Thursday, December 18, 2008

snow fun


The girls and I ventured out into the beautiful snowy morning...cotton ball like snowflakes! We had fun in the sled and making snow angels! This was Eden's first time in the snow...she seemed to have fun, but getting the snow gear on was torture! I love the sound of the snow falling! We came in and warmed up the cocoa and Christmas music!

a special visitor

Ezri meeting baby Maya (sorry the picture's a bit blurry)
(Molly, Tyler, and the girls)

This past weekend our friends Ty and Molly came up from Oregon for a visit! It was so good to see them...in August they welcomed a precious baby girl to their family - Maya! We have been waiting to meet her, just looking at pictures wasn't cutting it! Maya, of course, is beautiful and soooo sweet! She looks just like her Daddy!

Ezri loves seeing Ty and Molly and often asks about them! This was their first time meeting Eden and she followed in her sisters suit...and has a special place for Ty and Molly in her heart! Ty and Molly have a special way of making the girls feel so important...it's neat to have friends that love your kids that way! Maya was a true hit and Ezri hasn't stopped talking about her!

I love watching Tyler and Levi together...the minute the see each other it's like time takes a step backward and we are in high school again! Their conversations are mostly in sound effects and Ace Ventura and Dumb and Dumber quotes! No one makes Levi laugh like Ty!

Thanks for trekking through the snow friends, we had a sweet time!

Thursday, December 11, 2008

christmas pictures





I attempted to get in touch with my photography skills and took the girls outside in hopes of at least one good Christmas card picture! I was surprisingly pleased...the girls wore hats my Baba knitted...I love them!

gingerbread men and christmas trees

This weekend we pulled out all of the Christmas decorations, put lights up outside, decorated our Christmas tree, and made gingerbread cookies! And, of course my favorite, pulled out the Christmas music! We had a great time...especially when the gingerbread men escaped the oven-they left a trail of notes saying "Run, run as fast as you can! You can't catch me I'm the Gingerbread man!" along with a clue of where to go next!

We only put a few ornaments on the tree this year because of our little Eden, but Ezri used most of our others to decorate a small tree in her room! I've loved watching Ezri get into the holiday spirit! Her favorite thing to play right now is Mary and Joseph - she either plays with her nativity or comes out dressed like Mary and pretends Eden is baby Jesus, Levi or I get to be Joseph! It's really fun talking with her about why we celebrate Christmas because she can grasp the concept better this year!Oh, and our tree couldn't be any more girlie...it has pink lights!

mickey mouse clubhouse


Last Friday Ezri had some friends over to play for her birthday! Everything was Mickey Mouse themed! We had Mickey cupcakes, made Mickey and Minnie ears and Mousekaspotters, and played Mickey-Mickey-Donald! The kids seemed to have a great time...so did Levi and I!

Thursday, December 4, 2008

happy birthday sunshine!

Ezri turns 4 years old today...all Levi and I keep saying is we can't believe she's 4 already! The time is going to fast! Our sweet little sunshine has had a fun birthday celebration, excluding the fact we already celebrated early with family! Yesterday, she spent the evening with Nanz and got to have her first real pedicure and manicure...she can't stop talking about it! Today she was able to celebrate at preschool; she made a birthday crown which she has had on all day, got to bring in Mickey Mouse cookies, and her class sang "happy birthday." We enjoyed the afternoon together and went to the Ware Fair at the college with our friend Melissa and tonight she's going on a date with Daddy to see a movie...so fun!

Ezri is our little ball of sunshine! She has a strong, yet sweet personality and is always surprising us by the things she says, does, and remembers! She loves playing anything make-believe and usually narrates her play by a made up song! Ezri is a true snuggler and is always hanging onto one of us and saying "I love you." We hope that never changes! She's a super big sister and is really into teaching and showing Eden things! She's still loving preschool and is really starting to recognize letters and numbers...I love it!

Ezri we pray that over this next year you would continue to grow in your love for the Lord! That He would guide your heart and continue to bless you in all that you are doing and learning! We pray that you would be confident in who you are and who God has made you to be, that no one or thing would cause you to doubt the young lady that you are! We pray over your relationship with Sister that is would always be a special, strong bond that you two hold because she will forever be yours! We ask Lord that you would protect Ezri physically and bless her health. Lord that you would continue cultivating in her a kind heart that desires things of You! Thank you for our beautiful baby girl and the true gift she is to us- thank you Lord that you love her even more than we do and you know the plans you have for her! Amen

Looking back 4 years:
We were living in Packwood, Washington the year Ezri was born and commuting over White Pass during the winter anticipating her arrival! The Lord truly had His hand in the weather because He held off the snow until after Ezri was born!

