The Davis Family

CHRISTMAS 2011

2011-12-28T09:54:00.000-08:00

Well hello!! Just incase you were wondering, yes, the Davis family is still alive! :) I was looking at the last post I did with the kids and it was of Christmas LAST year. Holy cow. I've been slackin. Let me tell ya.......it's been a heckuva year. ;)

We had a wonderful Christmas this year!! The girls are at such a fun age. We had so much fun watching them open their gifts. I love love LOVE Christmas and the magic of it all. And it's so much fun seeing it through your kids' eyes!!

Coming down the hall......Ella first

Checkin out the goods.....

I love this pic. Ella has the best bed-head ever. :)

Halli's favorites gifts from Santa: a Barbie house (wooden.....this one had BETTER last!! ;)

Crib Life Baby, and some fun games.

Ella's favorites were: Rapunzel and Flynn Rider Barbies, and an Ariel Vanity.

But the best gift of all was...........

A NEW PUPPY!!!!

This little cutie is 8 weeks old and oh so sweet!! She's a maltese and seems to be such a good little puppy. The girls absolutely adore her!! They named her Jewel. :) Santa is THE BEST.

Other fun things we've been doing during Christmastime:

Lots of snuggling

Sitting on Santa's lap

Fun Christmas parties

Decorating Christmas cookies

More Christmas parties......

And Halli sang in her first Holiday Sing-in! They sang Melekelikimaka. (I have no idea how to spell that....) It was so cute and she did GREAT!!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Halli's 6th Birthday Party!

2011-12-23T12:24:00.000-08:00

Our sweet little Halli had a wonderful party this year! We celebrated it one month early again, since her birthday is so close to Christmas. This year was a family party, and she chose a pajama party. She had strict instructions that even the adults had to wear their jammies. It was pretty funny!

The sisters

The cake

The cousins

The Presents

Ella gave Halli some make up. She had to try it out herself, of course!

Here's all of the family in their jammies. Thanks everyone for being such great sports!!

Jodi and Wyatt

Grandma and Grandpa Burt

Grandma and Grandpa Davis

Grandma Patti and Grandpa Tom

Mom and Dad. Comfiest party EVER!!

A couple of things about Halli at 6:

She is the sweetest thing ever! She is such a wonderful big sister to Ella. She is extremely kind, loving and patient. She's going to be a wonderful mother someday! She loves kindergarten, and she loves to learn. She is so sad on the days she doesn't have school!! She is super creative and loves to color, draw, and make crafts all by herself. She loves to go to gymnastics, and loves to be with her friends and cousins. She is such a wonderful little girl and we are so very proud of her!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BOO!!! WE LOVE YOU SO MUCH!!!

SLC Marathon

2011-06-06T19:24:00.000-07:00

Well the Salt Lake Marathon has come and gone. (It was on April 16th.....sorry, I don't know why I've been such a horrible blogger lately!!)

Home stretch!! Hooray!! I was sooooooo excited to see my family.

And there I go.....to the finish line. Can't miss me in the bright pink, haha!! My time was 3:20:23. I placed 8th out of all the women; 3rd in my agegroup, and #68th overall. (Top 100....wahoo!!) There were over 1200 people that ran this race; so it was fairly small though. My time was a personal best by almost 3 minutes, so I was pretty excited about that. I seriously didn't think I'd beat it at all. This race was HARD. And my training was mediocre at best. Running in the winter was excruciating for me....I mean I did the training, but the quality was horrible. I was just proud of myself if I just got out and did it! Running in 20 degree weather isn't my idea of a good time. :)

This race started out pretty hilly but then after mile 13 finally flattened out.

But I literally thought at mile 12 how in THE HECK am I going to finish this race?? I had never felt that crappy before. I wanted to crawl to the side of the road and die.

But then somehow I started feeling better after that and was able to finish. But I'll be honest, it was still hard. But that's why I love marathons, peeps. Because it's all heart. It's seriously a mindset you get in. If you think you can do it, you can.

Oh but did I mention there was a 2 mile hill at mile 23?? Totally didn't read that when I signed up!! Who the heck planned this route anyway?!?! I may have to hurt them. :)

Thanks to my wonderfuly family and Jake's awesome parents for coming up and supporting me. I know there are a million other things they'd rather be doing than to drive up to Salt Lake on a saturday morning!! I really appreciate it you guys!! I couldn't wait to get to the finish line to see them all.

Aaaaah, my sweet babies. The best thing to run to at the end of a race!!

WAHOO!!!!

Christmas 2010

2011-01-21T21:21:00.000-08:00

We had a fabulous holiday season!! Here are some of the fun things we did:

Decorated Christmas cookies

(I couldn't get these pictures to flip for the life of me....work with me.....)

Oh and yes, that IS an elastic in her hair. YAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYY!!!

The wackiest White Elephant Gift we've ever received.......

Sitting on Santa' s lap....Ella did it this year!! And look how enthused she is.

Halli was a little nervous but did great!

Lots and lots of Christmas parties....

Halli's Christmas Program!! She was so dang cute, and she did smile occasionally, although I didn't capture any of those smiles as you can see........

Christmas morning!! Coming down the hall....Ella first.....

And they're off!!

Santa brought Halli a Rapunzel Tower. (The Rapunzel obsession is still in full force. :)

Santa brought Ella a Barbie 4-wheeler. She wasn't sure at first but now she loves it. Actually yet again she just wanted to eat her "num nums" from her stocking all morning. Could've cared less about the gifts. So cute!!

Grandma Patti's, where they received the coveted pillow pet.

Snow fun!

Merry Christmas!!! Until next year. Or atleast July when I play my Christmas music for a day to get me by. HAHA!!!

Santa Run

2011-01-15T09:48:00.000-08:00

So I'm a little late on this post. But the day after Thanksgiving a bunch of us ran the annual "Santa Run" 5k in Provo. It was HILARIOUS!! Check out all these santa's at the starting line:

Ma & Pa Santa

Uncle Scott and Aunt Bobbi

Even my cute 11 year old niece Mikaela joined in on the fun!! And she did GREAT!! (Mikaela is THE BEST babysistter on the planet. She is so cute with my girls and they absolutely adore her. We wished she lived closer!!)

My sister in law Kristi at the finish line!! She rocked it!! (Sorry a little blurry Kristi... It's becuase you were so fast!)

