Kindergarten!

 Dallin just started kindergarten!!  I can't believe how fast he has grown up.  He is such a smart little boy and was really excited to start school.  Dallin loves to learn and do new things so I was excited for him, but nervous for me.  Brooke, Kaitlyn, and I have done better at home than I thought, but we still really miss him a lot.  He is our glue and it has been a hard adjustment for all of us.  Some days I feel so overwhelmed, but having him gone makes me feel like I need to keep having kids if they are just going to all grow up and leave me.  I miss him a ton, but am excited for him and this new adventure!

The school is only a mile from our house so we  get to walk...or some of us do.

Super happy....

A lot of the parents were in the class after the bell rang  so I told Doug to slip in and make sure Dallin was okay.  He came out and said he was fine.  When I got home and looked at the pictures I found out that was not entirely true.  If you zoom in you can see my poor little boy with tears in his eyes.  It's been a bit of an adjustment, but we are getting there.

Finally....a vacation!

 Doug's dental practice is small and new. This means that it has been really hard to take any time off this past year for vacation.  This month we were able to squeeze in a quick trip to Utah and had so much fun.  We realized that it has been almost 3 years since the last time we took the kids back to visit. It was a little crazy driving back and forth to see everyone, but it was well worth it and tons of fun.

Doug's parents just moved to Utah and are renting a place up  Provo Canyon.  It has a community center and the kids had so much fun swimming, playing games, and goofing around with the cousins.

This is the amazing view from their place.

We went boating with Doug's family and stopped by Jessica's house to see her kittens and chickens.  It was so great to see and spend some time with everyone!

We drove down to Provo to see my Grandma Dester. I'm so glad we remembered to take a picture because I forgot with my Grandma and Grandpa Prue.  The kids love their great-grandparents!!

We went on a great hike with my Dad and then had a birthday lunch to celebrate.  I never had my camera with me, so I'll have to get more pictures of that fun day from someone else.  We had a great time!

I love these two!!!  Amanda had Cameron a month after Kaitlyn was born and it was fun to finally see him and get the kids together.  Dallin and Brooke loved playing with Colby and I wish that I had more pictures of them together.

It was a busy house with so many little ones. 

More company...

 We have been so lucky to have so many visitors this year.  Since Kaitlyn has been born lots of people have come to visit and we have loved it.  Doug's parents came down to get some dental work done and brought McKenzie with them.  I don't think she knew what she was in for...apparently she thought we were visiting in Utah and when she was asked if she wanted to drive down to see us, she was under the impression that we were visiting one of the other aunts or uncles.  She said that about an hour into the car ride she realized that she was heading out of the state and this was a much bigger trip than planned.  We are thankful that she made it!  We had so much fun with her and the kids loved having her to play with and try to impress!!

Swimming

The summer started a little slow for us because it was pretty difficult to get out of the house with a new baby.  I invested in a small pool for the backyard and for the first month or so that's all the swimming the kids were able to enjoy.  They never complained and loved every bit of it, but it was great in June when things got easier and I was able to get them into swimming lessons.  I can't believe I forgot to take my camera for all the lessons, but they did a great job.  Dallin knew how to swim, but learned some strokes and is now an excellent swimmer.  Brooke also did a great job and is now diving for toys in the pool and swimming with her goggles.  It was a lot of fun and we enjoyed being able to get in the water and escape the heat.

Dallin really knows how to relax.  I found him outside in the pool relaxing with the mango shake Doug made him!

Family and baby blessing

 In June Doug's family came into town for Kaitlyn's baby blessing.  We had tons of fun with grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins.  The kids were in heaven and we are so thankful that they all made the effort to come see us.  We did some hiking, site seeing,  and a lot of relaxing.

Best Friends

 I can't believe that Kaitlyn is already 4 months!!  She has been so much fun for all of us and we can't imagine not having her in our family.  She is well beyond her months.  Dallin and  Brooke were content being babies, but Kaitlyn already wants to join in the fun.  Her neck has been strong since her first week and she can't stop looking around and watching everything that is going on.  She loves her bumbo chair which allows her to sit and have dinner with the family.  During church last week I looked over to find her trying to get out of her car seat.  She was shaking trying to hold her body up while grabbing onto the side.  I am constantly finding her moving from a laying position to sitting up.  She also loves to roll! It has been such a treat to watch Dallin and  Brooke interact with her.  Kaitlyn loves them so much!  She is such a happy baby and will laugh and smile at just about anyone or anything.  Dallin started Kindergarten last week and my new favorite time of day is going to pick him up.  Kaitlyn lights up and can hardly control her body because she is so happy to see him.  They really have a special bond and he is such a great big brother to the two little girls.  Time has gone by so fast and I keep wanting to slow everything down.  I feel like the luckiest person in the world to have these 3 great kids.

