Livin' the Vida Loca

So for those of you who still occasionally check in to see how Orton's in Montana are doing, it would appear that we have been suspended in time in 'Summer Lovin,' when in fact we have actually been living the "vida loca" and find every spare moment while the kids are sleeping taken up with my face in a textbook...hence the giant gap in blogging.
Life, although busy, has been great for us these past few months. The busy-ness is enjoyable, and the quality time we spend together makes it all worth it. The kids are both really enjoying their preschools, Sophie has lots of friends and is always laughing and playing with them when I pick her up. Noah seems to be blossoming in his own independence. He is saying more and more, and has long exact thoughts. He loves to count, sing, and play games and puzzles. He is potty training right now and has a new proud strut to his walk....I miss the lazy days around the house, but am so happy that everyone has transitioned so well into our new little routine. Weekends have become so special and relaxing. What was once a time when I was desperate to get out of the house and do something since we used to be home all the time- now it is so nice for all of us to just hang out and relax together, we are loving it!
My school keeps me very busy, I study a lot, and love my classes. I have managed to find a nice balance and am able to be 'present' at home without worrying too much about school. I try to get all my study out of the way before I pick up the munchkins so that we can just hang out at home and I can be mom. Matthew has been super dad and so helpful and supportive.

So what have we been up to? We made the 14 hour drive down to Denver in late August for my Mom's 60th birthday, Sam's baptism and to spend time with all the family reunited after several years. It was an awesome time and always so nice to be around family.

Fall has been really enjoyable, Missoula has it's usual majestic fall feeling of fresh air, nice light and great colors. Speaking of colors- we painted our house! Finally. We got rid of the blah and went for the bold and thankfully we love it.

Halloween was very cute- Noah and Sophie picked out their costumes - butterfly and bumble bee - Sophie decided her wings were too uncomfortable on Halloween so was a last minute princess. Her little friends from preschool and Colter came trick or treating with us. Noah wore his little bumblebee costume with Sophie's black leggings,and his skinny little black legs were so precious as he ran from house to house getting candy.



I am looking forward to some more free time over thanksgiving, and having grandma and grandpa in town - the vida loca could use a little breather...here are a couple pics of the munchkins...and don't be surprised if it is awhile before I update again - but I will keep you posted.

Summer Lovin'

There is nothing quite like summer in Missoula. We kinda wait all year long for summer in Missoula- and then it is an all-out summer fun extravaganza for as long as it will let us get away with it. We have been having a blast all summer long. And yes, the lack of updated posts definitely lends one to believe that we have indeed been busy. School lasted only the first 5 weeks (online class longer) - I had to devote most of my free time to studying, but we still managed to enjoy ourselves outdoors, hiking, swimming, camping and catching up with friends. Serious quality time these days. Some of the highlights so far have been: Holland Lake with Grandpa & Grandma, camping in Whitefish with the Anderson's, floating down the river in our new family raft, barbeques and firepits with friends, late nights outside, swimming and bike rides.



This summer Sophie and Noah have both become very confident in the water. Sophie can really 'swim' and loves to go underwater. Noah is learning fast and insists on doing things himself even if he is not quite ready! He learned how to ride a big boys bike in June and whizzes around the block on his shiny red bike. He is now in his big boy bed and is getting pretty good with potty training (especially now that he gets an m&m each time!) He started preschool in June and although it took a couple of weeks to adjust he is enjoying it. He is still as sweet and cute as can be, and loves to cuddle. Sophie loves the new swing that Daddy built her outside and can touch the trees she swings so high - enough to make Mommy and Daddy have to look away! She is always busy with one project or another, and has pretty much stopped napping in the afternoons. She loves her artwork and is getting interested in reading - exciting!

Floating has become a twice to three times a week occurrence for us lately and we can't get enough of it. Diego comes along sometimes and swims along with us. Sophie gets in and likes to swim in the rapids. All in all it has been an amazing summer - I can't believe how much we have done, and I can't believe fall is right around the corner. We will undoubtedly soak up any and all fun left to be had before those leaves start to fall (which is also a magical time of year, it is just the impending winter that looms beyond it that keeps me from wishing for fall...)

We still have more camping on the agenda as well as a first time family road trip down to Denver to hang out with the entire Beesley posse for a week! So to quote an old time fav...."summer lovin' had me a blast, summer lovin' happened so fast...."

