Merry Christmas!

What a great Christmas we had this year! My awesome sisters sacrificed their presents from my parents so that they could buy plane tickets for us to fly home from Michigan, and we made the most of it! We packed in as many activities as we could, working around illness and a few little side trips (Brett went to the Vegas bowl with his parents and my brother-in-law Kenny, while I went with my parents and the kids to visit my Grandma in Boise for her 88th birthday - doesn't she look fabulous?!?) We were also able to hook up with some of our friends from San Francisco! Christmas Eve was a blast with the annual "Christmas Pageant", exchanging gifts with the cousins and our new (I hope) tradition of a white elephant gift story/exchange! Kody was a wise man, giving the gift of frankinsence - or was it myrrh? and Brett played the duel role of donkey/camel flawlessly! I was the official co-photographer with my sister Ali, and Mollie had the role of poor sick kid. It was awesome! All other parts were filled by various family members too numerous to mention! We were laughing so hard from the reinactment it was hard to concentrate during the white elephant exchange - did Jul just say left or right? Later that evening, my little family was able to open one gift, new jammies that I actually sewed with my own two hands (and lots of help from my awesome neighbor)! And did I mention they match?!? I know, I'm amazing. Really, it was such a good visit and we took turns being sick so the rest of us could have a good time! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday, spent with those you love. Merry Christmas!

It Came Upon a Midnight Clear...

Our church has a Creche (Nativity) exibit every year in our building and people from the area come to see it.  There are thousands of Nativity sets from all over the world!  These are some of the ones we liked and/or thought were interesting.

... See my Tabblo>

Just to Catch Up....

These are some pictures we took this fall when Grandma & Grandpa B visited us. I kept meaning to blog them but never got around to it. I know it's taken a while, but I hope it's worth it! Fall in Michigan is so beautiful, but I found out the hard way that it doesn't last long. Next year I will be more prepared!

temper temper

Mollie's first big tantrum, it lasted at least 20 minutes going full force! This moment was actually when she calmed down a little. She wanted to play with the phone and I wouldn't let her. I think we're in for a bumpy ride with this one - it's a good thing she is so cute!

It's Coming...

Are you ready for Dumbledore's Army?!?

Turkey Day!

We had Thanksgiving dinner with our neighbors this year, what a fun experience! We were also lucky enough to have Auntie Brooke with us from Maryland! We each provided part of the meal. Our assignment was rolls, stuffing, sweet potatoes, salad and a pie. Brett made the rolls and an apple pie and a candy bar cheesecake - yummy! I made the other stuff. I used my mom's sweet potato recipe and it was a hit! I even had seconds and I don't usually like it!

While the adults were eating, all the kids just played in the living room. They had a hard time eating with so much going on, so we just let them run wild!

Brett's Birthday Bash

Brett didn't want a big deal made of his birthday, so we had some friends over for dinner and cake the Friday after.

The highlight of the evening was when all the kids dogpiled on Brett - even Mollie joined in!

Kody and Brigham had a blast in this diaper box, I'm surprised the bottom didn't fall out!

I'm Thankful For...

my family, good friends and an apartment where we don't have to pay the electric bill (especially as the weather gets colder and colder). I'm also thankful for a husband who is always striving to be the best that he can be (no, he didn't join the Army) and who will someday get as far as he can in school and finally have a job! I'm so thankful for my 2 beautiful (even if they are a little high maintenance) children who make me laugh, cry or want to pull my hair out every day. I'm thankful to belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and for the knowledge that I am a child of God. Most of all I'm thankful to be alive in this world where miracles are happening every day! I love you all...

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!

Happy Birthday Princess Mollie!

Can you believe it's already been a year since our little princess joined us?! This year has been filled with so many changes and new adventures. Mollie is now standing, crawling, climbing, trying to walk and feeding herself every chance she gets! She even has a little bit of hair (even though it's so blond you can hardly see it)! She's talking up a storm and she is quite an independent little girl. It will be interesting to see what the coming years will bring! We love you Mollie, happy birthday baby!

Go Blue!