I was such a nervous Mama, wanting to make sure I paid attention to all the right labor signs! Ezri was born on a Saturday and the Wednesday night before I thought maybe my water broke. After consulting Dr. Larson, we decided to head to Eburg Thursday morning. My water hadn't broke (which is very obvious to me now) so I was sent home to rest. He gave me a sleeping pill that night, which made me sleep incredibly and I woke the next morning having contractions.

We labored all day at my parents house (which was special because we had family there with us) and then around 5pm we headed into the hospital! I labored for a long time, spent some time in the tub, walked, and finally needed an epidural! Once some of the pain was eased I could rest a little more and by 3am started pushing! I pushed and pushed, but we weren't making much progress. By 6am Dr. Larson started saying we might look into other options and I just knew I didn't want anything other than an natural delivery. Maybe it was motivation, but I really think the Lord heard my prayers and after 4 hours of pushing we met our baby girl at 7:01am. Ezri Shannon weighed 7lbs 7oz and was 19 1/2 inches long. She came out as curious as she is now, and just looked around...she laid on my tummy and just looked at Levi and I! Neither one of us will forget the first time we saw those big eyes! She had a head of dark hair that we were surprised by and deep blue eyes (which are now green)!

We are so thankful and proud of our precious Ezri...we love you sweet girl! Happy Day!

thankful

Thankful is the only way to describe the way we walked away from our Thanksgiving weekend! We had such a special time as a family and with extended family...we are truly blessed! In spite of feeling so thankful for all wonderful people we were with, we spent most of the time eating (or so it seemed). We started off our long weekend preparing for Thanksgiving dinner at Nanz and Pops house, making all the dishes we could the night before! Thursday we woke up and watched the Thanksgiving day parade...Ezri was so into it and kept yelling for us to "look, look, Mama, and Daddy." I don't know what we were thinking but we had waffles for breakfast then headed to Jamma's for dinner-round 1 and then to Nanz and Pops after the Seahawks game for dinner-round 2! We had so much fun seeing cousins and played a few fun games- quarters (which Eden was super entertained by) and battle of the sexes (the boys won)!

(Eden playing "quarters")


Friday we celebrated Matty's 25th birthday with more eating at the Pasta Co. and then went downtown for Moments to Remember! The girls loved walking through the live nativity and Ezri kept yelling "Jesus, Jesus, Jesus...we're going to see Jesus!" We watched the lighting of downtown and the local ballet studio perform...Eden tried kept licking the window we were watching them through...yuck!


(Ezri and Daddy waiting in line to see "Jesus, Jesus!")


(All Eden wanted to do was walk...you go little sister)

(Ezri and Eden watching the ballerina's, Eden was cleaning the window)


Saturday we escaped for a movie date with Nolan and Morgan and then celebrated Nolan's 25th birthday with again more eating at the Yellow Church cafe!

All in all we had a great weekend and loved the concentrated time with our fam's!

Thursday, November 20, 2008

snuggling sisters

Usually in the morning when Levi's getting ready for work, Ezri comes running into our bed and I usually have Eden in with us already (nursing). This is how the two girls ended up this morning...nothing like snuggling with your sister!

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

our little cheerleaders

Ezri loves to pretend she's a cheerleader (I shouldn't say pretend...she really says she is one)! Eden loves to whatever Big Sis is doing...enjoy the cheer leading show! Make sure to check out Eden's "jumps"!(You might want to turn off the music below before you play the video)

Thursday, November 6, 2008

tag...

I was tagged a while ago...I'm supposed to share 6 things about myself that you might not know! It's taken me so long to write because I've had a hard time coming up with things, but here we go, I'll give it a try!

1. I love having a warm drink...my favorite is a peppermint hot chocolate from Starbucks (they have peppermint whip cream)! The best part is when the holiday cups come out...I get excited about silly things! It's usually a treat for me to buy a drink and I often reuse my cup, just because I like how it feels in my hands!

2. Play, play, play...my favorite way to spend free time with Levi is to do something active. I love to play soccer together, pass the football or baseball, water ski or jet ski, shoot hoops...you name it...I just really enjoy doing those physical things that get your heart rate up! I've recently gotten into biking and enjoyed riding the girls around this fall in the bike cart. I'd love to pursue rock climbing a little more...one thing we get to take advantage of at the high school (they have a rock climbing wall). I'm looking forward to snow and snowshoeing as a family this year! It's been hard to adjust those activities with having kiddo's and I never feel like we play enough, but now we just try and approach it from a different angle!

