California

Tara's Aunts house

Last month we took a much-needed vacation to southern California. On the drive down we were able to stop in and stay with my aunt for a night. The kids had so much fun and they are begging to go back. My aunt made a big dinner and all of my cousins came over. It was so good to see them again. It had been a long time and I hadn't seen some of their kids. Brooklyn now thinks she has her very own chicken that lives in California. She tells everybody. It really was a ton of fun.

Here are the chickens

Lainey-Anika-Kennady
Kennady-Lainey-Brooklyn

(those are snakes they're holding!)


Midevil Times
Our first night in Anaheim we went and ate at Midevil Times and the kids had a ball. We cheered for the red knight and thanks to our cheering, our knight won. That just made the night even better. We bought our kids little red flags to wave and you should have seen Easton, he was waving it the highest and the fastest. He had a ball.

Disneyland

(The Happiest Place on Earth)

I know it is cheesy but I had to buy matching Disneyland shirts. I think they are pretty cute.
Scott and I decided that this was one of our funnest trips to Disneyland ever. The girls were at a perfect age. They were still young enough for the kids stuff and they were just tall enough for the big stuff. We did it all and loved every minute of it. We could have stayed for a week.

The girls are now Jedi trained. (They love Star Wars)

Scott and I have a theory that Disneyland either brings out the best in people, or the worst in people. I think it brings out the best in the girls. They are so cute together when we are there (and you wonder why we love it so much). It truely is the Happiest Place on Earth.

Springtime Fun

Easter Egg Hunt

Tulip Festival

Every spring there is a Tulip Festival up by Seattle that is really quite amazing to see. There were so many tulips and they were gorgous. The day we went it was very cold and windy (as you can see the girls hair was all over the place.) I really did do their hair and had hoped for some amazing pictures. It didn't work out as I planned but it was still fun.

Seaside
In March we were able to get together with our really good friends we met at medical school and go stay in Oregon in a town called Seaside. We stayed at a hotel right on the beach and it was a lot of fun. Thanks for a great time Lael and Marcie.

Amalie-Kennady-Brooklyn-Mia

Northwest Trek

Just a week ago Kenna and Brooklyn's cousin came to visit so we went to Northwest Trek. The girls had a great time.

Madison, Brooklyn and Easton

Baseball
Our first Mariner's game of the season. I am sure there will be many more to come. Easton's favorite thing is a ball. I can't take him through the produce section of the grocery store without him yelling ball when he sees the oranges.

Kennady is playing on a coach pitch baseball team. She loves every minute of it.

Yardwork

Happy Birthday Brooklyn!!!

This year Scott was home during the day (which usually never happens) and was able to take Brooklyn's five year old pictures. Brooklyn actually likes having her picture taken now and I was happy with how they turned out.

I can't believe my baby girl is five. We are a little upset with her right now because she promised us that when she turned four she would stop getting older and stay the same age forever. (I really wish she would stop growing). Brooklyn did a lot of fun things this year and she has learned a few new things as well. She now can ride a bike all by herself. She is starting to read short three letter words. She can do a cartwheel and swing on the monkey bars. She likes to do her own hair in a pony tail and has decided that when she grows up she wants to be a "hair designer." She would style my hair all day if I would let her, it's her favorite thing to do. She loves to play with her friends and loves pre-school. She has got such a funny personality, and we are always cracking up at her. She sometimes thinks that we are laughing at her and not with her and gets upset. She hasn't quite learned the difference yet, and she's pretty dang cute when she's mad too so that makes us laugh even more. She is still very full of it. We absolutely LOVE this girl and we're so lucky that she's ours.

HAPPY 5th BIRTHDAY Bugga! We love you!

First Hair cut and Daddy Daughter Dance

First Hair Cut

We are a little late posting these. Better late than never. Easton had his first hair cut. He really needed it as you can see in this before picture.

He was not so sure about sitting in the big chair and having some stranger mess with his hair.

This is the after picture. I think he is pretty cute.

