Christmas 2010

Wow how fast time flies! This last year has just flown by. I feel like I missed half of it in my blog, I'll have to try to do better next year. We were very fortunate this Christmas season. December was passed with school programs, Santa visits, shopping, decorating, taking plates to neighbors, and some service. Sadie got to be an angel in the school Nativity this year and that made her day! The kids also got to send letters to Santa through the Post Office and Santa sends a letter back to each child along with some stickers!

We thouroughly enjoyed this Christmas season, especially those family traditions and events. We spent Christmas with the Birds this year. It was exciting to watch kids open presents Christmas morning and then go to Grandma and Grandpa's to do it all again! I made quilts for our family this year for my homemade gift. Each kid got a levi quilt with their name embroidered on it. Cory got a John Deere tractor quilt that said "I Make Dirt Look Good". We were all blessed with many things we didn't need and it would take forever to name them all so thank you to all and Merry Christmas!!

Cory and his John Deere tractor quilt:

The CTR capes Santa brought the girls:

Pettiskirts the girls got for dress-up and Haylee's new baby:

Lexi showing her Santa letter reply:

The annual Santa pictures taken at the school program. Sadie was happy to sit on his lap but Lexi wouldn't go without her friend Katie, and Haylee was somewhat less than amused:

Cory in his new pink shirt that he returned. He was man enough to have one before we got married, but now I guess it isn't the cool thing:

Our three girls in front of the tree with their Christmas skirts on:

Indoor Snowman

Cousin Abbie came over to play for a while and the four girls came up with a way to make a snowman without setting foot outside in the freezing cold weather!!! Indoor non-melting snowman is here . . . . .

Big Dogs Play Hard . . . . . . Little Dogs Play HARDER!!

Cory works EXTREMLEY hard all year long, so when it slows down in the winter he loves to go snowmobiling with Cody and anyone else they can get to go. I am greatful he is careful and goes in a group for this activity, but it is still a souce of worry for me. He deserves to go play and have fun with the guys and I'm glad to let him go as often as he can. He still plans time to spend with me and the girls doing special things, even smowmachiening in the back yard. The kids remind him THEY want to go play too!!!

Happy Bithday Sadie!!!

Sadie is six years old!!! She is soooo tall now, and I can't believe how she's changed. Kinderarten has made her seem so growing up! AHHH! Sadie is my biggest helper, she is also my comedian. We have found the joy in "knock, knock" jokes and she is a riot! I love that she wants to help me out when she can before I get the chance to ask for her help. Coloring, cutting and glueing are our favorite pastimes. Creativity she lacks none of, and I am continually impressed by the ideas and pictures she comes up with. Playing anything pretend is her favorite game, lately horses, thus all the holes in the knees of her jeans. Sadie you are a joy to our family and congrats on your special day! We love you sweetheart -
We celebrated her birthday with all our family close by. Grandma and Grandpa Bird, Uncle Cody, Uncle Buzz and Aunt Julee were all here to help us celebrate. She wanted a princess/candyland castle for her birthday this year and this is what we came up with:

A Hunting We Will Go:

We tried to go get a tree at least four different times since Thanksgiving but it never has worked out. We needed to get a tree up before Christmas, so a hunting we would go. Snow was coming down in huge, fluffy flakes as you can see by the pictures. This may have been our fastest tree getting trip ever. We scampered to find a suitable tree to tromp home for some HOT CHOCOLATE!!!!!

More Happy Helpers. . . . .

Thanksgiving 2010

This year we went to my sister's house in Idaho Falls to celabrate all we are thankful for. My Mom and Dad work a lot on holidays, so it was great to get to see them and be with them for Thanksgiving. We played lots of card games, WII games, ate plenty of great food and just remenisced about past family times together. We missed not having my youngest sister, Sarah, and her family but we called and talked to them to get them closer to us. I am so very greatful for all the wonderful blessings I have been blessed with in my life. I have a hard-working, loving and very supportive husband. I have three very vibrant and beautiful daughters. I am blessed to live in a small town with lots of family and friends surrounding us. I have the gospel in my life which helps me every day to be a better person. I'm so thankful for all I have and hope to be thankful more than just in November. Happy Thanksgiving to all!

A Day In the Life of a 1 Year-Old

We start our moring with exercise,

Play a little Peek-A-Boo for some fun and games,

Model some of Daddy's dirty socks,

Help Daddy take off his boots to get more dirty socks,

and finish off with some chores like hauling wood for example.

Okay more Halloween. . . .

I forgot to post these pics, so I am doing it now. My girls always LOVE skirts, so here are the Halloween ones:

From Bugs to Witches to Angels

Halloween was a two days at our house. School parties, spook walk at school, pumpkin decorating, Trunk or Treat, carnivals, family, etc., etc., etc., etc. You get the point. so instead of writing a book on the subject I will just hit the high spots.
At school they have a Spook Walk where the elementary kids walk through the school with their costumes on for the teachers, Principal, high school kids. (The school is a one hallway school basically so some benefits come from a small school :) Lexi had to go because Sadie was there so all three kids were in costume at the school that day. They had a great time walking, decorating pumpkins with a high school partner, and making their teacher into a mummy.
Saturday was normal until about five o'clock when the carnival at the church was put on with lots of fun games for the kids. Haylee wasn't sure what to think especially when her friend Darrell Peterson sat by her in his costume, they just sat there and stared at each other. It was funny!!! Truck or Treat followed outside in the parking lot and they got tons of candy as always. Aunt Angie, Uncle Jason and Abbie were up from Pocatello this year so they had fun playing this weekend as well.
Sadie dressed up as an angel, Lexi went as a "nice" witch and Haylee was a pink butterfly. Quite the crew!!!

Abbie the panda, Lexi the witch and Haylee the butterfly show us their haul. . . .

Haylee and Darrell staring at each other. . . .

Mr. Stokes the mummy and his "princesses"

Lexi , Mackenzie Mackay and Annie Matson decorating pumpkins. . . . .

Sadie, Haylee and Laura Playfair glittering up their pumpkin. . . .

My three "ghouls". . . . . .

Pumpkins and Cookies!!!

We started the tradition of baking Halloween sugar cookies a few years ago and the girls look forward to decorating them each year. We spent an afternoon and evening doing that with pumpkin carving. I figured I might as well do all the messy stuff the same time so I didn't have to clean up more than once! Haylee got bored with the pumpkin carving because there wasn't much for her to do but she loved getting candy pieces from her sisters while decorating cookies!

Cory wasn't feeling very well but still helped me with the carving. He said the sight of the green frosting made him feel nauseous. That's a first, I didn't have to keep poking his hand with a fork each time he stole a spoonful of frosting or candy!!!