Simmons Family

Snow!

2012-01-15T15:16:00.000-08:00

Pictures from the airplane (for Connor, Laura, Sophie and Tyler)

2011-08-12T09:07:00.000-07:00

Can you see the shadow of the plane on the cloud?

No, I Haven't Forgotten

2011-07-02T20:50:00.000-07:00

I realize that it has been 7 months since I last posted but I really have not forgotten. Sometimes there is just too much required in real life to take time to do stuff on the computer. Sometimes real life is just too exhausting. And sometimes, your computer dies and you can't figure out how to load your pictures on to a different computer. Right now I am using the last excuse and it may be a while 'till MY computer is up and running again. In the mean time, Tyler finally started walking at 15 months, Sophie just turned 4! and Connor and Laura are getting more and more grown up and independent. Connor, Laura and Sophie took swim lessons this past winter and spring and can't wait to hit the lake at Big Gramma's house next week (4 more sleeps!!) They are all little fish. Connor and Laura have been perfecting their crawl stroke and backstroke as well as learning breaststroke and butterfly. The swim laps of the deep and and were able to pass the swim test at "Daddy's pool" so they could go on the water slide. Sophie thinks she can swim as well as they can and I think she will catch up soon. She has been working on crawl stroke and side breathing and can probably swim a good 20-30 feet without help. Tyler LOVES the water as well. He's got all the move and loves to go under water. It is really funny to watch.

Connor has mastered the "two wheeler" and is allowed to ride around the block on his own. I think it makes him feel really grown up. He does really well asking each time he wants to go and letting me know when he gets back. I also let the kids walk together down the street and back. The have found all sorts of "treasures" and tried to sell them at a garage sale. Little Gramma was the only customer and they charged her top dollar!

We have joined with a bunch of other homeschooling families from our church and the kids are putting on an abridged version of Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar". Connor has 2 sentences to say and is really looking forward to it. He is a soldier. Laura and Sophie are townsfolk who are seen and not heard. I accidentally got put in charge of set design. (That will teach me to say I've had some experience) It looks like it is all coming together though. The play is July 16th.

We have pretty much finished school for the summer. Connor and Laura still have some reading and math to do. They did a Chemistry class early this spring with a 5 other families who had kids about the same age. The really enjoyed it (especially the experiments) The learned about atoms and how they bond, form molecules and react. They learned about acids and bases, mixtures, tastes, and molecular chains etc. It was a really great program. I think we will do the physics and maybe biology next year and they are publishing a geology and astronomy text book this coming year. I love science!

Tyler is starting to talk a little bit more but the other kids always "know" what he wants so he doesn't try too hard. He really likes to just say uhuhuhuh and point 'till you figure out what he wants. Trust me, that gets old REALLY fast!! I hope I can post some pictures soon. They are all getting so big. (Maybe while I'm at Mom and Dad's. I know how to load pictures on her computer)

HAPPY 4th of JULY!

Decmber to Date

2010-12-14T19:30:00.001-08:00

Laura

Sophie and Connor

Decorating Gingerbread Cookies

Happy Birthday to Tyler! We had a little party for him after music class.

Laura and Connor constructed this obstical course course out of wrapping paper rolls that I had left out in my room. They had lots of fun making up games and jumping over and into different parts of it.

Sophie's little tree

We found the perfect tree! (Can you believe it? Two family pictures in a month! I think our last family picture was at CONNOR's baptism!!!!)

Searching for the perfect tree (Laura takes a decent picture from time to time. Although...ther are about 30 pictures of random Christmas trees on my camera too.)

Oh, and a picture of girls boots in a big puddle. Thank you Laura!

Going to look for our tree. Grampa came with us!

Our advent wreath

Our resident hummingbird! (or at least his tail)

Look! A Family Picture!

2010-11-24T20:48:00.000-08:00

Snow Angels

2010-11-22T14:39:00.001-08:00

It has been snowing all day and we have a lovely 1/2 inch of snow! The kids are overjoyed to have any snow at all and have been outside as often as they can. They have to come in once they are soaked to warm up and dry off! We took Tyler for a walk. He thinks anything outside is fun so he was really excited. Unfortunately, I can't find any of our baby mittens so I just tried to keep his hands tucked into his coat. He held out for about 15 min before he started to get too cold.

Happy Snow Day!

Happy Birthday Connor

2010-08-30T14:42:00.001-07:00

Sunday we had a party to celebrate Connor's 6th birthday. We had lots of friends and family come over for a BBQ and cake. Connor had a wonderful time and has been talking about it all day today! Thanks to everyone who was able to help us make this a special day!Auntie Margaret and December

Daddy did a great job of grilling

Lots of kids

Connor and his friends Jake, Benny and Matt

The light side and the dark side to the Star wars cake

Star wars cake, Yoda was a big hit!

Big breath and .... BLOW!

Hey! That one came back and so did those ones over there! It was so funny watching the kids try to blow our the candles. They just kept relighting themselves!

Someone was excited to get a whoopee cushion!

Long Awaited Pictures!

2010-07-27T22:38:00.001-07:00

These are sort of in order from most recent to farthest past. Hope you enjoy these little snippets of our summer so far. We have been busy and are enjoying all the sunshine we can get.

The garden out front

our pumpkin/tomato/cucumber/watermelon/dahlia/corn patch

the back garden

garden below the deck

broccoli from our garden

Looking at the crab Uncle Jeremy was going to cook for dinner

One of the crabs

Shadow, our new bunny

her deluxe OUTDOOR!!!! cage :)

Hmm, let me think...

Sophie!
Connor handing out candy in the 4th of July parade

Laura at the parade

Sophie enjoyed th strawberry farm immensely!

Tyler tastes his first strawberry.....

AWWWWW! What was that?

What a MESS!
Well, that was fun.

Tyler and Daddy liked the calf at the animal farm

Toes are tasty!

Sophie riding the horse

Connor rode too. Laura didn't want to though.

Mmmmm!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Strawberry picking!

Happy Baby! (not sure why this is in the middle of the strawberry pictures. Oh well it's still cute)

Hmm... Ball or strawberry???

Connor conquered the HUGE pile of grass clippings.

Sophie made a bed of towels at the spray park when she was done playing.

My big jumper wore himself out! Sweet dreams Tyler!

Happy 3rd Birthday Sophie!

2010-06-09T23:40:00.001-07:00

We had dinner at our friends house and watched the hockey game. Daddy special ordered this Tinkerbell cake for Sophie.
The icing was te best part! Sophie thought it would make excelent finger paint!

Sophie wanted to go to Country Village and feed the ducks on her birthday. We met Little Gramma there for lunch. We also ran into Aunty Margaret and December. We ate at this new cafe called the Villiage Bean. It was really kid friendly. They had a bunch of child sized tables and chairs, a big magnet wall, a bookshelf full of storie books and toys as well as a cozy corner with a nice rug and big throw pillow that Laura was sure was for snuggling up and reading a book. After lunch, we went and fed the ducks. Daddy met us later in the afternoon and we explored the toy store. We were very lucky to have been there in between rain storms. It rained all morning, was gloriously sunny while we were at Country Villiage and started pouring again as we were getting ready to leave. I think Sophie had a wonderful day!