Me and my 19 year old cousin Brock. So we had a big bet going between Brock and I......I was talking smack on Facebook telling him to do this race so I could kick his butt. Well he wasn't havin that so he was bound and determined to beat me!! We were trash tallkin all the way up to the starting line. He kept up with me the entire time but then sprinted at the end and totally kicked my trash. Nice job Brocky!! Just remember I'm 30 years old and have had 2 kids. That's right. :)

They even had milk and cookies at the finish line!! HAHA!! Such a cute race. I had never done a 5k so it was a fun experience. Oh, and I got 2nd place out of all the women, 22 minutes;) Got a medal and everything! So fun to have a sense of accomplishment when you're in mommy mode and raising kids everyday. (Which I LOVE!) But I love having my own time and doing something for myself once in a while!!

Congrats to everyone!! It was a lot of my fam's first race and everyone did so great. Keep it up guys!! We may have started a tradition.

HO HO HO!!

Halli's 5th Birthday Party

2011-01-09T10:22:00.000-08:00

Halli is now officially 5!! Can you believe it?? I seriously can't. This is what I posted on Facebook the day of her birthday that pretty much sums it up:

5 years ago today a little girl came into this world and completely changed my life for the better. Happy Birthday to my sweet Halli. Love you Boo!!

Halli got to have her 1st friend party!! She chose to have a "Rapunzel Princess Party", because she is a bit obsessed with the movie Tangled. When we had this party, she still hadn't seen it yet.

Even mom and dad dressed up!! Haha:)

These pics are a little out of order....bare with me.....

We made princess crowns, played castle ring toss, and had a pinata. 10 screaming girls under one roof is pretty hilarious, by the way.

The cake

Some of Halli's cute friends: Avery, Isabel, and Maren

Rapunzel and her cake :)

The girls had a blast and we made some great memories. We love you Halli!!

Halloween fun

2010-10-30T22:09:00.000-07:00

Halloween has come and gone!! I can't believe it!! I'm SOOOOOO excited to put my Christmas stuff up!! Okay, back to Halloween:

The girls had a blast carving pumpkins. Here's Ella's (with Daddy's help)

And Boo's masterpiece

Halli had a little Halloween parade at her preschool. They marched and then sang some songs for us. It was so cute!! And her teacher is so amazingly talented. She walks around playing her little guitar and sings with them.....I just love her!!

Halli with her friends Ava and Roxy

Halloween night....our little Belle

And our sweet Minnie Mouse

They had so much fun trick or treating!! It was a major downpour at first, so that was eventful!! We went trick-or-treating with Davi and Gunner and then headed to Grandma Davis' for an indoor trunk or treat. We got A LOT of candy. Hello 5 lbs that I just lost. Welcome back.

2 Minnie Mouses!! (Or would you say Minnie Mice?? Haha.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

ST. GEORGE MARATHON!!

2010-10-24T20:11:00.000-07:00

Yeah!! The St. George Marathon baby!! It was soooooo much fun!! Details of the race coming up, but first here's some fun things we did while we were there:

Girl's Night Out at Tuacahn.....we saw "Crazy For You". It was so cute!! (My mom, Aunt Bobbi, Grandma, Jodi and I) Oh and thanks to my Uncle Scott, Grandpa, and Brock for babysitting!!! (Jake didn't arrive until the next night). We owe you guys big time!!

SWIMMING!!

We all stayed at a condo and they had some fantastic swimming pools.

The girls were in heaven. Summer is over, and yet they still got to swim!! Let's just say they love St. George.

Halli and Davi's twinner swimming suits. No, we were not together when we purchased these:)

After the race, chatting with the girls

So the weather actually wasn't too bad! It was definitely hot, but I finished before it got too terrible. This race was so well organized and I loved every minute. I even got some hot cocoa before the race began....doesn't get much better than that!! My time was 3:23:29......I qualified for BOSTON!! Wahoo!!!! Out of all of the women I was #93, (#27 in my age group) and overall I was #567. (There were over 7,000 runners in this race). BOOYAH!! LOL:)

Here are the 2 reasons I run even faster to the finish line!! Can't wait to see my sweeties!!
Halli says she wants to run a race with me one day. This girl is FAST....I can't wait until she is old enough to go for it!!

These next pics are small because they were taken by the marathon photographers. But I am too cheap to purchase them to download, so get out your microscope:

I also want to give a big shout out to my awesome husband who is always so supportive in my training. He is so great to be sure to be available so I can get all of my runs in. Thank you Jakey!! And also to my amazing mom who helped out when he couldn't be there. I never could have finished this race if it wasn't for you two!!!

The scenery was beautiful.

Home stretch.....

Almost there......

FINISH LINE!!!

Was I sore after? OH YEAH. Was it a pain that I love?? U BET!!! Can't wait for the next one!!

Thanks to all my family who made the trip down to support me!! Bobbi, Scott, Brock, Grandma, Grandpa, Jodi, Davi, Gunner, Mom and Dad, and of course my amazing Jake and my girls. And everyone else who cheered me on via other ways!! I love you guys!!

SALT LAKE 2011. (April). Who's with me???

Ella is 2!!

2010-09-19T19:04:00.000-07:00

Our little Ella Bella just turned 2 years old. I seriously can't believe it!! Time goes by way too fast. Where did my little baby go??

Care Bear Cake. Thank you, Macey's.

A little game of "Castle Ring Toss". Yes, we will probably play this at every birthday festivity. Gotta get our money's worth:)

"G-dub" (aka. Gunner)

Present time

This is Ella's new Fur-real kitty Grandma Patti and Grandpa Tom gave her. You can't tell in this picture, but she seriously loves it. She drags that kitty around with her EVERYWHERE.

Lemonade and cake and ice-cream. Yum?

Frosting. Double yum.

This little girl brings so much joy into our lives! She is so funny and full of life. I seriously want to eat her up every day. I am so blessed to be her mom!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ELLA!!! WE LOVE YOU!!!

Pilates

2010-09-10T13:45:00.001-07:00

Can you feel the burn???

I had to post this because it cracks me up every time. Whenever I do pilates, so does Ella.

Oh, and Halli too. Check out Ella's amazing head stand pose....I'm going to have to try that one:)

Halli's first day

2010-09-10T13:23:00.000-07:00

Last week Halli had her first day of preschool!! This is 4 year old preschool no less, so she is REALLY big now. She couldn't wait to go and see her teacher, Mrs. Allred, and make lots of new friends. She got to bring a few items for show and tell, and of course one of the items was her puppy. This is her special puppy that she sleeps with every night. And she insisted that "the puppy" be in the picture.

I can't believe how grown up she looks in this picture. I'm still coming to grips with the fact that she is going to be in kindergarten next year. I am going to bawl on that day. For real. So for now I am going to enjoy the fact that I still get to have her home in my bubble and not in school in the "real world." I've been thinking of home schooling my kids. Still thinking......

