Saturday Morning Surprise

This morning at around 8am Dallin came running in from the backyard.  He said that I had to hurry outside and see something.  Lately everytime I hear those words I come out to see yet another rollee-pollee (I didn't realize until we moved here that my kids had never seen those...they love collecting them).  When I came out this time, this is what I saw...

...and it looked so much bigger than this in person!!  I was shocked.  I told the kids to hurry and get dressed (yes...I let them play outside in there PJ's or even underware) and we ran down the street.  It had already landed by the time we got to it and was sitting on the street next to our house!  The kids had fun watching them collapse it and roll it up.  After watching for a few minutes, Dallin said, "So all I have to do is find a basket that I fit in and you can help me get it up in the sky?"  Not quite buddy.  What a great morning!

Mom's 15

Last week I sent my kids out onto the front porch to wait for my sister and her kids to come.  I was finishing making dinner in the kitchen when I heard this...

Dallin: "They're not here yet, but a big box is"
Brooke: "Who-Buddy it from?"
Dallin: "I don't know...I can't read."
Brooke:  "Who-Buddy can?"
Dallin: "Mom can 'cause she's 15."

I love listing in on their conversations.  The box turned out to be speakers that Doug ordered for our computer.  Later that night my mom called to thank the kids for a post card they sent.  I asked Brooke if she wanted to talk to Nana and she was so excited to talk.  She thanked my mom for the package and then asked me, "What did she give us?  Me not member what was in that box."  I guess any box that comes to the house she assumes is for her and is from Nana!

Galloping Grace

A friend was nice enough to invite us to go with her family to Galloping Grace, a youth ranch close to our house.  The kids were so excited and had a lot of fun.  I was sure that they would get there and be too afraid to actually get on the horses, but they got on and loved every minute of it.  They even had fun helping in the stables.  The owners are such great people and it was a great experience for all of us.

Brooke rode first and was so proud of herself.  She loved this horse and kept calling it "Blue".  It's name was Black.  We obviously need to work on our colors!

Dallin was up next and had a lot more fun than I think he even expected!

Working off their ride!

Nothing like Family

I love living by family!  I love driving over to see my sister and having her live so close.  The kids have had so much fun with their cousins and ask to go over to their house dailey.  Last week Julie came over with the kids and we had a little BBQ and let the kids play.  By the pictures, you would think that it was Hallooween!  They all love to dress up and run around the house and in the backyard.  I love that they all get along so well!

All the kids go to Uncle Dougie!  He spoils them all.

That's Parker with Brooke & Dallin with Mason as Super Dog!  Cole was somewhere dressed as a soldier, but he was too fast for a picture.

Falling in Love with New Mexico

We have been in New Mexico for just over 2 weeks now and I never anticipated loving it this much.  Doug and I are constatly asking each other, "What could be better than this?"  The weather is absolutly perfect, the people are so nice, and Doug is done with school.  I wake up every morning loving the house that we are renting.  We have a fantastic backyard with a garden, fruit trees, and play equipment.  Our neighbors are great and the ward has been so welcoming.  There are 230 kids in primary, so my kids have plenty of kids to play with and we are looking forward to making some new friends.  I think my favorite part of our neighborhood is that it is safe.  I love living in a place where I can take morning & evening walks and not worry about a thing. 

One of the best moments of last week was taking a morning walk and being surprised by such a beautiful view.  When we moved here, we were worried that moving from the tropical climate of Florida to the dry desert would be a challange.  Green was so important and I truely felt like it was a huge part of what I loved about Florida.  I have now realized that the desert can be just as beautiful.  I didn't realize how much I had missed the mountians and the wide open space.  Every morning I take the kids on walks and we have seen so many hot air balloons.  New Mexico is so different from Florida, but we are already falling in love with it.