Christmas in Utah

So we had a sort of surprise visit to Utah for Christmas this year. We were going to stay home because of the expense and the fact that we would be there in 7 months anyway to live. But with my brother Eric having a pretty rough go with the first round of chemotherapy and a super nice aunt of my sister-in-law, we were able to go out and spend 3 weeks with the family. We decided to ask Santa if he could come early to our house so we wouldn't have to bring home a bunch of presents and he said he could do that for us. The kids were super excited about opening presents from Grandma and Grandpa Holman and having Santa bring some extras too. They still got a couple presents at the big Christmas Eve party at my parents too so they couldn't be happier. Denzil woke up in the middle of the night crying saying he wanted to open up his wood. He got Santa's sleigh to build and could understand why he couldn't open it. He helped Grandpa make it Christmas morning.

 We went to the park a couple times for a little sledding. Needless to say, they had a blast and it wasn't too bad for me because the hill isn't too big so carrying kids and the sled up wasn't bad.

 We made a trip up to Dinosaur Park in Ogden. Denzil was scared of these ones because they moved and made noise but McKinley and I watched them for quite a while. She even started making the noises that the baby triceratops made.

 We also went to Jungle Gym's. I'm pretty sure the kids had great time with their cousins and Nana. I wasn't sure how Denzil would like this ride with getting squished and all but he had a big grin and even did it a second time.

 We also went to the dinosaur museum at Thanksgiving Point. The only problem there was the kids getting hungry, otherwise we had lots of fun checking out the dinos and other displays.

 This is Denzil being a scorpion. He also had a noodle aka light saber stuck in his pants as his stinger but it must have fallen out or something.

 We went for a little snowshoe hike to Willow Lake up Big Cottonwood Canyon. It was a lovely day and Denzil was even able to get a little shut eye while standing in one of my dad's backpacks.

 We made a day trip to the cabin for a little snowmobiling and a much needed nap for Denzil. He also got to at least see the beginning of the classic The Land Before Time. I guess we must have really been into dinosaurs this trip.

 And to finish it all off, we stopped to say hello to the horses and mules. McKinley was super excited but it was very cold and dark so there wasn't much else to do but say hello then head back up to Grandma's house.

We had a wonderful trip and the best part of it was to see my brother improve. He still has a long road ahead but he is doing so much better than he was just before we got there. I am so thankful for modern medicine and the great things that can be done to fight diseases and save lives and for the power of prayer and fasting. If you are interested in his story and how he is doing you can check out ericstheman.blogspot.com. Happy New Year y'all!

Finally caught up!

At the end of September a friend of mine invited us to join them at their beach house rental and stay overnight. The kids had so much fun playing in the sand and with Victoria again. It was lots of fun for me and Kris was able to join us too. Someday maybe we will have to do it ourselves! 

Rebecca is very smart. They had hot and cold water for a little shower outside the house so she used it to fill this pool after the kids were done playing on the beach. They were warm and got cleaned up without a fuss.

We went for a little adventure to a pumpkin patch when our neighbors were going. They had fun riding on the tractor pulled hay ride and then picking out their very own pumpkins. 

Denzil kept asking when we were going to have pumpkin pie! 

We painted the pumpkins a few days later with Sophia and Kipton. The kids had a great time and we just used crayola paints so they cleaned up pretty easy. The only bad thing was that it came off with the dew in the mornings.

This was just too cute. We went to a birthday party and the kids loved the cupcakes, can't you tell?!

Happy Halloween! This was the kids before I put them in their costumes. Denzil was soooooo excited to get some candy and has been asking to eat some all day long.

My cute cowgirl and cowboy. I'm pretty lazy so I didn't want to have to buy anything for a costume. Good thing they love their boots and hats. 

Shenandoah National Park

We bought an extra backpack just for this trip and it was well worth it. The kids had a great time playing in the woods and we were happy to carry them when we needed to get a move on.

We had a great campsite and the kids loved seeing all the deer in the mornings and evenings. They both slept really well except McKinley on the first night.

We drove to Luray Caverns and it was pretty cool, except for the part where McKinley didn't want to be held, or in the backpack, and she didn't want to walk, and we didn't have the paci. Most people were nice about it but a few made some really "nice" comments. McKinley was great before we went in and after, she just wasn't a fan of inside I guess.

We went to Harper's Ferry which I didn't really know anything about but it was a fun place to walk around and learn some history.  Too bad we didn't know that the next day was a big celebration.

I think the kids were just a bit worn out by the end of the trip. 

Denzil was an impressive hiker. One day he did 3/4 of a mile and the next he did a whole mile by himself. The only thing is it takes a long time because he has to pick up lots of rocks and sticks and such along the way. This one was his fishing pole until it broke. Later he was pleasantly surprised when he broke it back into a fishing pole.

