you would think.  It was a great experience and I hope the kids choose to keep up with these types of activities in the future.  One of the best thing that happened was picking up 3 t-shirts that the kids use as jammies.   Kevin & Holly also came to watch them.  It is nice being close to family and having them participate.

Like I said, I can’t believe the kids grow up so fast.  It is excited – yet sad.  Full of emotions I guess I should say – good and bad.  You want your kids to stay young and innocent, but it is very rewarding and exciting to see them grow and develop.  I am so blessed to have such great kids and am hopeful for a bright future for both of them.

Bree LOVES pink.  She is pinkalicious.  She is also very concerned about what clothes she wears, her shoes, her accessories, her hair, her headbands, etc. 

Andrew looks like a little stud in this picture.  A tough guy.  He loves lightning mcqueen.

I think this picture of the two of them is super cute.  I love their arms crossed and bright smiles.

I also love this picture of Andrew.  He looks extremely tough in this one.  His head banged up.  Boys must always need to be scraped and roughed up.

We also had 2 parties for Andew – small family & big family.  Andrew is easy to please.  For the small family party we went to Layton park and Chili’s.  I think Chili’s is my favorite restaurant to take the kids.   Bree gets busy coloring and Andrew is busy enjoying chips & queso so they don’t get too fidgetty waiting for dinner to come. 

Andrew is a little character.  Sometimes it can be next to impossible to get him to smile and look at me for a couple pictures.  Usually I have to get “candid” pictures of him.  That or bribe him.  Sometimes I get lucky and he will hold still enough to let me snap a couple cute pictures with him smiling and looking at me.  I have to act quick or I will miss the moment.

Bree, on the other hand, is my little poser.  She will smile and let me snap as many as I need.   Most of the time… If she gets mad she is next to impossible to get pictures of – perhaps worse the Andrew!

For Andrew’s big party, we had all the family over again.  For Andrew’s party we had baked potatoes, steak, & corn on the cob. Kevin, again, made a fantastic cake.  This year was Mickey Mouse.

One of his gifts from Grandma Rich was a Dinosaur hat,  He looked really cute blowing out his candles with the dinosaur hat on.

BJ & Ranell gave him a SwEeT robot.  He sure loved to play with all the toys he got.

Ok. Ok.  So… I’m a lame blog poster.  I’m not very good at keeping this thing updated.  One day.  One day.

So, July is also Bree’s birthday.  She talks about it all year.  In fact, the day after her birthday this year she was already asking how many days until her next birthday.  She turned 5.  How does time go so fast.  Seriously.

We had 2 birthday parties for her – one with the small family and one with the big family.  For the small family party, Bree let me take a few pictures of her and Andrew on the porch.  Kenzie fixed her hair cute and I picked up a cute outfit at Target (my favorite store).

I love how blonde their hair gets in the summer.  And their blue eyes.  And the goofy faces they make. 

We went to the Pizza Faktory and Fat Cats in Ogden to go bowling.  It was fun.  The kids love to go bowling, but have a hard time taking turns.  We also got Bree’s ears pierced.  She has been looking forward to this for a long time.  Especially since cousin Capri has her ears pierced.  She did really well – kind of nervous, but acted tough.

For Bree’s big birthday party – all the family was there.  Kevin made a fantastic cake.  Bree “ordered” a Hello Kitty cake this year.  Apparently, she has also ordered cakes for the next 7 years.  For Bree’s party we had Piccolo’s pizza and cheese sticks – one of her favorites.

Grandma Whicker made a beautiful quilt.  Bree was SO excited about this gift.  She ran into her room and grabbed a dress Holly had made for her out of the same material.

With all the make-up and other girlie gifts she got, she decided to dress-up in her Cinderella outfit.

Bree was super happy Grandma Whicker travelled up to celebrate us.  What a treat!