Freeze Frame

So I apologize for the lapse in posts...life has been a fast moving river for me these past weeks and I am just about at the edge of the waterfall about to take the plunge. At this time next week, instead of being a full time stay-at-home mama, enjoying the days at home playing with my little munchkins and doing whatever our hearts desire on any given day....I will be sitting in a class on the UM campus learning about Organic Chemistry. In exactly one week I am going back to school to eventually get my PhD in Physical Therapy. The road ahead is long - I have about 2 years of pre-requisites before I start PT school (okay so I will also have to get in to PT school), and then it is 3 full-on years! This post has been a long time coming, there has been so much emotion, excitement, nostalgia, anxiety....etc., with this big decision that I have made, it has been hard to put a finger on what exactly to write about...but the one thing that drives all the emotion that I am experiencing is my love for my family and the realization that they are the reason I feel I am able to do this at all.
I feel like this is the end of a chapter for me, and the start of something new that is so different from the life we have been leading, kinda like you feel when you try to picture yourself in the future and it seems like it will be a different you somehow, but you always seem to remain present even when you reach that place in the future. It is very hard to picture myself with a PhD in my hand someday, but surely baby steps will get me there (or somewhere) in the end.
There has been a lot of soul searching in this decision, I have listened to my heart and my head. I remember growing up and going to church, it always amazed me how the priest would preach about something that would apply exactly to what I was going through in life at the time. I always wondered if everyone felt the same, or if it was somehow directed toward me. There have been several things that have 'spoken' to me recently to get me to the place I am now. 1.)The book Eat, Pray, Love which I really enjoyed and related to on so many levels. 2.)The Carrie Underwood song "So Small" which moves me to tears while I run to it on my treadmill. 3.)The book "I Knew You Could" which is a sequel to "The Little Engine That Could" 4.)A meditation I learned while staying at Kopan Monestary in Nepal in which you meditate on the end of your life looking back, and visualize what it is you want to see and 5.)lots of fair objective advice from pretty much everyone I know. All these 'signs' basically point at the same thing - take care of yourself so that you can be happy and enjoy others, live in the present and be present. And life is for living, so go for it. I don't want to have any regrets...so that made this decision actually easy. I am so insanely aware of how incredibly lucky I am to have the life that I have. I have everything I ever dreamed of, truly. There is nothing missing so far, but I feel like I am capable now of adding more things in my life to balance.
There is, however, a definite feeling of loss. It is the end of my being at home all the time. I am praying that it will not be so different. That life will be basically the same, just busier. That I will be the same person, same wife, same mama. I cherish this time that I have had at home all these years, I am so unbelievably grateful that I was able to do it, and although it was challenging at times (many times), it was beautiful. There is so much joy and heartache in watching my kids grow. I love every minute of it and in every perfect moment I never want that moment to pass. I love being a mama. As for school, I know I can't fail because I am happy with what I have already.
I put together a little show which brings all the nostalgia right to the surface for me. Noah is the star of this little video, since I have been wanting to put together a birthday show for him. This is our last week of our 'Mommy/Noah" days which have been so special to us both. Although life just keeps on flowing, it is nice to grab hold of a moment and take it all in. Freeze Frame.

Urban Chicks

Okay so I am not sure that Missoula can be catagorized as 'urban'...but it is not quite rural either....at any rate it somehow fits the profile for being rural enough to have chickens in your backyard but urban enough that it is kind of weird. Last weekend we decided to join in on the chicken craze and got ourselves 4 little yellow poof balls. Sophie is a highly experienced chicken care taker, having gained much experience looking after Nana's chickens in NZ last year. She promised me she would be their 'mommy' and that she is responsible for their well being. That said, they do require a little help from the grown ups when it comes to supervising Noah's interaction with them. For the most part the kids are very gentle with them. They really love them and get so excited to see them/hold them. Their favorite thing is when the chicken poops on someone or something. Yeah, that is my favorite part too...hmmm. I did not know chickens pooped so much! Sophie has very cleverly named them: Diego1, Diego2, Wuzzy1, and Wuzzy2. Not sure which is which at this point though.