Daddy Daughter Ball

"A Night at the Oscars"

Every year in the town that we live in they have a Daddy Daughter Ball. My girls absolutely love it. They love getting all dressed up and then going on a special date with their favorite person (Daddy of course). Scott takes them out to eat where ever they want to go. This year they chose BJ's. It is their favorite because they love the dessert (a chocotale chip pazookie). After dinner they went to the dance and had their pictures taken, and get to dance and run around with all their frinds. They love it. Scott actually likes it to. His favorite part is going out to dinner and show off his favorite girls. He is such a proud dad. They all had a really good time this year. (and I had fun doing their hair).

Crystal Mountain & Guess Who's Walking

Kennady and Brooklyn have been asking us for weeks if they could go skiing. We weren't quite sure if they would like it or not, but there is a ski resort nearby where kids under 10 ski for free, so we decided to take them. They were both a little nervous at first, but when Kennady got to the top of the first lift she took off down the hill as if she had been skiing her whole life. Brooklyn fell a lot but just giggled and got back up every time and kept going. We ended up staying until closing time and they are already begging to go back again.

Easton is finally walking!

Our little man is finally walking. It seems like he was crawling forever and was driving us crazy because he has been able to walk for a while, but just wouldn't. He would start walking then intentionally fall down and crawl because he could get there faster. Now he thinks that walking is fun and won't let us carry him anymore. He doesn't even like riding in strollers or shopping carts. We fear that Easton has Brooklyn's sense of independence and is going to insist on doing things himself. Also, we stole the idea for the picture above from our good friend Jocelin. She is an amazing photographer and you can see her work at photographybyjocelin.com. Thanks Jocelin, I hope that was OK!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone! We didn't send a letter with our cards this year so I just wanted to give you all a brief update as to what we've been up to.
Scott finished his internship year and has started his second year of residency in pediatrics. We were always told that the second year is not as busy as the first. Oh how we wish that were true. It seems like he pretty much lives at the hospital. I think he sees his co-workers more than he sees us. I guess that's what we get for him choosing this profession. Don't get me wrong though, he loves what he does and that makes me happy. He pretty much lives on no sleep, and I think he'll be tired until his residency is over. If you are talking to him and he falls asleep don't take it personal.
I am still doing the same as always, nothing really new with me. I have enjoyed spending time at home with my kids, although sometimes it seems that I am busier than Scott is. Three kids has been a lot of work, but very fun and I love every minute of it.
Kennady turned seven this year and is in the second grade. She loves school, dancing, and playing the piano. She is truly one of the most caring little girls ever. We love her so much.
Brooklyn turned four this year and she is still as full of it as ever. She has a funny little personality and cracks us up all the time. She is in pre-school and can't wait for kindergarten next year. She also loved dancing and swimming.
Easton turned one and he is also very full of it. He is so fun to be around. My new favorite thing he does is crawl up and say "bite" when he wants what you are eating, and you can't help but smile and give him some. He also will glare at you if you tell him no or when he gets in trouble, and it's so cute that you can't stay mad for long. He is stubborn and refuses to walk, but I'm tired of him crawling so I really want him to walk. Raising a boy has been a new experience for me, so any pointers would be greatly appreciated!
We have had a really great year. We went to Disneyland once (of course, our favorite place) and we went to Utah three times. We also started camping this year and have been to some very pretty places (the Pacific Northwest is beautiful and we're going miss it when we leave). We hope you all have had a great year and we wish you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. We are truly blessed to be able to celebrate the birth of our Savior as a family.
With love,
Scott-Tara-Kennady-Brooklyn-&-Easton

My Baby is One!!!

Wow! I can't believe my baby is one! This year has flown by. I swear I just had him. It is amazing how fast they grow. While we were looking back through all of his pictures we couldn't believe how much he still looks like he did when he was born.

Easton you are such a joy. I love you so much! You make my days better. I love when you crinkle your nose. I love when you get embarrassed and hide in my neck. I love when you cuddle me, and I especially love when you say mama.

Easton Happy First Birthday! We love you so much.