3. Popcorn is my favorite treat. I try and find any reason to make it, so we have lots of movie nights! (But it has to be the homemade kind...no microwave)!

4. I'm terribly afraid of heights. I know hard to believe if I like rock climbing, but there is a safe feeling when you are in a harness! The older I get the more nervous heights make me...Levi thinks it's funny and often teases me...thanks babe! It makes me a bit of a nervous Momma therefore I hover over the girls, especially walking up stairs, taking an escalator, etc.

5. Art is my passion! I love to create and especially paint. I never really have time for it or don't really make time! It's not realistic with two young babes, but if we had an extra room in our house I would make it an art studio!

6. I really enjoy cooking, but can't stand the smell or really the feel of raw meat. If I cook a whole bird, usually Levi cleans out the insides for me. I get over it because I have to, but in a perfect world I wouldn't have to touch it before it's cooked!

So I'm supposed to tag someone else...so Anna, Molly, Erin, Tracy, and Brooke I tag you!

Our big girl

Eden had her 12 month well child check up today. She's 24lbs (90%) and 30 inches long (between 70-90%). Dr. Larson just said she's a proportionate, big girl! Everything else is great...thank goodness for healthy babes!

Monday, November 3, 2008

Party Time!

Yesterday we had a birthday party for Ezri and Eden! It was Eden's actual birthday and Ezri's is on December 4th. But considering they are so close together, we celebrated both girls!

Ezri wanted a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse party, which was fun! We were so blessed by our family and friends that came to celebrate with us! Ezri blew us away with a truly thankful heart, she made sure to tell everyone thank you for her gifts and hugged each one without any prompting! We were so proud of her!

Eden was a little timid with her birthday cake, but in the end she dove right in...frosting everywhere! She was not to into the present thing, but love carrying around my Teta Camille's cell phone; it was all we could do to pry it away from her! We had a really fun day, and felt so thankful for all the incredible people in our lives!

our BABY turns 1

Yesterday was Eden's first birthday! I can hardly believe how fast this year has gone. She is our little joy and has made our family feel complete! What a beautiful blessing this past year has been with her in our lives!

Looking back:
We took Ezri trick-or-treating last year and I was so ready for our little bundle to arrive! I had hoped that all the walking would kick labor into gear! Eden was due on November 1st, which was a Friday. No huge labor signs had showed up yet, I had been walking around at 3+ cm for the past month, so my Mom took Ezri and I to lunch that day and I just had a sweet time enjoy the last few days being a parent to one!

Friday night, I started having heavier contractions, but my labor took so long with Ezri that I figured we still had a ways to go! We went to bed and I tried to rest. Around midnight I thought I felt my water break, but wasn't sure. Levi assumed that things were still going to take a while so he told me to try and keep resting, but although I tried contractions were getting stronger and heavier! I managed to make it until 5:30am and could take it no more, I told Levi that we had to go to the hospital now! My Mom came over to stay with Ez and off we went. Once they had us in a room and Dr. Larson came and checked me, I was 7cm! (If there's a next time, I won't let Lev tell me to keep resting...ha...ha)

I asked for an epidural and we had to wait for the anesthesiologist to come in from somewhere else. Thankfully she showed up about an hour later and I had a little relief! Around 12:00, I felt like I just had to start pushing, everyone kept saying that I should just try and rest....again because of my previous labor, I pushed for 4 hours with Ezri). Needless to say I was ready, they called the Doc and he checked me and I was ready to push! I had myself so geared up for another long haul, but our sweet Eden JoAnna showed up at 12:36! She weighed 7lbs 13oz and was 19 inches long.

We were so shocked that she was a girl. We had chosen to not find out what we were having, but the nurse kept referencing boy...we thought she maybe slipped because it was indicated in our charts! Eden was such a surprise...and a true delight, just as her name means! Boy could she scream, but was such a great sleeper!

It was so precious to get to show her to Ezri. All throughout my pregnancy Ezri was sure she was having a baby brother. The week before Eden was born, she started telling us she was having a sister...and very adamantly I might add! I love how the Lord prepared her heart and what sweet sissy's they are now!

Eden-
Daddy, Momma, and Sister are so thankful to have you in our lives! You bring us joy by your silliness! We are touched by the way you snuggle, and love how adventurous you are! We pray over this year ahead that the Lord would guide and protect you, that he would cultivate a heart in you for him. We pray that God you give you a special relationship with Ezri and that your bond would be unbreakable! We love you sweet baby!

