Cupboards

Porter loves to hide in the cupboards.

Snow

Lincoln running in the snow.

Porter riding in the wagon.

We have had some frigid temperatures and today it was barely above freezing and the sun was shining, so we played outside for a few minutes.  Porter stayed in the wagon the whole time and Lincoln tried to build a snowman, but the snow was too powdery, so he ran the whole time.  We had fun despite the cold.

Snow Shoveler

Lincoln and Daddy shoveling snow.

Lincoln got a snow shovel from Santa and this owl hat.  He helped shovel snow and loved playing in the snow with dad.

Christmas Morning

Our boys were definitely on Santa's Nice List this year.  They got so many presents.  It was so much fun to watch them open each gift with such excitement.  They got everything they wanted. We are truly blessed!

Christmas Cookies

Porter getting into the frosting.

We made Christmas cookies for Santa.  Porter climbed the step stool for the first time to get to the frosting.  

It's Always Fun when Grandpa Comes

Lincoln and Porter on Grandpa's lap.

After a day of having Grandma, Grandpa, and Uncle Seth over, Porter finally warmed up.  Grandpa was making Porter laugh like crazy here.

Nursery Rhymes

Porter looking at his Nursery Rhyme book.

We love to read.  Porter's favorite book is this Nursery Rhyme book.  He always wants to read it before bed and he loves to point to all the pictures.  Today, he climbed up to his chair and opened the book and looked at it on his own for several minutes.  He even does the actions when he knows them.

Fudge

Lincoln mixing the fudge.

The final product (food blog style).

We have started making treats for our neighbor Christmas plates.  We love this rocky road fudge and thought it would be fun to make.  It was a bit too soft, but it was delicious!

Practicing Pictures

Our best attempt at tripod family pictures.

Porter and Lincoln playing in the wagon.

Since getting a DSLR, I have been trying to get a family picture to print in a large size for our home.  We finally got matching outfits, so we gave it a try.  Using a tripod and self-timer, we got a few decent shots.  I really wanted snow in the pictures, so we may try again if Mother Nature cooperates.

Venting

Porter has learned to drop food down the heater vent.

Porter's favorite game to play, in his high chair, is dropping his food and sippy cup on the floor.  He loves to watch it fall.  I try to sweep after each meal/snack, but he insists on playing with the broom, usually before I finish sweeping.   Porter has learned that food can drop farther down, by putting crumbs down the heater vent.  I usually just close the it, but I should probably just move the high chair farther away from this vent. This is enough venting for now!

Joy School Snack

Decorating graham crackers.

Rather than make gingerbread houses, we decorated graham crackers with frosting, chocolate chips, marshmallows, and candy.  The boys loved it.  Porter likes Joy School too!

Advent Activity Book

Lincoln starting his Advent Calendar Activity Book.

Lincoln still loves art, so we are excited to have an art activity everyday until Christmas.  We love Christmas and all the activities we have planned for this month.

Scrapbooking

Porter looking at our wedding album.

I am still working on our wedding scrapbook (I am so not crafty, but trying to improve).  Porter loved looking at our pictures and I got quite a bit completed on our scrapbook.

Reservoir

We went on a walk at the reservoir today.  We love warm fall weather.

Trimming the Tree

The ornaments I made this year.

Porter helping to decorate the tree.

We got out all our Christmas decorations today.  Porter loves the ornaments.  Lincoln loved decorating, but wouldn't let me take any pictures of him.  I also made a few ornaments from an idea I saw on Pinterest.  

Jello

Porter playing in the Knox Jello.

I made Knox Jello for the boys to add coloring to.  Lincoln added the color, then Porter played with the Jello.  Lincoln thought it would be gross to touch, but Porter loved it.

Piano Player

Porter playing the piano.

Porter loves to play the piano.  I might have better luck giving him piano lessons instead of Lincoln, there would be much less whining involved for sure.  Porter just discovered how to open the piano to get to the keys.  Hopefully he will continue to want to play the piano.

Drawer

Porter inside my drawer.

I have been needing to go through my clothes in my drawers.  I decided the easiest way to do that was just to take the drawer out.  I set it down and Porter climbed inside.  This did make for easy emptying and made the cleaning more fun.

Too Much Candy

Porter walking around with a sucker on his bum.

Halloween

Our Toucan and Puppy.

