giving thanks

Jerry and Bev were hosting Thanksgiving this year. and I really had minimal food assignments, so it was a very low-key holiday for me :)  Dad was with us (for 2 weeks), which was really nice as well. Before we had our big meal, we headed to the backyard for family pictures per Jerry's request.  It was a beautiful Fall afternoon, and the lighting was perfect!  

Brooke and I had a mini-photo session in the car to keep us entertained since the novelty of me sitting in the back with them hadn't worn off yet. 

We truly are lucky to live near family, and our kids adore their cousins so much.

Getting all the kids to smile at the same time was harder than it should have been, but they were adorable for their picture with Grandma and Papa and the picture holding hands.

Then I wanted ONE picture with my Dad, and Brooke had to throw a stink.  I thought we were getting over this?  Anyway, Mel took a picture of my "chat" with Brooke, which is just hilarious to me.  I will definitely be showing this to her one day.

But it worked because she did a beautiful smile, and then could go back to playing.  I think pictures are so annoying to kids, but then again, they love to look back at them.  One of my favorite things is when Brooke will join me in the office and we'll look back at old pictures on the computer and reminisce about the fun times we had.  I really do feel so grateful for my family and for this season of Thanksgiving.

turner falls

Sometime in the Spring, we were sitting around the Myer's kitchen table talking with the Arlington gang about a possible trip together.  Camping was discussed, but there were doubts about whether or not that would be fun in Texas, haha (myself included)!  Unbeknownst to me, Kevin started talking to Doug about their annual camping trip to Turner Falls.  Kevin said that Doug invited us to tag along, but I worried that they might want to keep it a family trip.  I ended up texting Tracy about it, and she said that they would love for us to come and she sent a GroupMe message to the gang.

After lots of messages, and several itinerary changes, we loaded up the Armada and headed to Turner Falls, Oklahoma with the Myers and another family (the Ghormley's) from their ward.  It took SO long to pack, but we were all pretty darn excited for the adventure.  All we knew about the place was that we were staying in "enclosures" because the cabins were all booked.  The temperatures were dropping since we went the second week in November, but with Doug's method of hanging thick plastic over the enclosure openings, and utilizing multiple space heaters inside, we all stayed nice and toasty.  

When we arrived, the kids were eager to get out and explore. The pictures don't really do the place justice, but the colors were beautiful and it just felt good to be out in nature.

We started setting up camp, but were taking a while because Kevin was sure that he could finagle a way to hang our hammocks inside the enclosure (little house) for us to sleep in.  Everyone else was ready to go on a hike before dark, so Kevin suggested that I go ahead with the kids and he would finish up.  That seemed like a good plan to me, except that I quickly became a little worried about keeping up with both kids on the trail. Luckily, Doug was extremely helpful with helping Brooke get down at each rock, etc. and Tracy was also keeping an eye on Brooke for me.

At one point along the trail, we had to completely crawl (scoot on our sides) to get into a cave opening.  Doug took one for the team and was the all-time baby and child passer as the adults made the scoot.

Brooke loved the adventure, and had fun keeping up with Britton and Cooper. By the time we made it to the bottom of the Falls, it was already so dark.  We still had the whole walk back to the campsite, which was at least a paved road, but Colby was done by this point. He didn't want to be carried, but he also didn't want to follow directions or walk forwards, or act normal. He probably cried for the last 15 minutes of the hike as I squeezed him in my arms and tried to force him to calm down.  We were both a wreck by the time we made it, haha. (This was the only bad part of the whole trip, so I would call that a win!)

The second day was the coldest, but we all managed to keep warm.

We hiked to a few "castles", and made it to a higher point and view of the Falls. It was gorgeous, and something that we had never experienced before as a little family.

Nora needed some convincing to get down for one of the castles, so I bribed her with candy bars.  When I showed everyone the bag of treats in my backpack, Doug made a comment about how I was a true Speech Pathologist, haha.  He knows that we always have a treat to bribe the kids. 

We went on another hike, but unfortunately the trail needed some major attention, so we were doing more bushwhacking than I anticipated.  The edge of the rock path was sheer cliff, so that was alarming as well.  Before we even made it to the top, we had to stop because the gate was locked, but it was still neat to see the Falls from a different angle. And I have this cool picture with Brooke that has an awesome backstory, haha.  She was refusing to look at the camera, so I crouched down to talk to her.  In the meantime, I almost sat on a cactus, so was picking tiny needles out of my behind for the rest of the afternoon.  I even made Kevin bust out the tweezers that night to get the ones that I couldn't get with my fingers.  It's funny now, but it was SO not at the time. (I guess that makes two bad things that happened on the trip, haha.) 

Kevin helped the kids feel how chilly the water was, and they still thought they wanted to get in.

Brooke rekindled her love for Finley, and was grateful that Miss Tracy let her hold him.

One afternoon we ate lunch by a river, and the kids loved sitting on the tailgate on the drive over.

I never mentioned that Kevin did, in fact, get the hammocks to work inside the enclosure, and we both slept really well in them!  The kids also did great, which was a relief.  Brooke was on a twin bed (in her sleeping bag), and Colby was in the pack n'play.  One thing I learned on the trip was that Brooke grinds her teeth consistently throughout the night, but thanks to two sound machines, it didn't bother me too much. 