Okay, um no. I'm not that crazy!! (Oh come on, did you really think I was serious??)

Haha. Love you Boo!!!

Provo River Half Marathon

2010-08-08T20:37:00.001-07:00

Oh baby, it's that time of year again for the Provo River Half!! 13.1 miles of absolutely stunning scenery. You actually wind around and run past Bridal Veil Falls 3 times. Amazing.

This deer cracked me up!! He was up at the top of South Fork while we were waiting for the race to start. He just saundered up to me and I got to pet him. Here he is making the rounds trying to scrounge up some grub!! He was the friendliest little guy.

Crossing the finish line!!

My time was 1 hour 41 minutes. 19th in my age group and #170 overall....(about 3000 people ran it....) My time was actually like 45 seconds slower than last year. What?!?! Not sure how that happened. I thought I had my pace going great and faster than last year; but apparently not!! All I know that is last year I had soooo much adrenaline because it was my first race and I ran way faster than I had been running during my training. And I literally couldn't walk that day; I over did it. But this year I ran just slightly faster than my regular training pace, and I'm a little sore but not too bad. So this gives me a good idea of where I am and where I may approximately be for my full marathon in October. I am looking forward to my last 6 weeks of training and am a little sad it's coming to an end. I love love love to run!!! I am so grateful for my body. For real. Not a day goes by that I don't thank Heavenly Father for my own health and the health of my family.

So, October 2nd, I will be in sunny St. George!! And I am really hoping I don't die because of the heat!! But I've heard it's a great race and I can't wait. Still waiting for fellow family members and friends to join me for future marathons......what do ya think??

Halli-isms

2010-06-19T12:45:00.000-07:00

Halli dressed up as a "rockstar"

I am so bad about writing down the funny things that Halli says. So here are a few of them that I have caught lately:

"Mom, that boy was fathering me." (Bothering me)

"Mom, can I get out my craps today? So I can make you a crap? (craft)

"I am getting rid of Ella!!" (after Ella had destroyed a picture of hers)

"Daddy! You look inquizit!!" (exquisite)

"Mom, is that a rash or a zip?" (zit)

I still crack up every time she mentions making a "crap"....and it's so cute I hate to correct her!! Oh Miss Boo.....you crack me up!!

Easter 2010

2010-05-02T19:40:00.001-07:00

Here are some pics of our Easter festivities!! These are in no particular order because blogger is having issues right now and I can't cut and paste....bare with me!

Halli and Davi coloring Easter eggs

Taylor dressed up as the Easter bunny and Ella wouldn't take her eyes off him. At first I thought she was scared, but then she kept following him around.....it was so cute!

Halli and Davi and Aunt Gloria's Easter Egg Hunt. These gals got more loot than they ever could have hoped for.....Aunt Gloria sure knows how to host a great hunt!!

Ella found some chocolate in one of her eggs and and of course refused to put it down....

1 cute Boo

Mommy's girl!! LOL

Halli and her loot

Now why in the world would you want to find Easter eggs when you can just stand around and eat candy?? My thoughts exactly, Ella.

Decorating cookies

2 sweeties

Looking for candy

Still trying to find more candy

HAPPY EASTER!!!

GOING PRIVATE....

2010-03-09T08:19:00.000-08:00

I have decided to make our blog private. I haven't done it before because I think it's a big ol' pain, but there are too many weirdos out there. I very much dislike the fact that you can google one of our names and it brings up our blog for the whole world to see. So leave me your email and I'll send you an invitation to view our blog. Thanks and love you all!!

Ella's 12 month pics

2010-02-21T23:00:00.000-08:00

I know, I know. You're thinking, "but Ella is much older than 12 months?!" And yes, yes she is. 17 months old now to be exact. My awesome friend Cara took these for me over the summer and I totally forgot to share them. I finally have some hanging up in my house as well. I am so on top of it, it kills me!

She was kind of being a stinker that day, but we got a few good ones. As I have said before, my kids+cameras= no smiles and onery girls. The joys.

This girl gets more kisses each day than I can count. I just love her to pieces and want to eat her!! We love you Ella!!

Christmas 09'

2010-01-28T21:47:00.000-08:00

Okay, okay, better late than never!! Here are some of the highlights of our Christmas. We had a great one!!

We discovered that Ella did not like Santa.

Not one bit.

I caught this picture of Halli when Santa walked in. She was so excited!

One of many Christmas parties: playing "stomp the balloon" or something of that nature....

2 little cuties in pink

Rides on Princes White Hair at the Burt Christmas party

Halli's infamous CHEESE!!!

Grandma Patti, Grandpa Tom, and Ella Bella

1 crazy baby

Did I mention Ella did NOT like Santa?

Boo, however, had it all figured out. She was a little shy, but didn't hesitate when it was her turn! What did she ask for? A BARBIE. Shocker!!

And what did she get? A BARBIE!! And a married Ken to boot.

Princess Polly Pocket Castle. Good thinking, Santa!! She plays with it ALL. THE. TIME.

Ella started with her stocking and found some M&M's. She wanted nothing to do with anything else......

So here is Ella's Christmas morning. Literally. Eating M&M's!!

Razor. Now we're officially cool.

Love these girls!!

Oooh she's the sweetest little thing. I just want to eat her!!

Another shot of my camera loving girls, Davi, and Gunner

Merry Christmas to all!!

A day in the snow!

2009-12-12T18:54:00.000-08:00

We FINALLY got to play in the snow today!! It snowed a few days ago, but then turned to bitter, miserable coldness......we're talking highs in the teens.....but today's weather was nice and warm. Well, warmer than it has been at least. It did get above freezing!!

Cousin Davi came over to join in on the fun.

2 little cuties having a great time!!

Mom's turn!! I didn't get ready today....don't look too close:)

So proud of their snowman!

Davi on the rideable snowbunny.

Halli on the snowbunny; official name: Princess Snowman Bunny.

The festivities ended with a nice cup of hot cocoa. Does it get any better than that?
Merry Christmas everyone!!

Halli's Birthday Party

2009-12-06T20:59:00.000-08:00

Halli's 4!!!

Well, almost.......

This sweet little gal's birthday is actually December 28th. Due to the fact that it is 3 days after Christmas, we have always celebrated it one month early (with the exception of her 1st birthday....) and it has worked out great. We do a party on Nov. 28th and then on her actual birthday we go out to lunch or to a movie or something. So here are some highlights from the par-tay:

Her "Barbie and the 3 Musketeers" cake. She was a little obsessed with the movie and had not even seen it yet.....have I ever mentioned this girl loves Barbies???

