Honey Mommy

Time for the Bee-utiful Season

2014-03-30T10:15:00.002-06:00

Yesterday our backyard was all a-buzz! The instant you stepped out the back door of our house and onto the back porch, it sounded like you had walked into a beehive.

Our apricot tree is in full bloom, which is a fact that the bees have obviously discovered! I don't ever remember seeing or hearing this many bees on our apricot tree in all the years we have lived here! Perhaps this Spring will be truly spectacular!

I knew I couldn't pass up the opportunity to try to get some photos, so I got out my macro lens. I think bees are just lovely!

I told my children they did not need to be afraid of the bees. As long as they did not bother the bees, then the bees would not bother them. We stood under the tree for a while to watch and listen. Before long both of my boys wanted to try to take pictures of the bees too!

I am not quite ready to let my boys use my camera, so they got out their iPods, grabbed our footstools and started snapping! It was so cute! They even managed to get a couple of nice pictures. We must have been out there trying to capture the bees for at least an hour. It was really fun!

I enjoyed watching my boys learn more about patience and taking pictures. Sometimes you can take over a hundred pictures and only end up with 5 or 6 that you love. Especially when you are shooting busy bees!

I don't know about you, but sometimes I feel like Winter just keeps dragging on and Spring will never get here...or that the current challenge of my life is just HARD and may be getting the best of me... or I feel like I just can't quite get the photos that I really want and my pictures are not good enough. But you just have to hang in there and keep trying. Don't give up! Enjoy the little moments you are given and in time, it will come.

Also linked to Seasonal Sundays

Catch the Moment 365 | {March 14- March 20 }

2014-03-21T10:13:00.003-06:00

Day 74 | March 14

This is the Cinderella dress that my daughter wore for Halloween. In the process of trick-or-treating she pulled the seam out of the bottom of the dress. I finally got around to serging the bottom of the dress and as soon as I showed it to her she HAD to wear it again.

Day 75 | March 15

Jonah had a minor outpatient surgery to remove a bump on his leg yesterday. As a reward for being brave, Daddy got him some new tracks for his electric train and set it up so Jonah could play with it. The kids had SO much fun!

Day 76 | March 16

Sunday was my little girl's third birthday! She got to wear a brand new dress to church and LOVED all the mini cupcakes that I made for her. We had a really fun day opening presents and playing with them.

Day 77 | March 17

On St. Patrick's Day both of my boys decided to wear their soccer jerseys to school, since they are both green. I volunteer in the classroom often, and on Monday I was trading the take-home books. I managed to snap this picture of Eli working on a leprechaun with my phone.

Day 78 | March 18

Late Monday afternoon two of my kiddos threw up. My little girl was sick all over the living room carpet, and then after bedtime my son threw up while he was sitting on the potty. Needless to say, none of the vomit ended up in the toilet. It took me over an hour to clean up the bathroom. Yuck! So I spent the day on Tuesday taking care of them. Luckily the stomach bug did not last too long and no one threw up again!

Day 79 | March 19

Because of daylight savings time, it is now dark again when I come home from aerobics in the morning. The moon looked happy to see me this morning, so I had to take a picture. Later in the day I caught Eli working on a project with perler beads, so I had to snap his picture.

Day 80 | March 20

Here is my little girl, working on a puzzle in the morning. Can you tell that I had not done her hair for the day just yet?

On Being Green {Songography}

2014-03-15T21:17:00.001-06:00

"It's not easy being green" by Kermit the Frog was the prompt for this week's Songography. Things are just starting to green up around here, but I had so much fun looking back through all my green photos! I had to share both the new (the daffodils, crocuses and tulips) as well as the old. Here are my favorites:

It's not that easy being green;

Having to spend each day the same color as the leaves.

When I think it could be nicer being red, or yellow or gold-
or something much more colorful like that.

It's not easy being green.
It seems you blend in with so many other ordinary things.

And people tend to pass you over 'cause you're not standing out like flashy sparkles in the water-

or stars in the sky.

But green's the color of Spring.

And green can be cool and friendly-like

And green can be big like an ocean, or important like a mountain, or tall like a tree.

When green is all there is to be it could make you wonder why but why wonder why wonder?

I am green and it'll do fine, it's beautiful!
And I think it's what I want to be.

{Happy St. Patrick's Day!}

Catch the Moment 365 | {March 7- March 13 }

2014-03-14T16:32:00.004-06:00

Day 67 | March 7

Today I went to Toys R Us with my little girl in a last ditch effort to find Lego Movie minifigures. I was planning a Lego Movie party for my soon-to-be six year old on Saturday and wanted a few minifigures for little gifts. Unfortunately like all other stores, they were completely sold out! But Miss Aubrey did find this pretty pink Hello Kitty room that she wanted for her very own!

