Merry Christmas!

Obviously I have taken a ...long... hiatus from blogging. Yes, we have been busy

but no more than usual. It's just how the past few months have been.

So I'll sum up over the next while.

First though...

 

Merry Christmas! We have loved being in our new house for Christmas (especially since the past 2 holiday seasons were spent moving)! We love having a beautiful white Christmas just outside our doorstep. But prior to the snow this week...

the boys playing in the backyard.

 

 

We feel so lucky and blessed this holiday season! We have two beautiful boys in our life that bring us so much joy and can never get enough love and attention. We were able to buy our first house this year in a beautiful area. Ryan and I are so blessed in our jobs and opportunities professionally to grow and learn. We are thankful for our health and the activities we can participate in. Finally, we feel so blessed spiritually to have the faith and knowledge to bring blessings, knowledge and comfort in our lives. I love the holiday season; a time to honor our Savior and reflect on the blessings of the year. Happy holidays to you and may your life be blessed throughout the next year!

We Are IN!!!!

We are so excited to finally be home owners! We are loving the space to play, for storage, our own yard and the freedom to be creative. There is definitely a feeling of intimidation to keep up with everything but we are ready to take it on!

Independence Day!

Camping Diamond Fork

Lots of dirt and water play! The boys had a blast!
One scary moment at the river when Eli fell head first into the river. It was only a foot or two deep but still slippery. We got him out ok but not before his face got several cuts and bruises. Poor kid looked quite beat up for a couple of weeks afterward.
We attempted hiking to some hot springs but got a little lost so we will have to try again another day. The mountains and weather were beautiful were beautiful! We hope to get more camping trips in again this year.

Happy 4 years Eli!

Another year has come and gone for Eli. He is now 4!
Eli is creative, imaginative, adventurous, determined, and independent.  He loves to play superheros, star wars, buzz lightyear and inventing all kinds of stories. He is such a boy when shooting aliens or others (sometimes it drives me crazy). He enjoys swimming, biking, rock climbing, hiking and camping (anything outdoors). The past few months have developed such independence and testing. I am working on more patience than I ever thought I would need. He shows such a true love for those he cares about. It worries him seeing someone hurt or crying. I enjoy seeing his faith grow and develop. He recently learned that being resurrected after you die means you come back alive. He is so excited about this that anytime death is mentioned he jumps up and down saying "... and then you are resurrected!" Eli gets completely focused and dedicated to whatever he sets his mind. Hope that will serve him well in his life.
We love you Eli!

 To celebrate we had a nice night with family, birthday cake and presents.

Licking the cake batter bowel clean...

'Green' cupcakes

Eli's adventures!

Skiing (pictures from April):

 1st time standing alone! 

Rock climbing:

 Anticipation

 1st time up a little nervous...

So we took a brake, hiked around a bit...

 2nd time up made it 10 feet!

Hiked around a bit more...

 Just like big brother

 3rd time up made it ALL the way to the top! 

We tried coaxing him down earlier but he just kept going!

I am so proud of Eli, not only of participating in a sport his dad and I enjoy, but more so that he was willing to try again and facing his fear until he over came it! What a great quality he has that will help him in many areas of life!

Now if only we can get him potty trained! That is a power struggle he seems to be winning. Any tips out there????