The Luke Family 2009

Happy New Year!

2009-12-31T01:35:00.002-07:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR! We are excited for a new year and a new blog to go with it. We wish each of you a happy new year!

Love, The Lukes

2010 Luke Family

Christmas Cupboards

2009-12-30T11:12:00.002-07:00

This year as part of our Christmas decorations I wrapped up my cupboards to look like Christmas Presents. They turned out really cute! Any little kids (and even some adults) who saw them would just come in and stare. I know we certainly enjoyed it and are excited to do it again next year.

Notice Hannah's little face peeking into the picture. She just can't stand for a picture to be taken without her in it!

Dressing Up

2009-12-06T00:30:00.000-07:00

It's not what you think! This time it's Jacob who is dressing up! How can you resist the cutest construction worker in the world? It's tough... and it can't be done.

Thanksgiving

2009-11-26T14:10:00.000-07:00

I made my first turkey this year! It turned out really well and had lots of flavor. I also made mashed potatoes and gravy, sweet potatoes, corn, rolls, stuffing and pecan pie. Dinner was VERY yummy, if I do say so myself. We were grateful to spend some time with each other and for some time to relax!

Hannah, Brent & Jacob
Jacob liked the olives.

Siblings

2009-11-11T16:50:00.000-07:00

These two kids absolutely love each other! It has been so fun to watch their relationship grow over these past two years. Jacob doesn't lay down for his nap or bedtime without yelling out the door "Love you NaNa!" We will frequently hear Hannah's worried voice say, "But what about Jacob?" or "Where's Jacob?" Hannah loves to be Jacob's BIG SISTER and pick things up for him or help him play with toys. She, on more than one occasion, has said to us "NO! Let me do it! I need to be Jacob's good Big Sister!" Jacob is a typical boy and loves to tease and taunt his sister. She gets mad and he just keeps on pushing those buttons. They love to make each other squeal and laugh. We are so grateful for these two amazing kids that we have in our lives. Thank you Hannah and Jacob for helping us laugh! WE LOVE YOU!

Denver Zoo

2009-11-11T00:41:00.004-07:00

Forgive me for posting these pictures backwards, but I don't feel like moving them around. We went to the Denver Zoo today and had a great time! This was Jacob's first time seeing the animals and he had lots of fun making the animals' noises and seeing them in action.

The kids were tuckered out after a LONG day!

Walking to the car.

Hannah had a great time throwing leaves in the park outside the zoo.

There were a lot of birds in the waters around the zoo.

Polar Bear

Turtle

A giant elephant display.

The kids really enjoyed the hippo. He kept getting in and out of the water and swimming around. He would dive under for a few minutes and the kids would wait anxiously for him to come back up.

Mommy & Jacob

Hannah and the Gorilla who kept picking his nose and eating it! EWWW!

Loving the elephants!

HALLOWEEN!

2009-10-31T16:42:00.002-07:00

Mommy, Jacob and Hannah ready to head out for Trick-or-Treating.

Hannah LOVES wearing makeup. Today she had a great excuse and look absolutely beautiful! I don't think she'll be allowed to wear makeup until she's at least 18 years old.

Jacob was VERY excited to wear his dragon costume again and did a great job walking around to all of the houses in our neighborhood.

Hannah and her pretty pink unicorn.

Jacob's cute wings and tail.

This was our beautiful sunset tonight. We had nice weather for Trick-or-Treating. Hannah had lots of fun handing out candy at the end of the night too.

Trick-or-Treating at State Farm

2009-10-30T16:36:00.002-07:00

Today we got to go Trick-or-Treating at the State Farm Office Building. The kids had a great time showing off and got LOTS of candy!

Here is a picture of Jacob enjoying his loot and Brent trying to keep Hannah's hand down for the picture.

Brent had a fun time walking the kids around the office and showing them off to his co-workers.

Preschool Halloween

2009-10-30T16:28:00.002-07:00

Making funny faces.

Jacob LOVES his dragon costume! He also loves to play with all of these fun big kids and was excited to be included in their pictures.

We are having a great time in preschool this year. I was very excited to have the kids come show off their cute costumes. From left to right we have a dragon (Jacob), a princess riding a unicorn (Hannah), Hannah Montana (Sammy), a moon fairy (Brielle), and SPIDER MAN (Andrew).