The whole gang!

Sisters!

Quick Update

2010-05-31T19:02:00.000-07:00

Emma had her baby! A little girl (that makes 3), Felicity Rose Marie. She was born May 30th at 12:10am. She weighed 9lbs2oz and has a head of black hair. Both Emma and Felicity are doing well and i can hardly wait to meet my new little niece. I add a picture as soon as Mom sends one to me.

Sorry It's a bit blurry...it's a Skype picture

Tyler learned how to roll over today and was quite proud of himself. I tried to make a video of him but he wouldn't preform for the camera. Once I put it away, he rolled over again. He did the same thing for Pat this evening and wouldn't roll over 'till Pat left the room! He is a funny baby!

Easter

2010-04-04T21:18:00.000-07:00

Wiggle Waggle

2010-03-09T17:08:00.001-08:00

Connor lost his first tooth yesterday! At lunch he told me there was something wrong with his tooth. Sure enough, it was wiggly. At dinner it fell out!

Happy Birthday Will!

2010-03-03T21:42:00.001-08:00

Happy Birthday Will! From Auntie Bridget, Uncle Patrick, Connor, Laura, Sophie and Tyler! We hope you have a wonderful birthday and a great 2yr old year. We love you and miss you!

Vancouver 2010

2010-02-27T13:07:00.000-08:00

We took the whole family up to Vancouver yesterday. We didn't have tickets for any events but we thought it might be fun to see all the people and take in some of the free things that were going on. It was pretty amazing! There were people everywhere!!! Most of them had something on that was red. They were cheering and happy and friendly. I've never seen anything like it. There were big TVs set up all over the place; in shop windows, in restraunts, and huge ones at the differant gathering places. We had thought that the kids would like to go ice skating on the free outdoor rink but Sophie was the ony one interested and there were so many people we would have had to wait 2 hrs. 'till the next session. So, we watched the skaters for a while before we wandered on. We found a "toddler hockey game that was out of the rain and right next to a giant TV that was playing the US/Finland semifinal hockey game. I watched Connor, Laura and Sophie play hockey while Pat watched the end of the semifinal game out in the rain. There was a big zip line set up over the area that all this was going on. It looked like a lot of fun but not something that you could do wih little kids in tow. The people that were doing it had to get all harnest in like for rock climbing. (Made me think of Diana) From ther we wandered through town looking for some were to eat. There were long waits eveywhere. We ended up finding another "celebration site" and after anothe wait, got in. We got food there and were able to go inside and warm up and sit down to eat. They had Canadian womans curling and the 4 man bobsled events on the TVs in there. It was snowing up werethe bobsled event was going on. I was glad to see that there was some winter weather during the winter olymipc. I had heard that tickets were being refunded due to the unstable condition of the ground where spectators would have been standing because it had been so warm. Anyway.... From there we checked out the CANADA house and the Manitoba house (they were at the same celebration site) The CANADA house had lots of neat displays and interactive things for the kids to do. The Olymip mascots showed up and we could have gotten pictures with them but them kids were too scared. (especially Connor who hid his head in the back of Patrick's sweatshirt) I didn't go into Manitoba house but sat outside with Tyler who was rather hungry by this point! The volenteers were all really good (with the exception of one security gaurd) and gave the kids pins at each place that we went.

I Need To Do This More Often! (Pictures of the Kiddos)

2010-02-20T22:07:00.000-08:00

This is what happens when Mommy is busy... Sophie dancing on a table at a bar!

Connor's on Youtube!

2010-02-03T22:35:00.000-08:00

Connor loves carpet skating at the Children's Museum with the Sivertips. This year they compiled a short video and he is one of the stars! (He is the Goalie!)YouTube - The Silvertips at the Imagine Children's Museum

If you watch carefully, you can see the girls, Tyler and me in the background. I think it is at about the 13/14th second.

Hurray for Sunshine!

2010-01-18T14:56:00.000-08:00

Today was sunny and warm! We walked over to the park and the three big kids had fun playing on the playground. Tyler didn't seem too impressed by the park. When we came home Connor, Laura and Sophie payed in the backyard while fed Tyler and made lunch. We had the first picnic of the year on the back porch. Surprisingly, they all ate it! They have gotten rather picky lately and I never know what they will eat! Thankfully there was no compaining at lunch to ruin the nice day. I can't wait 'till Spring! (Sophie thinks it is Summer already) But, I'll take all the sunny winter days I can get.

Tyler

2010-01-11T11:44:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-25T23:01:00.000-08:00

Tyler Owen Simmons made his grand entrance December 24th at 4:22pm. He weighed 8lbs and is 20in long. He is doing great. Eating, sleeping and filling his diaper seem to be coming naturally! We are all home and had a nice Christmas afternoon opening presents and watching Connor, Laura and Sophie play with their new toys!

Still Waiting

2009-12-21T19:51:00.000-08:00

And not so patiently anymore! I wish this baby would make an appearance soon. It is getting rather close to Christmas and I would rather spend the day at home with my family than in the hospital. Mom is on her way down here as I write this.I called and asked her to come this afternoon. The stomach flu has been going through our house and Pat is down with it now. Which means he's not really up to going to the hospital with me should I go into labour right now so I thought it would be good to have Mom here. I was having some contractions last night but nothing today. Keep us in your prayers the next couple days and hopefully we will have a Christmas miracle a few days BEFORE Christmas!

I Think She Did It!

2009-12-14T11:41:00.000-08:00

I think Sophie has mastered the potty! She hasn't worn a diaper in over a week. Not even at night! There haven't been any "accidents" either. I am soooo happy. She is very proud of her "Big Girl Underwear" and is happy to tell people that she "didn't go pees in them". Her timing couldn't be better, Baby Simmons is due to arrive tomorrow. (We'll see if that happens. The others have all been late)

Coming this December...!

2009-08-18T22:59:00.001-07:00

Highlights from the Past Month in Pictures!

2009-07-22T15:28:00.001-07:00

Playing at the beach on Jetty Island was tons of fun! (notice Sophie doing a "back float" in the sandy salty water!)

Happy 4th of July!

Finger Painting Fun!

Sophie and Daddy at the animal farm

Sophie thought it would be better to eat her BBQ dinner in the living room. So, when no one was paying attention, brought in her food and got herself all set up!

Sophie talking to Great Grampa Happpy on the phone

Strawberry picking when Auntie Mary was visiting

At Mukilteo beach (Yes, I am in this picture!)

Connor at swimming lessons

Happy 2nd Birthday Sophie!

2009-06-17T19:25:00.000-07:00

Last week was Sophie's second birthday! I took the kids swimming at the outdoor wading pool at Forest Park. They had just filled it the day before and it wasn't opened to the public yet so we had the whole thing to ourselves. In the evening, we had cake with Gramma and Grampa and Uncle Ryan. Sophie kept saying that she wanted green cake. Since I couldn't bring myself to make a cake that was actually green, she had to settle for green icing.

