Snowy Afternoon!

We had another snowy day on Sunday!  We decided to let the kids go out and play for a little bit.  They always enjoy getting all bundled up and playing in the snow.  I have to remind myself that I was once a child who liked to do the same because sometimes I don't understand their fascination with it!

 

 It soon turned into a "photo shoot" in trying to get a picture for our Christmas card.  This year we didn't have a nice professional picture to use, so it was up to me and Kelly to try and get something decent enough for our card.  We had fun doing a snowy one for the first time in a long time!

 

 

 Of course the kids all had to taste the snow.

 



Then they all played some football!

 



Jace loved knocking the little icicles off the garbage cans and daddy's car.

 



And Katelyn cleaned off Kelly's patrol car!

 



The boys wanted to help mom shovel, which lasted all of 10 minutes!

 



And one shot of mom!

 

It was a fun little activity and something that we don't always do on a Sunday.  But, we were all together, which hasn't happened on a Sunday FOREVER , so we took advantage! When we were all done, we had some nice hot cocoa!

 



I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas!

 Katelyn had her Christmas recital yesterday.  Every other year her studio has a big Christmas concert on the "big stage," AKA the high school! 

 

On the off year, they just have a small recital in their studio.  I do love the big Christmas concert.  It is a special way to feel the Christmas spirit.  But I will say, that I love the studio recital too. December is a busy and hectic month.  Having a performance during her normal dance hour helps ease the craziness!  I love the intimate setting and that you get to see your child close up.  I also love seeing them show off their technique and all the different things they learn in class, not just the dance.  It was definitely a fun afternoon of watching my little girl turn into a little dancer!

 

And, it of course brought back all the memories I have of dancing in that very same studio.  I can name every single song I ever danced to in there!  And I can picture every single costume and every single lovely teacher that taught me!

 

 

 Kate's dance was to "I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas."

 

Her teacher was Shannon.

 



 

She has learned all 5 ballet positions.

She has learned the names of meanings of several ballet terms. Here she is doing her plies!

 



I love her pointed toes!

 



 

They each go across the floor showing off their leaps, kicks, and sashays.

 

Then they perform their dance.  Loved all the cute Christmas jammies that they wore!

 



 

Then they finish off with a free dance.  I loved watching Kate and it is amazing how far she has come in just a couple of years! So proud of my Katelyn!

November 9 Can Only Mean One Thing......Happy Birthday to You!

 

In honor of my dear husband's birthday today, I wrote a post just about him!  He is 33 years old and we met when he was barely 17!  So, I have officially known him longer than I haven't known him!  We have had the best 17 years!  He is a wonderful husband and the best dad to our 4 children.  Happy birthday, Kel!  And a little disclaimer......I wrote this post several years ago for our anniversary but I added some new ones! 

