Tuesday, February 24, 2009

These boots weren't made for walkin'

I was finally able to get my pictures up from our impromptu trip to Alisha's in Idaho. Blogger wasnt' my friend last week, but alas, I tried again and whalaa...it worked! Some how it didn't dawn on me mid-winter break was creeping up quickly and I would have a big, long, week with kids at home and no plans. So, we made plans...big plans to take a trip to St. Anthony, Idaho to visit Alisha and crew. It was me and the 4 little ones (I'm not sure Audrey appreciates being grouped into the "little ones" category, oh well.) It was a long drive (about 12 hours), but we broke it up a bit on the way out stopping near Spokane to spend the night with my sister, Dana. We had a fun girls getaway! In the pic above, little Sydnee (Alisha's youngest) who just turned 2 decided it was easier to carry her boots while getting some shut eye. Natty is wide eyed and bushy tailed and enjoying her stroller ride which she doesn't get to do much more these days. Almost 3 year olds are too big for strollers (says Mom)
Lunch at TGIF! Can you get a smile out of this brood of girls? Silly faces are much more fun!

Audrey and Alisha's niece, Kayla are the same age and haven't seen each other for about 6 years. We enjoyed sharing stories of Kayla as a little girl hanging out at our house in Seattle. They had fun together and even bought the same pair of shoes on their own (calling me and Alisha on their cell phones to try and figure out how much it would cost with tax). Kayla is living with Alisha now and is a great help at home.


The mischevious 2 year olds had such a blast together. Sydnee even lit a fire under Natty to get her to start potty training. THANK YOU SYD! We didn't get a pic of Alisha's new puppy, a cute and sweet hound dog. But it did spur up those yearnings of mine for a Mt. Bernese...check out the next post!

We stopped at the new Rexburg, ID temple on our way back home. It was a cloudy, foggy morning, but the snow and white sky made a nice setting for a beautiful temple. It sort of stands all on it's own on a high hill. We could see it from the highway as we were driving in to St. Anthony. I'm so happy we took the time to see it up close. The girls wanted to go inside, and I told them if they wanted to someday, they could!
It was a great trip. We missed seeing Alisha's husband, Zeb who was on the road, and her other daughter, Katie who was at her mom's house. Soon they'll be adding a boy to the mix...Alisha is due in June. I didn't really think I'd be a grandma at such an age, but the girls sort of encouraged "Nana Jolie" while I was there. Hmmm, not sure I'm ready for that yet!



Monday, February 9, 2009

Tween and teen

Last Wednesday night was Young Women's New Beginnings. I could hardly believe I was sitting there listening to Becky introduce Audrey into YW. Could time really have passed this quickly?! Becky did a wonderful job of sharing a little about Audrey with the audience. She even left out the embarassing moment question, but added Audrey's love of soccer, piano, the temple, and of course, American Idol. I love my girls and am so proud of the women they are becoming! We tried to get a parent picture with Audrey, but Bratty Natty had to wiggle her way into the picture. Typical youngest...and typical Natty! Audrey is her hero and as soon as she could go and be with her, Nat wouldn't let Audrey out of her sight. We are so proud of you, Audrey! Love you!