The chickens had a wild first couple of days. They got to play in the sandbox, go for rides in Noah's little trucks and wagons, and cuddle under blankets when Sophie decided it was time to sleep. We have since toned down their allowed activity level and thought it best to just let them grow a bit before they try any more death defying acts. Diego (the original one, our dog) is very interested in the little chirpies and would love to see how well they play....
Honestly, I thought I would hate them and would have to devote lots of extra time that I don't have caring for them, but actually I really really like them. They are really cute and sweet and they are our pets. I hope they bring us lots of fun and lots of free eggs. Fingers crossed no roosters!

Easter Funday

I think the fact that there is so much anticipation that leads up to Christmas, Easter ends up getting overlooked as being a really GREAT holiday. I can count on 3 fingers the number of times I have spent Easter without any family around, and this year makes the 4th. Growing up I have such fond memories of Easter with my family, and in recent years we have spent many an Easter in New Zealand having a blast with the Orton whanau, usually near the sea. It wasn't until last week that I realized we would be spending Easter alone this year, and although I would not say I was 'panicking', I was feeling a little bummed about it come Saturday... However, without any planning at all, our little family unit ended up having an absolutely perfect Easter (except that we didn't make it to church, which secretly made the day more fun...sorry Mom).
The kiddos started the day by checking out their Easter baskets and eating Cadbury eggs before breakfast. Matthew made a fresh loaf of bread and a pot of tea. The sun was shining and warm, the air was clean and fresh. We sat on the deck in our sunnies and watched the kids hunt for all their Easter eggs in under 5 minutes. The sandbox made it's spring debut, as did tea time on the deck. We built sandcastles for awhile and then packed a picnic lunch of egg salad sandwiches and headed to our favorite little spot by the river "Fort Fizzle". Diego gave fetching a stick in the water a go, and eating our sandwiches when we weren't looking. Noah never left his Easter candy too far out of sight as it was apparently his goal to eat the whole thing that day. He pretty much left the planet and spent the afternoon hours in sugar-coated la-la land. Naptime, although short, brought me time to chat with family on the phone and read a few chapters in my book while admiring the big Montana sky and remembering just why we live here. Matthew caught a few zzzzz's. We went for a long evening walk in the country, ate barbecued lamb chops and cuddled around the fire until it was time to put the sugar-crazed children to bed. Matthew and I snuggled on the couch with a movie till 11:30pm. We definitely missed both of our families and the traditions, but all in all I'd say our Easter was perfect.

Balance

Although the saying goes 'everything in moderation, including moderation,' this is something that takes a bit of discipline for me. I have tried to move away from the all-or-nothing tendencies that once inhabited my life and have for many years been learning how to establish more balance. It is a learning process I plan to continue tackling for the rest of my life. Well, I bring this up because recently (finally) I got a job. It has really been a long time coming. It has been nearly 4 1/2 years since I have had a job apart from being full-time Mommy. And let me tell you....I am sooooo happy about it. So it isn't the most glamorous of jobs (hosting and waiting tables yet again), but it is fun, gets me out of the house doing something with new people, interacting with community folk and at the end of it all I get to come back to my cozy home surrounded by the most precious people in my life with a little extra cash in my pocket. It makes the tough days easier because I know there is relief in sight, and it makes the good days even better because I am refreshed, excited and relaxed. So, I am actually a better mom because I am now gone a little bit more. And the funniest thing about it is - the joke is on me. All this time I have felt that I didn't want to work because I didn't want to be away from my angels that long and assumed that they of course felt the same way and would somehow be better off because I was home with them all the time. Well, the kiddos are thriving these days. I guess they need a break from me from time to time too. They appreciate me more now that I am not always there and they get to spend lots more quality time with Daddy making up their own routines with him. So we all win. Yes it is hard to leave them when I walk out the door (except of course when they haven't napped and are all cranky...he he), but I feel so much more balanced when I am able to do something that is making a difference for all of us.
Here we are enjoying a wonderful family night at home - roasting marshmallows over the fire, enjoying the emerging spring weather and our amazing little family unit...