Day 68 | March 8

We had so much fun at Eli's Lego Movie birthday party! We played lots of fun games, ate fabulous treats and had a great time! I am planning on an entire post about the party, so there will definitely be more to come.

Day 69 | March 9

This morning I caught my little girl "writing" in her notebook. All of the sudden she looks so grown up! I can't believe she will be three in a week!

Day 70 | March 10

Today was Eli's birthday and he had the day off from school! We went to the park in the morning and then went and played laser tag in the afternoon. Then he got to open his presents and put them together. He got the set of Legos that he desperately wanted from the Lego Movie, and in case you can't tell, he was pretty happy about it!

Day 71 | March 11

What a wild weather day! It snowed in the morning, then in the afternoon the boys and I went out and flew kites because it was so windy. Then later in the evening it rained!

Day 72 | March 12

This morning when I went out to throw a few more things in the recycle bin, I couldn't help but notice the ice crystals that had formed on blue bin. So I ran in and got my camera to take a few macros. I love the way you can see all the little crystals!

Day 73 | March 13

This evening I had the kids help me clean up the Legos in the toy room so we can set up Jonah's electric train tomorrow. While we were at it, I had them sort through the Legos in the bucket and help me find all the minifigure parts so I can put them back together. I don't mind if the Lego sets are not all together, but it makes me crazy to find minifigures without heads, arms and or legs!

Catch the Moment 365 | {February 28- March 6 }

2014-03-07T13:05:00.000-07:00

Day 60 | February 28

After school on Friday I went and decorated Jonah's classroom door for teacher appreciation next week. I think it turned out really cute, don't you? I love the three dimensional hot air balloons!

Day 61 | March 1

When I come home from working at the library, I usually bring home books for this kids. Today I found just the right book for Jonah, who is interested in space right now. He spotted it right away and started reading!

Day 62 | March 2

Our church meetings happen to be right during Miss Aubrey's naptime. So as you can imagine, she often comes home completely exhausted!

Day 63 | March 3

My tulips are starting to come up already! I don't think they usually come up this early, but it is nice to have some green in my flower beds.

Also, did you know that March 2 was Dr. Seuss' birthday? At the library on Saturday the Seuss books were flying off the shelves. My kids all ended up with "cat in the hat" type hats on Monday at school, so I had to take a picture of the three of them together (even if it was a little later in the week)!

Day 64 | March 4

Little girls LOVE dress up, don't they? Lately my little girl is loving her tutus.

Day 65 | March 5

This week I have been preparing for a birthday party this weekend. We stopped by Target to see if they had anything helpful. Miss Aubrey found these hilarious glasses.

Day 66 | March 6

Speaking of early bloomers, check out my crocuses! They have actually started to bloom, so I guess Spring must really be on its way!

Catch the Moment 365 | {February 21- February 27}

2014-02-28T19:18:00.001-07:00

Day 53 | Feb 21

In the morning I gave my little girl a bath, and I think she is just the cutest thing! Then in the evening my son advanced to an orange belt in karate. I missed the belt test because I had to work, but luckily my husband took pictures for me!

Day 54 | Feb 22

My boys have been enjoying the comic strip "Garfield" lately. I spotted a couple of Garfield books when I was working at the library and just had to check them out. The boys have been reading them together and giggling themselves silly!

Day 55 | Feb 23

Miss Aubrey has watched her brothers enjoy the comics, so she thinks they must be interesting! Sunday before church she was trying to read the comics from the newspaper by herself!

Day 56 | Feb 24

Today was the second grade patriotic program. I couldn't attend the evening performance because I had to work, but luckily I caught the performance for the school in the morning. The second graders did an awesome job and just about brought me to tears when they sang, "Proud to be an American".

Day 57 | Feb 25

It has been unseasonably warm here lately. This is the first time I can remember the kids playing in the sand box together in February!

Day 58 | Feb 26

Tonight was Jonah's Blue and Gold scout banquet. They had an Olympics theme and got to play fun games like "speed skating". Jonah even got to hold an actual Olympic torch, which was from the summer games in Barcelona in 1992.

Day 59 | Feb 27

Tonight we took the kids to the UVU men's basketball game. It was a really close game and we had a great time. They boys got some fun souvenirs and even got to meet Willy Wolverine!

Catch the Moment 365 | {February 14- February 20}

2014-02-21T19:43:00.004-07:00

Day 46 | Feb 14

Eli was SO excited to exchange Valentine's at school this year. When he got home from kindergarten, the first thing he did was pull out ALL his Valentines to show them to me. What a cutie!

Day 47 | Feb 15

I made some fun valentine's crafts and lip suckers for my kids, but did not have time to take pictures on Valentine's Day because I was volunteering at the school and then worked in the evening. So I made them pose for me the day after Valentine's Day and you can see more of the pictures here.

