Preschool

I love our little preschool group! These boys have so much fun together, and they are so fun to watch! I feel so lucky that Parker has such a great group of boys his age.

Mason's 3rd Birthday!

It's a good thing Mason was not too aware of what a party is supposed to be like at age 3. Unfortunately, the Birthday celebrations for him this year were a little lame. We had a hard time squeezing it into a time when Russ was home, Parker was sick and asleep on the floor in the background (you can see the blanket, but Parker is hidden behind everyone), and Sadie was losing it and put up to bed as soon as the first present was opened.

Luckily Mason's Birthday requests were very small. All he could come up with when I asked what he wanted for his Birthday was a car cake and balloons. I asked if he would also like some presents, and he said, "Oh, yeah. Maybe some presents!" Needless to say, Mason thought he had a great Birthday with all of the unexpected things he got to open, and all of his Birthday wishes came true:)

Mason has been so fun at age 3! I just love all of the funny things he says, and he just has such a fun sense of humor anyway. He is definitely the "clown" of the family! Happy Birthday Mason!

Fall Visit from Nana & Papa

We were so excited to have my parents come and check out Albuquerque in October! We had so much fun! Russ was afraid they were going to think he never worked since they came at a time he happened to have a couple of days off - and then his parents were going to think he never stopped working since they came a month later at a time he had to be gone a lot!

We went to see lots of things that were new to us as well as my folks. First a stop off at Old Town...

Then a freezing trip up the tram to Sandia Peak (love that new coat for Sadie - it was mine at her age!)...

And finally a trip up to Santa Fe with a really great hike to Tent Rocks on the way home.

We had such a great time! Thanks for coming Mom and Dad! We can't wait for next time!

Soccer Days

This year we started the new adventure of sports in our family. Well... just soccer for now, but who knew what a commitment it would be to have two kids in soccer. And we didn't even have weekday practices! It was a great way to fill up our weekends though during those first few months in Albuquerque when Russ was either out of town or working most Saturdays.

Cole enjoyed soccer - he enjoyed watching everyone around him (or the sky above him) and playing around on the sidelines just as much as playing the game. He actually did pretty well getting the ball out of a huge mass of kids time after time though. Mostly if they headed his way:)

Sadie and Mason enjoyed all of the time outdoors - as long as I remembered enough snacks and water bottles for everyone.

Parker proved to be the most competitive of the bunch (not meaning best player necessarily - but really the most competitive little spirit!). He ran through the whole game every time, and it was written all over his face how excited or upset he was about every play - but to his credit, he really didn't throw any tantrums. Go Parker!

Halloween

So, our Halloween costumes were pretty weak this year. All repeats from prior years, except for Mason who wore the DI lion costume Nana was kind enough to bring. But despite the lack in creative costumes, the kids really enjoyed Halloween! The ward Halloween party was one of the most fun we've ever had, and after one trip around the block on Halloween night, the kids had almost more candy than they could carry in their little buckets.

Oh, and Sadie LOVED her first Halloween. Nothing better than a sucker at age 1.

Sadie's First Birthday!

It's hard to believe Sadie turned one in October - and at the same time, hard to imagine that she's only been here in our family for a year. We were so lucky to have my parents here for her first birthday!

Russ likes(?) this picture because Sadie just looks so girly!

Having a Birthday one week before Halloween meant the party included carving the pumpkin...

What a fun day! We love you Sadie, and we're so glad you joined our family!

Major Update!

Here we go again. It seems every holiday season is so full of fun events, my blog just can't seem to keep up. So, every year I end up with one huge upload in January to make up for lost time. Maybe I can keep up better throughout the year...