These days Sophie is talking up a storm! She talks all day and if you don't acknowledge her when she is talking she will repeat herself over and over until someone notices! If you ask her who she is she will tell you "ittle Ophie irl" (Little Sophie girl) and if you ask her if she's cute she will say "no, utie pie" (no, cutie pie)! She is our most daring little monkey. She climbs the big ladders at the park on her own, she walks UP all the slide and thinks she should be able to do everything that Connor and Laura are capable of.

2009-05-22T16:46:00.000-07:00

Lots has happened during the last month and I never seen to have the time to add things to the blog. So I'll give you a quick update while Sophie naps and Pat is entertaining the other two upstairs. We celebrated our 5th anniversary at the end of last month. We took the kids to the beach for the afternoon and Pat and I went out to dinner together. I had my birthday and got a pet bunny. The kids really love him and have named him Marshmallow. Sophie loves him from a distance and when he is in his cage but is still a little nervous whenever we let him out. We have had quite a few days of nice weather and we have spent as much time soaking up the sun as we can. We have been gardening and playing in the pool. The kids are loving having the park so close to our house and we are over there a lot! Connor and Laura are both in swimming lessons and are having a blast! Connor is a real little fish with no fear of the water at all. He goes off the diving board and can swim across the deep end of the pool. He knows his strokes but defiantly prefers to spend most of his time swimming under water down by the bottom! Laura is a little less out going in the water but really enjoys the time she spends in the pool. She has no problem going under water and is working hard to be able to keep her face in longer. She still wants to be held on to most the time but is getting more willing to try stuff on her own. Sophie is not in lessons but love to swim. She blows bubbles, kicks her feet and does "reach and pull arms". She really wants to jump off the diving board and we've put a lifejacket on her a few times and let her try. She'll walk all the way to the end of the board but once she is there, she losses her courage. She also thinks she can dive! She puts her arms up over her ears, leans way over and falls into the water. It really would be a dive if she didn't look up at the last second!

Marshmallow

Sophie raiding the freezer

Our Little Goalie

My little helpers showing off all the rhubarb that we cut up

I caught these fairies picking "wishies" in the front yard one morning

Easter!

2009-04-14T20:29:00.000-07:00

Connor wasn't too keen on posing for a nice Easter picture!

Oh, What a Week!

2009-03-24T21:51:00.000-07:00

This has been a really long week. I know it is only Tuesday night but the past seven days have been rough! I had some sort of stomach bug and had to stay close to the bathroom for a few days. Connor and Laura had some sort of bug too. Laura was really lethargic for a few days and even put herself to bed for a nap twice! She threw up one night but seemed to get better after that. Connor had one day of throwing up and diarrhea. Patrick wasn't feeling really well either but managed to fight his way through it. Just when I thought everyone was better, I got a really itchy nose that has turned into a sinus cold. Then, to top it all off, when we were eating breakfast this morning, I noticed that Laura had red marks on her face. I didn't think too much of it. She said that she had bonked into something. When I got her dressed a little while later, I realized that she had red spots all over!!!! She said that they didn't itch and they didn't seem to bother her so I guessed it might be chicken pox. I made her a doctor's appointment and luckily, it is only hives! I have no idea what caused them but, after to doses of benedryl, they seem to be fading. I hope everyone is better tomorrow. It has been a really long week!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2009-03-18T18:19:00.000-07:00

I took these pictures yesterday. We went to "Gramma's school" for their annual St. Patty's day parade. The kids had a blast and especially liked the pipers and Irish dancers.

2009-03-15T22:17:00.000-07:00

A friend of Jeanie's from the SMM school (where she works) came to Will's birthday party to take pictures if the kids. She took tons and they turned out great. Here are a few for your enjoyment. We really wanted a nice one with all four of the cousins but it is next to impossible to get them all to look at the camera at the same time! Sophie slept through most of the party so there are very few pictures of her.

Pictures!

2009-03-15T21:58:00.001-07:00

Kitchen

Playroom

Livingroom

Sophie!

Connor, Laura and Sophie's room!

Some recent photos of our resident monkeys!

I'm Back!

2009-03-13T16:32:00.001-07:00

We finally have phone and internet again! HURRAY!!!!! We moved a little over three weeks ago and have been without phone or internet since then. Patrick had his cell phone and I was able to use his work cell phone (he only uses it during the summer) for local calls but it sure wasn't fun being cut off from family and friends in the rest of the world! So after lots of stressful miscommunication and misunderstanding, we finally got our phone and internet installed today! A lot has happened in the past couple week, we moved, we've had company from Alaska and Maryland, Sophie's vocabulary has exploded and Connor and Laura are helping me plan our veggie garden not to mention all the paint I've used and that we got new living room furniture! We are slowly getting unpacked and I will hopefully get a pictures and a more detailed update posted soon!!!

Happy Valentine's Day

2009-02-14T10:46:00.000-08:00

Too Soon!

2009-02-01T14:01:00.000-08:00

Yesterday Sophie climbed out of her bed by herself. I had put her down for a nap and about an hour later, I heard her crying. Figuring she had just woken up, I went to get her and she wasn't in her bed! I looked around and though I could hear her, I didn't see her. Turns out she had been at the door trying to get out of her room and when I had opened the door she just stayed behind it. Up 'till now, she has been sleeping in a playpen/pack and play type thing. When we move to our new house, in 2-3 weeks, I had planned on getting another twin sized mattress so each if the kids would have one. Unfortunately, she figured out how to climb out of her bed just a little too soon! Sooo, not wanting her to get hurt in another attempt to escape from her bed, I decided that she could sleep on a crib mattress on the floor (Connor and Laura both did this when they were smaller). This seemed like a simple answer until I went to find a sheet for the mattress. I had given all my crib sheets to Emma! Aren't I smart! She has a crib and I don't. It made sense at the time. Oh well. So at 6pm I set off for the Goodwill to find a cheap crib sheet. Luckily they had some and they were half off so for $1.50 I got 2 crib sheets and Sophie has her own little bed. She really likes it too, except when she is supposed to be going to sleep, them she just wanders around her room crying!

Snow Fun and Our White Christmas!

2009-01-09T16:38:00.000-08:00

Over a Week of Snow!

2008-12-22T09:17:00.001-08:00

The unheard of has happened! We have had snow for over a week now and it has not started to melt yet! Not only that, but we have had snow fall on just about every day this past week! I think we probably have 18 inches on the ground this morning. It is rather hard to tell just how much snow there really is because we had some high winds yesterday and the night before. The wind blew the snow around a packed down really hard. We are all enjoying this unusual weather. We have gone for a few walks and done lots of sledding. It is too deep today to go for a walk. Laura's little legs were really struggling yesterday and there is at least 8 more inches this morning than there were yesterday when we went for our walk! It has been really nice. Patrick has been home since last Wednesday. The pool closed on Wednesday, he had Thursday and Friday off for his weekend, the pool was closed Saturday and Sunday for painting and there is too much snow so the pool is closed again today. The kids have loved having Daddy around so much and I sure have enjoyed having another grown up in the house. I even managed to get a nap yesterday!

SNOW!!!

