the most wonderful time...

Christmas music playing, cookies baking, kids laughing... it is the most wonderful time of the year.

Here are a few December pictures thus far. So much going on and so much to be thankful for.



The first snow of the year and the kids were SO excited! There wasn't too much on the ground but Nolan and I shoveled a pile for them to play and jump in. There's plenty of snow on the ground now and chances for more tonight... Nolan is already planning on taking them out to play when he gets home from work tonight.


Christmas in Eldora with Grandma and Grandpa Glace. The girl cousins... Brenna, Hannah and Ellie.


Don't forget about the boys! Zach, Blake, Boaz and Cainan. (2 more cousin's to add to the mix in 2011!)


Christmas in Kansas with Grandma and Grandpa Farwell.


The Farwell cousins (minus Malia). Kenton, Addie, Nevaeh, Josie, Blake, Koralee, and Brenna. (2 more cousins to add to this mix as well in 2011!)


Christmas in Kansas with Great Grandma and Grandpa Anderson (my dad's side of the family). All of the great grandkids that could make it, along with Santa. No crying when Santa walks in at this house... the kids were thrilled!

Praising the Lord for the gift of His Son and wishing you and your family a very Merry Chirstmas!

no girls allowed

Blake was content playing in the guest room this morning, Brenna was downstairs with me. The kids rarely play seperately so I asked Brenna why she wasn't playing with Blake, she replied "I can't!" So, up the stairs I go to see what Blake was up to... and sure enough, no girls allowed. :)

I found this sign hanging on the guest room door. He hadn't even asked for help with the spelling... pretty good for 3 years old!

ouch!

This tough little girl had a bit of a collision yesterday... a collision with the side of the refrigerator.
ouch.

my favorite things

to the farm

Today we headed out to what we thought was a pumpkin farm. Not many pumpkins to be found, but a simple little farm open to the public during the fall. The kids and I were the only people there this afternoon and the farmer gave us quite the tour. We saw roosters, peacocks, fed the cows some squash, fed Wilber the pig some milk, walked through a corn maze, chased kittens, and dug around in a corn kernal sandbox.

The kids had a blast and it ended up being a very fun afternoon on the farm... but we had to stop at Home Depot on the way home to find some pumpkins! :)

baby abby

Meet Baby Abby.



Baby Abby has become QUITE important in our home lately. Baby Abby goes everywhere with Miss Brenna.... to the store, to church, outside to play, all around the house.



Ever since we told Brenna that she was going to be a big sister, she took to this baby doll. It's fun to see her so excited about taking care of Abby (her name selection!). Abby even gets daily pushes on the swing.



Anyone remember Silly Buddy? Well, her former favorite frog has taken a back seat to Baby Abby.

wisconsin dells vacation

Here are some picture highlights from our family vaction to the Wisconsin Dells.



hiking to find a waterfall

Buffalo Phil's Resturant had a train that delievered our food to us. The kids thought it was SO neat!

astronaut Brenna

Robot World... although Nolan and I weren't too impressed, Blake can't stop talking about it!

Can't go to the Dells without riding the Ducks!

setting herself up for success! :)

We had such a fun and relaxing trip. Our cabin was great, the pool was equally as great and we made lots of special memories.

first day of school

thrilled about his new backback. thrilled about his new shoes. not so thrilled about getting his picture taken.

This is the best I could do on the morning of Blake's first day of school. He is going to a 3 year old preschool two mornings a week and is LOVING it!

omaha

Last weekend we made a quick trip to Omaha to visit some friends. Our dear friends Paul and Heather, and son Frederick, have temporarily moved to Omaha while Paul is undergoing a stem cell transplant at the Leid Transplant Center there in Omaha. Paul was diagnoised with a rare form of Lymphoma which is considered in most cases to be terminal. Please keep them in your prayers. The stem cell transplant provides a small hope of survival. When we were visiting, Paul was in the very first stages of 'harvesting'- removing his own stem cells that will be returned later in the process. Paul was feeling quite well while we were there and was able to spend time at the pool with us and give us a tour of the Lied Center.

On Friday when we arrived, we met Heather and Frederick at the zoo. It was a HOT, hot day but the kids loved it. Especially Brenna, as seen by the picture below. She could have spent forever starring at each and every animal.

smile for the day

Just a quick post for the night. Doesn't this picture just make you smile?



Thanks Uncle Rod and Aunt Annie for the Dora Fairy Princess costume, or as Brenna calls it- her 'butterfly dance.' She loves it!

my love

Today I've been married to my best friend and love of my life for five years!

Happy Anniversary, Nolan. I love you more than ever!

iowa summers

water park

The kids and I have season passes to the water park here in Waterloo. We love it... I actually think I get more excited about it than the kids do! We spend many summer afternoons there in the numerous kiddie areas, in the wave pool, or floating down the lazy river.

Today we stayed home and created a water park of our own.

Best part about our 'water park'? Drinks at the top!

rainy day project

Today has been a rainy day. We're talking a flash flood, streets closed, mayor asking everyone to stay off of the roads rainy day. Needless to say, we are staying home today.

A day stuck in the house... what's a girl to do? Well, tear out the old carpet in my son's bedroom of course!