BTW I made it.

JUST KIDDING!!
C'mon people, you know me better than that!!

A game of castle ring toss:

Grandma and Grandpa Davis gave her this ballerina doll. She loves it!

She finally got the Barbie and the 3 Musketeers movie!! It was so cute when she opened it; she said "who gave me this??" and I told her me, daddy, and Ella and she gave me a big hug and said "thankyou mommy!!!" Such a sweetie. She's been waiting FOREVER!!

The coveted "Married" Cinderella

She had a great time!!

Happy "early" Birthday Halli!! We love you and are so grateful you're part of our family!!

Halloween fun

2009-11-06T20:12:00.001-08:00

Happy Halloween 2009!
Long story short: went trick or treating, ate way too much candy. Including mom! I think I'll be running a few extra miles over the next couple of weeks to undo the damage......yikes!

The sweetest little witch in town......

Our little flower:)

Ella quite enjoyed trick or treating and just loved playing with the candy. She got especially angry if we tried to take her treat pail from her--it was so funny!! Her tantrums continue to crack me up. She can be quite the little toot!

Davi was a "rainbow ballerina". Her dress had fiber-optic lights. Who knew they made ballerina dresses with lights? Amazing.

I love when I capture the funny faces!!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

Halli's first fieldtrip

2009-10-11T19:40:00.000-07:00

Halli went on her very first field trip this week!! We went to Cornbelly's, and I got to go with her. I'm so glad I got to go; I had a great time and it was so fun to get to know some of her school friends. They are so funny! I swear Mrs. Allred must crack up all day.

Davi and Halli, ready for some fun.

The first thing we did was go for a hay ride pulled by a cool tractor. Mom forgot to get a picture of this. Oops!!

The tractor dropped us off at the pumpkin patch where all of the kids got to pick out their very own pumpkin.

Davi, Halli, and their friends Ellie and Truman. I seriously want to squeeze that little Truman. He's so cute. He's a trooper and watched Barbie and the Diamond Castle on the way to Cornbelly's. What a guy!!

Note: Mrs. Allred has all of the kids wear the same shirts on fieldtrips, which, by the way, I am so not cool with. But what do you do when Mrs. Allred is the greatest teacher around?? You go with the flow. That's right Tandi, go with the flow.......AAAAAAARG!!!!!!!!!

Huge trampolines that the kids loved. Check out the action shot of Davi in mid-air on this one. Nice job Davi!!

One giant trampoline all to themselves!

Bumpy slide. This one was a hit!

Check out these swings. How'd they do that??

They had these water spouts that you could pump with water and then send little duckies down. The kids were MESMERIZED by this and stayed at this little attraction FOREVER. I think I may get Jake to build us one to have at home. What a novel idea!!

Hay maze

Little house filled with what??!! You guessed it! Corn!! Preschoolers + house of corn= PRESCHOOLER BLISS.

The day ended with a chicken show. So cute!!

What a fun fieldtrip!! Thanks to Mrs. Allred for planning such fun activities.
We love Cornbelly's!!

TOP OF UTAH BABY!!

2009-09-22T21:23:00.000-07:00

The long awaited day finally arrived and I FINISHED MY FIRST MARATHON!! It was the Top of Utah Logan Marathon, and I had an absolute blast!! My awesome friend Mindy ran it with me and I'm so glad that she did. I just love her!!

Here's some pics of me in action.

These pics are all after mile #23:

Coming down the finish line.....

I ran it in 3 hrs 53 minutes. And oddly enough, it flew by!! My goal was to do it in less than 4 hours, and to run the entire time, which I did. Booyah!!

Me and Mindy--WE DID IT!!

This will be the first of many!! (That is, as long as this old bod cooperates!) I had so much fun and it was just invigorating. Most of you that know me know how much I love to run and it is so therapeutic for me. If I don't run I'm quite an onery buggar! So this is a way of life for me. I'm so grateful for my body and that I am even able to walk, let alone run 26.2 miles!! Our bodies our truly amazing.

Thanks to my Mom, Aunt Bobbi, Alisse, and Jodi for driving up and cheering me on!! You gals are the sweetest. Thanks also to my awesome cousin Brad for taking time out to come the race as well!! And thankyou Shannon and Taun for letting us crash at your house and for cheering me on too!! Nothing is better than having the ones you love waiting for you at the finish line. And Jacob, my sweet Jacob. Thankyou so much for all of your support throughout all of my training. You were so great about being home for the girls so I could get all of my runs in; and you never once complained. You had to sacrifice a lot of early saturday morning fishing/deer spotting/other manly things that you enjoy doing so that I could go for my long runs. I know that you put a lot of things on hold so I could do this and I appreciate it so much!! And thankyou mom, so much for babysitting when Jake couldn't. I appreciate your help more than you know!! (Not to mention being so cheerful when being asked to do it!!)

Me and my girls after the race. I have a feeling that little Halli will be joining me one day.....that little girl is pretty dang fast. Can't wait Boo!!

Ella's 1st Birthday!!

2009-09-20T17:09:00.000-07:00

Can you believe I'm one???

That's right!! Our little Ella Bella turned 1 yr. old on Sept. 15th. This year has absolutely flown by. She is the sweetest baby and I wish she could stay little forever!! We just love this little gal!

Here's what Ella stats came in at her 12 mo. check:

Weight: 22 lbs (71st percentile)
Height: 30.5 in (90th percentile)
Head: 18 in (70th percentile)

She is crawling everywhere and loves getting into anything and everything! She especially loves to mess up anything that Halli is playing with. She is so curious and just has the sweetest little personality. She is also growing up and starting to know just what she wants; and has begun to throw some pretty hilarious tantrums. I can't help but crack up!

Here she is with her cake

Presents!!

Happy Birthday to YOOOOOOOOU!!!

Aaaah, the best part of the 1 yr. old birthday, the eating of the cake. It all started with just a little frosting.......

Then just a little more......

Hey, this is kinda fun!!

Delicious!!

Oh yeah!!

Then she got this scowl on her face and started pushing it everywhere....it was so funny!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ELLA!!! We love you so much!! You bring more joy into our lives than words can even express. We're so blessed to have you in our family!!!

Halli's first dance class

2009-09-11T18:57:00.000-07:00

Halli had her first day of dance yesterday. It was very exciting!! She's taking classes at "Vibe". And the best part of all, she gets to go with cousin Davi! Life is good.

Here they are just minutes before class began. Oh the anticipation!!

Striking a pose

One day she will love to get her picture taken. I can only hope.