2008-12-15T11:36:00.000-08:00

Hurray! We got snow and it is supposed to last until next week! There is a chance that we will get more on Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday ans next Sunday! I hope the weather man is right for a change! I love the snow! The kids do too and after church yesterday spent several hours playing outside in the snow!

The only way I can get everyone looking at the camera at the same time is to have them stick out their tongues at me! Ahh! There has to be another way! Maybe they are really trying to catch snowflakes on their tongues!

Connor starts pulling
Laura
They are going straight now

Oh! Crashed into the bush!

Today!

2008-12-13T18:36:00.001-08:00

This morning we went to Lowe's, the hardware store, for their free children's building project. Sophie got her own apron and goggles. She was very excited. Connor and Laura have had theirs for several months and she has always loved the goggles. Now she has her very own pair! The project for today was a wooden "gingerbread" house. It had a hinged lid so it opens. The kids love them and Connor and Laura have been using them all afternoon as houses for their playmobil people.

It has been trying to snow all afternoon and this evening it is FINALLY starting to accumulate. The kids were out playing in it before they left for the hockey game. It is really wet but lots of fun. They are probably soaking wet but I stayed home from the game to wrap presents so I guess I'll just listen to Handel's Messiah and not worry about them being all wet!

Okay, so accumulate might not be the right word but it is sticking to the grass and I can hope to wake up the a foot of snow in the morning. Can't I?

O Christmas Tree!

2008-12-12T00:38:00.001-08:00

We got our Christmas tree today. I think it is the earliest we have ever got a tree but it is just how it worked out this year. We wanted to go to a tree farm and cut the tree ourselves. The weather was nice this morning and with snow and freezing temperatures in the forecast, we decided today was the day. Patrick and Connor looked up local tree farms on the internet and picked one they thought sounded good and we headed out. When we got there, we discovered that neither Patrick nor myself had any cash and neither of us had thought to bring the check book. The farm didn't take plastic because they have no electricity at their shed. Thankfully the people who run the place were very nice and said they would let us get a tree and mail them a check!!! We could hardly believe it!!! We looked around. They had a ton of selection and finally settled on a Norway Spruce. I picked it out (surprise surprise! I am soo picky about Christmas trees). It is a beautiful tree but VERY prickly! When I got home from work this evening, We set it up and the kids and I decorated it. It doesn't want to stay up very straight though (We even tried 2 different stands!)so it is tied to the wall with twine! Hopefully it will hold. Patrick is a little leery!

Happy December!

2008-12-08T21:56:00.000-08:00

Advent Calendar

2008-11-28T21:23:00.000-08:00

I've almost finished our Advent Calendar! It was way more work than I thought it would be. Mom had the cards all made up. I just had to colour all those little pictures and make the board to put them on. Now I just have to make the loops to tie the cards to and put strings on all the cards. But it sure looks close to being done now. Good thing I still have one more day before Advent starts!

Fall Fun!

2008-11-18T14:15:00.000-08:00

Patrick and Connor raked up a huge pile of leaves in the backyard and the kids had a great time jumping, hiding and being thrown into the leaves.

Happy 3rd Birthday Laura!

2008-10-31T22:03:00.002-07:00

2008-10-27T17:56:00.000-07:00

Riding the merry-go-round

Looking at ducks

Feeding the birds

Spider-man all dressed up for the Halloween carnival at Gramma's school

"Princess angle fairy"

My little kangaroo!

Pumpkin Patch Fun!

2008-10-24T23:14:00.000-07:00

2008-10-21T15:18:00.000-07:00

Connor is all boy. Sometimes more boy than I know what to do with. I don't really understand the need to be rough and tough and loud but apparently it is a requirement of his at this point. He has also taken a real interest in drawing recently. He draws everything from pirate ships to camp sites to foot ball games. Not only does he draw these things, you can actually tell what they are! He also likes to write things and is always asking me how to spell words and how to make the right letters. He is very eager to learn to read and we have been working on letter recognition and sounds.

Sophie is starting to enjoy "jumping". Luckily today it was only off of the car seat. Yesterday, it was off of the couch. The day before that, is wasn't jumping but rather sliding head first off the arm of the living room chair. I'm a little worried because she doesn't just do this once. But rather repeats it over and over and over!!! I know children learn by repetition but does it really take falling on your head twenty times to realize that sliding off the chair head first is going to hurt??! At least she is a good sport about it and doesn't melt down every time she falls.

Laura, like any self-respecting, almost three year old, has taken to thinking she is a princess. Some times it is a princess angle fairy but I can usually get away with just saying princess. She likes to dress accordingly (see pictures). She almost always insists on wearing a dress and her idea of a matching outfit is a far cry from what I would pick. But she is happy and warm enough so I let her wear what she picks out (most of the time).

Some Recent Pictures

2008-10-06T13:28:00.000-07:00

Fall leaves art project. This "required" way more glue than I anticipated and I have decided that although glue sticks are not very messy, they sure aren't very cost effective!!!

Sophie and her personal sized cucumber

Mammy

2008-09-21T17:06:00.000-07:00

Sophie is trying sooo hard to talk these days. She is mostly done with her screaming phases. She used to scream all day. She'd scream and point if she wanted something. She'd scream if she didn't like something and she'd scream just for the fun if it too. Now she babbles nicely all day. She tries to say words but most of them come out as "DA" or "DAT". On Friday she started calling me "Mammy". She says it in such a cute little voice. The only problem is that when I put her down for a nap, and she doesn't want to sleep, instead of crying, she calls "Mammy, Mammy, Mammy". It almost breaks my heart to have to leave her there and to not go and get her.

Connor's Birthday

2008-09-02T17:13:00.000-07:00

It is hard to believe that Connor is four! The time sure flies by quickly. Everyone told me it would when he was a baby but at that time it was hard to believe.
We had a BBQ for Connor an Saturday night. We had a bunch of family and friends over and had a nice evening. The secretary at Patrick's work loves making cakes and after she heard about the pirate ship cake I tried to for Connor's birthday,she had to try her hand at it too. I think it was the biggest birthday cake I have ever seen but it didn't quiet make the 60mi trip from her house to ours. Despite having the hull crack, the cake turned out phenomenally. Everything on it was edible, even the sails which were rice paper.

Our Little Builders

2008-08-23T13:34:00.000-07:00

This morning we went to Lowe's, the local hardware store. Twice a month, they have free building projects for kids. Today they built a GMC truck. Connor and Laura each got their own apron, hammer and goggle that they got to bring home with them. I helped Laura read her blue prints and assemble her truck while Uncle Josh helped Connor. Sophie and Gramma watched. When the trucks were finished, each child received a certificate with their name on it saying that they had completed the project and a little badge with a truck on it to sew onto their aprons. They both had a great time and have been playing building ever since we got home!

Tea Party!

2008-08-18T10:28:00.000-07:00

While I was making muffins for breakfast this morning, Connor and Laura decided to have a tea party in the bathroom! Sophie joined in and was soaked! I am very thankful that they chose the bathroom for the location of this tea party because there was water EVERYWHERE!!!