Day 48 | Feb 16

Hooray for sunshine! It has been cloudy and dreary here for over a week, but today it finally cleared out. It sure was windy though! Then in the evening we were watching the Olympics and I looked over to find Miss Aubrey fast asleep in the recliner. What a cutie pie!

Day 49 | Feb 17

We had an eventful President's Day. I looked out the window to see a firetruck and ambulance in front of my house! A neighbor had a carbon monoxide alarm go off, so they came to check it out. Luckily the house was fine. The firefighters were so cool! They showed the kids the truck and equipment and then let Eli sit on the truck for a picture!

In the afternoon Daddy got a reluctant Miss Aubrey to take a nap by cuddling on her bed with her. Of course he fell asleep too!

Later the kids got to ride their bikes outside and I was cracking up at Eli's helmet hair. Can you tell he was NOT happy that I wanted to take his picture?!

Day 50 | Feb 18

The temperatures today were in the low 50s, so we decided to have a picnic lunch in the park. It was still a bit cool and breezy, but we had a fun time.

Day 51 | Feb 19

This morning I caught the boys doing some cooperative coloring. I just love that they are working on a drawing together.

Day 52 | Feb 20

Here is yet another picture of the moon as I was getting home from the gym in the morning. It's a good thing I snapped this picture! The rest of the day got busy and I didn't manage to take any other pictures. I may have to do a tutorial on how I "shoot the moon" because I have had a few requests!

Feeling the LOVE!

2014-02-15T20:34:00.002-07:00

The song for this week's Songography is "I'd Do Anything for Love" (But I Won't Do That) by Meatloaf.

At first I wasn't quite sure what I wanted to take a picture of for this song. But then I realized that there were TONS of things that I did this week out of love for my sweet children... but there are some things I will not do!

When the kids wanted to know if I would make those awesome lip suckers that I made last year, of course I said YES (as long as you promise to pose for pictures)!

But don't ask me to take a selfie with my own big red lips... I won't do that!

I will gladly help you make Valentine's for your classmates.

But don't ask me to come up with my own creative Valentine idea, or do much more than print out a simple baggie topper. Having learned from past experience... I won't do that!

I will also be more than happy to buy you some cute Valentines from the store if that is what you want instead of homemade Valentines.

But I am afraid you are going to have to address them yourself... I won't do that!

I would love to come and help out with your class Valentine's Day party, even when they ask me to come up with a cool craft for your classmates to do (crafts are so much harder than games!).

But after discovering that you are the only kid in your class that is clever enough to figure out how to actually DO the craft and then having to scramble to make the craft easier... well, next year I won't do that!

When your completely awesome Grandpa sends all of us a box of chocolates, you can bet I will let you eat them up (but not all at once)! Yum.

But don't ask me to share my own 2 pound box of chocolates... I won't do that!!

I love my three sweet kiddos, aren't they adorable? They fill my life with joy and laughter. I would do just about anything for them!

Unless they ask me if they can have the last sugar cookie with sprinkles. You know, the one my friend brought over just for me (and the kids already had one)? I won't do that!

We had a fun and fabulous Valentine's day full of LOVE, and we hope you did too.

Hugs and Kisses from the Honey Household!

XOXOXO

Also linked to Seasonal Sundays

Catch the Moment 365 | {February 7- February 13}

2014-02-14T18:43:00.003-07:00

Happy Valentines Day!

I meant to get this post done earlier, but I was busy getting things ready for Valentine's Day and helping out at school. Tonight I am actually working at the library, so I finally had time to get it done. Hope your Valentine's evening was more romantic than mine is!

Day 39 | Feb 7

This morning after I dropped the boys off at school, Miss Aubrey showed me what was in her coat pockets. It seems she liked the look of these pencil sharpeners from the supply store we went to yesterday, so she put them in her pocket! We had a little discussion about how mommy has to BUY things before we can take them from the store and then we took them back and apologized.

Day 40 | Feb 8

We were hoping for a snow day, but woke up to a soggy, rainy day instead. So we drove up the canyon into the mountains near our home and found lots of snow to play with. It was so fun!

Day 41 | Feb 9

Today was another rainy day. The snow in our back yard is turning into an icy puddle! It was the kind of day that makes you want to go to bed and take a good nap.

Day 42 | Feb 10

Today we finished making Valentines for Eli's class. He was very excited to give his classmates each a bouncy ball, and I was excited that they were so simple to make!

Day 43 | Feb 11

I had to get some supplies from the craft store, so I told my kids if they were good at the store they could pick something from the dollar section. They picked posters to color, which made for a nice and quiet afternoon.