This is their teacher, Cassie. She's just darling! I'm still not quite sure how she teaches all those 3 year olds to dance while keeping their attention. Case in point: notice the little girl in the black completely oblivious to what is going on. This is during the first 2 minutes of class. Um, good luck with that, Cassie. You're quite a woman!

Stay tuned for the extremely entertaining video clips!

Halli's first day of Preschool!

2009-09-01T18:52:00.000-07:00

Today was a big day!! Halli finally had her first day of preschool!! She has been waiting ALL SUMMER LONG to go to preschool. Trust me. In fact when we were checking out the place way back in March, she cried when we left. Did I mention at the preschool is a barbie house? Enough said.

Here she is all ready to go! I get a little sad when I look at this picture because she is so big; I just can't believe it. But then the sweet thoughts come to my mind of running errands without a "Mommy, I want THAT!!" 3 year old, not to mention some peace and quiet at home during naptime. Aaaaah, yes, I think I will be able to handle this transition with ease. We had an open house last week and all the kids got to paint these little bags. She gets to take it to school everyday. She did a fabulous job!

Halli got to take a teddy bear today, and she gets to bring one for the next two weeks because they will be doing teddy bear activities. (They even get to make teddy bear cupcakes--how cute!) She also got to take 4 items for show and tell that told everyone a little bit about her. She proudly placed in her bag:

-Her Ariel barbie (favorite toy)
- A picture she colored, because this girl LOVES to color!!
-A picture of her and Ella
-Her "hula girl" doll (a toy Grandma Patti gave her)

Her teacher is Mrs. Allred and she is just the sweetest thing ever. She does the cutest things with them and is probably the most organized woman I have ever met! She taught Kindermusic for years and is very musical; she's a very talented gal! I get to join Halli on her first fieldtrip to Cornbelly's in October.....I can hardly wait!

Davis Reunion 09'

2009-08-23T20:51:00.000-07:00

Oh baby, it's Davis Reunion time!!! This year we were supposed to go to the cabin at Lava Hot Springs, but because of some unforeseen complications, we weren't able to go. So we decided to have a makeshift 3 day reunion right at Gayle and Lorraines...........man, are they troopers or what??!!

DISCLAIMER: Many of the following pictures contain my children looking a bit like orphans. I do love them, I do usually have their hair done, bows on, etc. and I usually don't wear ugly T-shirts, but unfortunately I was a bit lazy from all of the events and didn't really care. It will never happen again.

Now let us continue:

Gayle's friend Dennis loaned us this AWESOME train for the kids.....check it out!! They all loved it, and it was definently the highlight of the entire weekend:)

And away they go!!

Train #2
(there were 3 trains all together...)

This is why Ella ALWAYS has a bow on in public. But daddy took this picture without my knowledge. She's our little cue ball and we love her!!

Little Miss Mikaela

Mikaela and Cooper

Next up was a water balloon fight--luckily we were able to get this in before the storm came in and the fall temperatures began!! Some of us didn't get the memo about the water activities; thus the reason for some of the children running around in their undies.....

Look at those sweet cheeks!! That's right Connor, I'm talkin to YOU!!

Hannah and Roxy

MOVIE NIGHT! We were supposed to have it outside, but it was raining. So we improvised... Movie choice: BOLT!

Pam had a cute idea to get these little treat boxes from the movie theater, the kids loved them.

Boo enjoying her juice box during the flick....

The next morning some of us hiked Timp Cave. We all piled in our AWESOME 12 passenger van....(Jake bought it to haul all of his guys to Clearfield, and man does that thing come in handy!!) We arrived in style! Oh yeah.

Aubrey, Hannah, Me and Mikaela

Sidenote: My sister-in-law's flip flop broke at the beginning of the hike!! (Bummer for her, but yay for me because Halli was ALREADY whining that she was tired, so Tiff took her home with her:) Thanks Tiff!! **Thus the reason that Halli is not in any of the following pictures...

Grandpa, Benjamin and Meg

Just before entering the cave. Sorry I forgot your hat, sweetie. You're still hot.

Jake's brother Matt, being.....Matt.

Happy Trails!! Thanks Gayle and Lorraine for everything, it was a lot of fun!!

Provo River Half Marathon

2009-08-09T15:54:00.001-07:00

I completed my first race on saturday!! It was the Provo River Half Marathon; 13.1 miles beginning at South Fork and ending behind the Wynnsong Theaters. It was so much fun!!

Ella Bella patiently awaiting mommy's arrival; it was a very cold morning!

Boo munching, waiting for mom

Greeting my fam after the race.

I had a lot of fun doing this. I couldn't get anyone to do it with me, so I did it all alone!! One day I'm going to get Jake addicted to running. One day. Atleast when our kids are older so we can train together--right now I need a sitter!

The scenery was BEAUTIFUL. We are so blessed to live by our majestic mountains!! The route went right past Bridal Veil Falls; it was seriously so pretty. And I must say that I did better than I thought I was going to do. I ran it in 1 hour 40 minutes, and out of over 3,000 runners I came in #193. Not too shabby for this mommy of 2!! Let me also mention that I am EXTREMELY SORE!! My calves hurt so bad today I can barely walk. Aaah, but it's such a great feeling:) After the race there was a live band and a pancakes and fruit breakfast. It was delicious!

Halli couldn't bring herself to put down the watermelon to take a picture.....this girl loves her food!!

Next up: THE BIG ONE. Stay tuned to see if I survive......

Grandpa's surprise......

2009-08-05T18:20:00.000-07:00

Well, Grandpa Tom has outdone himself again. He got the grandkids a new pony!! She is a mini and oh so cute.

He let the girls pick a name for her. Davi chimed in first with "white hair." Then Halli chose "princess". So we will call her "Princess White Hair". LOL:) Princess for short.

This little beauty is about 7 years old and the sweetest little thing. Don't be surprised if you see her inside my house one day.

The girls were all smiles.

Gunner didn't quite know what to think, but I think he liked her:)

Miss Ella Bella very much enjoyed her turn on Princess. I'm sure this poor little horse is going to get a lot more than she bargained for with these little tikes!!

Welcome to our family, Princess!! You are going to have one great life. All the carrots and apples you could ever want and more love than I'm sure you'll ever need. Thanks Dad, the kids will have a ball!!

The Living Planet Aquarium

2009-08-03T14:13:00.000-07:00

We ventured out to the Living Planet Aquarium today.....

Jellyfish--can you see them?? Oops, probably not. But boy were they cool in person!! I am fascinated by oceanlife.

This was pretty cool. They had a pool with a bunch of Sting Rays swimming around and you could reach in and touch them. Very slimey and very cool!!