Summer

2008-07-10T16:08:00.000-07:00

These pictures are in a really random order. There are pictures from the strawberry farm, the animal farm, making ice cream sandwiches, my table and chairs, the beach, the 4th of July and ice cream in Leavenworth! Oh, and cousins playing games one morning at Gramma's house.

It seems so hard to keep this updated during the summer! We have been spending a lot of time out side during the day. Patrick works 'till 7 and we usually wait to eat dinner 'till he gets home, so our evenings are rather short. The kids and I spent a week in eastern Washington with my mom and Diana. We went over for Auntie Colleen's wedding then stayed at Gramma's for the week. It was so nice to be in the sunshine. The heat took a while to adjust to (112 degrees F). It was nice to visit with family and to be able to just relax. We spent a lot of time at the pool and went to the beach one day and the water slides another. Connor was so brave at the water slides. I had him wear his life jacket and he did all the slides by himself! Even the advanced ones!!! I was a bit worried at first but he was fine and the lifeguards didn't seem to mind.
We have gone strawberry picking twice so far. The berries were delicious. I think we froze at least 35lbs of berries to eat through out the year. Sophie enjoyed sitting in the field, squishing berries and getting covered in dirt!
I have been working on cleaning out the house and the garage. With such a small house, there really isn't room for extra STUFF! It has been a lot of work, going through clothes the kids have outgrown and stuff that we "might use some day" but really don't need! I'm hoping to have a garage sale soon and then take anything that doesn't sell to the Goodwill.
A few days ago, I painted our table and chair set. It had been a hunter green colour and was getting a little chipped and beat up looking. Now it a periwinkle blue. I never really liked the green but I love the blue. I also switched the big table that went with the chairs, for a some what smaller one we had out in the laundry room. All painted the same colour they look like they were supposed to go together and it fits the kitchen much better.
We went to Jetty Island today. The weather was great and we all had a great time playing in the sand and the water. The tide was in while we were there but that made for nice warm water and there was still plenty of sand to play on.

2008-06-20T22:07:00.000-07:00

Monday was a big day! Jason and Kelly wanted to take us to the Seattle Aquarium as Sophie's birthday present. All 7 of us (Patrick had to work) loaded into our van and Jason drove us down to Seattle. We had a GREAT time. there was so much to see and it was set up really well so there was lots for the kids to do. We were there around feeding time so we got to see lots of the tanks being fed. There was a great big tank right as you entered the aquarium that actually had a scuba diver in it. You could watch her feed the fish and ask her questions. She had a headset in her mask so she could talk to people. After the aquarium, we went to Ivar's Fish Bar for lunch. We sat outside and fed the seagulls some of our french fries. Connor and Laura thought that was a blast! We had seen a carousel as we were walking from the aquarium to lunch and Kelly wanted to take the kids on that so we headed back that way but got side tracked at the "Pirate Store". Jason and Kelly got Connor and Laura each there own pirate hooks and a temporary skull and cross bones tattoo. Connor had been wearing his pirate hat all day and was thrilled to look even more like a real pirate. We did finally make it to the carousel. It was really beautiful. I think Sophie enjoyed it the most. She was bouncing up and down ready to go before the ride even started! It was a great day and Connor and Laura can't wait 'till Auntie Kelly, Uncle Jason and Will can come visit again!

This Past Week in Pictures

2008-06-15T22:24:00.000-07:00

Sophie's Birthday Party

2008-06-07T11:25:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, we had a party to celebrate Sophie's fist birthday! It has been raining all week and was supposed to rain all day yesterday too. We had planned a BBQ so rain would not have been good. It rained all morning and afternoon and I prayed for the sun to come out the whole time I was getting things ready! 5 o'clock rolled around and out came the SUN! God is good! At 10pm it started raining again! We had about 35 people here, lots of friends and family. Patrick BBQed hamburgers, hot dogs and sausages. I had made potato salad and couscous salad as well as lots of fresh fruit and veggies. Everyone seemed to have a great time. I don't think Sophie really understood what was going on but had a great time visiting with all the people! She was really interested in the flame of the candle on her cake and kept trying to grab it instead of blowing it out! She had no interest in presents and enjoyed playing in the dirt way more!

More Pictures and Our Trip to Bellingham

2008-05-29T17:23:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures that were too cute not to share. The first ones are from around home. We went on the train to visit Uncle Josh, at school in Bellingham, on Memorial Day. The second half are pictures from that trip. The kids had a great time on the train. Sophie had the best "train legs" of all of us and enjoyed walking back and forth between my seat and Gramma's seat. We spent most of the day walking around Bellingham. I hadn't really been there before so it was nice to see where Josh is going to school.

Pictures from May

2008-05-22T22:54:00.000-07:00

I have not been very good about keeping this updated but here are some pictures from the last month.
Uncle Andrew and Michelle asked Pat and I too be Godparents for Annabelle. The Baptism was bilingual because there was a little Spanish-speaking boy who was baptized at the same time. This made it a little confusing but it was still really nice. I could tell Michelle was really happy.
We went over to Gramma Middendorf's for Gram Quinn's memorial service. It was really beautiful and it was so nice to hear people share things that they remembered about Gram. We will all miss her but we are so happy that she isn't suffering anymore and is happily awaiting us in heaven. Connor and Laura had a great time playing with all my cousins. It seems like we are a continuous family without any real definite break between generation. Mom is the 13 years older than her youngest brother, who is ten years older than I am but his wife is only a year older than I and I have cousins who are younger than my kids. No one, except maybe Andrea, can keep track of who are cousins, second cousins, first cousins once removed??? aunts or uncles!! it's all very confusing but it is great fun when we all get together.
Can you tell its late? I always ramble when I'm tired!
We've had a few days of beautiful weather and we all enjoyed being outside. I've got lots of gardening done and the yard is starting to look really tidy. Our veggie garden is starting to take off and I can't wait to be able to start harvesting! Veggies always taste better out of your own garden!

Mother's Day

2008-05-11T23:02:00.001-07:00

We had a quiet day today. I mean we didn't do much, not that there was a great amount of silence! That NEVER happens around here. The kids and I went to Mass with Mike this morning. It was really nice. There was an adult who was baptized and confirmed. Father gave a really good homily about the Holy Spirit and how if we follow His guidance in our lives we will be more joyful and less burnt out than if we are just trying to do our own will. I got to take a nice hour and a half nap this afternoon with the 2 girls. I tried to get Connor to have a rest too but he wasn't tired so he went and played quietly for a while. Patrick came home around 5pm and had got a package of Dahlia tubers for each of the kids to give me for Mother's day. He had also got me a beautiful rose bush. Sophie wasn't feeling well. She is teething and was running a bit of a temperature and just wanted me to hold her. She was really miserable. Pat made BLT's for dinner. I love bacon and we don't have it very often but it sure was a nice treat. Now everyone is in bed but I'm not too tired, probably because of my nice nap!!!

