February 2016

From the 2016 Mason Jar Journal:

• 2.10.16 - We went to the open house for the Provo City Center Temple with Anne, Mom, Dad, and kids
• 2.11.16 - I went to a chalk art class that Cathy Burrows Wall taught and visited with Stacy Cragun Potter
• 2.13.16 - Jake and I celebrated the 5th anniversary of our engagement and the 3rd anniversary of our sealing; the date was cut short with a sick little Noah
• 2.21.16-3.5.16 - Jake traveled to California for work; it felt like he was gone forever; we were glad it ended and that it's the longest trip he's been assigned
• 2.24.16 - Abbi and I went to her first Young Women's New Beginnings
• 2.24.16 - Noah got his own dog, Hugo, a yellow lab. He's 9 months old and his birthday is 9.7.15

Alleson, Anne, Joey, Wendy at sister dinner in Centerville.

Hugo is Noah's dog. We adopted him from a family who said he was scared of animals bigger than him and they do lots of rodeos. Hugo has lots of good manners and is very loyal. We call him Lick Lick because he could spend all day licking Noah, and Noah lets him. When Noah is gone for the weekend, Hugo will find one of Noah's socks or underwear to carry around. He is very soft with his toys and carries Baymax around, too. The only naughty things he does is because Daisy makes him.

Mom and Abbi at her first Young Women's night.

Engagement (2011) and Sealing (2013) Anniversary

Abbi holding Henrik; Noah and Elizabeth

Toby and Noah

The kids had a wild late-over with their friends.

Joey, Cathy Burrows Wall, Stacy Cragun Potter at Cathy's chalk art class.

Daisy likes to have a junior bacon cheeseburger for her birthday dinner.

Love Month - Leap Year

I didn't come up with anything really creative today for us to do to celebrate Leap Year but I thought about it all day at work.  I decided that since Abbi loves the kitchen, I would let her make us an afternoon snack.  She chose pink milk and vanilla pudding.

Noah wasn't quite sure how to take what was going on.  Abbi made him two cups of pink milk, so he was a pretty happy camper.  That is until Abbi and I had our backs turned and he started to make himself a third cup of pink milk.  There was Yoohoo powder all of the counter.  While I removed him from the equation for a minute, Abbi "cleaned up" the mess.  She wiped all the powder off of the counter into her hand and put it back in the yoohoo container.  Yup.  She solved that dilemma.

After she stirred and refrigerated the pudding, Abbi decided to add green food coloring because tomorrow is March.  To my astonishment, she didn't want any sprinkles!  I dished up our pudding while she made herself another cup of pink milk.  I was gobbling my green goop when Abbi muttered, "I don't like this."  She didn't dare taste it.  Once she did, she agreed she would eat maybe half of her pudding.

She totally enjoyed herself, which was the point, I guess.  In better news, she got on a kick being in charge of the kitchen" and cleaned up a few other things too.  I like Leap Day.

p.s. After the kids go to bed, I'm going to celebrate Leap Day by watching one of my favorite movies, Leap Year.  So cute!

and LOVE MONTH 2012 came to pass ....

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I've thought long and hard about how to make Leap Day a memorable one for the kids. I'm only going to see them for an hour and a half before they go for their weekly visit so it's gotta be something to fit in a short amount of time. In "leap days" Abbi and I will be the same age tomorrow, so I'm trying to use that for inspiration ... I'll post the details after our short Leap Day interlude this evening .....