Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Thanksgiving

 We had a great Thanksgiving visiting Hans' parents and the Lunts at their cabin in Mt. Pleasant, Utah. Despite the 9 hour drive, we had a great time! We went 4-wheeling, shot guns, played capture the flag, did crafts, played games, decorated gingerbread houses, went for runs and hikes, and ate a lot of candy. Good times. The kids had a blast and it was fun to renew friendships with our Lunt cousins.
















Pregnant

 Here I am in all my pregnant glory. This has by far been my toughest pregnancy for so many different reasons. Heartache before the pregnancy about did me in. I am so grateful to be pregnant and I can't wait to meet this little baby boy, but I can complain with the best of them. Nausea, migraines, terrible anxiety, hernia pain, and other things I really shouldn't mention have made this a day to day pregnancy. I have been grateful for my supportive family and a job and busy life to keep my mind pre-occupied. 
October
 November
December
 January - 30 weeks.
Our baby boy. Isn's he cute? He weighs 2 lbs 9 oz in this picture. Getting big! He is healthy and active. March 28th at 8:00 am he will be making his debut. 

Random Pictures

Just sorting through the small amount of pictures I take. 
The girls were all sick for 3 weeks. It was awful. We had 102 fevers for 6 days each and then 3 rounds of the stomach bug. Mia took to falling asleep in strange places. The older girls liked missing school when they started feeling better. Katelyn competed at her level 5 state meet with 102 degree fever. This is a hamster maze they built.



I unwisely took the kids swimming while they were sick. They lasted about 20 minutes, but they had a great time. 

 Justin wrote this cute card for me. 
 Mia at Hans' office. She spends time there on Mondays and Fridays while I am at work. She is a great helper.
 We love puzzles.
Mia gets special dates with dad sometimes when she is at his office. We love Yo Yogurt!
Mia and Eden skiing. They are so cute. It was cold, but they hung in there.

Not sure why I couldn't rotate this, but if you look at it sideways you can see the beautiful nativity Katelyn gave me for Christmas. This was by far my favorite present.



Gymnastics

 After 4 years of extremely hard work and dedication, this beautiful gymnast has decided to retire...for now anyway. She had a great level 5 season with her best overall in the mid 36 range. We are so incredibly proud of her and had a great time in the gymnastics community for so many years. I really think it was harder for me to say goodbye then for Katelyn. I cried. She didn't. She's had a rough two months at the gym towards the end of meet season. I am not sure what exactly was going on, but after much thought and prayer we knew that quitting was in her best interest. She may go back at some point, but for now she is busily planning out her life outside of the gym. She was spending 15 hours a week there on top of school and she missed being with us as a family and we missed her. She starts flute lessons on Thursday. She says she has no interest in doing anything that requires exercise. Her body is tired. Her accomplishments were great! She was one of the youngest level 5 girls competing. She took 1st place all around three different times. She even got a 9.45 on beam! She could do 10 press handstands in a row and beat any grown adult male in a pull up competition. She loved the competition leotards, hair, and being with her coaches and team mates. She is such a competitive little girl and I'm sure the fire will return soon. She even likes to "beat me" in how many times she throws up when we are both throwing up...(happens too often).

Such a beautiful gymnast and girl inside and out!
 Coach Zac assisting with warm ups on bars.
 Bar routine! 
 Beam warm ups with Coach Brittney.
 Floor routine.
 Cutest butt on the planet. That tight body requires a lot of hard work.
 Floor pose.
 1st place all around!! Look at all those medals.
Teammates and friends.

Christmas Fun

 We had such a great Christmas this year. We had lots of family time. We played games, did puzzles, knitted scarves, set up decorations, enjoyed Christmas Eve dinner and program with Andersons, and Christmas Breakfast with Morrills. I am so grateful to have cousins here. The kids enjoyed their presents from Santa, each other, Grandparents, and from Hans and I. They are spoiled, but grateful kids. We introduced Elf on the Shelf this year, which added even more excitement to the entire month. We baked 30 dozen cookies to take around to friends and neighbors, enjoyed the Creche exhibit and live nativity at the church, and had visits from Egberts for Kate's state gym meet, and from Melanie. The day after Christmas we packed up and drove to Utah. We spent a fun-filled week at the Conleys. The kids wanted to move in permanently. We went skiing at Brighton. Mia enjoyed skiing for the first time and especially had a great time riding the magic carpet ride with Eden. Justin figured out skiing for real this time and was very independent riding up the lift and coming down the bunny hill himself while I helped Mia. We also baked, went sledding, bowling, saw Les Miserables, and enjoyed New Years with Heaths. I loved every minute of being with family. I am grateful to be able to drive in one day to Utah. I didn't take any pictures of us in Utah...
Christmas Morning.
 Katelyn's new hamster tubes.
 Justin asked for model trains from Santa. He loves this toy.
 Mia's only request from Santa was a doodle bear bunny. She loves her.
 Ashley asked for an aquarium to grow live plants in. She loves botany and animals. 
 Justin showing off his finger flasher.
 Mia and Waddles.
 What we found on Christmas Morning!!
 Ashley with her Friendship string from Grandma Egbert.
 Hans bought Mia Perfection, which she is very excited about.
 Katelyn has discovered her love of puzzles. I love them too. We fight over who is better at them (I am).
 Justin and a remote controlled plane. 
 Christmas Eve day we opened one present each after a nice program. 
Katelyn and Ashley helped me make brownies covered in melted andes mints for Christmas Eve dinner with Andersons.