We celebrated yesterday with family and friends...pictures to come...Eden loved her cake...hee...hee!

"trick-or-treat"

From downtown, to Pizza Hut, and on to houses, our girls had their share of excitement on Halloween! Ezri decided she wanted to be a princess and wore her Ariel dress (which we already had) we managed to pull together a fairy costume for Eden out of the dress-up also. Yippee, no money spent on costumes this year! Levi had a football game in Toppenish Friday, so missed all the excitement, but Nanz and Uncle Matty and Auntie Anna willingly jumped in to help out with the fun!

We trick-or-treated downtown first and then went to pizza with Nana (Ezri now calls her Nanz which I think has stuck). My sweet bro and sis met us and we headed for our friends neighborhood, which is primo trick-or-treating (close houses in a safe, small block = lots of candy in a short amount of time)! Of course Matt and Anna's dog Grommet was with us and that added to the fun for Ezri...she loves him!

Eden was pretty cute, she followed Big Sissy's lead, walked up to the doors, knocked and waited. She even tried to let herself into a few homes...too cute!

After trick-or-treating, we came back to the house and got to have some really special time with Matty and Anna! It was a sweet, relaxing evening...we all crashed in the girls room (Eden in her crib, Matty on the floor, and Ezri, Anna, Grommet and I and Ezri's bed). We just visited, laughed and enjoyed each other! I cherish my bro and sis, and our time was a true blessing!




Friday, October 24, 2008

Pumpkin Patch Adventure



Ezri had her first preschool field trip this week, a visit to the pumpkin patch! Eden and I got to come along too! It was super cold, but fun! We picked out pumpkins, get lost in a corn maze, and the girls ate pumpkin muffins Mrs. G made!

Where's the baby?



Our little comedian found a bag today and before I knew it she was hiding under it! Eden has such a funny little sense of humor; she waited quietly until I said "where is Eden?" before popping out! (Sorry the pictures are a bit blurry, she was moving too quick for me!)




So as you know this little one loves to get a rise out of us...this week we took a little outing to the dollar store. Eden was in the cart and Ezri was walking next to me. I bent down to help Ezri with something and when I stood back up Eden was where a fireman's hat. I have no idea where she grabbed it or when, but she managed to get it on her head! I was in cracking up! So of course we had to buy it, and Eden's actually been putting it on at home...too funny!

Russ

Ezri has a little brown dog that she carries with her everywhere, I mean everywhere. Ezri even keeps her in her backpack while she's at preschool. Ezri decided to name her dog Russ, and of course Russ is a girl. Russ is Ezzi's special little friend, and one day last week she was outside with the wagon, the sled, blankets, books, and Russ. Ezri was tucked into the wagon reading and Russ was tucked into the sled behind her reading too! I watched out the kitchen window while Ez was playing and she'd get up and turn the pages of Russ' book and make sure that Russ was doing everything that she was. What a sweet little imagination...I don't know what we'd do if we ever lost Russ!

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

"Look Daddy's favorite...."

I was at Albertsons today getting some french bread for dinner (and hit some of those great deals you mentioned Abby). We were walking down the one of the aisles and Ezri yells...yes yells..."Look Momma it's Daddy's favorite beer!" I was so embarrassed, like Daddy's always drinking or something! Grandpa Leonard had given Levi a case of lime Bud Light for his graduation present...I know we laughed too...So Ezri had seen the box sitting in the garage! Anyway I explained to Ezri that we don't yell about things pertaining to alcohol because Momma gets embarrassed! Like an almost 4 year old is supposed to know what beer is anyway!

pumpkins and playtime

Pumpkins:
We planted pumpkins this summer and ended up with about 22 little ones in our garden after Ezri's last count! I've been promising Ezri that we'd decorate some soon...this morning we did and Ezri created Kendra! She drew a face on her and then cut out legs, arms, and a crown...too cute! She's been playing with her pumpkin since!

Ezri took a picture of her pumpkin too...great picture Sister!Playtime:
Ezri and Eden have been playing together a lot lately, which melts my heart to watch! The other day I came into the playroom and Ez had Eden all made-up in dress up clothes! Eden had a big smile, you could tell she felt like a big girl!
Ezri decided to play beauty shop on another occasion (which we do a lot because of Jamma). She had Eden in the rocking chair combing her hair. Eden loves books and is always carrying around one, she had Cinderella in her hand that day and was sitting looking at her book while Big Sis did some styling! Got to love it!
I just enjoyed these pics and thought they'd deserved to be shared!