First REAL Snow of the Season

2009-10-28T16:24:00.002-07:00

Here are some pictures of our first real snow of the season. This storm lasted for a few days and accumulated quickly. It was also very wet and heavy. This is about half of what we got total. Brent was excited to break in his new shovel though and Hannah and Jacob loved playing in it.

Pumpkins

2009-10-27T16:14:00.003-07:00

Here are our Jack-O-Lanterns that we made for Halloween! Mommy's is on the left, Hannah's is in the middle, and Daddy's is on the right. Unfortunately Jacob's pumpkin was very solid and we couldn't even carve a hole out of the top, let alone carve a face in it. It worked out for him though because he got to just sit and color on his, which made him happier than he would've been cleaning it out.

This is the first year that Hannah was willing and excited to put her hand in the "gooey stuff." She did a great job getting all of the seeds out and just needed help with the strings.

Hannah cleaning out her pumpkin. She was SO proud of herself!

Jacob coloring on his pumpkin.

Jacob trying to figure out how his marker works.

Hot Air Balloons

2009-10-23T15:55:00.000-07:00

This morning we woke up to hot air balloons hovering all around our house! They were so close that we actually had people waving at us from the balloons. We got to watch one land in the field next to us and take off again. The kids had a great time pointing out all of the different colors and patterns as well as how many there were. Apparently every October we will see them flying in this area. What a treat!

Hannah's 4th Birthday

2009-10-13T10:34:00.001-07:00

Here are pictures from Hannah's birthday celebration. She wanted a princess cake and our great friend, Julia Morroni, provided a beautiful princess for us. We had our friends, the Jurich's over for dinner and cake & ice cream on Hannah's birthday. We also had a birthday celebration with Grandpa & Grandma Powell. Happy Birthday sweet Hannah! We love you!

WEEDS

2009-10-01T15:45:00.001-07:00

This poor caterpillar was Hannah's entertainment for HOURS while we were pulling weeds. The little guy got so scared he pooped on her!

Little Jacob was trying to coax this caterpillar onto his hand too.

My pile of weeds (9 bags) from 4 hours of pulling. This was just from the sidewalk back to the door on the side of the house.

Our weed-free front yard.

To be done.

Hannah helping daddy.

Our dead grass.

Jacob was trying to get to Mommy unsuccessfully.

Jacob and the weeds.

WE FINALLY HAVE A HOUSE!!!! And along with it we got lots of presents, like garbage, dirt, dead grass, lots of broken things in the house to fix, and weeds. There was a city fine on the house and we had to get the weeds out within a week of closing in order to avoid another fine. We spent hours and hours in the cold, dark & rain, but got it done. We are so proud to have a yard of our own that we get to fix up next spring. Until then we are weed free and have dead grass.

It's Ours!

2009-09-30T15:56:00.003-07:00

We purchased our first home today!!! We got an amazing deal and everything went very smoothly considering it was a short sale. It is a 2000 sq ft home with 4 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, and no closets. No joke, there are no closets in this house other than the bedroom closets. There are some nice upgrades though with the beautiful cabinets in the kitchen and tile throughout. It is a bi-level home and has a HUGE garage. All of our storage will be going in there around the sides. We will be painting and carpeting in the next two weeks and then will hopefully be able to move in in about three weeks. We hope you enjoy your tour of our new home!!!!

The back view of the house, dead grass and all.

The beautiful view from our deck. There is a walking path behind our house that goes to a park. Behind this field are baseball fields.

Looking from the stairs into the living room/dining area.

The downstairs bathroom.

The kitchen. I LOVE the cupboards. The stove is really nice too.

Looking from the kitchen into the living room.

The master bathroom. Nice tub and a curved shower curtain rod. I'm excited to take my first bath in here.

The downstairs family room from the stairs.

The master bedroom with double closets.

One of the downstairs bedrooms. Both rooms downstairs have the weird window seat thing that looks like crap. We will be having those taken out before we paint and carpet.

Looking from the living room at the stairs and down the hall to the master, bedroom #2, laundry closet (on left side of the hallway) and guest bathroom.

The guest bathroom.

Looking from the hallway into the living room.

The Greeley Freight Station Museum

2009-09-26T15:27:00.006-07:00

Daddy, Jacob & Hannah waving "hi" to Mom from the top of the Caboose.

Going inside the train.

Checking out the ships.

A view from the top.

Hannah checking things out.

Train collection.

