Christmas 2010

Merry Christmas 2010! What a great Christmas it was for our family. We started out with what is now an annual tradition of going to a local church's live nativity. It's worth braving the freezing temperatures and is really well done. Maycee had a blast, can't you tell?

There were lots of fun animals to pet like an alpaca, chickens, rabbits, and of course, the donkey.

We enjoyed having all the family down again and are so glad that both sides of our family love each other. Christmas seems to get more fun every year as the kids get older and the little cousins are really enjoying playing together. Jolee and Abbi are always inseparable, Maycee and Kenny are trying to be the big girls too, and Chloee is the ring leader of them all. Thanks again to Grandma Lynn for matching ballerina jammies, they are too cute.

The girls were loving their adoring audience as they put on their talent show of dancing and making a conga line.

Grandpa Ron shared his talent with us as he played "Silent Night" on the family piano. This was an extremely rare event, and we look forward to more caroling Grandpa! Now on to the presents...we were all spoiled again this year, but Grandma Pauline's favorite gift was a $3 dashboard Chihuahua that looks like her Beau. Oh man...

Jaron got lots of gifts from our trip to Hawaii, but his favorite was this Tiki mask.

Brady's big gift was a nice set of drums. He has great rhythm and we look forward to him developing his sweet beats.

It's the little things in life that bring happiness, and this year it was a can of SPAM for Chloee. This girl LOVES SPAM!

Nothing makes Maycee happier than her bottle...

knock yourself out little girl!

Another amazing year has come and gone and we continue to enjoy the blessings of family, friends, health and happiness.

Big Girl Walkin'

It's official, my baby is a big girl. It's always fun when your baby learns to walk and Maycee did at 15 months. She is all over the place now and really into climbing things. One of the first places she ventured to was our wooden staircase. She loves a good challenge, and while I was nervous at first, she has mastered the art of going up and sliding down on her booty.

Going up...

Such a proud, big girl...

She loves to play peek a boo through the railing, she would do it all day if I let her.

She loves to play peek a boo with her hands too...Where's Maycee?

There she is!!!

She is mastering the art of running, well the toddler version of running anyway.

She is so stinking cute, we can't help but eat her up. She has all 7 of us wrapped around her finger. She is starting to mimic sounds she hears and responds to requests like "go get your shoes", and "are you hungry". She says Mom and Dad quite well and Haylee just loves it when Maycee calls her Mom. She is also getting quite sassy and has a strong, but sweet personality.

She and Bruno are buddies, and is always looking for the opportunity to head out into the big world. We really enjoy her and are so happy to have her in our family.

Birthday Girl Again

These pic were too cute not to post so we are visiting Maycee's first year-second birthday party. Because this is our last first birthday party until grandkids, we decided to have two parties for Maycee. She got a princess cake from Costco and enjoyed every bit of her slice. We were able to have all the family down for the party and it was fun watching all the kids spoil Maycee on her big day.

Our past kids have had a hard time really getting into their cakes, but Maycee was all about it. It was so fun to watch her experience so much sugar at once.

The aftermath and time for a bath in the kitchen sink!

I think the bath was Maycee's favorite part of the party. She didn't care that her bow was getting soaked, she loves water!

"Help me, I'm drowning!"

We love Maycee so much and are really enjoying the little girl she is becoming!

Happy Halloween!

Okay, so I know Christmas is over, but I need to cram in as many post as I can for my year in review blog book, so Happy Halloween! Since Halloween fell on a Sunday this year, our festive activities were kept to a minimum and I didn't even get my professional portrait done this year (I have had them taken every year for since Brady was 3!) I was bummed about the picture, but we took the kids to a party at the Hansens and the kids had a great time. They bobbed for apples...

played the donut on a string game...

took some whacks at a pinata...

and ate lots of candy of course. For historical preservation, Haylee was a grumpy teenager this year, Brady was a nerd, Jaron was Napoleon Dynamite, Chloee was the Little Mermaid, Jolee was a unicorn, and Maycee was a kitty.

Sweet 16

It's hard to believe that my first born is 16 already. People tell me all the time that I don't look old enough to have 6 kids or a 16 year old, nevertheless, I am. I really wanted to make Haylee's sweet 16 memorable for her so I decided to throw her a surprise party. With some stealth help from my friends and her friends, I was able to pull it off. Haylee's birthday happened to fall on a weekend that we had to be in Anchorage for her last volleyball games. I threw her off the scent by saying that we would have a friend party for her the following weekend and just do a simple family lunch in Anchorage after her games. Her teammates were sweet and sang to her on the court after their game and I made sure they decked her out in balloons and a special crown. It was great.

I took her to Nordstroms to get her makeup done, knowing that she would be going home to a house full of her friends and I didn't want her all sweaty and gross for her party. After being beautified and getting her new makeup and an outfit for her birthday present from Aaron and I, we headed to lunch with Auntie, Grandma and Papa. So fun, and yummy seafood lunch at Charlies. Then we headed home, with my heart pounding and nerves rattled all the way home. Texting Aaron was the only way he new we were almost home and he and Becky had a great time entertaining a house full of teenagers while they waited for Haylee. Everyone was in the basement, so I had to devise a plan for Haylee to go down to the basement, something she would never do after 3 hours in the car. I told her that Dad was down watching a movie and to go get him to help unload all the Costco stuff. She didn't think much of it, but threw me for a curveball when she went to the bathroom first. Haylee's friend, Mariah was in on the surprise and came home with us, so I had her take Maycee down to the basement so she could be in on the surprise too. Hello!!! Dumb me not even thinking about it, but the next thing I know "SURPRISE" is being screamed in the basement at the wrong girl! I was sure Haylee heard and the surprise was ruined, but luckily our house is huge and she didn't hear it from the bathroom. So after a false start, Haylee went to the basement and....SURPRISE!!

She was really surprised and happy to see so many of her friends. On to the games...

Yes, this one was interesting. The kids had to pass a key that was tied to a very long string through their clothes to one another. They loved it and it was pretty funny for us to watch. After games, it was cake time. Becky, Angela, and Emily made Haylee's cake and it turned out amazing. Haylee loved it.

Present time...

They finished the night with a scary movie in the theater, notice Brandy and Dagen covering their faces, so funny!!

We are so grateful to have such an amazing daughter and know that she will do awesome things with her life. We are so proud of who she is and what she stands for and look forward to her future...especially driving!