2 Years Ago Today...

On Sunday, March 22nd, Noah had his 2nd Birthday. As with any family event, we had been very much looking forward to the big day, organizing a little party for him, Grandma was coming up for a visit, I had grand plans to create a huge 'dump truck' cake using fondant. But on the days leading up to his big day Noah was not feeling too well. What started off as a simple cold steadily grew into a bad cough and a very high fever. So, Saturday morning we decided he probably wouldn't be 100% for his party so thought it best to post-pone. At this point we were just thinking he had a bad little bug that would run it's course while we administered Tylenol and the humidifyer. And just to throw a spanner in the works, our crazy dog Diego injured himself playing with some neighborhood dogs and was behaving a bit like Shay did just before she became permanently paralyzed...so we (I) was freaking out about that and sent Matthew to the emergency vet with Diego Saturday morning. Meanwhile Noah was becoming more and more listless, his fever was not going down and we noticed his breathing was very labored....so we decided once Matthew returned from the vet we would take Noah to the emergency care center to get checked out (kids always seem to get the sickest on the weekends when a simple doctor's visit is not an option.) Well, the situation was not good. Noah's oxygen levels were at 78% which is really low - they get really worried when the levels go beneath 90%. So, next thing we knew Noah was getting breathing treatments and oxygen and needed to stay at the hospital. It was so scary. As a mother you feel like you know pretty much what your child is going through, you know what they look like when they are sick and how they act....but I guess unless you are Tom Cruise with all the medical gears in your home you don't know whether they are getting enough O2 or not. Noah wasn't blue in the lips or anything, but his eyes were soo sick. The doctors and nurses in the Pediatric ICU took incredibly good care of Noah. We definitely felt we were in good hands and when I really realized how serious a situation this was and asked the dreaded question no parent ever wants to ask "is he going to be okay?" The nurse turned and looked at me straight in the eye and very reassuringly said "yes Mam." I think the fact that he was in such good hands helped me to be able to calmly and confidently care for him. I was very much a part of the care team in the hospital, and as strange as it may sound, it was a wonderful bonding experience for us. We slept in the same little bed all snuggled up together, just like we did exactly 2 years ago. And just like when he was a newborn, I was his everything. I was there for him watching him sleep, helping him eat, I was there when he woke up, when he cried, or when he just needed cuddling. This was a scary thing for him, he needed me constantly and I guess in a funny way it was good to be in a place where I could be there for him without interruption.


On his birthday Grandma brought in Noah's favorite pippa (pizza) and made a birthday cake. He opened a couple hospital friendly gifts and the nurses came in with another cake and sang him happy birthday. So even though it was definitely not the birthday we had been planning for, and probably not the one he wanted, it was actually very special.


After undergoing several tests and x-rays they concluded that Noah had RSV which is a common respiratory virus that can have devastating effects on very young children. Usually children 2 and older are not badly effected by it, but in Noah's case they are thinking he may have asthma as well (this they will be better to diagnose if he has a wheezing sickness in the summer months)which means he may be more susceptible to respiratory illnesses. Little Grace Anderson had the same thing in January and was hospitalized for 8 days. It is a really nasty virus, very contagious and something no kiddo should have to endure.
After 4 days and 3 nights in the hospital, Noah was able to breath without oxygen assistance and was able to go home. It took several days before he fully recovered, sleeping all the time. Now he is totally back to normal, apart from his pants which keep falling off his skinny little bum... and it is soooo nice and such a relief to have him back. Sophie was very concerned about her little brother, she did not like him to have oxygen tubes in his nose and although she doesn't come out and say it, she is glad to have him home too. AND I just have to say a big THANK YOU to my Mom, who came up for a long weekend to spend visiting, dining out and playing with the grandkids, but ended up staying an entire week helping us out in every way during this tough week. Hopefully the next visit will go without incident...

Boops and Unnins

Pants are apparently optional in this house lately. Noah requires a constant eye if you are trying to get ready to go somewhere and want him to have clothes on. He can get his clothes off way faster than you can put them on. We did use ducktape for awhile to keep that diaper on, but now it has become obvious he is getting more interested in potty training....sort of. He was interested in pottying on the potty for awhile there but now is just interested in having his pants off. The shrieks of delight and giggles as he runs up and down the hall after removing his pants is hilarious. Sometimes he tries to be super sneeky and he will give you a sly look, and run off into a closet and get naked. Lately he loves to put on "unnins" or undies (unfortunately he does not have any of his own yet so he wears pink Sophie unnins or he tried out daddy's one day and looked like the boy off 'Jungle Book'). Even though he loves to be naked he does understand the importance of wearing his "boops" or boots when he goes outside. Too bad it is 30 degrees or we just might let him....instead we begin the process all over again and try to keep them on long enough to ride our bike around the block. Such a fun game. Endlessly entertaining watching him be a goofy nude dude though...