1. Kelly was born in Salt Lake City
2. He also lived in St. George and Texas
3. When Kelly was a little boy, he wandered out of his front yard and was found and returned by the police.
4. Kelly broke his leg playing soccer.
5. Kelly played football in High School. He was numbers 81 and 33.
6. His first job was working at Rite Aid
7. Kelly served his mission in Quito Ecuador.
8. He still uses his Spanish everyday.
9. He doesn't like olives.
10. Kelly's new found hobby is fishing.
11. He often dreams about is adventures at work, which means I end up being the victim as my arm gets thrown back and put into imaginary handcuffs!
12. Kelly loves the ocean.
13. One of his favorite bands is U2.
14. Kelly loves cucumbers and vinegar.
15. Like most men, he loves some good old video game playing time.
16. He is always willing to help someone in need.
17. He loves his job as a police officer.
18. Kelly can’t sit still for too long. He loves to be doing anything that involves running, jumping, or chasing.
19. Kelly can fix just about everything!
20. Kelly played the trumpet in elementary school.
21. He and his brother saved a girl from drowning.
22. Kelly has a weak stomach and nearly fainted in all 4 of our childrens' births.
23. He has a knack for carving things out of food. He once made a jeep out of pumpkin pie, a car out of carrot cake, and an alligator out of butter.
24. He also loves to build things. He built a cabin out of Popsicle sticks. It came with a covered porch and a chair.
25. One of his favorite classes in High School was pottery. I guess you could say he loves to make art out of anything!
26. One of Kelly’s favorite card games is phase 10.
27. He once painted my brother’s bedroom to earn money to take me to prom.
28. In High School he drove two different pick up trucks. A yellow Toyota, which often times would break down every 3 miles or so and we would have to sit there for about 15 minutes to start again. He also drove a red Isuzu.
29. Kelly loves to play organized sports.  He just finished up his second season of softball and is entering his 3rd season of basketball.
30. Kelly had a dog named Sheppy.
31. He is the 4Th out of 5 children.
32. One of his favorite snacks is beef jerky.
33. Kelly is very competitive at anything he does.
34. Kelly can’t use an ordinary cereal bowl. Most of the time he will use a small mixing bowl to eat    from. He likes his bowl to be big and deep!
35. If possible, he would have orange juice come out of the faucet!
36. A couple of his favorite shows are Modern Family and The Walking Dead.
37. Kelly loves his milk to be ice cold!  I have to remember to check the freezer when the milk isn't in the fridge!
38. Kelly’s favorite rides at Disneyland are Tower of Terror and Soaring Over California.
39. One of Kelly’s favorite books is To Kill A Mockingbird.
40. Once Kelly saved a bird that had fallen from a tree and named him Pete.
41. Kelly’s first trip on an airplane was when he went on his mission.
42. Kelly tickles harder than anyone! I swear he could crack a rib!
43. Kelly’s first name is Darwin. He is named after his maternal grandfather.
44. He has a scar on his chin from a big wheel accident.
45. He is the easiest going person I could ever know.
46. He was in gymnastics.
47. Another favorite class in High School was photography.
48. Kelly’s grandma did the Heimlich on him to remove a piece of candy.
49. Kelly’s idea of the perfect outfit is a t-shirt and shorts.
50. His nickname at work his “Z.”

Thankful.....

Source: Uploaded by user via Megan on Pinterest

It is November!  I had intended on posting "thankful" posts starting on November 1st, but I got a little behind! 

This is what I am thankful for!  Knowing that we have prophets and apostles who are continually leading and lifting us.  Brightening our hope and expecting us to do our part.  What good is life if we just give up?  There is so much to live for!  There is always something good we can do with our time. 

 

   I choose to put my trust in Jeffrey R Holland, who even he himself, a mouthpiece of the Lord, said "There is help and happiness ahead.....It will be all right in the end.  Trust God and believe in good things to come." 

 

Fun Fall!

The weather this fall has been absolutely wonderful!  A couple of weeks ago, we took one last drive up to Silver Lake.  Unfortunately, we missed most of the fall colors, but it was still a beautiful night!

 

It is crazy to think that just a couple of weeks earlier, those bare trees were vibrantly yellow!

 



A walk around Silver Lake isn't complete without climbing on some rocks!

 



 

Good thing this shot is kind of far away because Carson's face doesn't exactly scream "I love putting my arm around my sister!"  He wasn't all that excited when I told him to give Katelyn a hug!

I absolutely love perfect evenings like this one!  Wish this weather would last forever!

 

Another fall activity we had was a birthday party to celebrate my grandmother's 84th birthday.  Her birthday is October 25th and surprisingly this was the first year we had a "Halloween" themed party.  Everyone came in costume and it was a lot fun!

 



 

 

We had some yummy soup and played some games for the kids.

 



 

Justin and his family were owls.  Phoebe makes a pretty cute owl!

 

Tyson and his family were animals!

 



Josh's family was an assortment of things......vampires, Dorothy, 80's girl, and Rapunzel.  Oh and Josh taped Butterfinger candies to himself and called him a "U of U Wide Receiver,"  because they have had some troubles in that area this year!  And Rachel was a "Smarty Pants."  She had Smarties taped to her pants.

 



We were also an assortment of characters. Zombie, Clown, Ninja, 50's girls and 50's boy!  Kelly dug his High School Letterman's jacket out and the kids were surprised it still fit him!

 



 

Love this picture! Grandma Davis and 12 of her 15 great grand kids!  Wish the others hadn't missed out.

 

 

Happy birthday to my sweet grandmother!  Love her so much.  I was so happy to have celebrated with her. : )

 

Next up is Halloween!  Can't believe the end of October is here!