Halloween 2011

Payton and Piper decided to be Cinderella and Rapunzel this year. The girls collected tons of goodies at our ward truck-or-treat and trick-or-treating around our neighborhood. We made the annual trip to Schaake's Pumpkin Patch with Devin's family to find the perfect pumpkins. Devin and Payton did a great job carving our pumpkins.  Piper helped design the face she wanted on her pumpkin but wanted no part in carving it again this year.  Paisley was all smiles for her pumpkin photo shoot.

Paisley's blessing

While we were in Washington, we blessed Miss Paisley. Devin did a wonderful job and Paisley was an angel as always.  She was awake and looking around throughout the whole thing. It was so nice to be able to bless her in the ward I grew up in, and to have most of my family there to help us celebrate our sweet little girl. My parents threw a nice BBQ after church with some friends and family. It was a wonderful day.



Daddy and his princess

All the boys minus Tanner (his best friends baby was also blessed that day in another ward)

The whole gang

Washington 2o11

Our trip to Washington started off a little rough.  What was supposed to be a one day trip with two flights turned into a two day trip with four flights.  Our flight leaving Kansas was delayed because of a thunder storm in Denver.  By the time we finally made it to Denver we had missed our connecting flight to Washington. Because it was a weather issue the airline would not put anyone up in a hotel, luckily my Mom's sisters live in Denver not too far from the airport.  They were nice enough to pick us up, give us a place to stay, drive me around town at 11:30pm looking for an open store so I could buy diapers and formula, and get us back to the airport the next day.  The girls did pretty good considering all that was going on. All I can say is thank goodness for Ipads, candy, and grandmas.  I am so grateful my mom was with us, or I would have been a hot mess.
Once we finally made it to Washington and had a good nights sleep, the rest of the trip was great.  Grandpa build a swing set, sand box, fire pit and playhouse.  The girls spent the majority of time outside playing.  They have never been so dirty in their lives -- and they loved every minute of it.  They also had a great time playing with cousins.  Payton and Grady spent every moment possible together, and Piper enjoyed  playing with Reese and bossing around poor little Reggie.

Here are some of the highlights:

• swimming with Matt and Tanner at the pond
• tractor rides around the yard with grandpa
• BBQs
• sliding down the monster slip and slid at the ward party
• roasting marshmallows around the bonfire
• swinging with grandma
• swimming
• lots and lots of fishing
• Payton lost her first tooth
• Piper finally decided to be potty trained
• Easter egg hunts, yes I said Easter egg hunts.  My crazy mom thought it would be fun to hide eggs around the yard and leave a note from the Easter Bunny saying he was friends with the Tooth Fairy and she told him we were in town so he left them some eggs and toys to find.  My kids believe everything you tell them.
• Visiting the Tri-Cities Temple
• Having treats and watching cartoons in the playhouse. My dad wired the playhouse with electricity and moved his tv in it for them for a few days.  Playhouses don't get much cooler then that.
• Paisley's blessing
• Movies -- We took the girls to "Smurfs."  The girls liked it, I hope I never have to sit through that again.  My mom and I also went to see "17 miracles," the story about the Willie Handcart Company.  It was a good movie but be prepared to cry.
• playing ball with daddy
• bunny hunts
• finished up Payton's school shopping
• a date to PF Changs
• beautiful weather

The girls and I were there for almost three weeks.  Devin came out to join us for the last week and help with the trip home.  We all had a great trip.  It was nice to be home and spend time with family.

Birthday Girl!

Piper turned three on July 8th.  She sang "Happy Birthday to Me," all day long.  We picked up some McDonald's for lunch and had a picnic in the basement while we watched "Gnomeo and Juliet".  When Devin got home from work we went out for Pizza and then came home for presents, swimming, and cupcakes.  It turns out Piper is afraid of fire and wouldn't even look at the one candle in her cupcake. 

I took Piper to the doctor last week for her 3yr check up.  She has done a lot of growing and changing this year, finally reaching the 50% mark on the growth chart.  She weighed in at a whopping 28 lbs and 36 in tall.  We are hoping the rest of her body is finally catching up with her head.

Piper is our most stubborn and mischievous child so far, which makes for some frustrating days.  She does things at her own pace and is very independent.  She is also our little entertainer -- always dancing, singing, and trying to make us laugh.  We may be in trouble with this one.  Piper is all girl.  She loves dressing up and never goes anywhere without her pearls.  She is our little princess and we are so grateful she is part of our family.

June Happenings

This summer has flown by fast.  We are already back in school and looking forward to fall.  We spent most of the summer inside hiding from the heat. It was just too hot to take a newborn out.  We did manage, however, to make a trip to Deanna Rose Farm.  The girls love the farm and had a great time hanging out with cousins.  As always, they enjoyed feeding the baby goats, riding the little tractors, and seeing the cows and chickens.  This trip I let them ride the horses for the first time --  it was a big hit.  Technically you had to be at least three years old to ride, so I stretched the truth so Piper could ride.  Which was all fine and dandy until she almost fell off.  Again, mother of the year.

As always, a great group shot.

We were also able to get Payton some swimming lessons. Last year we tried hard to get Payton to put her head underwater.  We even tried to bribe her, but nothing worked. So we decided she needed some swimming lessons just to help her be comfortable in the water. She now loves putting her head underwater to see how long she can hold her breath, picking up toys from the bottom of the pool, and jumping off the side. So thankful for an amazing and patient teacher. It turns out Piper is our little fish -- she has no fear. She wasn't taking lessons, but she was in the water the whole time swimming around and jumping off the sides.

Bunny House

While mowing the lawn one night, Devin found a hole full of newborn bunnies. Two of them took off running, but Devin caught them and put them back in their hole. They were the cutest little things. We also saw the mommy bunny sitting over the hole feeding them. This was very exciting for the girls.  They would sit and stare out the windows for hours trying to spot bunnies. After a week or two the bunnies got bigger and hopped away. The girls were very disappointed when they left.  This is the closest they will ever come to having a pet.

I took Paisley to the doctor last week for her one month check-up. She is doing great and filling out quite nicely. She is getting chubby cheeks and rolls on her arms and thighs that could not be cuter. She seems to have a pretty serious little personality so far, but we do manage to get a few little smiles every now and then.  Her sisters are still loving her.  Piper is starting to acknowledge her a little more -- giving her lots of kisses and being as gentle as a two year old can be.  Payton is still always hovering around her and asking tons of questions about how she was when she was a baby.  So far Paisley has been a very sweet, easy baby. Although she still sleeps most of the time.

Paisley weighs 9lbs:  50%

height is 20 1/4 inches:  25%

head circumference is 14 1/3 inches:  50%

Gooooooooooooal!

Another great soccer season has come to an end.  Payton made lots of new friends, and has really improved her skills.  In fact, during the second-to-last game of the season, Payton scored her first goal ever.  We erupted in cheers, and Payton got a little embarrassed.  Devin then got very nervous because he remembered that he had promised Payton at the beginning of the season that if she scored a goal he would buy her a pony. (After two full seasons without coming close to scoring a goal, Devin thought that was a safe bet.)  Then, before Devin had time to fully process his dilemma, Payton scored another goal.  It was amazing.  Her team lost the game 9-2, but it was a game we'll always remember.  Lucky for Devin, Payton had forgotten about their deal and was content to celebrate her goals with lunch at Mr. Goodcents.