Happy Birthday Ian!

Ian had a fun little party with Grandma and Aunt Breanne and Jane! Will had to help him a little with the opening, but he had a lot of fun when he figured out that he got to open the presents and play with them, too!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jIOEKtCxO-Y

He was doing the cutest faces and shy shrugs with this little puppy toy.

Jane had fun, too! She sure knows how to take a picture! I love when the book is almost as big as the kid!

Woohoo! Ian got this trike that he can do himself or get pushed. It's perfect since he wants to be outside playing with toys all the time now!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PUazXWLHHHc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3WzcvoqJZc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ok5K86K3uLg

Jane pushed him around, then he pushed her around. It was so cute.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MaWOVZpzHRs

Here's a cute video of Ian blowing out his candles. I can't believe he could do it! Good job, Ian!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hOven3hmR4s

Cake time!

Kimball the baker! He made cupcakes with pink frosting and this cake with pecan frosting. He's so great to help out. We also had spaghetti and salad and pumpkin bread! Ian is such a cute boy. He brings this joy and curiosity and exuberance to our family. He gives the sweetest hugs and does sweet sign language. He can do drink and please and baby and ball and help now. It is so helpful to be able to understand what he needs. He has about 10 words he can say, too. At this point he can say bubble and ball and bye and more along with a few others. This is a precious, cute, exciting time and I love being a part of it!

Fun with Food

Sometimes I am amazed at a kid's ability to see fun or adventure in just about anything--including something as ordinary as mealtime. This really surprised me, I mean, not eating his bananas didn't, but what he chose to do instead.

Alex made this fun apartment out of tissue boxes. He put a couple windows in, too.

Here again, we have another strange yet perfectly organized edible structure.

More Art

Ella thought up this leprachaun house all on her own. She even made a leprechaun finger puppet to go inside. I am so impressed by her imagination! It's fun to have a little leprechaun hanging out for a little bit!

Will made these Indian houses for school. The one on the left is called a longhouse and the one on the right is called a Chickee.

Ella made this cool solar system for school. Her teacher has done some amazing crafts and projects this year.

Alex made the Lamb and the Lion for March and most of the other pictures. He has quite a cute little imagination as well. Will made the cool big leprechaun at the bottom. March is a fun month, but I was very anxious for Spring and having warm weather. I ended up buying some baby chicks and then spent the next 3 weeks very sick until I realized my allergies were probably getting to me. That'll take the March madness right out of you!

Too cute

I'm not sure who joined who, although I know when Ian saw the group he plopped down right next to them like he knew just what to do. Pretty cozy!

Orchestra Concert

Will had his Winter Orchestra Concert. It was wonderful. The songs they played were really beautiful. Will said afterward, "I think I felt the Holy Ghost during the second song." I told him I felt it, too. I thought it was amazing that he could feel that and wonderful that as a group they could perform so well. It's a really neat thing for him to experience.

I got a couple videos of the songs, too.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JhMp-RUnb_M

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HUtHosz-Rf8

I can't resist

I just had to put another one of these pictures in. Someday he'll be too big to walk in someone else's shoes, he'll have to walk in his own. Whoa, that's deep.

Will made this fun tower of blocks. I love how Ian is being so good but staring right at it. It's like a dog waiting for his treat, complete focus. You can guess what takes place after the next photo. To be two years old and want nothing more than to demolish and destroy! 



Will's Violin Recital

Will did a great job at his recital this year. He knew his piece so well that he looked all around the room at everyone as he played. It was awesome! We are so grateful for his wonderful teacher. She keeps the lessons fun and interesting. Good job, Will!

Sledding Videos

Kimball got some cute videos of the kids sledding. Looks like they had a lot of fun!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_wzvAS2kNbc&feature=youtu.be

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mx-RFf9NhpA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4yvmCydqPKM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJErB5YrtaY

Sledding!

We've had such a mild winter this year, which I have to say I loved, but when it did snow, it really didn't stick for very long. We had a couple good days though and Kimball sweetly took the older kids to the park to play in the snow and sled a little. Alex was adorable, so excited and using his imagination. Ella and Will had a lot of fun, too.

The kids laid out this little animal game to play. It was adorable to see them all gathered around, even Ian! It wasn't too long before he started sending pieces across the room but it was pretty cute while it lasted.