I love the holidays!

I was just thinking how much I love to spend time with my family over the holidays. Dave finally had to go back to work today and it was sad. Yesterday we went to the zoo and then went to eat at Applebees, and I also know why I don't enjoy taking my kids to restaurants. We apparently need to teach them a few more manners. Kira and Luke were spitting at each other and screaming while Jenna kept sticking out her foot in the isle and kicked the waitress. We were a little embarrassed! But I love them in spite of it all and they will for sure be embarrassed by me someday I am quite sure.
It is just so nice to have Dave home all day, makes my job a whole lot easier! I even got a few naps which was good because I was also a little sick this weekend too. Dave took good care of me. We had many family parties to go to and lots of yummy food to eat. One of my favorites was when we went to the Woodbury family party at my great Aunts house. Jenna spent like an hour talking to my great aunt Betty. It was so sweet to see her spending time with her and enjoying every minute. The kids had a great time and want to go visit again.
Dave and I got to go see Harry Potter on Monday afternoon, (thanks to my parents who babysat the kids.) It is just so enjoyable to spend time together and not worry about the regular routine of life. I guess that is why we need the holidays so that we don't go crazy!
This picture was my Christmas card, we certainly love our Utes! I love getting mail in December, it is so fun to get Christmas cards instead of just junk in the mail. My kids even get excited about the Christmas mail. Well I guess we have to get back into the routine after New Years. Which I think is the most overrated holiday ever! Unless you are a drinker and partier what are you supposed to do? and with young kids? I certainly don't want to deal with them the next day once they have stayed up to midnight! What a great way to start out the new year with grouchy kids! But it is a good excuse to eat and play games which I love!
I just read through and these are very random thoughts on the Holidays but hey its all good right? I just love to have time off to spend together, that is what makes life good! I am so grateful for my family!
Happy New Year!

Preschool Field Trip

Kira and I were lucky enough to join Luke on his preschool Field Trip to the pumpkin patch. Luke was so excited. All of the kids were wearing their field trip shirts( Tye-dyed shirts made by Miss Jenn). We met at preschool and then we all drove up to the patch. I got a little lost but made it there just fine in the end. Unfortunately it had rained that day so we all got a little muddy, but no worse for the wear. Luke's favorite part was running through the maze. We had to do it many times. Since his class is all boys, there was a lot of running and screaming. They had a snack and read a story and each got to pick a pumpkin from the patch. It was a fun little excursion!

Happy Birthday Kira!

October 6th was Kira's 2nd birthday. I cannot believe that she is two. I mean she has been acting like a two year old for some time now but that it is actually here is another thing. She woke up so excited that day. She LOVED opening presents. That morning she opened the big Dora doll and all of the accessories, then she played with it all day. In typical two year old fashion she screamed whenever anyone came near to her and her new toys. She was a pretty happy girl that day, for the most part. The other part was "its my birthday I will scream if I want to!" We had a lovely dinner at McDonald's where each kid received a toy in their happy meal,so Jenna and Luke were extremely happy too! We were excited that Papa Woody could join us for the dinner, great company, too bad it was at McDonald's. After an exciting dinner, we came home to have some chocolate cake. I was saved from making it this year because Grandma Cham and Papa woody had leftover Costco cake. YUMMY! Am I a bad mom for not making a cake? I think not! I didn't want too much cake around and Costco cake is delicious. There were no complaints! Kira had more presents and a very chocolaty face. She mostly received toys, but I did get her a few clothes. When she opened the clothes, she made a face and threw them to the side. She knows what she wants! I am so grateful for my little Kira! She is a spunky, impish handful, but I wouldn't have it any other way! She makes me smile and laugh and she is my #1 fan, so I really shouldn't complain. It's a month late, but Happy Birthday Kira!

new Computer!

