It's like Christmas all over again!

Our Christmas holidays have been very special.

We have had one baby born just 2 days before Christmas.

Let me tell you, that was a pretty special Christmas present!!!

We have then had a baby born 2 weeks after Christmas.

Just a special!

So, needless to say

December and January are very special months for us,

but also very busy months.

my birthday is also in December

and Trevis's birthday is in January

Alexis turned 6 this year!

She wanted a barbie/mermaid cake

fyi: brown sugar as sand, makes a cake super sweet!

Christmas is always fun with the kids!

this year we made a gingerbread house!

Then in January

Abby celebrated her 2nd birthday!

After Christmas, she knew just what to do with all those presents!

GGYR Pumpkin Patch

 Every year we take a trip out to the Galloping Grace Pumpkin Patch!  When I say "take a trip out", I mean drive down the road to where they have set up their amazing pumpkin patch.  They have set up a corn maze, bean bag tosses, a little play house for the kids, rain gutter rubber duck racing, hay maze, mini tractor racing, they provide horses for a little ride, and of course pumpkins. btw - they also change the stand a little and provide x-mas trees in December! LOVE, LOVE, LOVE!!!!

This was Abby's first year that she could ride one of the horses.

As you can see, she didn't LOVE it.

In fact, she refused to touch the saddle

so, what did her loving parents do???

we put her on the horse again!

and again, she didn't LOVE it.

I love that she is holding her little fists up against her body

and I love that she has the same look of disgust on her face

kind of like, "Mom, did you really just put me on her again?"

especially since the mission of galloping grace is to bring "pure joy to children"

Alexis took Abby for a little ride in the tractor!

Brawn was a little big for the tractor, but he loved it anyway!

Riding horses!

Picking out pumpkins!

FUN was had by ALL!

for the most part!

So we love the pumpking patch!

maybe next year Abby will love the horses

maybe next year I can get all the kids to look at me, when I take their picture

and if you want to find out more about the

pumpkin stand

or the ranch

 just click on this link here!

October Rush

October is the beginning of a busy season for our family

We start the month with Brawn's birthday...

He was very excited to turn 8.  He got lots of books, toys and all his new cub scout stuff!

Brawn wanted a Star Wars themed cake, so I made this ship.

He liked it!

 Blowing out the candles!!!

Followed by Ethan's birthday...

Ethan turned 4! He got lots of books, and toys - legos!!!  CARS legos and Toy Story Legos!!!

Ethan wanted a Toy Story cake, So I made him a Buzz Lightyear Cake!

Here he is after blowing out his candles!

 Always a trip to the GGYR pumpkin patch...

and then we finish the month with Halloween!

Alexis wanted to be a mermaid!

Brawn wanted to be a Jedi! 

 Ethan wanted to be a kangaroo!

And Abby wanted to be a monkey!!!!

I made all the costumes. 

 I think this year I need to start earlier so that our October is less stressful. 

like I said, that is just the beginning of our busy season

we get a little break in November, but we pick right back up in December and January

at least the rest of the year isn't so busy for us! ; )

  

Brawn's Baptism

Brawn turned 8 in October.

He was so excited.

He decided he wanted to be baptized.

We wanted him to know this was his decison. 

 It wasn't something that Trevis and I were going to decide for him.

But, we are so happy he made this choice!

We waited until some of our family could come for the baptism,

so he was baptized on November 27, 2010.

On the way to the stake center Abby fell asleep

She slept through the whole thing and then woke up for the closing song and prayer.

We took a family picture just before Brawn and Daddy went to change their clothes

He is such a good looking young man!

 I can't believe he is already 8 years old

 He was baptized

and then confirmed a member

of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints

by his Dad,

Trevis Carlisle

I love these two!

This was such a special day.

Brawn was baptized on the same day as two other members of our ward,

Alexis Saline and Calhan Moses

It was pretty special to have three baptisms at the same time!

During the program, a special musical number was performed by

Alexis, Tyler and Aubrey Saline,

Brawn, Alexis and Ethan Carlisle,

and

Calhan, Morgan, Dillon and Parker Moses

They sang "When I am Baptized"

Of course we had to take a family picture after

 Brawn, I am so proud of you and your decison to be baptized.

I hope you will always remember and keep the covenants you have made on this day.

If you do, the Holy Ghost will be your constant companion

He will guide you, he will comfort you.

We love you

Your Heavenly Father loves you

and is so happy you have taken the first steps to return to live with Him!

Craftastic

I look at blogging as a kind of journaling.

I'm not the most consistant,

but I see it as a way to share what is going on in my family

and as some of the things I love to do.

One of my favorite things to do can be categorized as crafting. 

Scrapbooking, sewing, painting, crafting...

I'm not the best with timing.

In fact, I'm often way behind with completing my crafts for their intended purpose.

for Example: this year I wanted to make something for Valentine's Day to hang on the door.

actually, I wanted to create a few things throughout the year that I can change out each season.

Valentine's Day was just going to be the first.

Well, I finally finished it...today.

Here is how I did it.

I started with three styrofoam hearts that I found at Hobby Lobby. 

Two were the same size and one a little bit smaller.

I painted the hearts pink

Then I cut up the fabric I found, also at Hobby Lobby, into squares about 1 1/2"

Cute fabric!!!

Then I just hot glued the fabric squares onto the heart forms.

I attached the hearts together with some tulle and glued the fabric over the tulle.

The final product!!!

I had to hang it on the inside of the door to take a picture!

Hopefully, I can paint the door soon.

This is another project I did

I actually completed this one before Valentine's Day!!

Can you believe it?

This was sooo easy.

I bought the sign at Hobby Lobby.

you thought that was it. didn't you?

that would have been funny, but there was actually a little more to it!

It was just wood letters with a ribbon in it.

I painted it pink

Then I took scrapbook paper that I had and traced the letters

cut the letters out

and then modge podged the letters on.

Voila!!!

Major Milestones

A lot happened in August.

Big things for the kids.

Things that brought me joy!

and a little sadness.

Ethan transitioned from Abrazos - which was in home speech and developmental therapy for young children -to child find.

He now goes to Chapparel for speech therapy. 

Abrazos had a graduation picnic for all the kids leaving. 

He loved his developmental therapist, Andrea. 

We will miss her.

Brawn started 2nd grade!

Holy Cow!!

Where did the time fly?

Alexis started Kindergarten!

Yikes! 

She actually has the same teacher as Brawn did in Kinder.  She is so excited to go to a big school now.  I think I was more upset that she was going to school than she was that I wasn't going to be with her all day.  She couldn't wait to go.

 and Ethan started Preschool!

He actually started in September, but who's really counting?

He was so excited.

Abby didn't start school this year.

And she won't start next year either,

but she has been so worn out

getting to play with whatever toy she wants,

running errands with mom,

playing without someone telling her what to do,

or what to play with,

or how to play!

it's hard work to do all that playing!

I love watching my kids grow up

and be happy

and learn

and play

and have fun.

But do they have to do it so fast?

Really...

I can't believe my babies are growing up so fast.