She's 3!

I know it's been awhile since I've posted, but we just got back from a 2 week vacation in Utah. I know, you have all been sorely disappointed that I haven't blogged in a few weeks.... :)

We had a lot of fun in Utah... our schedule was pretty jam packed, and by the time we got home, we were all plum tired. Since coming home, we've been pretty darn lazy, but who cares. It's the summer, and we have needed some time to just play around.

Our Utah trip will be posted in several posts... but first I wanted to blog about Halle's 3rd birthday.

I know, I can't believe she's 3 either.

I love our little Halle.... she is fiery and crazy, and full of spunk, and I wouldn't change a thing about her.

Whenever Ava or Halle's birthday rolls around, I can't help but think about the day they were born...

I'm sure I'm not the only one who gets nostalgic on their childs birthday...

The other day, I pulled out some baby clothes, and was floored at how small the preemie clothes are!

I can't believe Halle fit into those!

She was such a tiny little thing, without an ounce of fat on her little bones... and over the past 3 years, nothing has changed! She doesn't really have any fat on her... just muscle. I'm not kidding! You should see her little abs and biceps. Yes, she really does have abs and biceps. She is so muscular and well defined, it's crazy!

This picture is one of my favorites to look at and remember what a fighter she was.

In fact, I have this picture hanging up in her room. She has such a sweet expression, and I love seeing all the little peach fuzz on her...

 

And today, I love looking at her little button nose and her expressive blue eyes. She has the cutest hair that is absolutely unruly, and she has the tiniest feet!

 

For her birthday, Halle wanted a Toy Story party. It's her favorite movie, and she absolutely adores "Buzz Light-there".

I didn't want to go overboard, so we just had cake and ice cream with our families, which was a real treat!

Of course, her cake was a Toy Story cake, but she specifically request pink frosting. :)





She got tons of fun stuff for her birthday, and I'm so grateful for all our family who made an effort to celebrate with us.

Here are some tidbits about Miss Halle:

*She loves shoes!!!

*She loves to be wrapped up in blankets.

*She can sing the first 3 Articles of Faith

*She doesn't really like to eat breakfast... but she'll down a glass of milk anytime!

*She loves, loves, loves dogs!!

*She loves to hang upside down on the monkey bars. (The first time I saw this, I kind of freaked out, but there is no stopping her!)

*She is great at playing by herself. She doesn't really have to be entertained.

She has such an active imagination, and she's in her own world half the time...

*She is rarely grumpy. When she's grumpy, I know she's tired. I would say she's happy about 99% of the time, and if she is in a bad mood, we can quickly tickle her and she'll be happy!

*She calls her dad "Nate".

*She says "Yes" instead of "Yeah" or "Yep" or "Uh-huh".

*She talks pretty well, but she still calls Ava "EEEva".

Johnson Visit: Monday

Monday morning, we headed to the beach. It was a perfect day for the beach, but I was a nervous wreck because of Ava's cast. While all the other kids were rolling around in the sand and splashing in the ocean, she just kind of sat there. I put a bag over her cast and duct taped it on, and I made her wear a jacket over the bag and closed the opening of the arm, but I still made her stay by me and hold my hand the whole time. Can you imagine how terrible it would be if she got sand down her cast with 5 more weeks to wear it? Well, she was pretty bummed, so I told her we would celebrate getting her cast off by going to the beach and she can get as dirty as she wants to. :)

But, Ava does have a strange fascination with sharks, so we went to see the Shark Exhibit...

And after the shark exhibit, we went and got some delicious ice cream, and ate it while we walked Main Street. We decided to go to a seafood restaurant called Doogers for dinner. It was some of the best food I'd ever had!

Jenn got a delicious salmon salad...

And Trevor, Nate, and I got fish and chips.

The kids enjoyed their hot dogs and PB&J's, and they had a wild time!

The Johnson's left early Tuesday morning, and we were sad to see them go, but we'll see them later this week!

Johnson Visit: Sunday

On Sunday, we went to church, as usual. But after church, we took the Johnson's to see the Portland Temple and the new Visitor's Center there (which we hadn't seen before).

