Family Vacation

We went to Disneyland in May for a family vacation.  I didn't blog about it.  I haven't blogged about anything lately.  Here you go:

We also had a day at the beach.  Alice played in the sand, Tom, Abby, and Sophie played in the waves, and I got sunburned:

 

We went to the Mormon Battalion Center in San Diego:

And we visited the San Diego Temple: 

We also went to Sea World: 

Sophie stood by this ride and got soaking wet.  She didn't want to ride it in the first place because she didn't want to get wet.  Silly kid.

Dance like you mean it!

Abby and Sophie took dance classes at the rec center this year.  Abby was in hip hop and Sophie took pre-ballet.  They really enjoyed themselves, and got some exercise - which is the whole point of me signing them up.  Abby got to be in class with her cousins Hayley and Paige, so going to dance class was that much more exciting for her.  I got to hang out with Laura and exercise while they danced.  It worked out pretty well.

Sophie had a really cute group of little girls to dance with.

Abby's hip hop group was pretty entertaining

And, just in case you really wanted to watch video, here you go.

Snowie days

My two snow bunnies

We had a few random, late season snow storms this year.  I don't really like snow, so the girls don't get a lot of opportunities to play in it.  Too much snow in the house, too many clothes to find/put on for a short period of time.  Too cold.  Too wet.  Hmph.  Snow.

Sophie making her snow angel

Alice attempting a snow angel of her own

My first 5k

Abby and I ran participated in her school's "Luck of the Irish 5K" this year.  It was my first, and I was surprised at how well Abby did.  She tends to be a complainer when it comes to physical exertion, so I was worried I'd have to drag her the whole way.  Abby was awesome and we finished in under an hour.  Such speed demons!  It was fun and a good bonding experience for the two of us.

Abby's Baptism

Abby was baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day saints on Saturday, February 4th at 10:30 AM.  It was a great day and we had lots of wonderful family members there to share the day with us.  I'm so proud of the young lady that Abby has become.  She really tries her best to make good choices and to be a good example to her little sisters.  Abby is so earnest and really wants to understand things and teach other people about them.

I'm afraid I wasn't very good about taking pictures at the baptism - hopefully I can get some pictures from some of the other family members with cameras.  We couldn't figure out a very good place to do a luncheon afterwards (our house just isn't big enough and our church building was booked) so we kind of pooped out on that end.  We invited Abby's grandparents' to lunch at had a nice meal together at Ruby River.  They even gave Abby a gigantic mud pie ice cream dessert for celebration.  Abby enjoyed the day and wrote ALL about it in her journal.  Way to go Abby!

My little 3 year old

My baby is three now!  I love this kid.  I think I've been able to really enjoy her more since I have a few mom years under my belt now.  It's easier to relish the little things when you have a bigger perspective on life as these kids' mom.  I probably wanted my other kids to grow up faster and be more self-sufficient since I had another baby to care for at this point.  But I'm perfectly fine with Alice staying my "baby" for a while.  Nevertheless, she still was determined to get a little older and become an all important three year old.  She surprises me all the time with the things she picks up from her sisters.  She wants to play with big girls toys and sing weird made up songs like them.  Alice is so tolerant of the hundreds of kisses she has to endure from me every day.  I'm so glad she's mine!

We haven't had much snow this year, so Alice was VERY excited to run around in it and make footprints all over.

No breakfast in bed for this kid yet, but pancakes with whipped cream sure hit the spot!

Alice's designated present opening spot was on Daddy's lap

Sophie helped decorate for Alice's party - she made this crepe paper version of our little Alice for the window.

Alice got lots of fun things for her birthday - but Sophie seems to be taking possession of whatever suits her fancy. 

Alice is really good at blowing - but not so good at directional blowing.  It took her a while to get all of her candles out.

Alice and her little cousins (along with big cousin helpers) had fun playing Bingo during the party.

My Abby is 8 years old!

Abby had her 8th birthday a few weeks ago. It's hard to believe she's that old! Abby really has been such a blessing to have in our family. She is so responsible, thoughtful, and kind-hearted. I expect so much out of her and she is so grown up for a little girl.  She wakes up to her alarm every morning and gets in the shower and gets dressed.  If I'm not around, she gets herself breakfast before she needs to get on the bus.  Abby likes to think things out and reason why people feel the way they do.  Abby is an amazing child and I'm lucky to have been sent her spirit to help me grow and learn to be a good mom.  I hope I don't put too much pressure on her to grow up too fast.  It's hard to think of her as just an 8 year old when she is the size of an 11 year old.  She already wants to be such a teenager!

Abby has bugged me for years to get her ears pierced, and I finally gave in to her pleas.  I drove her to the mall to get her cute little ears pierced.  She was very brave and it turned out to be a fairly painless process.  :)

Sophie got to join Abby for the traditional birthday breakfast in bed.  It's a pretty fun way to start out the day!

Abby invited a gazillion girls to her birthday party, so we ended up having to do it at our church building.  She thought it was great!

Abby's current obsession - stuffed animals with really big eyes.  She has lots of them now!

All the girls with their blankets and pillows setting up for our movie party! 

Abby at the Jensens' for more cake