So last week, my wonderful husband had finally got fed up with our computer. He went out and bought a laptop. for those of you that know Dave, it takes a lot to but something that is not in our budget. That was how in need we were of a new computer. Unfortunately we don't have pictures for this post because my pictures are still on my old computer. But that will come. I am just so happy with my computer! Yeah!! Anyway so school has been in for a week and the first day Luke and Kira missed Jenna so much, all I heard all day was "when will Jenna be home?" But they are getting better. In one more week Luke will start preschool so that will be good and give him something more to do. He starts getting bored and then he just bugs everyone! It is good for him and Kira too, they are starting to play very well together and be better friends. The kids both started soccer last week. Jenna plays in centerville and Luke is closer to home. of course they are on the same days and most games are at the same times too. It gets a little crazy at times, but it is fun. Jenna is getting better at soccer and she is excited because her team color is purple, instead of boy color blue that she was last year. Luke is bright green and their team is the Green Dragons. I thought there would be a lot of tears when Luke first played but he did great! He was a little timid at first but since his was the biggest on both teams that soon went away. He got some pretty good kicks and almost got a goal, but he kicked it away. He had fun and that is the most important. So now life is crazy after a nice relaxing summer. More craziness to come and hopefully pictures!

a little update of some big things!

Luke finished his first year of preschool in May. This was our "graduation" at the park. We started out with eight kids and ended up with five. It was a good experience for Luke to make some good friends, including his best friend Micah. Luke loved to play and have fun at preschool, although he did not enjoy the crafts! Most times he would rather just sit there then make a craft. But he did learn a lot and it definitely prepared him for another year of preschool.
(pictured L-R) Anna, Braxton, Micah, Sadie and Luke.

We took this picture at Jenna's first grade program. It was so fun to see them perform for us. Jenna had a part at the very end. She said it perfectly clear and loud. She wasn't even scared to get up in front of all those people either. As her Grandpa said, "she definitely had the last word". She was a fantastic first grader and excelled at most everything. She loved her teacher, Mrs. Young so much that she cried for several days after school got out. ( that is until we went to Disneyland). Jenna is so smart and has just done so well in school, socially and academically. We only hope that second grade will be as good to her as first was.
Also at the end of the school year, Jenna had her dance recital. She loves to dance and is a natural. They did a ballet dance to "Blackbird" and a tap dance to "Blue Suede Shoes", complete with blue shoes and lots of glitter! We are so proud of our Jenna. she is a beautiful little dancer!














Now, I am not sure why it takes me so long to post this since it happened two months ago, I guess it is just a vicious cycle. But as always I hope to be better at recording the events of my family. Stay tuned for Disneyland....

MY GIRLS!

Last week Jenna finally lost her first tooth! She is one of the last ones in her class to start loosing teeth. It had been so loose for quite a while and one day she just twisted it and it popped out. So we called Dave at work and I told him that Jenna's tooth came out and she kept telling me that I was wrong and that she pulled it out. That made her sound braver I think. She was so excited for the tooth fairy to come. She left her 50 cents. Although one of them fell behind the bed, but we found it. I love that missing tooth smile!
For Easter I made the girls matching skirts. They were super easy and turned out super cute! Kira loved matching Jenna! They wore them to church last week and were just adorable! I tried to get a picture of them standing together but every time I took the picture Kira started moving towards me so I finally sat them down so she would stop moving. They certainly look cute, don't they?



Last Friday was the last Utah gymnastics meet of the season. We have lots of fun doing our girls nights. Kira was being a little crazy so I gave her a sucker so that she would just sit for a while. She loved that sucker more than anything! She got quite sticky too! You can tell that she enjoys it!


At the meet they gave out these glasses to some of the audience. Well we got there late and so we didn't get one. Jenna was very disappointed. Later she told my mom that maybe next year when they gave them out again that they would just ask who didn't get them last year and they could raise their hand and get some so that it would be fair. I thought that was so cute, just look through the eyes of a child, wouldn't the world be better? Anyway so because of our connections( my dad ) we were able to get a pair of glasses and the world is right again!

GOAL!!