Nate was so cute... he held little Chloee pretty much the whole time. I love the picture below with Nate and Ava in the background. Also, have I ever told you just how much I love temple grounds? No matter what temple you go to, the grounds are immaculately kept, with some of the most gorgeous flowers out there. There is also just a peaceful feeling that can be felt there, even though you're not actually in the temple.

Livvy and Halle were great pals...

especially while hanging upside down!

Collin and Ava played tag...

and of course, Ava had to pose by the reflecting pool.

And we got a family picture taken... 

The Visitor's Center was pretty amazing. There was a display of Books of Mormon in several different languages, and there was a screen above the books that you could hold the book up to, and it would start reading in that language. Naturally, we are drawn to the Chinese Book of Mormon... :)

There was also a little display about the building of the Portland Temple. I loved this quote from the dedicatory prayer which said that the temple "stands in quiet splendor among the trees of the forest. It is a place of peace and holiness, a refuge from the storms of life, a sanctuary in which to worship God in spirit and truth."

Johnson Visit: Saturday

Nate's sister and her family came to visit us a couple of weekends ago! It was a short visit, but it was fun to spend some time with them! They arrived on a Friday night, and we were just able to chit chat and catch up. Saturday morning, we took them to the Beaverton Farmer's Market and ate some delicious market food and bought a couple of fun things. Right after the market, Nate and Trevor then decided they wanted to go see Batman, so Jenn and I loaded all 6 kids plus ourselves up a van and headed to the park while the men took the other van to the movie. It was a little warm that day, so we didn't stay long, and decided to head home to let the little ones nap... however, when we got home we realized that Nate not only took the keys to drive, but he also had the apartment keys. :( So we were locked out, in the heat of the day, with 6 kids. This could spell disaster! Never fear... Jenn and I are pros and decided to head to Wendy's to get the kids a Frosty. We passed about an hour or so watching the kids play ninja in Wendy's. I must say, it's a good thing we don't care what people think about us, because I'm sure people were wondering what planet we came from. But we were hot, tired, and trying to keep the kids (and ourselves) from going crazy!

After Wendy's, Jenn wanted to check out Goodwill, so we headed there for a couple of hours. Yes, you read that right, a couple of hours! 

Jenn tried on some clothes ( I refuse to try on clothing until this baby is out of me) and found some seriously cute outfits...

Ava and Hanah danced in practically every aisle...

and we had a lot of fun! Finally, the men were done with their movie, and we were all starving, so we headed  to The Black Bear Diner for some dinner.

On the way to dinner, Halle fell asleep, and woke up with this awesome bed hair. Folks, her hair is not staged! This is really how she woke up!

We had a fun time at dinner, and ate some delicious food! Stay tuned for the rest of their visit...

Banana Sandwich

     I occasionally sleep in. Ok, fine.... I usually sleep in. I usually wake up when the girls get up, which is about 7:30ish, but I go back to sleep for another hour or so. I know, I probably should be a better mother and get up when my kids get up, but to be completely honest, I am enjoying every minute of my last year of a "lazy mother". What the heck does that mean, you ask? I'm going to soak up every minute of not waking up with an alarm before Ava heads to school next fall. When she starts school, then I'll have to wake up early, which I'm not really good at....
     Anyways.... since I tend to sleep in, I usually leave some snacks for the girls to munch on until I get them breakfast. I usually find them snacking on gummies and fruit drinks... Nothing like an early morning sugar rush, right? Well, Ava actually has gotten quite helpful in the kitchen when she feels like having real food while Mommy is snoozing away.... She has learned how to make herself oatmeal and cereal, and can pour herself some milk. She has even prepared breakfast for her and Halle before. Quite impressive, I must say!
     The other morning, I woke up to Ava making her and Halle a "banana sandwich".

     I found bananas scattered around the kitchen, and she had cut a banana into slices and put it on a piece of bread. I couldn't help but smile as I imagined her preparing her beloved banana sandwich. She was so proud of herself for cutting the banana!
     I am so grateful that Ava takes the initiative to help out. She really is helpful, and tries to think of others. She is a great big sister, and I can really count on her to be my little helper.