Update

2008-05-06T21:07:00.000-07:00

Things around here have been pretty quiet. Connor and Laura have been enjoying the warmer weather. We have had a few really nice days but most days are still cooler and at least partly overcast. They love to go outside and play. They climb "trees" (our bushes) and make beds out of leaves and grass. They also like to make "fires" to "cook" their "stone soup". These consist of piles of sand from the sand box topped with a pile of twigs that Connor carefully breaks into about 3in lengths. These "fires" turn up in the most unexpected places including the driveway, the grass and the garden. Cleaning up all the sand isn't much fun but they love to make them so who am I to complain!
Sophie is a full fledged walker now. She walks way more than she crawls and can even stand up in the middle of the room all by herself. She has also caught on to sign language really quickly. She signs "please" when ever she wants something. She signs "food" and will even occasionally combine the two. We are still working on "thank you" and she will only do it with prompting. Right now she is yelling "DAAAAD" and signing "please" to Patrick who is eating a bowl of ice cream.
Grampa let Sophie try a donut.
Christmas in May!
Somehow Sophie got into the tub by herself and didn't get her hair wet. Yes I know the water is pink!
Mmmmm! Whipped Cream!
Ah, the wonders of the air vent!
Giddy Up!

This Is Not A Hoax!

2008-04-19T20:55:00.000-07:00

I don't know why this isn't working right now. If you slide the play button across the bar you can see the pictures. I'll see if I can fix it later. This was really at our house yesterday. We had 3 inches of snow this morning when we got up too. It is all gone except for the snow men. I hope my veggies survived! This has not been a good start to the gardening season!

Seattle Center

2008-04-19T13:45:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we went to Seattle. I had read that there was a free cherry blossom festival at the Seattle Center and we thought we would check it out. Well that turned out to be a bit of a disappointment, there wasn't much going on. There were just a bunch if booths that we took in in about half an hour. Pat and I did do a chopstick contest which he won and got a free bottle of 100% fruit & veggie juice that is really good! We did discover that there is a very large and fun children's museum at the Center House. We spent at least two hours there and the kids didn't want to leave when it was time to go. There was lots to do for all ages. There were places where Sophie could play and places where Connor and Laura had lots of fun as well as things that older children and adults would appreciate.

This Past Week

2008-04-19T12:08:00.000-07:00

We have been busy this past week. We planted our vegetable garden and played out side a lot. Connor and Laura have really enjoyed playing with play doh. Connor likes to make roads to drive his cars on and Laura likes to make "roley worms". I have done a bunch of sewing. I made two skirts for Laura, a pillow for Connor and am working on some curtains for our room to keep the sun out at 6am!

Sophie

2008-04-09T11:31:00.000-07:00

Some how 10 months have gone by and Sophie's first birthday is only two months away! She is so much smaller than Connor or Laura were at this age that I sometimes forget how old she really is! She is just now outgrowing her infant car seat, something Connor did at 4 months. She is wearing clothes that Laura fit at 5 months and is such a feather weight that I have no problem carrying her around. Despite her small stature, she is working very hard to keep up with her older brother and sister. She is a pro at crawling and can walk almost anywhere she wants to get holding onto furniture and the walls! She will even take a few steps on her own with a little encouragement or the right goal (the swimming pool!). Neither Connor nor Laura braved their first steps until they were within a week or two of their
first birthdays! Sophie can say "Mama" and "Dada" or "Dad" and mean either me or Patrick. I just started giving her any solid food and so far, she seems to like it. She wasn't really interested earlier so I didn't push it.

I Guess I Jumped the Gun!

2008-03-29T21:16:00.001-07:00

Winter has returned! We have half an inch of snow and it is still coming down! Last week I was ready to plant my veggie garden. Good thing I didn't, everything would have died! I did start some tomatoes and peas in the house about two weeks ago. The tomatoes are fine but the peas are a foot and a half tall. I don't know what to do with them, they need support but I can''t put them out in the snow! I guess they will just be a bit tangled together.

Easter Pictures (I'll add more later; Pat wants on the computer)

2008-03-25T21:22:00.000-07:00

Spring!

2008-03-19T17:25:00.001-07:00

Some Recent Pictures (O.K. Maybe There Are a Lot!)

2008-03-15T20:40:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures from the last week. Great Grampa Happy Sent the kids Easter baskets. They were full of candy and toys! Connor and Laura discovered that they can work the cd player that is under the kitchen table so now they sit under there to listen to music. Sophie doesn't like to miss out on any of the action and gets right in there with them. Today Connor, Laura and Patrick were in a wedding. They all looked so good. Connor and Laura had so much fun. During the reception, they found a bunch of ladybugs. Connor walked around with one for about ten minutes!

Almost A MONTH!

2008-03-06T15:48:00.000-08:00

How the time does fly! I can't believe it has been so long since I posted anything. The children and I spent just over a week up on Vancouver island. We spent two days with Emma and her little family and six days at Mom and Dad's. It was great to get to see every body. We got to go see Diana, Mary and Brock preform in the music festival. They all did very well and sang beautifully. Bettina and her two little ones came over for a visit one day while we were there. It is really fun to get together with them because her little boy, Casey is just one day older than Connor and they are so similar! Her daughter is about two weeks older than Sophie and it's neat to see how they are both growing.
Since we got home life has been pretty low key. We all have had little sinus colds. We made a trip to the children's museum and went swimming one night. Other than a few errands we haven't really done much lately.
I will admit that I was struck with a case of spring cleaning ( yes, I know it's still winter but it was sunny. O.K.!) I cleaned the living room and our bed room and rearranged the furniture. I had to get rid of the clutter that seams to grow so rapidly in a small house. Pat doesn't like the way I rearranged things. I said he should give it a try for a while and maybe he'll get used to it. Some of it doesn't work too well. There really is no good place in the whole house for our computer. It is on the coffee table in the living room right now. It used to be on an ugly, rickety old desk in our room but that didn't work well either. I would like to get an armoire to put it in for in the living room. That way I could close it all up and not have to see it!
Connor and Laura watch a move recently called "Summer of the Monkeys". The main character and a boy and a girl named Jay-Barry and Daisy. Now half the time I don't know who my children are. I'll call them by their names and they will quickly correct me with "No, I'm not Laura, I'm Daisy and Connor is Jay-Barry. We are playing Summer of the Monkeys!"

Sophie's Trick

2008-02-12T23:31:00.000-08:00

Doesn't look like she is standing all by herself?! She had pulled herself up at the couch then turned around to look at me. She is actually leaning against the couch. I thought it was so funny. She is so little, she looks like a little elf or something.

A NiceWalk

2008-02-12T23:11:00.000-08:00

Today we had a nice walk. I loaded Connor and Laura into the double jogging stroller and put Sophie in the backpack and we headed off to the Children's museum. We had a nice play there then went across the street to the Goodwill where I found a nice pink cotton dress for Laura. From there, we went to the natural food store, then home. It was a lot of walking but it felt great to get out. Unfortunately it started raining half way home. Luckily, the jogging stroller is also a bike trailer so I just did up the front and Connor and Laura were completely enclosed. Sophie didn't fair quite so well. She was all bundled up and when it got to be more than a little shower (more like a downpour actually) I put the hood of my coat on my head and draped the rest over the backpack so she was all covered up. She was surprisingly dry when we got home. Connor and Laura the animal doctors!
Sophie took a nap in the backpack.