Our final morning was a hat day for me since we weren't taking showers on this 3 day campout!  They had restrooms down the road that we used each night to wash our face and brush our teeth, but the port-a-potty right by our row of enclosures was perfect for quick potty breaks. 

Each enclosure also had a water spigot outside for brushing/washing/and meal prep.  Colby was happy to help with the strawberries for breakfast. 

The whole experience was really fun, and we are looking forward to crashing the Myer's camping trip again next year! I loved having the enclosures for us to sleep in, which also included a picnic table for meal prep.  We had one big camp fire where all three families prepared their meals, and it just worked out perfectly.  Everyone was laid back, and we were even able to put our babies to bed and enjoy time around the campfire as adults.  It really was such a fun trip, and I'm grateful for the memories we made!

family pics

We had our family pictures taken by Miss Danielle again this year, and the top picture is one of my favs! She always seems to capture the best moments and expressions from my kids.  We always seem to go with blues, but when I found Brooke's dress on sale at Crewcuts, I wanted blues again.  Plus, Kevin prefers blue, so it's a lot easier to find something he actually likes. I already had my dress, so I really only bought Kevin a pink shirt and Colby's shirt/sweater combo. As we were driving to meet Danielle, I had a nervous stomach.  I don't know why I always stress about pictures, but I am always worried about how cooperative the kids will be, if our outfits will look good, etc.  It seems ridiculous to even write that, but that's the reality for me because you know how much I like pictures :)

I told the kids that if they cooperated, they could pick something from the Dollar Spot at Target.  Brooke was already doing great, but when I told her we were gonna switch bows, she simply said "Okay, Mom", and Danielle said, "What did you bribe her with?", haha.  (She ended up picking a Santa Slingshot, haha.) She knows Brooke too well and is familiar with her general dislike for pictures.  Thankfully, I think she's growing out of it!

I also had one more freak-out moment as we drove in and saw all the Fall trees.  I worried that our colors would look silly, and wished that I had done a yellow or purple instead of the pink accent color. But, it was too late, so I just tried to stop stressing. And they turned out so great, so again, I need to stop worrying so much.

I love this one SO much, and love the goofy ones beneath because it shows their silly personalities.

I can't believe how old Brookie looks in this one, and although Danielle told her to put her hand on her hip, she put her feet like that on her own, which was just adorable.

Sweet boy, he really did't want to let go of his stick, so it made an appearance in his picture with Daddy. 

After the pictures, we promised that we could go play on the playground for a bit.  People were kind of giving us strange looks for being so dressed up at the park, which was comical.

I love my people and am grateful for such beautiful pictures to treasure forever!

colby boy is TWO

Happy Birthday to our sweet boy!!  It's hard to believe that he is already two, but time flies when you're busy. I mean, when you're having fun :) Brooke was just as excited that it was her brother's birthday, and gave him those sweet kisses without prompting from me. 

It was probably cruel that I had all the presents ready, but wouldn't let him open them until Daddy got home that night!  We filled the day with lots of playtime, and were ready to open presents as soon as Kevin walked in the door.  Made things that much more exciting, haha!  Then we headed for ice cream at Iggy's.

Saturday was his Paw Patrol birthday party, per Colby's request :)  The funniest part about his whole Paw patrol obsession is that he has never actually seen the show!  Grandma gave him 3 books that he loves, and he sees Paw patrol backpacks at Brooke's school each week.  I guess since he likes dogs, it was only natural for him to love these characters. (Random note: That night, I tried to look up Paw Patrol episodes on YouTube, and I was appalled at the number of "fake" shows that started out normally, then switched to the dog's heads blowing up, and other disturbing things. Some people are so creepy!)

Brooke helped me set up for the party while Colby took his nap.  She really is the best helper when it comes to parties because she loves all the details. 

It was a pretty low-key party, but so perfect for a two year old.  We opened gifts, ate pizza, salad, and fruit for dinner, then played outside and had a blast with cousins.

As we finished up dinner, I heard gut-laughing from the office.  I have no idea what was so funny, but these four kept cracking up and I managed to get a picture of them all mid-laugh.  Thats a miracle, right there!

Riding his new scooter from Grandma and Papa!  When he opened the bag containing his scooter, he looked inside and started shouting "My new tooter." It was hilarious, and everyone kept asking him what he got for his birthday just to hear him say it again.

We're so grateful for Colby-boy, and love that kid to pieces! He brings all sorts of crazy to our home, but it's our new normal and we love his infectious smile, loud voice, and sweet heart.

In keeping with the birthday balloon tradition, here are his official two year pictures...

I chose the worst day possible for these pictures because Colby was a little cranky (he was getting sick), and it was incredibly windy.  I was so frustrated by the end of the process, that I decided I was always going to bother Danielle to take the pictures for me!  It's took hard to get a real smile out of him AND get a good picture at the same time, haha.  Brooke was trying to help, but Colby was just not in the mood.  And I didn't want to pay to inflate those giant balloons on a different day, so I wasn't giving up!