He had fun finding critters and things like this katydid on the end of his stick.

We had such a great vacation. There were a few people who thought we would never make it camping all week with 2 young kids but they were champion campers and hikers and we can't wait until we can do it all again. 

Lost and Found

So I found my camera after our vacation to Shenandoah National Park but good thing we still have our old camera that works pretty well. I felt pretty stupid because the camera was in the stroller that we took over to the Labor Day BBQ but it was the little stroller and I stuck it in the umbrella part of the stroller. Needless to say I was very happy to have it back. So here are the pictures that were "lost and found."

We went for ice cream for my birthday at a great place in Wilmington and Denzil was a hit with his cowboy hat and boots.

McKinley LOVES her ice cream. This was blueberry ice cream and it was delicious!

Happy 31st Birthday to me. It was just another day where I got older.

She is getting good at feeding herself but I'm not a fan of the mess so I don't let her do it as often as I should. She loves to do it on her own though. She is such a big girl.

We love going to the aquarium, can't you tell!

We had some fun one afternoon dancing and splashing in the puddles after a rain storm. Now the kids think that is what we do every time it rains.

Denzil had a birthday too! He is 3 and loving every minute of it. We had a little party with the neighbors and he couldn't have been happier. We have great neighbors and we had lots of ice cream left over, good thing we love ice cream! It didn't last long.

We spent the morning at Fort Fisher beach which was lots of fun. McKinley rolled around a few times in the waves but she is a trooper. She only cried 1 time.

Now let's play my version of Draw Something. 10 points to the person who guesses who this is. Good luck.

Dang it!

So, I took the camera to the Labor Day pool party thinking I would take a few pictures. I'm pretty sure I tried to take one but the kids weren't cooperating and were messy so I thought I put the camera back in the bag. Now that we are preparing to go camping this next week I can't find the camera anywhere! I hope no one took it and that I just am crazy but I think it is gone, for good. I also didn't upload any of the pictures since McKinley's birthday so sorry Denzil that there aren't any pictures from your 3rd birthday. Hopefully it will turn up somewhere but until then it is back to the old camera. I hope it will take some good pictures of our adventures this week.

Some things we do to keep busy

To entertain ourselves we have been checking out some of the museums around town. This is the railroad museum. There are a bunch of electric trains that you can push buttons to start them up and watch them go around on the huge tracks. They also have a little spot to play at some train tables. Denzil has been asking to go back there a lot. It will have to be a special treat to go there because I didn't think it was worth the money. Good thing the children's museum and Barnes and Noble have train tables.

McKinley saw some other kids having their picture taken with their heads in the windows. She is very good at mimicking others.

McKinley also turned 1! I can't believe how quickly a year has gone. This is her with her new smart phone. She loves it and so does Denzil. It has quite a few cute little songs and messages. At her 1 year appointment she was 18 lbs 15 oz (16%), 30.25 inches (81%), and 18 inches head circumference (61%). I'm not sure where the height came from, she must have had a growth spurt right before the appt. She is a very fun and sweet girl to have around and boy can she scream! She knows how to get what she wants! She loves being outside and playing with Denzil and the kids in the neighborhood. She knows a few words like mama, dada, Denzil (said kind of like da da but you can tell by her tone that she it talking about Denzil), thank you (although she hasn't been saying it very often the last week),  and that. She loves treats and lights up when you ask her if she wants a treat or snack. She also loves animals. She flaps her arms and starts talking to whatever type of animal she sees like the birds on the fence or the cat that roams the neighborhood. She loves dogs and doesn't mind one bit getting a big lick in the face. She even tries to kiss them back the same way. She eats almost everything that I feed her and spits things out when she has had enough or just turns her head. She has 5 teeth and I'm sure there is at least 1 more trying to come in right now. She sleeps from about 8:30 pm until 6:30 or 7 am and is still taking 2 naps most days.

She loved making a mess of her cupcake. Denzil decided that she needed Elmo, Cookie Monster, and Zoe cupcakes so Kris put them together. There wasn't enough red food coloring for Elmo so she ended up with some Oscar cupcakes instead. She loved the frosting once Kris helped her know it was okay to touch.

She also learned how to walk the week of her birthday. She is really pretty good at it now too. She tries to jump on the bed and in the water. She loves bath time and loves going to the swimming pool but refuses to sit in her float tube. She wants to do it by herself and doesn't seem to mind too much when she falls down in the water. I think I need to look into arm floaties for her. We love having McKinley in our family and it is so fun to watch her learn and explore new things. She is pretty daring! We love her cute curly hair but it sure can get crazy! Happy Birthday baby girl!