Little alligator--so neat!!

Coaxing Boo into taking a picture

My girls are such good models:)
Notice the turtle??

This is after a little tiny bribe (of icecream...) I cannot get this girl to sit and pose for the camera!! The little tuti fruiti. I love her.

Incase any of you were wondering about visiting the Living Planet Aquarium, here is my rating of the place. I give it a B. It was a little pricey for what you get if you ask me!! It took us less than an hour to walk through, and the cost was $8 for adults, $6 for kids and 2 and under are free. We went on a whim or I would have looked for discount tickets:)

Squinty eyes and 4th of July's

2009-07-04T21:57:00.001-07:00

Happy Independence Day!!! I hope you noticed the title of today's post; let's see if you can guess who exactly has those 'squinty eyes'.....

This is her new "pretty smile".

I think Davi looks so grown up in this picture....

CHEESE!!!!!!!

We didn't do anything too exciting today, but we did have a delicious BBQ at Grandma Patti's. The highlight of the night was definently the fresh strawberry pie from Kneaders.....yummmm.
No pictures of that, though. Imagine it. Love it.

Happy 4th of July!!!

Ella's 9 mo. check

2009-06-23T19:55:00.000-07:00

I think I'll just keep one of these on her until she gets some hair:)

Okay, seriously? Don't you just want to eat those legs??!!!

Ella had her 9 month appointment with good ol' Dr. Glade today. She didn't have to get any shots, so we were very excited! Here are her stats:

weight: 21 lbs, 82nd percentile
height: 29 in, 89th percentile
head: 17.5, 62nd percentile

Good N' healthy!

Some of the cute things Ella Bella is doing these days:

*schmooshy face (shown above)
*so big
*waving bye-bye
*gets on her tummy and scoots backwards to "try" and get around

*sits up, then starts like she is going to crawl, but then falls to her tummy and screams and hollers until mommy comes and picks her up
*has 2 new teeth, lower front

*babbles all the time; says ba ba ba, ma ma ma, da da da
*loves playing peek-a-boo
*eats EVERYTHING from her baby food to my lean cuisines....this girl is NOT picky like her sister!
*loves going for morning runs with mommy
*already probably has a chocolate addiction thanks to her mommy
*wants to be big like Halli and her friends and wants to be everywhere the action is!

This little girl has been such a good baby. She really is such a joy to have around. She is mesmerized by Halli and all that she does. Halli is such a good big sister and is so cute with her! I am now bracing myself for the fact that little Ella is going to be mobile very soon and the "fun" will really begin!!

Happy Father's Day!

2009-06-21T21:08:00.000-07:00

Another Father's Day has come and gone. How great it is to have a day to reflect and appreciate the wonderful daddys in our life. However I do think there should be atleast 4 Mother's Days throughout the year......I'm just sayin.....

The day began with a scrumptious breakfast in bed, Daddy's favorite: sausage/egg/cheese/bacon mcmuffins [aka. heart attack on a plate] with a tall glass of chocolate milk, prepared by mommy and the Boo. Jake enjoyed sleeping in and eating a hearty "man's" breakfast.

I was busy this morning baking homemade bread for the Grandpas' (I know, I know. I'm so domesticated!!) And of course got ready in a rush trying to make it to church on time. Jake took Halli to church a little early to get us a seat, and when she jumped out of the truck she bent over, lifted up her dress and said "ha ha, I'm not wearing any underwear!!" and proceeded to moon the entire parking lot. Woops!! Mommy forgot the undies!! I am officially losing it. But why did she wait until she got to church to notify us of her bare bum? Because this little girl loves to be nakey. The other morning she came in the kitchen, buck naked, with nothin' but a hoodie on and said so confidently "I'm goin' outside Mom" and started to walk towards the door. I'm gonna have to watch this little gal......

Halli sang "When Daddy Comes Home" with the primary in sacrament meeting. (Don't worry, I had brought her some underwear by this point). She continues to surprise me how brave she is to get up in front of everyone (our ward is HUGE) because she can be so shy. She is such a big girl. I look at her up there and I just about burst because I love her so much and am just so proud of her. She is such a little sweetie.

After church we went to grandma Patti's where we had a BBQ. Halli helped me make a cake for Grandpa Tom:

In case you can't tell, it's a shirt and tie. The frosting turned out a little thin and started to crack, it looks a little hammered, but Grandpa loved it. Grandpa Davis would have got one, except he's a crazy man and not eating sugar right now. (I wish I had that kind of will power!!)

We then went to Grandma and Grandpa Davis' house to wish our awesome Grandpa Davis a Happy Father's Day.

Chubs #1 and 2 (Ella and Phoenix) Ella's in the orange

Halli made Daddy and the Grandpas' special Ties that she decorated herself, here's a picture of Daddy's:

Happy Father's Day to:

Our Daddy: who is the love of my life and a wonderful father, and will always be a kid at heart

My Dad: who is THE most patient man I have ever known and always knows how to make his girls and grandkids feel special

Gayle: who is one of the most amazing, positive men I have ever met and I look up to so much

Grandpa Burt: who is a great example of charity and willing to lend a hand whenever anything is needed

Grandpa Great: who is a great example of faith and love

And to all of you Father's out there!!!

Strawberry Days 09!!!

2009-06-19T15:17:00.000-07:00

Aaaaah, Strawberry Days, my favorite time of year!!! We went to the carnival yesterday; Halli had a blast. This little girl loves a thrill.....

Ella Bella had a great time observing the fun. I'm sure she'll be joining Boo next year in the festivities!!

Halli's first time on a "big" roller coaster!! She loved it. She is going to be my little roller coaster buddy, since daddy is getting old and now turns green after riding one silly ride; what a lightweight!!!

And yes, even mom enjoyed the ride!!

We have been waiting all year for STRAWBERRIES AND CREAM!!! Yummmm.....

Halli also got her face painted, which she refused to let me wash off that night. Can you blame her? Look at that work of art!!

Albertson's Deals baby!!!

2009-06-10T19:36:00.000-07:00

I took a late evening run to Albie's last night, to use up my doublers that were expiring that day. Here's what I scored:

2- Aunt Jamima butter flavored syrup $1.99

$1 off 2 coupon

doubler

= $1.00/each

2- Rhodes Bake and serve dinner rolls $2.69

$1 coupon off each

2 doublers

= .69/each

1- Kraft Italian Dressing - $2.50

$1 off coupon

doubler

= .50

1- Ritz Crackers $2.50

$1.00 off coupon

doubler

= .50

1- Wheat Thins Crackers $2.50

Buy one Ritz cracker, get one Wheat Thins Variety FREE coupon

= FREE!