Day 44 | Feb 12

For Tiger Cub Scouts tonight, my husband and I taught about collections and how to label them. Jonah brought his rock collection as well as his collection of Lego Star Wars mini-figures. We labeled the mini-figures because they are much easier to identify than rocks!

Day 45 | Feb 13

This morning before school, Jonah worked on addressing his Valentine cards. I actually bought these robot valentines a few years ago on clearance, and Jonah was happy to use them for his class this year.

My Day at the Winter Games

2014-02-08T19:18:00.000-07:00

This week's song title for Songography is the Danielle Bradbury's "My Day", which is one of the official songs the United States is using to promote the Olympics.

We love the Olympics! We have been watching the TV way more than usual, and my boys have been telling me which sports they plan to compete in when they grow up (bobsledding, snowboarding, and downhill skiing). It has been really fun!

We watched the opening ceremonies last night and I even made Russian blini for my kids. We hoped to wake up to our own winter wonderland. But alas, it was raining this morning!

So we drove up the canyon this morning to find some snow and participate in our own winter sports. We found plenty of snow, and fun!

We intended to go sledding at a location further up the canyon, however my van was disqualified due to lack of four-wheel drive. But team Honey was not defeated! We turned around and found a picnic area to stop at and play our snow games. The first game commenced as soon as the competitors were properly dressed. Eli was victorious in the cross-country hill climb, and Miss Aubrey definitely won gold in snow angel creation.

Jonah dominated the field with his snow ball rolling. You should see the huge snowman we made!!

There were some snow sports that were not officially sanctioned, however the kids all participated in snow-eating, no matter how much I tried to discourage them!

Silly kids! Of course the traditional snowball-throwing competition was also a part of our winter games. As you can see, the competitors had no trouble making snowballs of epic proportions!

I am not sure if there was judging in the category of cuteness, but I think Miss Aubrey was a definitely a medalist!

What an epic day we had at the winter games! It was wonderful.

Today was My Day! I felt like a gold medal mommy! Even though it took quite a bit of effort on my part and I was tempted to take the easy path, I chose to take the kids on an adventure rather than sit around and watch it rain.

It was a beautiful day!

Also linked to Seasonal Sundays

Catch the Moment 365 | {January 31- February 6}

2014-02-07T07:28:00.001-07:00

Day 31 | January 31

I love it when I catch my kids happily reading books!

Day 32 | February 1

I had not taken any pictures for the day because I was incredibly busy. Then in the evening I caught both of my boys playing their iPods in their dark bedroom. It is more challenging than you might think to get a clear picture with just the screen providing light!

Day 33 | February 2

When I got out of the shower this morning I found a giggly lump in my bed! It turned out to be the cutest girl ever!

Day 34 | February 3

My parents just got back from a cruise, and they got both of my boys the coolest wooden tops that were made and hand painted in Mexico. They spin forever! The boys absolutely love them.

Day 35 | February 4

Did you know that the laundry basket makes a good bed? Apparently my little girl is getting a bit too big for her "little bed"!

Day 36 | February 5

Today my friend's daughter was sick, so she asked if I could bring over some Gatorade for her daughter to drink. Every time I look at Gatorade I laugh a little because Miss Aubrey calls it "Alligator". Hehe!

Day 38 | February

Today was the 100th day of Kindergarten! I wanted to make these cool hats with 100 stickers on them for the class party, but didn't have time to put it together. So Eli and I made one when we got home. He loved it!

These Boots are Made for Walking (500 Miles!)

2014-02-01T22:21:00.000-07:00

The song for this week's Songography is "I Would Walk 500 Miles" by the Proclaimers. I have to admit that for me, this song instantly brings to mind high school dances with hundreds of teens jumping up and down jubilantly on the dance floor. Fun times!

When I go walking, it is usually with my little girl. I would definitely walk 500 miles and 500 more to be with her!

Can you blame me? She is so adorable. I love this picture that I caught of her walking this week where she is actually in midair!

Sometimes walking just isn't fast enough for her, so she rides her scooter while I walk. Once in a while she will run back to me to make sure that I am close enough to her. What a sweetheart!

But eventually she runs out of energy. It can happen quite abruptly, so I often take along the stroller, even if no one is riding in it at first!

Don't you just love her little boots? They are definitely made for walking, don't you think? But that's another song...

Also linked to Seasonal Sundays

Catch the Moment 365 | {January 24-30}

2014-01-31T10:37:00.003-07:00

Day 24

I woke up this morning to find that my daughter had thrown up during the night and then went back to sleep and slept in it. Yuck! Needless to say, I spent most of the morning cleaning her up as well as her clothes, bedding and room. In the afternoon she was spent, so she took a long nap.

Luckily she did not throw up again and seemed better after her nap. We snuggled on the couch and watched the little birds eat the last of the seeds from our feeder. I took lots of pictures, but was really impressed that I caught one of the bird in midair!