I know the game is over, with a sad ending, but isn't this a cute picture anyway? I am pretty impressed with the Wolverines this season, regardless of this last game. At least they lost to a good team and only by 3 points. In case you have no idea what I'm talking about, today was the big game between Ohio State and University of Michigan. Both teams were undefeated to this point. It is definitely an experience to live in a town with a top-ranked college football team! For example, at the grocery store you can buy UMICH food items like Wheaties, potato chips, mustard (it is yellow you know!), bottled water, etc. There's even a house near the staduim that has a giant "M" painted on the front. I'll have to drive by and take a picture sometime it's hilarious!

Happy Birthday Papa Bear!

Wow, can you believe it?!? Papa Bear turns 30 today. He doesn't want me to make a big deal of it, says it would embarass him, so I just thought that I would put it on the blog and tell the world!
I just want to say, I sure am glad that I let my little sis talk me into working in Alaska with her, and I'm even more glad (?) that Brett didn't listen to me when I said there's no way I could date him, a mere 22-year-old kid! These past several years with him have been the best!
He doesn't want a party or anything, but I'll at least make a cake. If it turns out, I'll post pictures. If not, just use your imagination!

Boo!

I'm having a hard time positioning these pictures, I hope you can see all of them! We had a fun Halloween, even if it was way too cold for our California blood! Our neighborhood has a parade with all the kids going through each complex to show off their costumes! We didn't join the parade this year, it was too cold and the kids don't understand anyway, so we just waited for it to come to us and watched all the kids go by! Our neighbor really loves Halloween and he decorated his yard and trees and dressed up like a scary pumpkinhead holding a crow. At first he jumped out at the kids and growled, but some started crying so he toned it down a bit!






Then Kody and I went trick-or-treating while the parade was finishing up. That way, he didn't get lost in the crowds of kids at each door! Mollie is a little bit sick, so she stayed with a neighbor. The highlight of Kody's evening was when Daddy came home all dressed up like Mr. Incredible!

Halloween Preview

We had our ward Halloween party this weekend, here are some pictures!It's Super Kody!

"I really don't feel like cheering today"

"Okay Mom, we're standing together - now what?""I know I would feel much better without this silly bow!"

"I'll save you!"

coloring a Halloween picture with Daddy

bowling with gourds

and don't forget the "knock over the cans" game!

Boogie Down!

Kody loves to listen to "Woody's Roundup" and the other day he was dancing so cute I had to take a video! He cracks me up all the time! He kept asking, "one more?" and then I'd play it again and he'd ask again. It got a little old for me after a while, but it kept him busy!

Good Luck Boys!

Our friends from San Francisco - let's call them Mr. Ohio and the Canadian - came to stay with is while they interview for the Ortho program at Michigan! Of course we are hoping they both get in, it would be so much fun to have old friends move into our neighborhood!

A Fall Day in Michigan

We spent the morning at Jenny's Farm Stand yesterday. It was such a beautiful autumn day (only a little cold) and we had so many great pictures that I decided to just do another slide show! I hope you enjoy a look at Michigan's beauty.

IT SNOWED TODAY!!!

I created a Slide Show! Check it out!

Get Your Own! | View Slideshow

Cougar Bob & the Frog Grandma

We had a great visit this last week with Grandma & Grandpa B! They brought some awesome California weather with them so we had a little break from the cold and rain. Here are a few pictures of some of the things we did - whew, were we busy!

I think the grands had more fun playing with "Bear's" toys than he does!

Storytime with Grandpa (that's the new BYU book he brought them)

a trip to the "Big House"

tickets are hard to come by, especially for the big UMICH/Michigan State game, but we were able to find one kind soul willing to give up their ticket without charging an arm, leg & 2 kidneys!

We took the bus to campus

for a tour of the University of Michigan

and a checkup from Dr. Daddy!

This is what a classroom looks like when you're in Ortho school?

We took a drive to Dexter, MIto the Dexter Cider Mill, rumored to have the best cider in Washtenaw county!the mill overlooks the Huron River - the colors were so vibrant, these pictures don't do it justicethen we went down the way to Jenny's Farm Stand where the doughnuts are supposed to be the best (I actually liked Dexter's better but these were great too!)Next was a trip to the Ann Arbor Hands-on Museum, just for the kids!Kody's favorite spot was the water table - he was soaked, of course!Mollie's fave was the "18months and under" roomLastly, how could I forget all the countless hours watching football on TV!I'm exhausted just remembering all the fun things we did!

We stayed busy the whole time, and the week went by way too fast. It was sad to say good-bye, but it was a great visit - we hope they come again soon!