We're Off to See the Lizard....

When we lived in Miles City, a family gave us a Dorothy costume. It finally fits Brooke this year and she decided this is what she wanted to be for Halloween, but she didn't really know who Dorothy was. So, we went to the library and checked out the movie, The Wizard of Oz. After Brooke watched the movie, she kept singing, "We're off to see the lizard...!" I tried to tell her it was wizard and not lizard, but she would turn around and sing it the same way. Finally, after a few weeks, I think she's got it right!

The ruby red shoes that came with the costume were too small, though, so we improvised. (My sister gave me the idea.) I went to the good ol' Deseret Industries and bought a pair of shoes (they were black) and had Mike spray paint them red. Then I had some acrylic glitter paint I painted on top. I think they turned out okay, and Brooke absolutley loved them...so I guess goal accomplished!

Brooke was able to wear her costume to school, to the school carnival, and then trick or treating on Halloween night. She loved her costume. When we were outside trick or treating, she didn't want to wear her jacket because she didn't want to hide her dress! I finally convinced her that she could still wear her jacket, just leave it unzipped.

I think she makes a cute Dorothy, but then I may be biased, too....

Emily on the otherhand, didn't want to be anything for Halloween. She just wanted to be Emily. I had a witch costume that would fit her, but she didn't want to be a witch, she wanted to be Emily. She loves to dress up as a princess, so I thought maybe we could get away with just putting her in her dress up clothes. So that's what we ended up doing--Emily was a pretty princess for Halloween.

Emily, Brooke, Leslie, and Adam (Jill's kids)

A few weeks ago we had some friends come to visit. We met them while living in Helena. They were a great match for our family. They had a girl one month older than Brooke (who, by the way, loves to play animals, too!) and a girl a year older than Emily, but they are now the same size! They had another baby girl shortly before they moved from Helena, too. Anyway, they came to visit for a weekend and it was so nice to see them again. It was fun to see the girls play together...just like old times! As for the parents, we got in a game of Settlers of Catan, too!

Fun times!

Emily, Brooke, and Taylor


Claire...she is such a cute kid!




Emily and Jane (Emily has grown 4 inches since we've moved here!)


At the beginning of October, we got a little snowstorm. Brooke was so excited for the snow! Emily soon joined in on the excitement. They wanted to go play before breakfast, so I tracked down the winter clothes and off they went...It was fun to watch them play. After awhile, they came in and had breakfast and then went out later in the morning and built a snowman. Not bad for a morning's work for just the two of them!

I added a link to my sister's new website, Kate's Craft Corner. She enjoys making crafts and has graciously added a tutorial on some of the things she makes. If you have a quick minute, click on her link and check out what she's been up to!

http://katescraftcorner.blogspot.com
I hope all is going well and you all have an enjoyable Thanksgiving. Eat lots of turkey!

End of Summer..Beginning of School

In mid-August we had a family reunion at a place called Meadow Lake. It was a really pretty lake, that was stocked with fish...so it was perfect for kids to go fishing. We ended up leaving early, though, due to cold and rainy weather.

Mike and Uncle Marc manning the boat with six kids aboard!

Aunt Jill had a fun craft project for the kids...painting little star ornaments!

This summer I've done a little bit of canning....more than I had the opportunity to do in Montana. My parents' garden was plentiful (as always!) so we helped with the harvest.

My mom and I spent a day making/canning applesauce. MMMMM! The best applesauce is after it is freshly made and still warm....Brooke is sampling some. We did the canning outside to keep the heat and the mess outdoors.

Finished product (times about 24)! I also helped a friend can some applesauce later and we did another 30 jars!



Brooke has been counting down the days until she goes to school for nearly a year! Finally the day has come!

Brooke loves school. She wakes herself up nearly every morning and is excited to go to school and she has a smile on her face every time she gets off the bus!

On Labor Day, we went to the Eastern Idaho State Fair. We joined forces with my parents and sisters and their families.

Emily loves horses and they had lots of horses to see...BIG ones and little ones and all in between!

Brooke watching the sheep judging. Do I need to remind you that the fair is a high light for Brooke every year?

To Brooke: Fair= Pigs + Ferris wheel ride

This was Emily's first year to ride the rides at the fair. At first she cried after every ride was over because she wanted to go again. Eventually she figured out she could go on another ride (until tickets ran out)! But by then, she'd had her fill of rides and quickly fell asleep! (Emily is on the left in this picture and her cousin Brielle is on the right)


Well that about sums us up for the end of the summer. Hope everyone enjoys their Fall!

House Guests...

Mike and I had the privilege of housing two Taiwan dancers during the International Folk Dance Festival here in Rexburg. We had two twelve-year-old dancers, Ivy and Tina (their western names). I LOVED having them...and I miss them terribly. I got to be their host mom for 10 days and I enjoyed every minute of it, even the late, late, late nights. When they left, Ivy and Tina cried and I was so sad to see them leave...I felt (and still do) like something was missing. I told them to check my blog to keep updated, and I really hope they do...so if you are reading this...I miss you guys and hope you had fun in Disneyland!

Here are some pictures of their time with us.

Opening Ceremonies

Mesa Falls--Ivy is standing by me and Tina is next to her.

Street Festival--There is a parade where the dancers perform down the street. Then countries perform a dance or two. Then it turns into an open street dance...it was cold this night...while the girls were dancing it started to hail and rain and it was super windy, too.

Trip to McDonalds...

After their big performance in the Hart Auditorium/Gymnasium on BYU-I campus. Ivy and Tina are in the red costumes.

At the end of the week we had a team party and this was a picture of Ivy on my right and Tina on my left. Love you guys!

July Happenings...

The month of July progressively got busier as the month went by. I couldn't post everything we've done, nor do I even want to try, so here's our month in a nutshell.


Brooke turned 5-years-old! She was super excited for her birthday this year. And who would have thought my little loves-pigs (and continally asks for one)-farms-dogs-cows-any kind of animal- girl would ask for a princess party?

We did a split birthday part between Brooke and her cousin Adam. Mmm, licking off the candles...the best part of blowing out the candles!

For the Fourth of July weekend, Mike and Josh (Jill's husband) planned a trip to Driggs/Victor, ID, to see the hot air balloon race/launch (and wouldn't you know I forgot my camera that morning!). After the launches, we went to the parade in Victor.

Brooke started soccer this summer. This picture isn't the greatest, and it is kind of deceiving. Brooke doesn't quite get the concept of soccer, yet. She just knows you are suppose to kick the ball, but she doesn't know which direction or where to kick, she just kicks! But it was still fun to go to her games. She has only one game left!

Brooke has also been taking swimming lessons. This picture is of safety day, when they were wearing life jackets. She is pulling her cousin Adam through the water...Brooke told me they were pretending to be a train.

Brooke finally decided she COULD ride a bike! Mike and I have tried to work with her a little bit and have tried to convince her that she could do it. So yesterday we went for a walk and she just took off!

Just a shout of thanks out to those who helped me with the girls the last couple of weeks...I couldn't have made it to everything without your help!


Check out the following post for pictures from our trip to Colorado in June.