Day 25

This morning it was cold enough that there was a lot of frost on the car in the driveway. So I got out my macro lens and filters and took some pretty pictures of the ice crystals.

Later I had the opportunity to go to a recording studio with a small women's choir. We were recording two songs that were written by one of my dear friends.

Day 26

Before church on Sunday I took a bunch of pictures of the kids reading books, but none of the pictures were very interesting. Then I randomly snapped this picture of my little girl playing around in the kitchen. Isn't she a cutie?

Day 27

Monday was a nondescript kind of day. I forgot to get my camera out until it was time for me to head for work. So here is a picture of the stacks at my library.

Day 28

After lunch it was bright and sunny outside, so we decided to go for a walk. When my daughter came running back towards me I managed to catch this picture of her in midair.

Day 29

Today was a rotten day. On my way to bed, I noticed that the boy's bedroom light was on. I opened the door, thinking I was going to have to chastise someone for being up way past bedtime. Instead I found both of my boys, fast asleep in their beds. Aren't they precious?

Day 30

Today it finally snowed for the first time in a long time! It was really wet, slushy snow. While I shoveled the slush off the driveway, Miss Aubrey decided to take a ride on the path made by the van's tires.

Feeling Frozen

2014-01-25T21:22:00.000-07:00

This week's Songography is "Let It Go" from the movie Frozen. I have not had the chance to take my kids to the movie yet, but watching the music video for this song definitely made me want to! We will probably just buy it on DVD when it comes out. That way we can watch it over and over again.

The snow glows white on the mountain tonight
Not a footprint to be seen

A kingdom of isolation,

And it looks like I’m a Queen.

My power flurries through the air into the ground
My soul is spiraling in frozen fractals all around

And one thought crystallizes like an icy blast

I’m never going back,

The past is in the past

Let it go, let it go
That perfect girl is gone

As you can see, the frost has definitely left "frozen fractals all around" my neighborhood recently. I wish I could echo the lyrics of this song that say, "Let the storm rage on, the cold never bothered me anyway". To be honest though, I kind of wish it would warm up just a little bit. Though the frost and snow can actually be quite beautiful, just like the lyrics of this song.

Also linked to Seasonal Sundays

Catch the Moment 365 | {January 17-23}

2014-01-24T09:24:00.001-07:00

Day 17

My library has been closed the past week for annual maintenance and today was my day to go in and work on projects. The book drop was more than a little full as I was leaving for the day.

Day 18

Saturdays are always busy, and the day got away from me. So as the sun was setting I ran outside and took a picture of Mount Timpanogos. I love the way the mountains turn pink at sunset.

Day 19

Today the boys decided to get out their car mats and play with their cars. I love to listen to the stories they make up as they play together!

Day 20

It was Martin Luther King Day so my kids had the day off, as did my husband. So we dragged the kids along on a trip to the Home Depot. As you can see, they were thrilled.

Day 21

I was intrigued by the ice crystals on the car window outside early this morning. Then this afternoon I had to take a picture of Eli and his sister. I love it when my boys are willing to play dolls with their little sister!

Day 22

I went with Jonah's Tiger Cub Scout group to the Hutchings Museum in Lehi, Utah. They had many fun collections, including birds and eggs, rocks and minerals, and pioneer history.

Day 23

Another shot of the moon as I was coming home from the gym in the morning. I love that you can see the craters of the moon so well in this shot!

Catch the Moment 365 | {January 11-16}

2014-01-17T09:08:00.000-07:00

Another week, another set of pictures! I have decided to join Nurse Loves Farmer, Behind the Camera and Dreaming and SimplyStavish for their Catch the Moment 365 on Friday morning. The timing works out better for me, but I will still be linking to 365 at The Boy and Me.

So here are my photos for the past week from the Honey House.

Day 11

With all the snow we had the past few days, we were hoping to go sledding today. No such luck! It warmed up enough that everything was slushy. So we went to a nearby church parking lot and had scooter races on the mostly dry asphalt. Can you tell I have two boys and a girl?

Day 12

On Sunday my boys think it is fun to read the comics together. They don't really get most of the jokes, but I think it is adorable that they still try!

Day 13

I got my new camera bag today! I have wanted a nice camera bag for a while now and finally decided on a 2 Sues bag made by Kelly Moore. Isn't it gorgeous?!

Day 14

After Kindergarten today I discovered that Eli and Miss Aubrey had made up a "bed" on the couch and were having a great time playing together and being silly. What a cute pair!

What's on your night stand? I bet you don't have this many books! This evening I went to my Young Adult book group and brought this huge stack of books with me. As a children's librarian, I have been trying to read all the contenders for the Newbery Award before it is announced at the end of January. I have read almost all of these books in the past month.