Molding Clay to the Rescue

So I promised myself I wouldn't use this blog to write about the tough days and the big battles with my 4-year-old.....and I am going to stick to it...but I gotta tell ya, these have been some tough couple of weeks. Besides the normal things that fall under the category of "that sucks" like the speeding ticket I got, or the carton of eggs I dropped on the floor, the job interview I had but the guy called in sick and forgot to tell me so I show up after arranging a babysitter, the fish food that got completely spilled all over Sophie's bed and the pee on the floor from Noah as I was cleaning up the fish food, or my treadmill which no longer inclines, besides those things, Sophie has been tough, and that makes the other things seem like a walk in the park. There was a time when I would proclaim that Friday was my favorite day, but for the past few weeks Sophie is just so worn out by the time Friday rolls around she can hardly function. She is "phasing out" her nap. I guess it is called that because inevitably they go through a 'phase' when they do this. I guess I never thought about what that meant, but what it means is they are not tired enough for a nap and don't want one, but need some sleep or they are too tired the next day...so the 'phase' is the period of time it takes for them to adjust to less sleep and that means tough days. So yesterday was one of those days. Without going into details, let me just say I had to call in my reinforcements for advice and took a time-out for myself to shed a few tears. But in the end the storm blew over and it was molding clay that saved us. I got it out for little Noah who deserves to have some fun despite his sister's tantrums. And wouldn't you know it, Sophie stopped crying, finally ate some breakfast (it was now around 10am by the way) and then sat down and happily molded some clay. I think that it is very hard for me to describe the challenges we face as we parent our little Sophie, and I know that every parent goes through these challenges, but somehow I always feel like my stories seem to top all the other stories when we sit around talking about 'you wouldn't believe what ____ did yesterday'...Usually I don't even get into it, because some stories are just too outrageous. Sophie is a determined little girl, and this shows through in her battles, but also in very positive ways too. Sophie is an amazing artist, now I am for sure biased, but she constantly amazes us and her teachers. She knows exactly what she wants when she sits down at the table to work "mom I need 2 pieces of red paper, my red scissors, a hole punch, tape and some string" 30 minutes later she has created another work of art. We have piles and piles of artwork. She loves it, does it constantly and never wants to stop doing it. Last week at a playdate I had to beg her to stop so that she would play with her poor friend who wanted Sophie to go find her while she hid! So her battles are a bit like that. She knows exactly what she wants and she locks in and fights hard for it. I have no doubt she will be very successful one day - something to do with the arts, perhaps a director or something? Anyway, here are a couple of the things she has done this week. And she took the picture of the molding clay and was very particular about how it all looked inside the frame of the camera! So yes, it was molding clay to the rescue in the end.


It was crazy how much the day changed after that. The hardest part for me was believing the storm had actually passed, was this just a break between thunderstorms or was it safe to get excited about the sun? But it was. We had a great afternoon. Sophie did lots of art, we played 'Puff the Magic Dragon' over and over while we danced, we jumped on the beds, played hide and go seek and watched 'Charlotte's Web' with a bowl of popcorn and chocolate milk (like my dad used to make for us). So, just like the carton of eggs that dropped on the floor, it sucked and it was a mess, but nothing that couldn't be cleaned up and learned from...it is hard to not break eggs when some days you are walking on eggshells.

Blossoms

The term 'friend' is relatively subjective to each different person, but in general I'd say a friend is someone who you care about, want to spend time with and who you share common interests with. Some friends move in and out of your life, some are so solid they will be there forever. Family is different. Family is solid and will be there forever, but not all family are friends. I am proud to say that my family are my best friends. There is rarely a day that passes without talking to my mom or my sister, my brother is just about the best bro I could have asked for and my dad is wonderful and always there for me. My brother, sister and I have a great relationship that exists all on its own - separate from the family we grew up in, we are friends AND we are family. Yesterday I saw a glimpse of this in Sophie and Noah as I was cooking dinner.


