Arizona - Thanksgiving

We had so much fun seeing my parents, all my siblings and our kids' cousins in Arizona over Thanksgiving. McKenna, Tyler & Monica's daughter, is a super cutie whose sweet disposition we hope rubs off on Taryn:)
It was funny to play this game where we had to guess the child by only looking at their eyes through the paper cutouts. Some of us could not even guess our own kids.
My kids are more brave than I around animals.
Jenna is a natural... feeding the giraffe at the Phoenix zoo a piece of lettuce. I was laughing so hard at how the zookeepers were complaining of freezing in 58 degree weather.
As we were looking at the tortoises we saw a hare hopping about inside the exhibit.
Hooray for a heated pool and a good friend/cousin to play with!

Taryn - 1 month old / Blessing Day

Jenna is an amazing big sister to Taryn... she is so good at assessing her needs. You'll notice in a lot of these pictures Taryn is crying. She cries a lot. As she approaches 3 months she is definitely getting better.
Morgan is very matter-of-fact regarding her sister. If Taryn cries and Morgan sees that nobody is taking care of her, Morgan will try to give her a binki or pick her up. I feel like I always need to be on my toes protecting our children from each other. Jenna and Morgan are a funny combo... their fights escalate because Jenna fights with words and Morgan physically - grabbing, scratching, pulling, etc. - you can guess who usually wins.
The first couple months we appreciated these peaceful moments when Taryn slept. Poor thing just cried so much... fortunately we could keep her content a lot of the time by holding her.
Taryn wore the same blessing dress as her sisters. We enjoyed family coming to celebrate this special day with us.

Welcome Taryn

Early Monday morning, October 4th I woke up about 2am and was feeling contractions. I woke up Justin, told him I was in labor and that we needed to start getting ready to go to the hospital. After walking all over the house finishing little "nesting" projects, I sat down to rest for a few minutes, and the contractions stopped. We were bummed... with my first two I had gone into labor without any false alarms. The pre-labor with Taryn came and went all week. Finally, Saturday morning, October 9th, I was feeling contractions again about 10 to 12 minutes apart. This time they were a little stronger and I decided (didn't "think", "DECIDED") I was in labor. Justin and I called Kate, who so kindly came over in the middle of the night to stay with the girls while we ventured to the hospital. We arrived about 4:30am and I was dilated to a 2. Woops... I thought at that point I had jumped the gun and we were going to be sent home. The nurse sent us on an exciting date of walking the halls of the hospital for an hour.. I actually enjoyed that time to walk and talk with Justin. Afterwards I had dilated to 4cm! I was so happy we got to stay. I opted for the epidural. The possible side-effect of blood pressure lowering happened to me after I received it, which made me feel light-headed and a little panicked, but the anesthesiologist was ready with the meds to bring my blood pressure back to normal. At 5:40pm, Taryn Jane was born weighing 9lbs 4oz, and 22 inches long. Jenna and Morgan are enjoying their little sister. Jenna loves to hold Taryn and likes to ask, "do you recognize my voice?" Morgan will hold Taryn on her lap for about 2 seconds, then say, "all done."

To Baby: A Girlie House Awaits

Baby number 3 should have no worries about her environment being very "girlie". From pink polka dots on bedding everywhere, to dolls and dress-up clothes. Even the trike in the backyard is pink and purple. But, oh wait, there is ONE toy that little boys tend to be more interested in... a train with tracks. I thought the girls would play with it a lot, but they had lost interest... until today when Jenna entered the room holding an oval -shaped train track she put together. I spoke too soon when she corrected me, "Mom, it's a necklass... I made it for you!" So rest assured - if you were worried - baby girl 3... the house is completely girlified... with one exception... Daddy & a few of his things.

We can't wait to meet you, baby! Mommy is having a few contractions here & there. One week until your due date... October 8, 2010.

Summer Happenings

Jenna absolutely loved her first dance class today! A mom who converted her garage into a dance studio held a dance camp where the girls could try out ballet, jazz and tap to see what they like and what class they would best fit into in the fall. Jenna said she liked ballet and jazz. It was probably a little hard to appreciate tap since none of the girls had tap shoes. It was special for me to see her enjoy something I also love! Morgan is not taking the class - she couldn't resist getting up and dancing with Jenna while we were watching what they learned.
Working the jazz moves..

Here we are on the train at dear old Oaks Park.
A little boy across from Jenna turned around during the ride to tell Jenna "Don't shoot my little sister!"
The girls enjoyed the 4th of July parade... especially gathering candy.
Morgan trying hard not to smile for the camera.
Here we are at the end of our hike to Wahclella falls near Bonneville Dam. The girls had a lot of fun this day as we also visited the fish hatchery and fish ladders at the dam. Our day ended with the popular flavor-burst ice cream cones at Eastwind Drive-in at Cascade Locks.

Arizona

Morgan is becoming more bold and likes to wrestle with Jenna.
Boompa holding Chase with Morgan being her typical self and wandering in the background.
Fresh off the plane and into the pool went the girls with their Nana.
These were the last few moments of our trip... it was fun to watch the cousins play together.
Jenna taking a break from her rigorous play schedule.
I'm not sure if Morgan could eat clean if she tried.

Me in the pool with the girlies.
Bounce Jungle is always a hit!

We had such a fun time with Nana and Boompa, Becki and her fam. It was hard to put those summer clothes back in the drawer when we got home and go back to wearing jeans and jackets.

More Sugar and Spice

Today was the ultrasound, and we are expecting another GIRL! Whereas I was convinced it was a boy, Justin thought it was a girl. I felt a slight sadness initially. I realized I was not so much sad for myself, but more for Justin because I want him to experience having a son. It didn't take long for us to turn our feelings to joy. We get to have another girl, and so far she looks healthy! We are so blessed. We love the two girls we have more than words can say, so we are thrilled to be able to have another one in our home:)

He Lives

He Lives (I encourage everyone to watch this!)

I feel so grateful today, Easter, for Jesus Christ.

Jenna's 4th Birthday

We can hardly believe Jenna is 4! She was thrilled to have her friends over for preschool that day, and go on a treasure hunt with them. One little girl brought a green pancake in her lunch being that it was also St. Patrick's day.... another friend brought clover cookies. That night she had another friend come over to enjoy cake and ice cream. Family showered her with love and gifts earlier... including Jenna's first pet from Aunt Kate..... a fish named "Fishy".
Jenna saw the barbie cake online and immediately lit up... she wanted that cake so I attempted it, and she helped decorate:)
Morgan and Jenna are becoming such good friends... they have their little fights, but when they are getting along they play so well and giggle like the little girls they are.
Here's the smile I love on this little girl... red popsicle stains and all.

What's Your Tradition?

Does anyone NOT make heart-shaped sugar cookies around Valentines' Day? This actually might be my first year making them. As you can see, the girls loved it. Jenna, our daughter with all the opinions, wanted pink, purple and yellow frosting.

Santa and Snow

Jenna was happy to see Santa this year. Morgan would wave to Santa and repeat his name over and over from a distance, but as we got close to him she became very uneasy.
We received a surprise snowfall a few days after Christmas. While Justin spent an hour and a half getting home from work, the girls and I enjoyed sledding down the driveway. They loved it! This was the one day all year I was happy we had a sloped driveway.
Little miss Jenna was thrilled to take charge of the sled.