Merry Christmas

We want to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year and also give a quick update on what is going on with us. 

We spent the first part of the year getting Dave through his 2nd semester of his first year of med school. 

Benn and I moved us to a new house with a fenced in backyard and, with the help of Grandparents, we purchased a big trampoline and I never saw my children again! They finished off the spring jumping their hearts out.

 We were excited for school to end because #1 we would have Daddy all to ourselves and #2 in May we were headed for Alaska.

(There are many posts about our Alaska trip)

When we returned home at the end of July we recovered for a couple days and then packed up and headed out for a week long camping adventure. We found a few great camping spots but really enjoyed our time in Chinook Pass. The weather was warm, the bugs were minimal and the time was memorable! (There is a post about that too)

 In August a sweet couple from Dave's school received a special gift. This little guy below is Harvey and that is his beautiful mother Marie. He is a special little guy and holds a special place in my heart. We prayed and prayed for this little man and God provided, protected, healed and saved him along with many hearts. I love you sweet little Harvey, and I love your mommy too!!

 A few other highlights of the fall are as follows

 Caleb learned to paint. . . with colors and his food.

 We picked a lot of fresh produce. Blueberries, pears, apples, peaches, cherries, nectarines and raspberries. We attempted to freeze and can most of wonderful finds, but ended up just eating it!!

 We took the kids to a small circus that came to town. We did not leave them there as they requested.

 Benn and JJ learned to shoot their Red Rider BB gun handed down from their Daddy.

 We smiled a lot and played tons!

 We traveled to Spokane to see our friends the Philips and my dear friend Terry, who moved there from Alaska.

 Dave went Mountain biking with his buddy Bryan a few times. . . . many times. . . A LOT!!!

 We went blueberry picking a lot!!

my canned pears

 My mom, her husband and my sister came to visit. We drove them all around and showed them the joys of Yakima and then we took my mom to a local winery to taste local wines, of course, and also to see a real vineyard up close.

 The State Fair came to town. JJ and Benn milked a cow for their first time.

 Caleb enjoyed feeding the goats, pigs, donkeys and more. A greedy goat tried to steal all of JJ's feed. JJ was not very happy.

 Benn participated in his first ever tractor pull competition and loved it. JJ competed too but was not that thrilled.

 Caleb rode his first pony and was not very happy when it stopped walking. He said "Go, GO"

 He also milked a cow

 We really enjoyed the fair and all the fun things to learn about. We saw a horse show, a horse trainer, tigers, lions, many farm animals, Lego structures, clowns and so much more. While we had a lot fun and really enjoyed ourselves we are looking forward to the Alaska state fair next year!!!!

 I scored two scooters at a garage sale and we took them out on the Greenway to try them out.

 Caleb got to go trick-or-treating this year for his very first time. Notice the green grass in the background? We will be trick-or-treating in the snow next year!!!

I would like these for my school room

 The boys and I made a day of it getting a few pumpkins to carve. Benn helped while JJ and Caleb refused to touch the insides.

 Dave decided that having a table at home to practice his OPP was necessary. The kids thought the same thing and enjoyed taking turns having a massage.

 Benn and JJ started piano lessons again and Benn has enjoyed learning how to play with two hands. We really enjoy our piano teacher and are really sad to be leaving Mrs. Renee.

 Fall brought down all the leaves from our maple tree in the backyard. We raked them into piles and the boys all enjoyed jumping in.

 Caleb learned that piggy back rides on big brother are fun

 Dave built the kids a pirate ship and they sailed away on some amazing adventures!

  JJ became Captain America!!

And then on a very special Sunday, it finally SNOWED IN YAKIMA!!! We built a fun snowman that only lasted a couple hours as it warmed up and began to ran. Good-bye frosty. We will miss you. 

Thank you to all of you who have taken the time to check out our current happenings. We hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and a Happy New year!!

Oh yes!! 
We are having another baby in June 2013!! 

We are very excited and blessed to be having another baby. We look forward to the new adventure of having 4 children.