2008-02-09T13:36:00.001-08:00

Our "Pancake Tuesday" feast

Laura really enjoyed her ice cream after swimming on Thursday!

Things have been rather low key around here lately. Patrick and the kids all had colds last week so they were rather miserable. Connor and Laura have been asked to be the ring bearer and flower girl in one of Pat's friend's wedding. Laura is supposed to wear red dress so I have been on the hunt. This is the wrong time of year to find red! I was starting to think I was going to have to make one, which really won't be a big problem, when I found one on clearance at Macy's. It's really cute with little capped sleeves and ribbon and bows in a lattice design on the skirt. On Thursday, Connor and Patrick had a "guys afternoon". They went out for lunch, to have their tux fittings and get a hair cut. Patrick says Connor is going to be soooo cute in a tux. On Friday, Patrick took L:aura out for lunch and they ran a few other errands. They really liked having Day to themselves for while. Sophie has a few new tricks. She has figured out how to sit up on her own and how to "really" crawl, not just scoot. Her biggest trick is standing up! She figured this out about a week and a half ago. Now you can't keep her down! She climbs on everything and it makes her so happy! Once she gets standing up, she gets a big grin.

Recent Pictures!

2008-02-01T21:39:00.001-08:00

Our Home Ice!

2008-01-22T12:18:00.000-08:00

I heard it was supposed to be below freezing for a few day so I thought I would try making an ice rink for the kids. I have tried several times over the course of my life to accomplish this feat but have never had any real success. Well I started last night after dinner by spraying part of the driveway with water. (Our hose leaks so I don't have to worry about it freezing which was one of the biggest problems I've had in the past) before I went to bed, I had spayed three layers. This morning I added another two and by the time Sophie took her nap at 11, the ice was ready! Connor thinks it is the best thing that ever happened to our driveway. He and I played hockey for about half an hour and he stayed out to play more while I made lunch. Laura thought it was neat until she fell down twice. Now she says she doesn't like the slippery. Some of the ice is melting where the sun is hitting it but most of it is holding up pretty well.

Yes, We Are Still Here!

2008-01-19T15:31:00.000-08:00

Not a lot has been happening around here lately. We were all sick after Christmas and it took a while for everyone to get better so we laid low for a while. We did go to the children's museum on day. some of the Silvertip players where there. It was really nice. they let the kids try on their REAL hockey equipment and signed autographs. The also had a kids size floor hockey set up and carpet skates for everyone to try on. Connor was so excited. he had to bring all his own gear! He wore his jersey and helmet and packed his gloves, stick and the carpet skates that he had received for Christmas in his backpack. he had a great time and played hockey for the whole hour. He wast he last to leave when it was all over. Laura was terrified of the whole thing and was much happier to go with Gramma to the art room and do crafts. Sophie has been sick again this past week with a fever. She was very lethargic, clingy and fussy. Thankfully, she seems to be all better now and is back to her normal cheerful self! She has a few new tricks. If you ask her to "clap clap" she claps her hands. She also will put her hands up on her head if you say "So Big". If she wants attention, she'll do these over and over until you start talking to her! She has started saying "Mama" and "Dada" and when she cries she cries for "Mamamama".

Catch Up Time!

2008-01-07T11:21:00.000-08:00

What a busy time of year! We had a great Christmas. Patrick's brother and sister-in-law were here from Maryland. It was nice to visit with them. We hadn't seen them for over a year. We went to Christmas Eve Mass at 7pm with Mike, Jeani and Josh. The kids were really well behaved (Connor fell asleep and slept right to the end). Laura loved the baby Jesus in the Nativity scene. We had a quiet Christmas morning at home. We opened presents and had breakfast. It wasn't a white Christmas but it did snow. In the afternoon we went over to Ryan and Cari's for the Simmons family Christmas. There was lots of food and lots more presents.

On the 27th was the Middendorf family Christmas (my mom's family) it was at the Church hall because the family is so big now. I think there were close to 50 people there and a few didn't make it. Mom and Dad, Diana, Mary and Brock came to our house for a visit before the party and we had a nice, though short, visit. Mary stayed at our house after the party. Emma, Patrick and Elizabeth made it down for the party and were going to come over for dinner the next day but the all got sick and headed home early the next morning instead. Jason and Kelly came over for a last visit that Friday. We took the kids to the Children's Museum. Jason and Kelly hadn't been there before and I think they enjoyed it even though it was very busy while we were there. They stayed for dinner and left around seven. Mary helped me clean up and pack suitcases. Connor wanted to be zipped into the lid of the suitcase. It was quitecomical because he actually fit. We all had a good laugh! We left early the next morning for Mom and Dad's. We spent new Years with Mom and Dad. Emma and Patrick were felling better and came up for dinner on New Years Eve. Their little Elizabeth, who is 2 months younger, is bigger than Sophie! She is a real cutie and has the cutest little smile. We had a great visit. Mom had to work most of the days we were there which was too bad but it was nice to be there all the same. We came home on the 3rd and all got sick. The kids seem to be doing better today so hopefully it will be all over soon.

Jump!

2007-12-19T19:25:00.000-08:00

2007-12-19T19:20:00.000-08:00

These are just a bunch of pictures from the last few days. Mike got us seats in the Boeing box at the last hockey game. It was really nice because the kids had more room to move around and we had a better angle to watch the game. Connor and Laura got out the potato heads this afternoon and had a great time playing with them. Laura enjoyed building "crazy ones" and Connor had a blast trying to wear the pieces himself.

Puddle Jumping

2007-12-19T18:44:00.000-08:00

There was a break in the rain so we all got bundled up and went out to jump in puddles. It is had to be all couped up in the house when it rains for days on end.

Icicle!

2007-12-16T22:12:00.000-08:00

Our Tree

2007-12-16T21:41:00.000-08:00

Perhaps a more appropriate title for this would be "SOPHIE and our tree" or, "Attack of the Persistent Tree Eater!" We got our tree on Thursday evening and from the moment Patrick brought it in the house, Sophie has been after it. She scoots her way over to the tree, rolls over and reaches for the nearest bough or ornament. Nothing within a foot and a half of the floor is safe! While I was wrapping present the other day, Sophie got a hold of one of the empty wrapping paper rolls and was using it to try and get at the higher ornaments! Connor and Laura have been much better this year and they have not rearranged many of the ornaments since the first day.

St . Nicholas Day

2007-12-06T20:54:00.000-08:00

The 6th of December is the feast of St. Nicholas. He was the bishop of Myra,in Asia Minor, early in the fourth century. He is well known for his generosity. As legend goes, he wanted to anonymously help a very poor man who had three daughters. Nicholas went during the night to the house of the poor family and tossed a bag of money through the window. The man used the money as the dowry for his eldest daughter. Nicholas returned again and left money for the next daughter. The father was determined to find out who was leaving the generous gifts and so resolved to stay awake and see if the late night visitor returned. After Nicholas threw a third bag of gold through the window, the poor father chased after him and thanked him for saving him from turning to evil means of acquiring money and so saving him from ruin. As centuries went by, devotion to this Saint spread and the tradition of leaving a shoe or stocking out on the eve of his feast day (the anniversary of his death) in hopes that one would find it filled with goodies and treats, became widespread in Asia Minor and throughout all of Europe.
To carry on this tradition, we put out our stockings before going to bed on Dec. 5th. Connor and Laura had SO much fun finding the gifts in the morning. They tried to get Sophie excited but she just wanted to smile at the camera.