2- Kraft Thick N Spicy Brown Sugar BBQ Sauce $1.00

$1.00 off coupon for each

= FREE!

Total before coupons: $18.86

Total out of pocket: $4.38 + tax!!! BOOYAH!

Marseilles Dress SHABBY APPLE GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

2009-06-04T22:49:00.000-07:00

Marseilles Dress SHABBY APPLE GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

A man's way of pulling weeds

2009-05-30T20:53:00.000-07:00

This is at my mom's house. She had some sort of shrubs that were overgrown and she wanted them all pulled out. Leave it to the guys do get the gigantic forklift out and git r' done!
I guess I'm glad the forklift is good for something right now, because heck knows there is no work to actually use it on......grrrrrr!!!

New baby Gunner!

2009-05-19T21:12:00.000-07:00

Wyatt and Jodi's new baby:

Gunner Wyatt Cloward

7 lbs 11 oz, 20 in

Born May 2, 2009

The first boy born to the Maxfield bunch! He's going to be spoiled rotten!
He is 2 weeks old now.

Daddy and baby

Ella and Gunner: will he catch up to our little chubs?

Davi loves her new baby brother!

Congratulations guys!

Goodbye, Walmart!!!

2009-05-15T15:26:00.000-07:00

Walmart, oh walmart
how I dread attending your store
but because I am so cheap
I keep going back for more

Your parking lot is packed
never a spot insight;
so I park in BFE
even so late at night!

But no, I will not come back
never again, I say
I am now a "krazy coupon lady"
and she is here to stay!

So off to my beloved Albertson's I go
I love every minute of it
And their prices are so low!

The cashiers are so nice
maybe even classy
no nose rings in sight
no hair rassy frassy

No never at Albertson's, will you hear a mom in a rut:
"Bridger, you bleepedy bleep @$$&&!!!!
Get back here before I beat yo butt!"

That's right, walmart. Your lines are long
Your service is crappy
So it's off to my Albertson's
Where they make me so happy!

Crazy Coupon Lady!

2009-05-11T20:24:00.000-07:00

Alright, I've finally given in and decided that I really need to do some major reducing of my grocery bill. I spend way to much on groceries every month for our little family, and I'm sure there has to be a better way. So I was chatting with my awesome cousin Carlynn a couple of weeks ago and she inspired me to begin couponing. I have been interested in taking on the couponing endevour for quite some time now, but I have just been too lazy to do it. Well now with Jake's work being extremely slow, I have decided to bite the bullet and really try to save some cash. This is the reason for tonight's post. You see, I was purusing the sunday ads and I saw that Target was having what seemed to be a great sale on paper towels and toilet paper. $10 for a 24 pack of Charmin, and $14 for a 12 pack of bounty, plus with the purchase of 2 items, you received a $5 target gift card. Sweet! So I head to Target swearing that I will purchase ONLY the items that are on sale. No clothes for the girls, nada. Before my purchase I asked a salesperson if there was a limit on how many gift cards I could get. She said she thought that the max was 5. Perfect! I wanted to get 2 of each item, and I would get a $10 gift card! I happily put my few items in the cart and headed to checkout. I placed my toiletries on the counter:

Sweet little target checkout girl: Oh, on these you have to buy 4 of THE SAME item to get a gift card.

coupon newbie: Hmmm, really? (ponders for a moment, do I really need 4 big bags of T.P. right now? Is it worth it?)

coupon newbie: Well, (pull out my ad I brought from home, begin to show the cashier, meanwhile, nice target patrons behind me leave and find another line w/ out annoying mom with coupons) I thought the ad said that you only needed to buy 2 to get the gift card? (which it did)

Sweet Target checkout girl: Oh, it does say that! But you do have to get the end cap items to get the deal. (note to self: end cap items are at the end of the isle, on sale.)

coupon newbie: Okay, can I go switch them out?

STCG: Sure. (she hid it well, but I'm SURE she was annoyed)

I quickly find my 2 big bags of T.P. and 2 big bags of paper towels and run back to my checkout lane, lugging the huge bags behind me, meanwhile clumsily knocking down a box of cocoa puffs off of one of the "end caps"...... I'm sure I looked like such a dork.

I paid for my items, and did indeed receive my $10 gift card, so really that made the items that much cheaper! I'm still learning what is really a good deal and what isn't, so maybe that wasn't the greatest deal, but I'm feelin' the love, people!

Bottom line, I can't believe I have resorted to this. I never thought it would happen. It has gotten in my blood and I think I may love couponing. I am officially the crazy coupon lady. Kill. Me. Now.

Great FHE idea!

2009-05-04T21:31:00.000-07:00

This is just a cute picture I took of Ella today. She's such a sweetie!

I just wanted to share my new favorite source for great family home evenings! It is the new nursery manual: "Behold Your Little Ones". This little baby is AWESOME for toddlers! It has a short lesson that gets right to the point, and great colored pictures for visual aids. It even has activity ideas and pictures to color; all you have to do is make a copy! It doesn't get much easier than that! Monday afternoon I just quickly read thru the lesson, make a copy, and voila'! FHE preparation complete. Throw in some oreo cookies and poof, you're a mormon supermom with literally no effort at all! We got this at the Church Distribution Center for a whopping $5.50. Love it!!!

In memory of Michael Jeff Batchelor

2009-04-24T21:21:00.000-07:00

Today was a difficult day. My cousin, Michael (Mike) Batchelor passed away this week and he was laid to rest today. He was only 32 years old and had 3 little boys. Mike was a great guy and I will miss him so much. We grew up just down the street from eachother; my sister and him used to play together all the time when they were little. He was always very nice to me. He was a great father and his boys loved him so much. His death is a tragedy and if you'd like the full story, click on this link: http://www.heraldextra.com/content/view/306594/17/

My cousin Shannon spoke in a press conference and you can view the video as well. It's surreal to me that this has happened and that he is really gone. The funeral was heart wrenching; but it was a great tribute to Mike. I want to tell my Aunt Gloria how much I love her and I'm sure words cannot express the pain that she is feeling right now. I pray for her and the rest of the family constantly. I am so grateful for the Gospel and the knowledge that I have that I will see Mike again. I'm so grateful that I can look to my Heavenly Father for comfort and peace. I love you Mike, you will be greatly missed. Until we meet again......

Michael Jeff Batchelor

1976-2009

Michael Jeff Batchelor, 32, of Santaquin passed away sunday, April 19, 2009. Michael was born August 10, 1976 in American Fork to Jeff Batchelor and Gloria Maxfield Batchelor. He married Jessica Williamson on June 1, 1996 and together had three sons.

