12/31/12

We spent the day organizing the basement and painting our bedroom furniture.  Then we had dinner, a lovely family home evening lesson by Easton (who asked us to each name 2 memories from the past year--a gospel memory and an anything memory.)  Then we each picked an activity to do to await the midnight countdown.

We started out by playing Tate's new Clifford game then we videoed the boys answering their yearly New Year's questions.  Then we took silly pictures and watched Mater's Tall Tales.  We cheered with the crowd in New York when the clock struck 12:00 10:00.  The boys sipped sparkling grape cider and cheered to the New Year.

After we put them to bed, Patrick and I watched movies and then shared a kiss and a toast when the real New Year arrived.

I think 2013 is going to fantastic...(how can it not be when my favorite number is 13??)

So here's to a fabulous New Year!!!

Catching Grasshoppers.

The other day Patrick was reminiscing about his childhood summers, and remembered the delight and wonder of catching grasshoppers.  Thus began, the grasshopper catching...

 Surprisingly, Easton was the bravest and Tate kept giggling and pulling his hands away every time he touched it.

And I just smiled and took pictures, thinking to myself how very different boys are from girls.  I have never even touched a grasshopper (at least not on purpose), let alone held one in my hands.  Raising boys has opened my eyes to new vistas, to be sure. And I'm loving every minute of it!

Family Home Evening Theatrical.

Strawberries.

A Few More.

Can you guess what they're doing??

{A makeshift, make-believe car}

My New Hair...

It was time for a recolor and cut from my darling sister. 

We tried something new this time and I've never loved my hair more.  {Nicole calls it a whisper dramatic.}

Thank you Colie!

Luscious Berry Parfaits

I sort of half-tweaked and half made-up this deliciousness {did I mention it's actually healthy despite how appetizing it looks?}

Just in case you're interested in the recipe, here it is:

Ingredients:

big carton of vanilla yogurt

granola

berries (fresh, frozen, or whatever you prefer)

Instructions:

Simply layer the ingredients in tall glasses (or little ones for children).

Enjoy!

Part 1

This is late in coming, but here is Part 1 which consists of a plethora of pictures from our little 6-week excursion during our affiliation.

Cascos....

Easton eating popsicles since he doesn't like ice cream (he says it's too cold) ... {where did he come from??} :)

Treasure hunting in the rice

a bit of Tate:

Family home evening with Nana and Papa

Feetsies...so adorable!

Poll Closed!

Here's some pictures to get you into the Valentine's Day spirit and to get you through the long and dreadful month of January. By the way, Patrick make these for me one day during lunch. Talented? Yes. Loved? Even more so.

This post is a little late, but December's poll has officially been closed for some time now. Here are the final results:

I usually begin during the after-Christmas sales	1 (11%)
I do a little bit at a time all year long	4 (44%)
I wait until Fall	3 (33%)
I'm up at 2:00 am the day after Thanksgiving	0 (0%)
I relish the hustle and bustle of December shopping	0 (0%)
Christmas Eve last minute!	1 (11%)
I'm supposed to buy presents?	0 (0%)

Note: Only 9 people voted, and I know that we have more friends and family than that (at least I hope we do). So I'd love to get a little bit more participation on this next poll. If you scroll down past our family pictures which are on the right-hand panel of our blog, you will come to the poll. It's one for Valentine's Day, and while some of you may think it's a little bit early to start thinking about Valentine's Day, I say that if we are prepared we shall not fear. And there's nothing worse than being handed a Valentine's present from our lovely sweetheart and realizing that amid the deadlines, the due dates, the work, the callings, and the child care, we have somehow managed to forget to buy, make, or borrow one in return!

And as an added bonus, if thinking up clever Valentine's gifts isn't your thing, you might just get some good ideas from the poll. Also, if there is a gift that should be listed that isn't, feel free to leave a comment--I'm always in for some fresh ideas!

Don't forget to VoTe!