I've got the carpet and tack strips out of more than half of the room right now but am taking a break to nap with my two favorite kids. :) Back to work after naptime...

two

Can you believe it?! Our little girl is TWO!!

It was a very happy birthday! Here are some pictures from her birthday celebration.

What cake did Brenna pick out at the store? Pink, of course!!

Mommy made a special Dora and Boot's cake.

Opening her presents. Big brother had to be reminded constantly that it was Brenna's birthday and he needed to let her open the presents. Blake was quick to tell Brenna that when it was HIS birthday, she needed to let him open his presents by himself! :)

The lucky birthday girl got to spend her birthday with these special people. Her grandparents!

We love you Brenna! We thank God for the blessing you are to us and look forward to watching you blossom as a TWO year old!

busy...

We are in the middle of a three week BUSY spell in our summer. Sorry for my lack of blogging, I'll try to catch up... in a few weeks. :)

*we've had family visiting and planning on more visitors for the weekend

*brenna turns two today (a post on that to come)

*brenna's birthday party on friday, which means i need to get busy on her cake

*nolan traveled to kansas last weekend for a friend's wedding

*we are planning a trip to kansas over the 4th for a wedding and time with family

*not to mention trips to the waterpark, picnics, daddy's softball games, running and the everyday busyness that goes along with having a 3 year old and a 2 year old!

oh... AND i'm directing our church's VBS which begins in just over a week. whew!

Until I can get caught up, I'll leave you with a few pictures.

I guess this is what happens when I get a distracting phone call while she's playing with markers. :)

This little man got stitches this week. He didn't miss a beat... ran to hop on his bike the moment we got home!

pajama party

Can you tell they are excited about their new summer pajamas? Brenna picked Dora pj's. No surprise there... she's been asking for purple Dora pajamas for months now. Blake, who at first was a little concerned that they did not have Diego pajamas, was happy to find Mickey riding on a motorcycle. This after bath time picture just makes me smile!

After a fun filled day of pool, picnics and feeding the 'pet' ducks (more on that another day), I am ready to spend a quiet evening at home. Hubby is gone to a softball game and kids are in bed... but not yet asleep or quiet for that matter. They are having a very loud conversation at the moment, across the hallway from eachother and through their closed bedroom doors:

Blake: I want you Mommy!
Brenna: No Blake, Go To BED! (in a very motherly tone)

Good Night All.

hermie

Today we met a new friend. Hermie, the caterpillar. Blake made a nice little home for Hermie and had a conversation with him that went something like this. "Hermie, do you like the fresh, crunchy leaves we got for you? Some day, maybe today, you will turn into a beautiful butterfly. Then you will collect nectar. Yep, that will be your job."

Unfortunately, Hermie really hasn't moved for the last couple hours. Yikes.

mother's day

I'm feeling especially blessed to be the mom of these two today. Blake came into our room this morning with a card that he typed himself on the computer. What a great way to start the day! I got a good run in and we headed to church. I told Nolan that one thing I want for Mother's day is simply some time to run and some time to bake. Check and check... got both things accomplished and loved every minute of it. Let's not forget to mention the gift certificate to a local spa I got from my hubby! That will be put to good use very soon! :) Thanks honey!!

jealous

Totally. Completely. Utterly.

JEALOUS!



My husband with George Brett. THE George Brett!

I'm SO jealous.

How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God. 1 John 3:1

Mom on the Run

Many of you know about my love for running. I run most every morning before the kids wake up and then often run again at night on these gorgeous spring evenings. My husband thinks I'm a little crazy, but I'm going to make a distance runner out of him some day! :) Running is my break away from being 'Mom' for a short time. It's time spent in prayer, praise, worship and I thank the Lord for the time I am able to spend with Him while I am running.

Many of you also know that I have been struggling for the past year with daily headaches and migraines. It's been frustrating and exhausting. After many appointments/tests/doctors I am happy to be telling you that my headaches have subsided (for the most part). I am taking a prescription that has helped tremendously and will continue to take it for 6 months to train my body to not react to stressors with a headache.

For those of you who have been asking about my marathon training, here's an unfortunate update. The prescription that is taking the pain away is also affecting my running. On long training runs (10-20 miles), I was having a hard time regulating my breathing. Typically on a long run, I'm breathing hard for the first mile or so and then my breath would relax for the remainder of the run. This wasn't happening on the medication. I was running 10+ miles and breathing hard the entire run, causing my heart to race. It saddens me that I am having to stop the training but am so very thankful for a cease in headaches. I am a much happier mom and wife without headaches, right Nolan?! :)

I'm still able to run, just shorter distances. I will run another marathon... but not in June.

There you have it! God is good and the headaches are gone.

Happy Easter!

Here are a few pictures from our weekend . Lots of memories made!


Nolan put Brenna's dress on this morning while I was getting ready for church. She found me in the bathroom and said, 'Benna so pidy!' Yes, Brenna is so pretty and Blake is a pretty handsome young man.


Carefully coloring the easter eggs.

The final product. They were very proud.

Blake got a new umbrella in his Easter basket. They have been playing 'It's Raining' all day!

We are feeling especially blessed this Easter day. He is RISEN! Happy Easter to all of our family and loved ones.