This museum was AWESOME! The kids had a great time and were happy to stay for over two hours. Jacob was so excited he was shaking through most of the experience. Here is the link for the website if you'd like to find out some of the information about the museum. There are also some neat close up pictures of the "life" in the models.
Greeley Freight Station Museum

Mommy Time

2009-09-24T13:36:00.002-07:00

Hannah and Mommy got to go to the Denver Temple on Saturday for a Primary Activity. They did a tour of the grounds and a sack lunch afterwords. Hannah was thrilled to have some time with Mom. She was also very excited to see the pretty brides in their sparkly dresses. (Sorry for the small / sideways picture. I couldn't get it to pull up in Picasa!)

Yummy, Yucky!

2009-09-24T13:13:00.005-07:00

(Notice Hannah trying to but into the picture!)

Jacob posing.

Jacob decided to test the theory of a book that we have called "Yummy, Yucky." This book has various things in it that are yummy and some that are yucky. For example, "Blueberries are YUMMY! Blue Crayons are YUCKY!" I think Jacob really like HIS blue crayon however. He had chunks of it in his teeth and, as you can see, it was smeared all over his face and hands. I think that Jacob would NOT agree with this one!

p.s. Brent got to change Jacob's diaper that night and informed me that it was VERY blue!

The Prizer's Came to Visit!

2009-09-24T13:02:00.004-07:00

We had yet another visitor drive through Denver and stop at our house for a visit. Our good friends, Piper, Luke, Jenna & Miriam Prizer stopped by for a wonderful night of catching up and playing. Hannah and Jenna were the best of friends when we both lived in Bozeman. They were a little unsure of each other, but as soon as they saw each other the old friendship was rekindled and they were inseparable for the rest of the time. Thanks for stopping old friends. We love and miss you VERY much! Good luck with your LAST semester of school!

Oquirrh Mountain Temple Open House

2009-09-24T12:53:00.002-07:00

These are pictures from our trip to the Oquirrh Mountain Temple open house on July 28th. Hannah was THRILLED that she finally got to go inside of a temple.

Face Slide

2009-09-04T07:13:00.002-07:00

Face Slide

Posted using ShareThis

Caution: Do not open until ready to cry, pee your pants, or both combined. HA!

Lack of Posting

2009-09-01T13:30:00.002-07:00

Sorry for the lack of posting lately. Life has been a little crazy with getting ready for preschool and house hunting along with all of the regular daily things going on in life. I promise to post soon! Thanks for checking up on us!

We LOVE you DAD!

2009-07-24T14:12:00.002-07:00

The kids wanted to send Daddy a special note at work the other day. Needless to say, we were having corn dogs for lunch that day and Jacob was thoroughly enjoying his! This was the best we could get out of this hungry & focused little boy. WE LOVE YOU DAD!

More Swimming

2009-07-24T14:06:00.002-07:00

Hannah jumping into the pool to her teacher, Sam. She had a great two weeks and is VERY comfortable in the water now.

Jacob and Hannah have had swimming lessons again for the past two weeks. Jacob has done a great job getting comfortable with the water. He gets a little clingy when the teacher tries to do anything with him though. Jacob loves to splash, jump off the side of the pool, and play with the toy boat they they have.

Sleeping Babies

2009-07-24T13:56:00.003-07:00

Hannah claims that she's not a crazy sleeper. However, those of you who have visited us and slept in the room next to hers know better! She hits the wall all night long, talks in her sleep, and ends up in some hilarious positions. Last week we found Hannah sound asleep on her bedroom floor. She looks a little weird in this picture, but she is on her back with her head turned to the right. Notice the ballet slippers by her head. Hannah wears her slippers all day, every day and takes them off just at bedtime and leaves them on the floor by her bed so that she can put them on again first thing in the morning.

On a side note: Jacob LOVES to stick his feet through the bars of his crib. These pictures are from two separate nights. We will find him like this almost every night.

Visitors!

2009-07-24T13:49:00.003-07:00

Our friends, Dustin, Heather, Jack & Chewy Enslinger stopped at our house on the way home to Bozeman from Kansas. We had a great time catching up with them and the kids had lots of fun playing too. We love you guys! Thanks for staying with us!

We are starting to enjoy our central location. We've had lots of people stop over. Hotel Luke: FREE! Anyone... anytime.

Cheyenne Frontier Days Air Show

2009-07-22T14:21:00.000-07:00

This video is hilarious because Brent THOUGHT he was taking a picture of the kids in the cock-pit of this helicopter, but the camera was actually set on video instead! HA!