Day 15

Eli came home from Kindergarten today and was determined to finish all of his math homework... for the entire month of January! Who am I to say no to that kind of determination? So we sat down and got them all done this afternoon.

Day 16

I took this picture when I got home from the gym this morning. Yep! It is still pitch black outside when I get home from the gym at 6:30 am. I have been going to the gym 4-5 times a week for the past two months. All my hard work paid off! Not only have I lost 7% of my body fat, I found out today I won the biggest loser contest at work! Hooray!

This evening I played Twister with the kids. Miss Aubrey didn't quite understand the game and spent most of the time laying down on the job. We had so much fun and laughed so hard!

Catch the Moment 365 | {January 5-11}

2014-01-11T21:39:00.003-07:00

Day 5

Sunday morning my little girl cozied up to her Daddy and started being silly and making us laugh. Luckily my camera was close by, so I managed to snap a picture of the two of them together.

Day 6

Last month for Scouts my son made a birdfeeder using a cardboard tube, peanut butter, and seeds. We watched and waited, but did not catch any birds eating the seeds. When I came home from dropping the kids off at school I spotted this little guy having breakfast. So I had to take some pictures to show Jonah that his bird feeder worked!!

Day 7

Today my little girl was supposed to be taking a nap in her room. I had already put her back in bed once and then it was quiet, so I thought for sure she was asleep. When I peeked into her room I caught her trying to put a diaper on her dolly!

Day 8

It snowed like crazy all day today! I shoveled the driveway three or four times! In between shoveling, I decided to try to take pictures of snowflakes. The above picture was the best of the bunch and I was pretty happy with it!

I also have a pretty cute shoveling crew, don't you think? After all their hard work we decided to stop and make a snowman. I think he turned out pretty well.

Meet Sam the Snowman. Isn't he cute?

Day 9

My oldest boy started karate in the Fall, and so far he loves it! Today was parent watch day, so I got to snap a few pictures of the instructor showing him how to get out of a hold.

Day 10

Miss Aubrey absolutely loves her Bear-Bear (in case you can't tell)! When she falls asleep she likes to cuddle up to him and stroke his gingham ribbon between her fingers. It is the cutest thing ever!

Day 11

How was your week?

Also linked to Seasonal Sundays

Catch the Moment 365 | {January 1-4}

2014-01-04T21:28:00.002-07:00

Happy New Year!

I am not typically the type of person who makes "resolutions". I prefer to make and set goals whenever I feel the need. However, in an effort to get my camera out more often and document our daily lives, I decided this year I wanted participate in a 365 project. It will be nice to start with the new year and take photos every day this year.

Additionally, I have always wanted to have a scrapbook that my kids can enjoy (and me too!), so I have decided to start working on my Project Life scrapbook this year. I have a scrapbook and core kit and everything I need to get going. Now I just need to fill my book with pictures. So here we go!

Day 1

January 1st- After staying up late we all slept in and spent the whole morning in our pajamas! Don't I have the cutest kiddos? In the afternoon the boys and Daddy worked on building the Lego Millennium Falcon that they got for Christmas.

Day 2

January 2- Today we went to the library and checked out a bunch of books. The boys checked out a bunch of Star Wars books, which may have been influenced by all the Lego Star Wars sets they got for Christmas.

Day 3

January 3- The kids and I went to see a morning matinee of Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2. We all had a good laugh at all the "foodimals" such as shimpanzees, watermelephants and flamangos.

Day 4

January 4- We typically spend Saturdays cleaning up around the house and getting ready for church on Sunday. So all the kids get cleaned up as well. Here is Miss Aubrey playing with her animals in the tub.

Feeling Frozen

2013-12-11T15:44:00.003-07:00

To say "the weather outside is frightful" would be something of an understatement! It has been SO COLD here lately that it has been weeks since we were above freezing!

That means it is really too cold for the kids to play outside for very long. So we have been trying to find other things to keep us busy. The kids have been very helpful in getting all of our holiday decorating done.

We got our tree decorated in record time! Well, the lower branches at least...

I may have redistributed the ornaments a little after the kids were done. But in either case, it turned out gorgeous!

The boys spent an entire afternoon working on their perler bead masterpieces. Now we have an entire fleet of perler bead ships to play with!

We have also rediscovered many of our board games and puzzles. It has been so cold that the boys are not allowed to go outside for recess at school, so we even sent some puzzles to school so that Jonah would have something else to do during recess.

It is supposed to warm up a little bit around here this weekend, so of course I am going to the mountains of Wyoming to visit my parents! Brrr! It is even colder there, but we are having our annual family Christmas party, and it will be fun for the kids to get to open presents from their grandparents, aunts and uncles, and cousins. Hopefully it will give them something new to play with during the cold winter months to come.

