Camping Part two

The 2nd day of camping was super relaxing. It was just the 5 of us all day. 

Daddy and Jarred are building a campfire so that we can cook some hot dogs. 

Chillin' by the fire.

This kid is such a cuddler.

Trying not to breathe in the smoke.

Love her face here. I can't remember if she was just trying to be goofy or if the smoke was bugging her. Either way, she is to stinkin' cute!

Taking Ella for a little ride up the road.

Waiting for her turn. She has been learning to ride the 4 wheeler and Daddy let her control it the whole time she was riding.

The wasps were really bad where we were, so we spent a lot of time in the trailer playing cards. Here is Daddy and Jarred playing Go Fish. 

Camping Part one

For Labor Day, we went camping in Oregon.

Ella and Jarred playing by the creek.

Ella's favorite thing was throwing random items in the creek.

Brian and Krissy's camper that they let us stay in. It was actually quite comfortable and nice and warm (which was a good thing because the temp got down to 25 at night).

Daddy working hard getting wood ready for the campfire.

Looking for deer.

Ready to go 4wheeling!!!

A couple deer we saw while 4wheeling.

Brian looking for water creatures with the kids.

Our first full day camping was pretty fun. We went 4wheeling most of the day and then spent the evening in La Grande at Krissy's parents house so that Rich could watch the Boise St. vs Georgia game.

First day of school

Kylee and Jarred's first day of school this year was on August 25th. 

Jarred is in 1st grade this year.

Kylee is in 4th grade this year.

Aren't they so cute?!?!

The day went well, until Jarred got off the bus and Kylee was nowhere to be found. Of course, I was panicking. I called the school and they informed me that "Sorry, we don't have any extra kids here." Seriously!!!!! So I frantically try to get a hold of someone at the bus garage but no one answers. FINALLY, 30 minutes later I get a call from someone in our ward and she says that the bus is at her house and Kylee is on it. I have never felt so relieved in my life. I then call the bus garage again (took me multiple tries to finally get someone on the phone) and told them to let the bus driver go ahead and let Kylee off with our friends. Finally, 1 1/2 hours after she was supposed to be home, she finally made it.

A day with the girls

About a week ago, Richard and Jarred went on the Father/Son campout so Alisa and I decided to take the girls to the park for a "photo shoot". We got some really great pics of Kylee and a few good ones of Ella (it is hard to get a good picture of a moving target).
This was Ella one year ago.

This is Ella now at the same spot in the park. It is amazing how much she has grown in such a short amount of time.

Here she is in one of the few pictures where we actually got a smile out of her.

Trying to pet a goose.

Kylee has always been very photogenic. I have very few "bad" pictures of her. Since she was just tiny, she has loved to pose for the camera. I think she gets that from her cousin Shelbie.

So after Kylee did this pose...

Ella decided that she wanted to try to do the same pose.

I love my girls so stinkin' much and I am so lucky to be their mom!

Earrings

Well, it is official, our baby is no longer a baby. We took Kylee to get her ears pierced today. She was so excited. She admitted on the way there that she was kind of nervous but was looking forward to it. 

Here she is waiting for the guy to call us back.

 She was nervous but calm UNTIL we walked into the room. As soon as we walked through the door, she couldn't hold in her nerves any longer and she started crying. She was so afraid that it would hurt. It took awhile for us to convince her that it wouldn't and that it just felt like a little pinch. Richard finally just picked her up and put her in the chair.

                            Cleaning her ear.

                                      
                             Here goes the first one.

That wasn't to bad, so here goes the second. Richard tried to get out of the guys way and he let go of  Kylee's hand, but she made him come right back and hold it.

                 Yep, all that crying and worrying for nothing.

Kylee has always been a worrier. She tends to over think most things and always fears the worst but once it is all over with, she realizes that it "wasn't so bad". 

Important life lessons taught by a 2 year old

You know the old saying "children teach adults more then adults teach children", (ok, I don't really know if that is an old saying or not, but people say it all the time so I am calling it an old saying) well, I couldn't agree more. When we grow up, the seriousness of life sets in and we spend more time worrying about things we can't control and forget to enjoy the things that we can. As I was watching Ella go about her morning routine today, I realized that if I just pay attention, she could teach me some very important life lessons. Here are a few that she taught me this morning:

Breakfast should be eaten in pj's while watching your favorite cartoon.

Always wake up with a smile on your face.

Kisses have magic powers that make owies feel better every time.

There is no such thing as to many hugs and kisses.

Fruit snacks make everything better.

Always say "Peas" and "Tank you".

Love unconditionally.

Isn't she smart? I thank my Heavenly Father every day for sending me 3 of his most amazing spirits and an equally amazing husband to help me raise them. I am truly a blessed woman.

I've been feelin' crafty

I've been in the crafting mood lately. When I am in the mood, I tend to do a bunch of crafts all at once and then I don't craft anything for a few weeks because I am "crafted" out. My favorite craft lately is making "freezer paper T-shirts". They are so fun and I love the end result.

I made this shirt for Ella and it fits her personality perfectly.

Here is another one I made for her.

I also made these and hung them on her bedroom wall.

I am actually working on another project but it isn't finished yet. As soon as I finish it (if I finish it haha), I will post a picture of it. So far I am happy with how it is turning out. Stay tuned!