Sophie went outside to share her fruit leather with Noah and they sat together on the bench, feet dangling, talking to each other, looking around the yard....just hanging out. Sophie must have said something a little funny cuz Noah did a little giggle. And then Noah did something that made Sophie giggle. I had wanted Sophie to put her shoes on before going out, she ignored me and went to hang out with her bro. I did not want to interrupt this beautiful, blossoming friendship. I just carried on cooking, glimpsing up every so often. It was sooooo cool. I couldn't be more proud. My children love each other and they have a growing friendship that exists outside of their parents. It was like I could see the future when they will call each other on the phone and have stuff to say that has nothing to do with me or Matthew.

Family.....there is something so special about family. Something familiar, warm and safe. We live far away from most of our family, but every time we get together there is a bond that is so wonderful and close. I love how much Noah and Sophie love their family. They are always talking about them, making things for them and wanting to talk to them on the phone. Noah is always asking about 'Nina','Aaayee' 'Neeek''nana' and 'poppa' (which means grandpa, grandma AND poppa). We are lucky enough to have one family member that lives here in Missoula - Shannon. And Sophie and Noah are completely in love with her! They seem to understand that she is family and hold an extra special place in their hearts for her! Another blossoming friendship.


And speaking of blossoming.....Look what I found in my garden this afternoon! Green! Bring on the spring.

Officially Weened, Unofficially Two

With Sophie it came easily, at 11 months old she made the decision that she did not want to nurse anymore. I never felt rejected, just relieved that it was not a big deal, she was ready, I was ready - it all just worked out. With Noah we played an entirely different ball game. We started out beautifully, and then hit one of the biggest challenges I have had as a mother when he developed Reflux at 6 weeks old. We persevered and finally got past the worst of it. As much as I wanted to be one of those mothers who can nurse just about anywhere at any time, Noah was not one of those babies that wanted the same, and thus began the ritual that would take us nearly to his 2nd birthday. My mom told me of the days when she nursed little Nick and Allie and how she would look forward to those middle of the night feedings so that she could have some one-on-one time with them. The same was true for me. I loved nursing Noah, those quiet, peaceful moments with your precious child. I never thought we would have done it this long with all the hurdles we encountered, but I feel like we both needed it for one reason or another and we gave it up little by little as we were ready, and in the end no-body was traumatized too much. We have replaced nursing with the next phase of READING! Suddenly Noah, who has never shown much interest in books can't get enough of it, and we find it just as bonding. I can say that I am very proud to have stayed with it for as long as I did, and I wouldn't change a thing.



As far as being 'unofficially 2' well it speaks for itself. Little Mr. Mello, go-with-the-flow Noah now has a thing or two to say about things. He now insists "DEW-T" when putting on clothes, shoes or getting to the dinner table. His independence is starting to show itself in all his little activities. Sophie can be a great help for him too, she gets excited at each new word he can say and is always trying to teach him words, games and anything else she can. He has a big appreciation for Daddy and his "eouk" or 'work'. He is always trying to fix something that is "boke" and needs "tools". It feels so incredibly important at this stage to show him his boundaries so he can blossom within them. Maybe it is easier to see that with boys since he experiments with so many things that are just plainly not acceptable like throwing things and food, spitting, hitting etc... with Sophie it just seemed/seems more subtle and it doesn't help that she is little miss negotiator on just about everything! Anyway, at the moment they are learning to love each other.

Dog Days of Winter

So even though we have lived here in Montana for more than 2 years now, this is officially our first full-on winter here. Our first winter we escaped for 10 days to the warm sun blissed beaches of Hawaii and upon our return we didn't notice winter too much because we were anxiously awaiting the arrival of little Noah the moah. Last year obviously we escaped like a couple of bandits for 3 months of summer in New Zealand. So, here we are trying to survive the Cabin Fever that seems to be afflicting most of our friends and neighbors. It is funny because yesterday (Tues) when I got in the car to take Sophie to preschool I realized we hadn't even been in the car since last Thursday! And we have been having lots of fun! I have made a sort of truce with the house. It is allowed to get as messed up as it wants during the day, but before bedtime we have to do a clean sweep and go to bed with it looking as it should (this gives me peace of mind as you well know!)And I will tell you, for not actually leaving the house - we are sooo busy!! It reminds me of the early baby days when it is hard to find the time to brush your teeth! Sophie thankfully got one million craft projects for Christmas and her Birthday so we are always making something, even before breakfast sometimes...the hardest part is keeping Noah from cutting his hair with the scissors, throwing the project across the room and making sure Diego doesn't eat it or the children. It is exhilarating and exhausting all at the same time.