Speaking of Christmas, I will soon be reviewing and giving away a product I am pretty excited about! It is a Powerocks Magicstick, which will be the perfect techie gift for my husband. He is a Systems Admin for the IT department of our local university and sometimes it is SO HARD to know what to get him for Christmas. I think this will be the perfect stocking stuffer, don't you?

So what exactly is a Powerocks Magicstick? Powerocks, a 2013 Better Homes and Gardens Holiday Wish List gift item for techies, is a line of stylish and convenient portable chargers for a variety of mobile devices including most smartphones, MP3 players, tablets, GPS units, cameras, and eReaders. Compact and powerful, these colorful portable chargers will recharge your mobile devices on-the-go when life takes you away from an electrical outlet.

Cool, right? Watch for my review and giveaway coming up soon!

Linked up to Wordful Wednesday, Wordish Wednesday, and Wordless Wednesdays all over.

Snow Day!

2013-12-08T15:21:00.003-07:00

What a snowstorm! My kids have been waiting and waiting for the white stuff to fall so they could play in the snow. Last weekend we got some snow, but right after the storm the temperatures dropped to well below freezing (we are talking 1 degree at 8 am!). So the snow was way too crunchy to play in and it was too COLD to take the kids outside.

Needless to say, the kids were disappointed. I told them to just wait. They would get their chance to play in the snow. Then this weekend it warmed up a little bit and snowed... and snowed and snowed and snowed!

Yesterday it snowed ALL Day. I can't even tell you how many times we shoveled the driveway! At least I have a helpful snow removal crew.

I was going to go exercise at the gym yesterday, but I think I got enough exercise with all the shoveling. Of course, the kids were loving the snow!

My daughter was SO funny, riding her scooter in the snow. Who says scooters are only for summertime anyway? Especially if your Daddy keeps your driveway absolutely clean in the wintertime?

We had snowball fights, made snow angels and played with our sand toys. (They are great in the winter too!).

Oh what fun! By the time naptime arrived, my daughter's pants were completely encrusted with snow. I may not have snowpants her size yet, but at least I put two more pairs of pants under those jeans!

Now it really is beginning to look a lot like Christmas! We have lovely white snow everywhere, which I am totally ok with as long as we can keep the temperatures at least close to freezing.

I am so excited for Christmas with my little family. Our Christmas tree is decorated, Christmas music is playing constantly at our house, and the kids have already been to see Santa.

I love sharing Christmastime with my children! Their excitement is contagious and they really help me rediscover the magic and wonder of the season.

Also linked to Seasonal Sundays

Scavenger Hunt Sunday {11.24.13}

2013-11-23T23:13:00.000-07:00

Horizon

We had an incredibly cloudy week, so most of the time there was no horizon to be seen. We did see the sun one day, so I ran out and snapped a few pictures. The first one is Utah Lake, which is on our western horizon and the other is Mount Timpanogos, which dominates our eastern horizon.

Sharp

These leaves have some pretty sharp edges, don't you think?

Leather

I have several purses that my father-in-law made for me. I love the intricate carving and stamping that went into the designs on the leather. I often get compliments on my purses!

Blue

This is my daughter's Bear-Bear. He came along with us when we worked on getting some pictures of the kid's done. His blue bow is VERY important. My daughter likes to stroke the tails of the bow when she is going to sleep. The bow came untied a while back, which was a minor crisis. Thankfully I retied it and sewed the ribbon together so the bow stays tied.

Diagonal Lines

It was a cold and windy day here today. While we were driving around I spotted a whole flock of birds sitting on the telephone wires. So I had my husband stop and let me take a picture.

Blessed

This week's Songography prompt is the song "Blessed" by Martina McBride. I am so blessed to have these three beautiful children in my life! I love them so.

They bless my life in so many ways!

Also linked to Seasonal Sundays and Songography

Scavenger Hunt Sunday {11.17.13}

2013-11-16T22:42:00.000-07:00

Pattern

These are the patterns that I used to make the Jedi costumes for my husband and sons. The fact that I was just getting them put away today should give you some indication of how busy I have been in the past few weeks!

Sunglasses

Somehow I have become a collector of lost sunglasses. I have discovered many pairs in the library where I work, and if they go unclaimed for long enough then I can take them home. This is one of my favorites.

Round

The moon is big and bright tonight. We caught a glimpse of it when the clouds blew away for a minute.

Looking In

Sometimes I can't resist looking in on my baby girl when she is napping. I know she could very easily wake up (and she has several times), so I guess I am tempting fate. But she is just so darn adorable when she is sleeping!

Crunchy

It has started to get colder here and we have had frost several mornings this week. Here are some little ice crystals that I found on a leaf in the back yard. The ice crystals on the leaves make for extra crunchiness.

Songography

This week's Songography is such an awesome song that I had to participate. The song is, "What a Wonderful World".

