September 2007: Grandparents' Day

Owen and Grandma had a fun Grandparents' Day together at school - working hard, playing at recess, singing songs, and eating lunch. Grandma was so excited to have the opportunity to spend the day with him. Owen has an amazing Kindergarten teacher, Mr. Branstetter. He is very observant, holds the kids to high expectations and structure, quite goofy-really makes Owen laugh, and very communicative with the parents. He is great with Owen. Mike and I feel very blessed. Owen is really excelling.

September 2007: Tate's Toys

Tate is loving the activity saucer. He has become such a happy baby. He must be getting teeth soon because he is attacking his toys with his mouth. I love his sparkling eyes and his Daddy's expressive eyebrows.

September 2007: Rally for Romney

If you know my mother at all, you will know that she is extremely patriotic and very actively involved in politics. Her idea of fun for our Family Game Night is playing "America's Spirit", a game of little known facts about our country, its history, and its leaders. Lets just say we've played it once. I am very proud of her and her knowledge of the issues that confront our country and our world. She recently held a Debate Party in her new home (look at her beautiful chandelier) in which many friends came to watch the Republican Debate on TV with the special guest being Matt Romney, Mitt Romney's son. It was very successful and as a result, Mom may be hosting a luncheon with Mitt's wife, Ann. And yes, I made those silly Mitt face signs.

September 2007: Juliet's Baby Blessing

One of the great things about being close to my family is that I am able to celebrate special occasions with them, such as Luke's daughter Juliet's Baby Blessing. I love my family - I can't wait for Jesse to come home from his mission - just 2 weeks left. Juliet looked like a little angel in her blessing dress - a dress my mother actually made for Kelli when she was a baby. Little did she know that one day Kelli would be her daughter-in-law and she would be altering the same dress in the future for her first granddaughter. Liz also made Juliet's baby blanket - she literally pulled an all-nighter to finish it. She watched 3 movies - one of which was the 6 hour version of Pride and Prejudice.

August 2007: Announcement Arrival

I am blessed with 3 beautiful boys, each with their own distinct look and personality. I am also blessed to have a good friend who takes incredible pictures of them. My Mom's good friend, Cheryl, created this announcement for me and I am so happy to share it with you. I hope you will take the time to add a comment to one of the many entries so that I will know that you were here and can hear something from you. This is a great way to keep in touch with friends.

August 2007: Beach Faces

My sister Liz was down from BYU, so we hit Moonlight Beach. She took some great shots of the family with my camera. We miss Auntie Lizzie.

August 2007: Owen's 1st Day of Kindergarten

My little boy has started Kindergarten. I can't believe it. Owen has been counting down the days until he could start. He is in a.m. K that starts at 7:30, so we've started a new routine in the morning. I have been trying to wake up at 5:15 to exercise - I thought you were crazy Lisa and Brittany- but really its the best time for me to do it. Tate has started sleeping for most of the night after enlisting him in my "Sleep Boot Camp" for two weeks; brought to you by my favorite sleep book, "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child". Owen has a great teacher, Mr. Branstetter. He has really kept me informed of how Owen is doing. He loves school, but I think finds some things (learning his ABCs and 123s) a little slow as he is already reading 4 and 5 letter words. He amazes me with what he is capable of. I can't wait to volunteer in the class to watch him in action!

August 2007: Knock It Daddy Over

The boys favorite game to play is "Knock It Daddy Over" as Eyan named it. Basically it goes like this: start from across the room, run at Mike as fast as you can and jump on him in attempts to knock Daddy over. The funniest thing is watching Eyan run at Mike - he leads with his elbow. That kid is so solid. Mike literally goes "hoowah"(you know, the sound you make when you get the wind knocked out of you) when Eyan lands on him. Owen tries really hard, sometimes even starting to run outside the room. Here Mike is with Owen, Eyan, and their cousin Davis.

August 2007: Best Buddies

I love watching Owen and Eyan play. They love being together. Eyan adores his brother and is the ultimate copy cat. When they wrestle, its fun to see that Eyan can take Owen down. Right now we are having a hard time getting Eyan to stay in his own bed at night. Somehow he became scared of being in his own bed and pretty much falls asleep in Owen's bed every night.

August 2007: Tate wants to be big

Tate is such a cute baby. He is rolling over and wants to sit and stand up. If I hold him by the arms while he is standing and pull him towards me, he lifts his legs and walks. Its hilarious! My mom says that I was doing that from the day I was born. Not a good sign - I walked at 10 months. I borrowed my sister's "Bumbo" and he loves sitting in it.