Dallin's Preschool Graduation

 Moving to Albuquerque at the end of the summer made it difficult to get Dallin into a preschool.  Everything was already full and so I decided that we would just have to buckle down and do it at home.  That was also about the time I found out that I was pregnant with Kaitlyn and was super sick...so I wasn't doing a very good job.  Thankfully a little after we moved into the ward a preschool teacher from Las Vegas moved into our ward and neighborhood.  It turned out to be exactly what we needed.  She was an amazing teacher for Dallin and he was in the class with 4 other boys, which was great considering he had few boys as friends down in Florida. He learned so much and was so excited to be reading before summer started.  I'm so proud of him and his love for learning!

Kaitlyn Elizabeth Chisholm

On April 7th we headed into the hospital to have this little girl.  Doug and I arrived at the hospital at about 7am and for some reason expected a quick delivery.  She decided to take her sweet time and wasn't born until 9:15 that evening.  Kaitlyn was 6lbs 14oz and 20 inches long (my biggest baby).  Her delivery was similar to Dallin's, so I will have a lot of recovering to do.  We are so thankful for this little girl and happy to have a healthy baby.  Dallin leaned over to me this morning and said while looking at Kaitlyn, "It's fun having a baby isn't it?"  It really is and we have enjoyed her so much.  The kids both love to hold her the only difference is my trust level with each.  Dallin I can completely trust.  Every time I turn around Brooke is trying to pick Kaitlyn up or is hugging a little to tight or giving her kisses all over her tiny face.  She loves her a bit too much at times.  In fact this morning Brooke asked me if she could hold her, but not the normal way...on her back! 

She looks a lot like Brooke...definitely a Chisholm.

We survived the first week thanks to Grandma.

I wasn't expecting her to enjoy her first bath, but she loved it.  At one point I thought she was going to fall asleep she looked so relaxed.

Dallin thinks that he is an expert on babies and we have laughed over many of the conversations that we have overheard between Dallin and Brooke.  This new baby is fun, but a little confusing at times.

Dallin: "Brooke, just make sure you don't touch the babies eyes.  They pop out real easy."

During my pregnancy I was sitting at the table with the kids.  We each had a cookie and I said, "Wow...the baby sure likes these cookies, she's moving everywhere."  Brooke: "Oh, she gets the crumbs of your cookie?"  Dallin: "No, she has a really long tongue!"

Dallin came in while I was feeding the baby and as I attempted to cover up a bit he said, "Oh, so that's how the baby eats now?  She just bites your stomach and sucks out some of your food?"  And the terrible mom that I am just nodded my head and sent him on his way.

Brooke: "Dallin told me that he knows a secret way to talk to babies.  I tried it, but it didn't work.  He says 'goo goo ga ga'."

Dallin to his cousin Mason:  "Our baby has long legs.  They are 10 inches."

Dallin: "Brooke, didn't you know babies don't have brains."

Dallin and Brooke were both upset that I wasn't going to church on Sunday.  I tried to explain that the baby was only born a few days before and I didn't want her to get sick.  I said that Moms usually stay home for the first few weeks. I thought he got it, but then he said, "Yeah, I get it mom...you just don't want her to get stage fright."

Love these kids!!

Aquarium

We decided to make one last trip to the aquarium and gardens before baby number 3.  It was actually an attempt to get things moving while giving the kids some entertainment.  The last few weeks of this pregnancy have not been fun and I have been in quite a bit of pain.  Walking usually seems to help, but this trip to the aquarium proved to be a mistake for me...I hobbled to the car after a ton of walking.  Doug was probably completely embarrassed, but the kids had tons of fun and wanted their picture taken with everything!!  So....lots of pictures.

The kids love the train!  They could watch it for hours.

I love their little conversations and jokes.  They love each other so much!

Cookie!

I can't get enough of this girl.  She has her own little language and such a fun personality.  She always introduces herself as "Brookie Cookie" and loves playing with Dallin and friends.  This past week she has been dancing and wrestling like crazy!  I have to get in on video before she stops.  Below is one of her dancing outfits...she insisted on having "Dallin's cool glasses" to dance.  She has some great moves!!

Brooke found a slip in a bag of clothes a friend had given us.  She loves it and thinks that it is the most beautiful dress she has ever seen.  I let her wear it around the house, but when we go out she has to change into regular clothes.  This is what I saw when we got back from the store...she had tucked it into her skirt and put a shirt over it, but couldn't bring herself to take it off.  Unfortunately the whole slip didn't make it into her skirt! This slip has been her main outfit at home for weeks now!

Fun quotes to remember:  Brooke: "This DVD has an itch on it." (it was scratched)
             Brooke: "What animals make apples?"