Swimming

2009-07-11T15:42:00.015-07:00

The kids had a great time swimming today in our 91 degree weather. Jacob LOVES to splash and gets in trouble for it during bath time. He was having a great time not getting yelled at today.

It wasn't worth the hassle of putting Jacob in a swim diaper today so I just let him swim in his clothes and regular diaper. He ended up with a water logged lump hanging between his legs.

Cheap Fun

2009-07-11T15:37:00.002-07:00

Who knew that a used bubble envelope could be so much fun?

Ballerina Hannah

2009-07-09T21:40:00.007-07:00

Hannah has been doing a summer dance class for a few weeks. We were able to go in on Wednesday and watch and we had a great time clapping and smiling at our little Princess Ballerina. We love you Hannah! Thank you for being our sweet girl!

Estes Park

2009-07-09T21:35:00.002-07:00

We had Brent's parents visit this week and we've had a great time. The kids fell in love all over again. Grandpa and Grandma have been a great help around the house and in the yard. On Tuesday we got to go to Estes Park to enjoy the sites and shops. We walked around, ate caramel corn and had lots of fun. Grandpa Luke's favorite part was watching a glass blower make a vase. Thanks Grandpa and Grandma Luke for a wonderful visit. We love you!

Driving FROM Colorado Springs

2009-07-09T21:07:00.010-07:00

Hannah sleeping... OW!

Jacob watching Baby Einstein

I think every time I turned to look at her Hannah's neck was more and more turned!

Hannah waking up. She was exhausted after ONE NIGHT at Grandma Powell's house. The problem is that she gets so excited to see Grandma in the morning that Hannah wakes up before the sun is even up and goes to climb into bed with Grandma. She's pretty tired by the end of the day when Grandma is visiting!

Driving TO Colorado Springs

2009-07-09T20:43:00.002-07:00

Here is Cami driving To Colorado Spring on Saturday evening in the pouring rain.

Here is Hannah waiting to see Grandma Powell and not happy to be in the car.

Here is Jacob zonked out on the drive--YEA!

Two Peas in a Pod

2009-07-09T20:41:00.002-07:00

These two love sitting in chairs together. They fit perfectly and only sometimes hit each other!

Pretty Princess Jacob

2009-07-09T19:56:00.012-07:00

Here he is trying to get me to put on the silver, fuzzy princess shoe for him.

Jacob LOVES to do anything his sister does. He found a princess dress of Hannah's and promptly gave it to me to help him put on. Jacob wore Hannah's bright pink princess dress around for about 15 minutes until he got tired of tripping on it. Jacob loves to be pretty and wears anything he can to do it!

Playing in Bed

2009-07-02T11:11:00.008-07:00

Jacob LOVES Hannah's toddler bed, he can't take his eyes off of Hannah and he LOVES to say "Cheese" for the camera. Jacob gets in Hannahs' bed every chance he gets, which is usually during the bedtime routine and first thing in the morning. Hopefully this means he'll have a good transition to a big boy bed when it finally happens.

Just like Sister

2009-07-02T11:01:00.002-07:00

Jacob LOVES to act just like Hannah. Jacob LOVES shoes and LOVES wearing Hannah's shoes. Here's our little man wearing an apron cape and two different Hannah shoes

Swim Lessons

2009-07-02T09:29:00.008-07:00

Hannah had two weeks of swimming lessons that Jacob and I got to sit on the sidelines and watch. Poor Jacob was pretty anxious to get in, but we made it through with lots of treats and Mommy entertainment (hand stands and cart wheels). Hannah did a great job getting more used to the water and dunking her head. She is getting better at front and back floating as well.

2009-06-03T23:12:00.003-07:00

Jacob made my day...

2009-05-31T20:32:00.002-07:00

So on Thursday afternoon, after going to the store, we had a funny thing happen. I had bought a baguette and left it on the kitchen table after putting all of the other groceries away and putting Jacob down for a nap. Jacob woke up from his nap, but Hannah and I were busy finishing up a project downstairs, so I just let Jacob wander around the house and play for a bit. I heard him upstairs, playing with toys, running around, crinkling paper... what? "Oh, it must just be the grocery sacks that I left out."

10 minutes later...

Jacob had pulled the baguette off of the table, ripped the paper off and broken it in half. I found him CHOWING down on the bread totally happy that he had found food for himself. He wandered around for a good 20 more minutes eating the bread before I was able to get it away from him. Check out all of the crumbs on his mouth and the other half of the baguette on the flour behind him! Silly kid!