We had a great time trick-or-treating.  We went together as a family and left our bowl of candy on the porch.  We are in a new neighborhood, so everyone gave handfuls of candy.  At one house a little boy handed out the candy and after he gave the candy to Porter, he handed one to the little boy. We spent about 30 minutes and had full buckets by the end.  Lincoln said he had a million nine candies.  We didn't get that much, but we did get a lot.

Odyssey

 We just bought a minivan!

 In our driveway with our Honda Odyssey.

That is one good looking van.

We bought a new minivan!  Our truck needed some repairs, but we didn't want to put any money into it.  We purchased a 2012 Honda Odyssey.  The year end clearance got us a reasonable price.  So far we love it! (In case you are wondering, we are not expecting, we just needed a new vehicle and a van is the most practical right now.)

So Long Dakota

 Our first picture of our Dodge Dakota.

The last picture of or Dodge Dakota.

It was a little heart wrenching to trade in our truck.  We had a lot of good memories with it; camping won't be the same without it.  When we bought the truck, we were newly weds going to USU.  Now we have our degrees, a house, two kids, and we live in Colorado.  A lot has changed in six years, but the truck looks the same, just a few thousand more miles on it.

Corn Maze

 Lincoln petting a calf.

 Outside the ghost town. 

Charlotte and Lincoln lost in the corn maze.

 We made it out in about 20 minutes.

 Lincoln riding behind the tractor in the barrel train.

Daddy and Porter taking a ride.

We went to Mile High Farms today.  We had a great time.  Lincoln didn't really like the corn maze, but he liked all the animals and the train ride.  Porter didn't cry, but I don't think he liked any of it.  Caleb and I had fun though.

Halloween Party

 Lincoln (Luigi) and his preschool buddies.

The Jack-o-Lantern Lincoln made at Joy School.

Today was a Halloween party at Joy School.  Lincoln was a little scared at first, because of everyone's costumes.  Lincoln wants to be a toucan for Halloween and we haven't found (made) one yet.  Hopefully we will find something by Halloween.  Lincoln had a great party.  He drew the face of this Jack-o-Lantern and scooped out the seeds, then the teacher carved it.  Lincoln had so much fun, he told me Halloween is his favorite holiday.

Breadsticks

Porter and Lincoln eating breadsticks.

Whenever I make spaghetti for dinner, I also make breadsticks.  Porter's favorite food is bread, so he devoured them.  He even wanted Lincoln's breadstick.  I took this picture after we had been done with dinner for about 15 minutes.  Lincoln said he "could eat breadsticks all day long."  Also, if we get upset, Lincoln tells us to "stop being a breadstick on a cloudy day."  He must think about those breadsticks a lot!

Laundry Day

Lincoln and Porter playing in the clean laundry.

Laundry is my least favorite chore.  I have found a way that makes it a bit easier for me.  I let the kids play in the clean laundry.  This allows them to have fun and I get some folding done while they play.  Look how excited Porter is, that has to be fun and it is. However, Lincoln is on a picture strike and stops what he is doing to look mad or close his eyes...I hope this is just a phase.

Caleb's Birthday

 Caleb and Lincoln on the bridge.

Lincoln and Porter going down the slide.

Today was Caleb's birthday.  We didn't do much, but we spent the evening together.  We had dinner at home, opened presents, then went for a walk to a new playground.  We all enjoyed the playground and the crisp fall weather.

Sad Face

Porter is sad, wanting to go outside, but it is too cold.

Caramel Apple Tradition

Caramel apples covered in Reese's Pieces and white chocolate with cinnamon sugar.

Every fall conference, I make caramel apples.   I make the caramel from scratch and even made the sweetened condensed milk.  The Reese's Pieces kind is Caleb's favorite, so I always make those.  The white chocolate with cinnamon sugar is a copycat recipe of an apple pie caramel apple from Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory, which is now my favorite kind of caramel apple.  They were delicious!

First Snow of the Season

Caleb and Lincoln having a snowball fight.

Dishwasher Helper

Porter helping unload the dishwasher.

Porter loves to help me unload the dishwasher.  He loves to pull the racks back and forth.  He also likes to take everything out.  While I was putting dishes in the cupboard, Porter managed to get in the dishwasher.  Most hilarious thing I have seen.  I wish I had this much fun with the dishwasher.

Ready for Church

Lincoln and Porter in their Sunday suits.

Rocky Mountain National Park

 Getting a picture near the elk.

 A closer view of the elk.

The beautiful fall colors.

We had a great time at Rocky Mountain National Park.  The fall colors were gorgeous and there were more elk there than at Yellowstone.  We all had a wonderful time in the mountains.