We are also eternally grateful for our new dog who keeps things interesting all of the time, and the most super cool invention - our ice skating rink that we have out front! The kids love it and I love it because we don't have to go very far so when the going gets too cold...we just come on back in the good ole house! (Is this the most optimistic post about the bleak winter or what?! - Who am I kidding, I can't wait for spring!!!)

Sophie Turns Four

On January 2nd, 2009 Sophie had a very big day - she turned 4!!! She is so proud to be 4. She tells everyone she meets. On her birthday she woke up, burst out of her room and said "I'm four!" and jumped up and down, super happy at this prospect of being that much more of a big girl. All day long she was very grown up, answering phone calls from her family and understanding that they were calling to wish her a happy birthday. It was cool for Matthew and I too because she understood so much more this year.
They always tell you that time goes by fast with kids....and it is of course true. We try to take it all in on a daily basis and savor all these precious moments with our children. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't get butterflies in my stomach thinking about how blessed we are to have our two amazing angels. That said, even with stopping to smell the flowers every day, so much happens each day that it all moves on so fast. I am happy to have started this blog because it definitely gives me the chance to at least put some of it down in writing!
Sophie grows so much every day. One day in this past year I looked at her and realized she is no longer a toddler, but a little girl. And she is a busy little girl. There is always something going on when Sophie is around. The highlight of her last year would have to be her trip to New Zealand. She developed a close relationship with her Nana and Poppa and that right there is priceless. She also learned how to swim underwater, ride a bike with training wheels, started preschool, and found that life without her 'nani' is actually alright.
So on her actual birthday Matthew took the day off to celebrate with us - we went to Currents where we swam and played in the water. Sophie had a blast ducking under the water and jumping in off the side a hundred times. On our way home we made a special stop at McDonalds for lunch- Sophie thought it was the best day ever. The day after her birthday was her party. This year she went to Mismo gymnastics which was a great place for the kids. They ran around and played and then had the usual birthday fare of cake, ice cream and presents. She felt very happy and loved.

Sophie continues to love art - drawing, painting, cutting, and any craft thing she can think of. She is always busy with one project or another. She knows her alphabet and how to read and write most of the letters as well as knows what sound some of them make. She loves to have stories read to her and is interested in reading but not completely willing to take the job on just yet. She also loves music and singing and can learn the words to a song after hearing it only a couple of times. A few of her favorites to sing are: Ring of Fire and other Johnny Cash songs, Three Little Birds, Puff the Magic Dragon, Keith Urban songs, Christmas carols, Silent Night.

Upon turning 4 she has also started really caring a lot about her friends and family. She makes things for them, wants to call them and looks forward to seeing them.
Another 4 year old development is a new fear of the dark. This came on slowly but has developed into needing a flashlight in her room, lights on in the bathroom and a new 'twilight turtle' night light that projects all the stars onto her ceiling. This is apparently completely normal at this age, just strange to see it happen before your eyes.
As with pretty much any age, we are delighted to watch our little baby girl learn and grow, but always sad to see a little more of the baby days pass. Like I said, we are trying to take it all in on a daily basis.....but a lot happens!!!
This little photo show is something I have wanted to do for Sophie since her 1st birthday. I composed it only of photos from this past year to try and keep it short(ish) and sweet.

Christmas

This Christmas was the first Christmas we have spent with family in a couple of years. The past two years we have opted for a beach holiday in January instead of the big traditional family Christmas in Denver. Each year we have done this we thoroughly enjoy the vacation but miss the special closeness that comes with a big family Christmas. So this year we did it. We battled the crowds and the weather and made the flight to D town. It was perfect. The kids made Christmas cookies with Grandma, we did some holiday shopping, lots of holiday eating, visited with friends, played and relaxed. Kids make Christmas the best thing ever. The look on their faces Christmas morning is priceless and the excitement they have while playing with their cousin and being around so much love is simply awesome. We cherished every moment and I don't think we missed a thing! Here are a couple of highlights...

Talent contest

Have a laugh over this one.....really good blackmail material for Noah's 21st birthday!

Introduction

Well this may be the beginning of a family blog so that we can keep you updated on how the little munchkins are growing and all our little adventures. I am not making any promises on how often I will keep this up.....but I thought I would give it a go and give you the chance to see a little more of us!