Chisholm Cousins

Dallin and Brooke had so much fun with the Chisholm cousins. I am so thankful that we were able to spend so much time with them this winter. Dallin & Brooke have been talking about their aunts, uncles, and cousins ever since we have been back in Florida. They were pretty much stuck to Taylor and McKenzie the entire trip. They had a blast, and it really helped me get a good break!! Thank goodness for family!!

Dester Family

We were able to go to Provo to see my Grandma and Gramdpa Dester. It was so fun to see my cousins, aunts and uncles, and all the new little ones. I am so thankful for the time that we were able to spend with my grandparents.

Christmas Eve

On Christmas Eve, my Grandma and Grandpa Prue were so nice and drove up to Bountiful for a late lunch. It was so great to see them and we are so thankful that they were willing to come and see us. Julie and I were able to put out kids down for their naps and the adults were able to enjoy a nice quiet meal!!

More Christmas Eve...

It was so good to have my Dad home the night of Christmas Eve. He had been really busy at work and unable to take any time off. On Christmas Eve, he summarized Luke 2 and spent lots of time with us and the kids. It was tons of fun and a great memory for us all.

Naughty...Naughty...Naughty!

This week was probably one of the hardest weeks with Dallin & Brooke that I can remember. Usually it is a day or two, but this was a week! They have always been really good friends...best friends! They would play so well together and take care of each other. This week that ended. For some reason they decided that they no longer like each other. In fact, by the look of things, they can't stand each other. They have been fighting all week...screaming matches, biting, pinching, hitting, and now kicking! What am I to do??

I told Dallin that I was done being the Mom and after looking around for a minute he said, "Well, I think you have to be because you are the only one here with long hair."

When the fighting hit a new limit I exclaimed, "Dallin, If you don't stop I'm going to ring your little neck!" He looked at me and said, "But Mom, my neck doesn't have a bell!?!"

Thankfully the week is over and I'm just praying that next week is back to normal. Doug has one more week of finals and then Christmas Break!!

Thanksgiving

With a few days notice, we flew to Utah to see the family for Thanksgiving. It was great to see everyone and it helped our family get more in the holiday spirit. We can't wait for Christmas!!

Doug's team for the Turkey Bowl!

Happy Halloween!

We had a lot of fun this October. The kids were entertained all month with pumpkin patches, Halloween parties, and trick or treating. Dallin was cracking up at every door we stopped at while trick or treating. He was really getting a kick out of the fact that all he had to do was say "Trick or Treat" or "Happy Halloween" and people would give him candy. What a great concept! Brooke refused to dress up for most of the activities, but we managed to get her to put on a bear noise to go trick or treating. Dallin was a Soldier for Trunk or Treat, but on Halloween he switched at the last minute into a Doctor costume. He loves to dress up and has a great imagination. Brooke on the other hand, prefers to be Brooke.

Lots of Diapers

Last week I started noticing unfolded clean diapers all over our house. I discovered that Brooke had taken every animal in her room and put a diaper on them. Within minutes she would start the process all over...changing them over and over again. There must have been 30 diapers on the floor. This task kept her busy for hours!

Birthday Boy!

Dallin was so excited to turn 3! When I asked him yesterday what he wanted for his birthday he said, "A football cake with candles." I love how easy Dallin is to please! He had a great time with his friends and his cake!

Little Fish

The only thing Dallin wanted for his birthday was a football cake and flippers for the pool. Brooke enjoyed the flippers quite a bit as well!

Great friends!

A couple of weeks ago I decided that Doug needed a break. He was just finishing mid-terms and I could tell that he was going crazy and just needed to get out of Florida. It is amazing how great it can feel to leave everything behind and take a quick trip North. So, with a days notice, we headed up to Philladelphia to see our good friends Zack and Danica. They were in the middle of moving, so not exactly the best time to show up on their porch. But as always, they were so nice and they let us stay with them and they took time away from their move to take us around town. We wished that we could have helped them more with their move, because they helped us by taking all of our stress away and made our trip a great vacation! We had lots of time to just relax and Doug was able to revert back to being his pre-dental, no care in the world self! Horray!!

A New Man

I have been dreading potty training for several months now. Dallin has been ready, but I have really been dragging my feet. I finally cleared an entire week and began the process. I really lucked out!! It has been a week, and we haven't had an accident in several days. Dallin is a big boy now and is very proud of himself. My only problem now is Brooke. She refuses to wear a diaper or underwear. She wants to be just like her brother and always has to use the bathroom at the same time he does. I don't know quite what to do with her!

Snail Bait

I love sitting on the front porch. The kids and I spend quite a bit of time there, so we planted some flowers a few weeks ago to make the place feel a bit more like home. Within days I noticed that our plants were starting to wilt. I kept watching them, but the problem kept getting worse. One night we got home late and noticed tons of snails all over the porch and sidewalk. The kids thought it was great! I was happy to finally figure out what was killing our flowers, but a little bugged that I would have to replant. I took the kids to the store the next day and we bought some snail bait. The next day we had dead snails everywhere! Dallin and Brooke had a great time picking up all the shells and making snail soup. Unfortunately, some of the shells mysteriously made it into the house!! I don't know that our house will ever smell the same.

Fun with Friends

Dallin and Brooke

Primary Songs

There is nothing that I love more than hearing Dallin sing his favorite primary songs. The two I hear the most are "I Hope They Call Me on a Mission" and "I Am A Child of God". He sings, "I hope they call me on a mission, when I have grown a foot or two. I hope by then I will be ready, to reach and reach and reach like the missionaries do." My all time favoirte is "I am a child of God, and He has sent me here. Has given me an Earthly home, with parents kind of here. I love listening to him sing and I love that Brooke tries to hum along!

Bee Stings

Dallin had a really rough day while we were in Utah visiting my family. In the morning he fell off the swingset, then we had lunch at the park and he was stung by a bee, and then he was stung agian by another bee when we got back to my parents. Poor Dallin!