I see skies of blue,
And clouds of white.

The bright blessed day,
The dark sacred night.

And I think to myself,
What a wonderful world.

Yes, I think to myself,
What a wonderful world.

Also linked to Seasonal Sundays and Songography

Scavenger Hunt Sunday: The Halloween Edition {11.03.13}

2013-11-02T22:31:00.005-06:00

Candy

My favorite type of candy this time of year is definitely candy corn. Yum! Sadly, this is an archive picture because when I went to the store to buy some candy corn this week they told me they were completely sold out! Can you believe it?

Pumpkin

I crocheted a darling little pumpkin hat for a friend who recently had a baby, so of course I had to crochet one for my little girl. She loves her pumpkin hat and I think she is so adorable!

Spooky

This year my boys wanted to carve spooky pumpkins. I think we came up with some pretty good ones!

Orange

There are some bushes not too far from our house with these lovely orange berries on them, so I had to stop and take a picture.

Dress up

This year my boys were determined to be Jedi for Halloween, so I set about making some costumes for them. I was so pleased with how they turned out and my boys LOVED them.

I have so many awesome pictures of my Jedi that I had a hard time choosing which ones to share! I even ended up making a costume for my husband. Doesn't he make the perfect General Kanobe? I know he prefers the more serious Jedi photos I took of him, but I caught him laughing and I just love this photo.

Luckily I did not have to make Miss Aubrey's costume. She was perfectly happy to wear the Cinderella dress that we found for her. Isn't she adorable?

We had such a fun Halloween! I love my little family so much!

This week's song prompt was "My Life Would Suck Without You". There are many things that I wouldn't really want to do without such as chocolate, colorful Autumns, and living near the mountains. However I don't even want to imagine life without my husband and my three beautiful kids. They are my everything.

Also linked to Seasonal Sundays and Songography

Scavenger Hunt Sunday {10.27.13}

2013-10-27T00:01:00.000-06:00

Change

Last week I posted a picture of the 60 bell peppers that we pulled out of our garden. I have to admit, I was actually disappointed that peppers were nearly all green. I planted red, orange and yellow bell peppers because they are sweeter and I love to eat them. This week I was pleasantly surprised when some of the peppers in my big box started to change colors! Hooray!

Your Mood Today

Yesterday my kids were feeling pretty giddy, like this painted hay bale. I finally took them to one of our favorite fall destinations, Cornbelly's! They have a corn maze and tons of other fun activities. We had planned to go over Fall Break, but then I got sick, ruptured my eardrums and we didn't make it. But we finally found time to make it there!

Welcome

Welcome to Cornbellys! It is such a fun place to go in the Fall. The kids had a great time and I have a ton of pictures. Maybe I will post more later, but that depends on whether or not I get all our Halloween costumes sewn this week!

Depth of Field

This is one of my favorite pictures from yesterday. The boys did the pedal races several times and loved every minute of it.

Dark

We stayed at Cornbelly's until it got dark and a little chilly. We had so much fun that we hadn't managed to even go into the corn maze! So we took a short trip into the "5 minute maze" rather than the big one. I wanted to get some pictures of my kids in the maze, but it was pretty dark by then. If you look in this picture, you can just see the three of them on the path.

Also linked to Seasonal Sundays

Scavenger Hunt Sunday: {10.20.13}

2013-10-20T09:17:00.002-06:00

Watching

“The moon is a loyal companion. It never leaves. It’s always there, watching, steadfast, knowing us in our light and dark moments, changing forever just as we do. Every day it’s a different version of itself. Sometimes weak and wan, sometimes strong and full of light. The moon understands what it means to be human. Uncertain. Alone. Cratered by imperfections.”

-Tahereh Mafi

Leafy

"Autumn is a second Spring when every leaf is a flower." -Albert Camus

Is it any wonder that this is my favorite time of year? It is so beautiful!

First World Problem

This weekend my husband cleaned up the garden because it is getting to cold for the plants to survive. Would you believe he picked 60 peppers? What am I going to do with all of them?

Still

I went on a walk in the early evening with my children just as the sun was setting today. I love the golden hour, when the world is becoming quiet and still. I admit that I did more picture-taking than walking!

A Good Day

I offered to take some family pictures for my sister this year. I am not a professional by any means, but I enjoy taking pictures and my sister thinks I am pretty good at it. However my first attempt was a dismal failure. I was coming down with a horrible head cold (which resulted in rupturing both my eardrums a few days later), so my settings were a little off and many of the pictures were blurry. (I think I was a little blurry too). Luckily she let me try again and the pictures turned out SO much bettter! Here is a picture of my cute little niece. Any time you can get a cute, smiling picture of a two-year old is a good day!

Also linked to Seasonal Sundays