Orange Jello with Carrot Slivers

2009-05-31T20:28:00.002-07:00

Obviously my orange jello with grated carrots was NOT a hit in our house! No one would eat it! I seriously like it, but I guess I'm the only one. I asked Hannah if she would like some and she said "No way!" I asked her "Why not? Don't you like the carrots?" Hannah replied, honestly, "No! They're YUCKY!" Whelp, I guess I'm never making THAT one again!

Memorial Day Fishing

2009-05-31T20:14:00.003-07:00

Jacob saying "cheese" for Aunt Lisa. He thoroughly enjoyed sitting in the camp chairs and walking around the site.

Grandma saving Jacob from himself.

We got to go to Colorado Springs for Memorial Weekend and we had a great time with Grandpa and Grandma Powell and Aunt Lisa and Uncle Bryan. On Monday we went up to the mountains and went fishing. Bryan, Hannah & Cami all got fishes, but only Bryan's was worth keeping. Hannah was very excited about her little fish. Jacob wanted to play in the water and kept trying to nose dive in. Here are Aunt Lisa's pictures from the weekend.

Super-Hero Kids

2009-05-21T09:41:00.003-07:00

Super-Hero Jacob in action!

Our kids LOVE to pretend that they are superheros! Here they are running around in their "capes." By the way, did you know that only the most heroic Super-hero's suck their thumbs? Super-hero Jacob is not invincible though, as you can plainly see from the top picture. He fell off the couch a few minutes earlier and got a good sized goose-egg on his head.

Ready to Swim

2009-05-21T09:33:00.003-07:00

Hannah and Jacob got to swim in our new PINK plastic pool (can you guess who picked it out?) on Monday. We had a hot day and the kids had a great time cooling off. These pictures are of the kids all ready to go out and swim.

Lumpia

2009-05-19T10:12:00.003-07:00

This is an amazing recipe for Spring Rolls that was given to us from a Filipino friend in Bozeman. Just thought we'd share the wealth!

3 cloves garlic
minced 1 medium size onions chopped
1/4 lb. Ground beef or shrimps
1 pk. bean sprouts
2 c shredded cabbage
1 c green beans, diagonal thin sliced
1/2 c carrots, shredded
soy sauce ( optional)
cooking oil
salt & pepper
Bell pepper ( optional)
Celery( optional)
Knorr cubes (optional)
Spring rolls wrapper( Buy @ Asian grocery store)

Saute the garlic, onions and ground beef. Cook till meat is done. Add vegetables according to hardness. Seasoned to taste. When the vegetables are cooked, drain out all liquid. Wrap vegetable mixture in spring rolls wrapper as directed in the spring rolls packaging. Deep fry in low heat.

Happy Mother's Day

2009-05-10T09:28:00.004-07:00

What could make Mother's Day better than happy kids? Here are a couple of videos of happy Jacob playing with Daddy. Thank you Jacob for making me laugh. I love you Boo Boo!

Baby Animal Days

2009-05-05T13:35:00.004-07:00

We went to the Greeley Baby Animal Days today. We had a great time exploring, playing and seeing the animals. There was a horse, alpacas, pigs, sheep, kittens, a puppy and a cow.

Driving the tractor.

The sheep kept bleating at Hannah so when I told her to go stand by it to take a picture she held her hands on her ears. It was really loud.

The kids spent at least 1/2 hour in the sand wheel. They had a great time filling up buckets and scooping sand. Jacob was giggling through most of it. I captured a little of that in the video at the bottom.

Dedicated to Heather

2009-05-05T13:28:00.002-07:00

Here's the proof, Heather... Jacob really can get messy! He's finally decided that he wants to feed himself. These are pictures of Jacob eating oatmeal and having a great time at it. Here we go! Here come the messes! More pictures to come....

It's hard to tell if he got any in his tummy!

It only took 16 months, but he's FINALLY there!

2009-05-05T13:06:00.006-07:00

This is Hannah's bruise from slamming her own arm in the door. This picture really doesn't do it justice. You can see where she pinched the skin and the bruising on either side of it.

Jacob LOVES to "cheese" for Mommy. I have to admit that it's one of my favorite things too! You'll keep seeing a lot more of these pictures too because I am seriously in love with this handsome little man!

Here is video of Jacob walking! He finally started a couple of weeks ago, the same week that he turned 16 weeks. Just this week he has mastered standing up in the middle of the room with nothing to hold on to. Yesterday, Daddy asked me a question that is very telling of how excited Jacob is to be walking "Does he really just wander around the house all day long?" Yep. He does. He walks around the house all day long, usually dragging his blanket with him and turning to watch it as he goes. The transformation is complete, we have a monster on our hands!