More Cookies!

2007-12-06T20:46:00.001-08:00

Connor and Laura helped me decorate the gingerbread men. I think Laura ate every other m&m. As a result, she ended up quite BLUE!

Sleeping Beauty

2007-12-06T20:34:00.000-08:00

Laura had fallen asleep in the car on the way home from the grocery store the other day. When we got home she woke up enough to walk, with help, into the house but then went promptly back to sleep in this awkward position.

Snow!

2007-12-01T22:19:00.000-08:00

I know it doesn't look like much, but it had just started falling and I decided we HAD to go for a walk. The kids loved it. Connor and Laura kept trying to eat the snow. We walked down the street just fine but on the way back we were walking into the wind and it got a bit cold for Laura and Sophie. Right now we have between 2 and 3 inches of fluffy, white, snowball-material snow.

Getting Ready For Advent and Making Christmas Cookies

2007-11-30T00:21:00.000-08:00

We made a long paper chain with a link for everyday until Christmas. The Sundays are purple or pink just like the colour of the candles on the Advent wreath. Each night someone will get to rip off a link. Connor gets green, Laura gets red and Sophie gets to do Sundays.

They thoroughly enjoyed making cookies, especially licking the pot from the melted chocolate and playing in the sugar.

DUCKS!!! (and one smiley baby)

2007-11-30T00:15:00.000-08:00

There were too many ducks and Connor and Laura got a bit scared!

A Big Week for Sophie!

2007-11-29T23:48:00.000-08:00

On Sunday, after Church, Sophie started scooting! She looks really comical. 'Kinda like a little inch worm. She wiggle across the floor to get at things she wants. Usually they are also things she is not supposed to have! Tonight, I discovered that has also cut her first tooth!! No wonder she has been fussy the last few days!

Monkeying Around

2007-11-11T16:12:00.000-08:00

All Ready for Church

2007-11-11T15:55:00.000-08:00

2007-11-10T11:26:00.000-08:00

The other night, I asked Connor to go and get his pajamas on. He went to his room and put them on but when he came out he was laughing because he got things a little mixed up! He thought it was absolutely hilarious! I'm not sure why it is so funny to wear your pants on your head and your shirt on the bottom but it made Connor and Laura laugh so hard they were almost crying!

Sitting Up!

2007-11-10T11:14:00.000-08:00

On Thursday Sophie sat up all by her self! I had tried a couple times before to have her sit but with no success. On Thursday, Connor and I were playing with Sophie and decided to try and get her to sit up. She did it! She wasn't even flopped over or holding herself up with her hands. She just sat there and smiled at us. Then she got excited and started rocking back and forth it she fell over. She has done it a few more times since then. I make sure there are pillows all around her so she has a soft landing when she falls over. It's amazing how quickly children grow!

One Whole Week Without Diapers!

2007-11-03T23:18:00.000-07:00

Hurray! What a Big Boy! Connor has not worn a diaper since last Friday night! We are so proud of him. It has been a long time coming. He had no interest in potty training and kept telling us that he liked being a baby. AHH! Last Thursday(over a week ago) morning, we had no diapers in the house and it was chilly outside. I hate getting cold. So instead of going out to the garage to get more diapers, I put Connor and Laura in "Big kid underwear." Connor did great. He wore a diaper to bed Thursday and Friday night but kept it dry both nights so now he is diaper free!!!! He still has the occasional accident but it sure beats changing his diaper several times a day!(Laura did not have this kind of success but hopefully she too will get the hang of it soon.)

Happy Halloween!

2007-11-01T01:14:00.000-07:00

Connor is very proud of his SKUNK costume and will tell you he picked it out himself!
Laura likes being a LADYBUG.
Sophie was the cutest FLAMINGO in town!

2007-11-01T01:11:00.001-07:00

A Visit to Mom and Dad's

2007-10-25T13:11:00.000-07:00

We were at Mom and Dad's while they were in Europe. We were there for Brock's 18th birthday party. We visited with Emma and got to see Elizabeth. Brock and Mary took Connor and Laura skating one morning. We spent an afternoon at the beach and an evening with Bettina and her kids. Her baby, Lillian-Ruth is just 2 weeks older than Sophie. Oh, yeah, Laura used up my brand new tube of lip stick! Aren't kids cute!!!

The "ICE RINK"!!! AHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!

2007-10-24T11:50:00.001-07:00

The other day, I was on the computer, Patrick and Sophie were napping and Connor and Laura were playing quietly in their room. It was so nice to have some quiet, uninterrupted time to myself. After a little while, I noticed a smell like baby powder but didn't think anything of it. It was probably just Laura's cabbage patch doll she had brought me. The smell continued to grow stronger. When it got to be over powering,I don't know why I waited so long to investigate, I went to check on the kids. Connor was so happy! He had made a rel skating rink for his hockey players. What could I do at this point but take pictures and let them play. Luckily baby powder, even in large quantities, washes off in the tub and vacuums out of the carpet with no difficulty!

First Day of Swimming Lessons!

2007-10-24T11:43:00.000-07:00

Connor really likes his teacher, Bekka, and has a great time playing in the water with the other kids in his class. (I'm glad I'm not the teacher of this class! They are quite a handful! and my son is one of the ring leaders!)

2007-10-18T15:18:00.000-07:00

After a very early start, 5:40am, we have arrived at Mom and Dad's for the weekend. They are still in Europe but Diana, Mary and Brock are here. Emma is going to come visit tomorrow and I am hoping to be able to squeeze in a visit with Bettina before we head home no Sunday evening.
Yesterday, we made a nice lasagna dinner for Patrick's birthday. The kids wanted him to have a party so we decorated with streamers and balloons and had brownies (Patrick doesn't like cake) for dessert.
On Monday, Connor started swimming lessons. He was very nervous about swimming without Mom or Dad and won't get in the water at first. Once he did get in, he did great. On Wednesday, he had no problems getting in the water and started making friend with a couple of the other boys in his class. He is kind of a handful for his teacher because he has no fear of the water (he has been swimming since he was 3 months old) and thinks he can swim on his own. He can swim about 5-7 feet on his own with his face in the water and can even get his head back up for a breath but HATES swimming on his back.

Sausage Fest

2007-10-14T17:34:00.001-07:00

2007-10-03T23:14:00.001-07:00

Laura, Sophie and Connor

While Patrick was putting Connor and Laura to bed, Sophie was content to lay on our bed and play with the blankets.

Sophie

2007-10-03T22:48:00.000-07:00

I realized that I haven't taken nearly as many pictures of Sophie as I had of the other two by this age so I went a bit camera crazy. Thankfully, I came up with a few really cute pictures. She is getting really vocal and has mastered rolling over. She rolled half way across the living room yesterday! I haven't caught it on film yet but hopefully I will this week!