Michael grew up in Lindon and graduated from Pleasant Grove High School in 1994. He worked for Liberty Press.

Michael loved the outdoors: fishing, hunting, horseback riding and playing ball with his boys.

He is survived by his wife Jessica; sons: Jeffery, Jesse, and Cody; parents: Gloria (Steven) Nicholes, Lindon; Jeffery (Karry) Batchelor, Payson; siblings: Shannon (Joe) Barrowman; Tracy (Randy) Dean; Dena (Dallin) Ekins; Brady (Jennifer) Batchelor; Katie (Dustin) Nielson; grandfather, John Paul Batchelor, Pleasant Grove; step-siblings: Lesa Nicholes, Leslie Nicholes, Dixie (Chuck) Rehdorf, KC (Brooke) Brailsford and many loving nieces and nephews.

Funeral services will be held Friday, April 24, 2009 at 11:00 a.m. in the Lindon 16th Ward Chapel, 610 West 100 South, Lindon. Friends may call for a visitation Thursday evening from 6-8 p.m. at Olpin Family Mortuary, 494 South 300 East, Pleasant Grove and at the church on Friday one hour prior to services. Interment will be in the Pleasant Grove City Cemetary. Condolences may be sent to the family at http://www.olpinmortuary.com/

In lieu of flowers, the family suggest donations be made to a fund set up for Michael's sons at Bank of American Fork.

First horseride of 09'!

2009-04-18T21:12:00.000-07:00

It was a beautiful day today, so my dad saddled up Jimmy and Wrangler for the first official horse ride of the spring.....

I have not got on a horse probably since I was like 10 yrs. old. I forgot how fun it is! And how great your bum feels after. Oh, the memories!

Bonding already, Ella and Tippy

"The Boo", dandelion still in hand

Ella was not amused.

This is our good friend Scott and Betty's son, Jake. He is in the Thomas H. Maxfield apprenticeship program and is now an official cowboy.
Good work, Jake!

Bubbles! This picture just makes me happy because of the green grass......

Does it get any cuter than this?

The girls even "helped" Grandma pull weeds!
She's a patient woman.

Here's beautiful Jodi, almost ready to have her new baby boy! She is due May 7th......any day now!

Stay tuned for the announcement of the 1st Maxfield grandson!

Thanks, Dad, for a fun day!

Plumbers r' us!

2009-04-17T19:02:00.000-07:00

(sorry these are a little blurry!)
Davi came over to play today, and they found Halli's swimsuits.......

And Halli put her's on all by herself.

A rude awakening....

2009-04-16T21:33:00.000-07:00

This is what we woke up to this morning.

IT IS SUPPOSED TO BE SPRING!!!!

Utah weather; ya gotta love it!!! Flip flops one day, snow boots the next!

Yuck!

P.S. Charayye, I'm coming to visit! (FYI: she lives in Arizona....)

Easter 09'

2009-04-14T19:52:00.000-07:00

We had a wonderful Easter this year! Easter saturday was filled with 3 fun-filled Easter egg hunts! (needless to say, we were egg-austed by the end of the day......) sorry, I just couldn't help myself.....

Our little bunny!

Coloring eggs at Jodi's house

Ella's pre-egg hunt face: she's in the zone

Easter egg hunt #1: Grandma & Grandpa Davis' house!

This is our cute cousin, Camilla

Taylor dressed up as the Easter bunny--he was great. Halli loves Taylor!

Easter egg hunt #2: Aunt Gloria's house. Pre-hunt festivities included frosting sugar cookies:

Despite the cloudy weather, the girls had a great time. And Grandpa Tom even brought along their chore boots! Thanks, Grandpa!

Easter egg hunt #3: Grandma and Grandpa Great's house.......

No pictures of this one because:

A) It was POURING rain

B) Halli had just woken up from a nap and was REALLY onery

C) I was just plain TOO TIRED!

Thanks everybody!

***How grateful I am for the Easter holiday. What a wonderful day it is to think of Jesus Christ's atonement and celebrate his glorious resurrection.

HAPPY EASTER!

Chuck E Cheeze

2009-04-12T22:55:00.000-07:00

Many of our cousins were on spring break last week, so we headed to Chuck E. Cheeze! The kids had a lot of fun. Thanks guys!

I think Kade LOVED this Jeep; watch out Pam!

Benjamin posed for a pic with good old Chuck E....Halli wouldn't go near him!

HAWAII!!!

2009-04-12T19:28:00.000-07:00

The beautiful island of Kauai......

A little sidenote: My sister Jodi was very pregnant and having some complications so she decided not to come with us (I was VERY sad!) so my mom took my niece, Davi. What a grandma! We also left our sweet baby Ella home......thankyou, Gayle and Lorraine for taking such great care of her!

Waimea Canyon

They're FREE!!!!!

We had lunch at the Hyatt, an AMAZING resort--not sure what this circular thing is exactly, but nice picture of Jake nonetheless...

BREATHTAKING!

A friendly crane dining with us at lunch

2 little sweeties!

The girls loved the parrots!

Aloha

This was the craziest thing....seals would just come right up on our beach throughout the day..... cute little buggars!

Kind of a drizzly morning, so we headed to the park!

For some reason, there are chickens EVERYWHERE! Word has it that there was a big hurricane and they all somehow ended up roaming all over the island....funny until the rooster crows outside your hotel window at 5 a.m!!!! Jake is bringing his shotgun next time--drumsticks for everyone!

Happy Birthday, Patti! 29 and looking fabulous.......

Birthday dinner at Roy's.....exquisite. We highly recommend it!

My awesome grandparents!

The girls behaving at dinner.....

These are some shots from our condo lanai.....

The ocean is thru the trees

MORE CHICKENS!!!!

Mom and the girls at the park. Thanks grandma!

Feeding the fish outside our hotel

Halli posing as she always does

Bubble fun!!!

You want to have fun with a 3 yr old for an entire week? Repeat after me:N-O-O-D-L-E!

Look at those sweet cheeks!

Fun in the sun!

The girls' magnificent sea turtle!

"sand" angels

Looking more like a local everyday.....

We went on a guided ATV tour and saw some great scenery!

We stopped at 2 waterfalls on the tour. Not your typical amazing Hawaii waterfalls, but still neat nonetheless....

This is bamboo!

Our last day! (boo-hoo!) A little cloudy, but still nice

Another monk seal in the distance....

SO MUCH FUN!!! It truly is paradise....thanks, Mom and Dad for everything. We had an amazing time!