Tonight was the first game of the spring season of soccer. However it was nothing like spring out there. We froze our behinds and everything else off! But Jenna scored the very first goal of the game!( I think that she was motivated by the donut I promised her! but hey whatever gets her going right?) She was right in front of the goal surrounded by the other team and just kicked it in!Go Blue Cans! ( So every week the girls get a turn to pick the team name for the week. This week it was the Blue Cans?! Jenna said it was so we can recycle the other team. Apparently the girl who picked it wants to go green! Unfortunately the Blue Cans lost 5-3) She definitely has improved so much. She was not afraid to get in there and kick the ball. She had several good kicks, blocks and stops! She just wanted to keep playing and told me that the game had been too short. Not for us fans with it being how cold it was! At one point Kira wanted to get down out of the blanket and she refused to get back in until she started shivering, even then she wasn' t happy that I made her cuddle with me. She just wanted more treats from Grandma! Thanks to Grandma and Grandpa Plowman for coming even in the cold! Luke had a great time playing on the playground with his friend too. He was very proud of his sister and told her several times great job on the goal!
We went to Smiths Marketplace to pick out the celebratory donut. Unfortunately Jenna got her decision making skills from me and took like ten minutes to decide whether she wanted a donut or a hostess Zinger! She decided on the donuts but told me several times that next time she scores she will get the Zingers! Yummy, rewards are sweet!
Today Dave took the day off so that he could help out at the NCAA tournament tonight. So because it was my week to teach preschool, Dave go to join us. We had a great time and Luke loved having his daddy at preschool! We played with a parachute and made kites. We tried to fly one but it was too gusty to fly well. It is certainly fun to have Dave home on just an average day, it makes it not so average.

Yahtzee Boy!

I love Chocolate!! I just love this cute messy face! I think that this was after we had Girl Scout Cookies, YUM!
So, I love Sunday afternoons. We get out of church at noon and after lunch we have lots of fun family time. Well Dave and I try to get naps in but that usually doesn't happen! So last Sunday we played some board games with the kids. They are getting older so it is so fun to play games that the adults enjoy too. After a rousing game of SORRY, which I won by the way, we taught the kids to play Yahtzee. They loved it! They didn't quite get all the scoring, well Luke especially, but they had lots of fun. Luke had the best game ever! He got THREE Yahtzees!! He was so excited. Now he plays our electronic handheld game all the time. Jenna got a Yahtzee as well. We had such a fun time playing together.









Luke and his three Yahtzees!

The latest update...

The other day Luke and Grace were playing play dough and he was reminding me of the time that Kira ate play dough. So Luke says, " I never ate play dough when I was a baby because play dough wasn't even invented yet!" I had a good laugh with that, Luke certainly makes me laugh everyday!

So here is the update for the past few days. We went to baby Jane's blessing on Sunday. Cleadus did a wonderful job, it is such a sweet experience to see a baby being blessed. It's a good reminder just where our little ones come from and that they have such great potential. I need that reminder often!
So I am going a little project crazy these days. I am going to make a quilt for my bed. I was at Joann's yesterday and I couldn't figure out the fabrics to have them all go together. I saw these two women just talking and they looked nice enough to help. So I asked them their opinion and they were so sweet to offer their advice. They were total strangers but they cared about my quilt. Now I am super excited about the colors and everything so now I just have to start cutting! I know that it will take me a while, but it should be a fulfilling project for a while. I will post pictures as a get it started. I also bought the cutest fabric to make matching skirts for my girls. They will be very cute and springy! ( Kira keeps playing with the mouse and typing things on the computer so this entry is taking longer than I hoped!) I am also in the planning stages of our next primary quarterly activity. They sure are a lot of work! But I love primary! Those kids are so full of the spirit and of love! It certainly is a lot of work, but wonderful. I have the best presidency to work with too. We all work so well together and we are all friends, I love it! Well, this has been another thrilling update I am sure. But I am really trying to keep up with my goals! I am so grateful for my life!!

Don't you just love her?

I was finishing up laundry and Kira wanted to get into the basket. She couldn't quite do it herself so I helped and of course it was the a perfect photo opportunity! CHEESE!
A few days ago, Jenna and Luke were playing and Kira was messing everything up, which happens often! So I distracted her by painting her toenails. She loved it! She kept looking at her toes and I think trying to say pretty but who knows with that babble? Don't those toes look delicious?
Kira admiring her beautiful toes!

What a great Saturday!

This is Luke being tough before getting on his bike

Last Saturday was such a beautiful day! Jenna and Luke could not wait to go play outside. They wanted to ride their bikes. Jenna is still on her training wheels but she is finally learning to turn around on her bike instead of getting off of the bike and turning it around. She kept saying "this is the best Saturday ever! I love riding my bike!" We hope that by the end of the summer she will be riding with no training wheels. ( We hope!)

