Happy Birthday Colson!

Happy Birthday to our Colson!  We are so excited to celebrate Colson turning 8!  

Breakfast tradition of pancakes in the shape of an eight.  

We bought Colson and ipad for his birthday and gave it to him after breakfast on his birthday.  He was so excited because this is what he had been asking for!

Colson got to open his presents from Auntie Karin Friday night.  

The next day, Colson was working on the Lego set he received from Auntie.  Legos are STILL a favorite for Colson.  Especially putting the set together.  

A birthday movie!  Colson and I went to see Wonder Park.

Colson's birthday party was at Total Sports and the boys had fun just playing!  They played football, soccer, basketball and dodge ball.  

Colson didn't open gifts at his party so he did that later in the evening.  He was spoiled! 

Colson is a smart and active kid.  He loves watching and playing football especially.  His favorite thing to do is play on his tablet and put together Legos.  He still wakes up early each morning, usually before anyone else.  Colson has a sense of humor that makes him seem a bit older than he is.  He does have a quick temper and doesn't like to be told what to do.  He does very well academically in school.  We are proud of Colson and love him so much!

Enjoying every moment. 

Dancing Classrooms Assembly

I've waited for years for Cannon to finally participate in Dancing Classrooms.  They practice twice a week for 45 minutes during the month of December, January and February.  They learned 5 dances, as well as a respect for others.  I just love watching the kids dance together, the boys escort the girls, and see them all "shake their pockets!" 

The 5th graders put on an assembly for the entire school.  Cannon escorted Annabelle and they led out their class. 

Cannon was also one of the dancers who demonstrated a dance before the whole class performed. 

And they are done...Cannon and Annabelle leading the class off the floor. 

Cannon and Miss Rainy, their dance teacher.  Cannon really enjoyed this experience! 

Cannon, Carson, Ashton, Josh

Such an awesome experience!
Enjoying every moment.

Miscellaneous February Photos

Here are a few random shots from February:

It was "Swip Swap" Day where students dressed like teachers and teachers dressed like students.  Josh's mom helped Josh and Cannon with their "hair" to look like Mrs. Kaelin! 

Valentine's Day preparation...as always, the kids choose what they want to make. I print them out and they stick on the candy.  Thank you Pinterest for the ideas.  I think this is a same one Colson did last year. 

Another puzzle! 

DC likes to sleep on Colson's bed...and tonight he wanted to cuddle right on Colson's chest. 

Some fondue for our Valentine's day family treat.  It was yummy! 

I went to the Tacoma Dome to watch the state wrestling tournament.  Many White River girls and boys were wrestling.  It was great to watch, but a bit overwhelming with all of the matches going on!  A number of WR wrestlers took first in state!

Karin and I taught the boys how to play 31. 

Colson lost a tooth!  He's got a couple more lose ones. 

Enjoying every moment!

February Snow

This year we had a couple of bigger snowstorms that hit the area.  We missed a total of 4 school days and had a number of late start days, as well.  At one point, we had 8+ inches at our house in Sumner, which is a lot of in the valley.  We had even more at the property.  The boys spent a lot of time outside playing in the snow and they did a lot of sledding at the property.  It was a ton of fun! 

The boys outside playing in the snow at our house! 

Our drive out to the property.

Sledding at the neighbors house. It snowed the whole afternoon and evening. 

Our house after the next snow.

Playing at the property in the snow.  Lots of good sledding hills and we had the jeep out, too!  It was a beautiful, sunny day!

Enjoying every moment.

Miscellaneous January Photos

New Year's Day.  This year we stuck close to home.  Chris and Cannon spent time at the property. Colson and I hung out at home and watched bowl games.

The boys have been playing Minecraft again together.  They have a limited amount of screen time, but it always makes me happier when they are creating and interacting together. 

I took the boys to their first wrestling match, watching the White River boys.  It was a fun evening!

Harley and Quinn, sharing the pillow together in front of the fire. 

Chris and Cannon brought the jeep home after a few years in storage.  It needed a good cleaning but it started right up!

Colson was working on writing his name in cursive.  I love this!

We worked on our sewing skills, too.  We had to sew up a hole in Harley's toy.

We enjoyed a huge fire at one of our neighbors at the property.  The boys loved it.  They can stay busy for hours with rocks and sticks and trees. 

The 5th graders at school have been participating in Dancing Classrooms.  They are working hard twice a week learning a variety of dances.  I love being able to sneak in and grab a picture of Cannon! 

Enjoying every moment.

Boom Shaka Trampoline Park

We ventured down to Olympia so the kids could jump!  I found a deal online for a newer trampoline place called Boom Shaka.  It was quite a drive, but worth it. 

The boys had a blast and would have stayed longer than the 90 minutes.  However it was plenty of time to play, try everything out and get tired!  They moved from activity to activity, pretty much on their own.  I loved the smiles on their faces.  This is a place that we will go back to again for sure.  Lots of fun!   

Enjoying every moment!

Random December Shots

A few random shots from December.

Cannon and Chris spend many hours at the property doing various things.  Mostly, they are working on building the shop, but they also help out the neighbors by moving piles of brush and burning it. 

Colson and I had a fun day doing errands.  We took our time and Colson tried on the large reindeer head.  So funny!

Cannon and Chris built Mrs. Kaelin, Cannon's teacher, her Christmas present.  I love it!

We've been looking for a bike for Cannon for awhile.  Chris finally found one for him and he is one happy camper! 

Progress on the shop.  Slow, but moving forward. 

I loved this shot from over the holidays. 

Enjoying every moment!