Dave had to do some work to get Luke's bike up and running. So when it was finally ready, Luke couldn't wait! He learned that it is harder than it looks to keep peddling so that you can actually go somewhere. He kept saying how strong he was! He still has a little bit more practice and maybe a little more growing, then he will be riding like the wind! Dave was very patient to help him too.

A proud moment for Luke!

We Love Mondays!

So every Monday we have the opportunity to watch my lovable niece Grace and now her sweet sister Jane. Luke always loves to have someone to play with (other than boring old mom!). Thus far Jane has been sleeping the whole time. Last Monday we got to hold her and play with her a little. Grace was very cute and protective of her baby sister. Kira couldn't get enough of Baby Jane! She wanted to hold her and kiss her and poke her too. She LOVES babies! I had to watch her carefully so that we don't love Jane too much!

DId I mention the word crazy yet?

So Big! Kira got up on the stool all by herself yesterday! She had been trying to do it for several day s now, so it is quite the accomplishment for her! She was so excited that she did it with no help. She is getting so big lately! She has this look of mischief often on her face but she just too darn cute to get into trouble! She isn't speaking too much probably because she has Luke and Jenna to speak for her. She certainly can tell you what she does or doesn't want! Often it is in the form of a screaming fit! She also points and nods her head. She also LOVES brushing her teeth multiple times a day! That is usually the only way to get her hair done in the morning too. She is also going through this phase of daddy don't come near me! She is so attached to me it is crazy! If I am in the building and she knows it then she will cry and scream until she gets me. But if I am gone, then daddy is great! Hopefully we will leave this phase soon! Gosh....she sure is cute though!!
So our news about Snips is that she is finally spayed so we can let her outside! She has been a very crazy kitten. She climbed up on my hutch and swatted at a piece of a tea set that I have and it smashed to the ground, I was so mad I want to throw her out on the street! So thankfully getting her fixed has calmed her down quite a bit and that she can get some energy out in the great out doors! I actually like her now!
Yesterday, I taught preschool and my house and the kids were a little crazy! I think they all have spring fever, I know I do! So my house was a little messy and I was going to vacuum. Luke needed something to do so he decided that he wanted to try vacuuming. He loved it! He thought it was the funnest thing. Either he really enjoyed helping mom or he was really bored! Whatever it was, I certainly didn't mind it! He vacuum for like a half hour, doing the upstairs and the living room. I emptied the can and said, "look at all this gunk!" Luke says " yeah that is gross gunch" He felt all proud and said he wanted that to be his weekly job too, he also said you have to be strong to vacuum. It was a proud moment for me! Kira just liked tagging along, she thought it was great because Luke did.
Last night Jenna and I went to the Mom and Me and the school. They had a petting zoo. I use that term very loosely, it was several hundred moms and kids crammed into the lunch room to see a few animals, with the lady loosing her patience with all the noise! Perhaps she shouldn't go to elementary schools if she can't handle it! They did have a few cool animals, Jenna's favorite was a guinea pig with really long hair, it was pretty cute. She touched a snake too. There was this little iguana that had gotten burned and his tail broken by someone. That was a little sad. There was also this HUGE white fluffy dog, it think it was bigger than Jenna. It was cute! Because of all the chaos, I couldn't get hardly any pictures, I will have to steal some from Hallie! So this is the best I got. We also got punch and a cookie. We had fun together, it was a great date night for us!

Holy cow! I need to use spell check! Forgive me of my errors, I sometimes go way too fast!

Today we went to the Sweets candy Factory for preschool. The kids had so much fun! We got to try an orange stick right of the line, they are pretty yummy that fresh! We tried some taffy too. Kira hated wearing the hat, Luke thought it was cool! This is Luke with his friend Micah in their awesome hats. When I asked Luke what his favorite part of the tour was he said "Candy" Well of course! We learned that they certainly use a lot of sugar. Then of course we had to visit the shop afterwards. Luke had fun picking out different kinds of taffy and of course I had to get some chocolate covered cinnmin bears, I love them!!
Kira wouldn't wear the hat at first until the tour guide bribed her with some candy, then she was happy to just sit in the stroller with her candy! It was a very fun feild trip!
I just had to post this picture. Jenna and Luke were playing with the light sabers and Kira wanted to join in. She went right up to it and picked it up and started fighting Jenna like she was a natural! It was hilarious! I guess she has hung out with Luke enough!