Unbelievable!

2009-05-05T12:56:00.002-07:00

A few weeks ago I took Hannah to a church activity. She was on the verge of sleep when we arrived home and actually ASKED if she could go and take a nap. Jacob and Daddy were also taking naps, so it made for a quiet Saturday afternoon for me. The crazy thing about it is that Hannah NEVER asks to take naps. She will down right refuse even when she is grumpy beyond belief. Seriously though, how cute is she with her blanket all spread out and her cuteness going on!

Easter 2009

2009-05-05T12:10:00.002-07:00

The kids had Easter a week late this year because of our travels. The Easter Bunny sent us a letter letting us know when he would come. The kids were thrilled with their new toys, watering cans and garden tools. We are very excited to have a yard to work in this year and we have a feeling the kids are going to be great helpers with it!

More Pictures from Our Visit to Bozeman

2009-04-18T16:55:00.003-07:00

Jacob's "Mini-Me" trick, meaning that only he and Brent can do this.

Birthday Present

2009-04-18T16:39:00.004-07:00

I found this plate last week in Utah at the Tai Pan Trading Company and was very excited to find a new piece for my house. It looks great in the huge space above our cabinets. It'll look even better when I can find a few things to go with it. Thank you Mom's & Dad's for helping me get something fun for my house!

The kids were camera hungry after the wedding and were excited to see the camera out when I took pictures of my plate. I took the picture, turned around, and there was Jacob saying "Cheese!" And of course Hannah wanted in on the action.

Easter Eggs

2009-04-18T16:19:00.005-07:00

Sally, Beatrice, Bertha, Mike

Brent & Hannah, the creators of the little egg people.

Hannah hard at work.

Daddy

Jacob was whining at my feet and when he saw the camera said "Cheese!"

Mommy was trying to get a good picture, but Jacob couldn't take his eyes off of the eggs.

"Ooh! I want the flashy thing!"

"I want to touch SOMETHING!"

Check out Jacob peeking at the eggs. "I want to touch one!"

"Seriously! I want to play with those colorful things and you just keep taunting me!"

Visiting the Enslinger's

2009-04-17T12:47:00.002-07:00

Here's is a link to Heather's blog and her documentation of our visit to Bozeman. Thanks, Heather, for giving us such a great post!

Visiting the Enslinger's

Conjunctivitis

2009-04-14T15:02:00.000-07:00

Hannah has Pink Eye! Who knows where in the world she got it from. We've been traveling and visiting family and friends for the past three weeks. We've probably spread it to everyone we've seen. Needless to say, our house is full of hand sanitizer and we are being VERY careful not to touch our faces. I am most worried about Jacob getting it. To those of you who we've seen this week, I'm Sorry! We didn't know! I swear! It was the one armed man!This is a picture of Jacob and Hannah on the last day of our three week trip. They did great with all of the driving. This is also a classic picture of Jacob. He only sucks his thumb when he has his blankie.

Visiting the Landon's

2009-04-14T12:09:00.000-07:00

We spent a few days in Utah after the wedding and were able to visit with an old high school friend from Indiana. Hannah fell in love with McKenzie and Jacob followed Braden around and played with all of the cars and balls in the house. We had a great time catching up. Thanks, Amy, for letting us visit for a couple of hours!

Chris & Shalom: The Reception

2009-04-14T10:00:00.005-07:00

Chris & Shalom had a great reception with lots of yummy food (Mexican) and great dancing. The kids had a fun time partying the night away and were all exhausted by the end of the night. It was a great party and the bride & groom were reluctant to leave their own celebration.

Chris & Shalom: The Ring Ceremony

2009-04-14T09:33:00.005-07:00

Ashley, Josh & Hannah

The ring bearer, Joshua

The flower girls, Hannah & Ashley

Joshua standing so patiently, waiting to give Grandpa the rings.

The bride and her father.

Camille & Brent singing.

Lisa playing for the duet.

The mother's giving their speeches.

Chris & Shalom had a ring ceremony before the reception. Joshua was the ring bearer and Ashley and Hannah got to be flower girls. They took their job very seriously and did a great job throwing flowers down the isle. Dad performed the ceremony and did a very nice job. Brent and I sang a duet, "The Sweetheart Tree." It was fun to sing again. It's been a while since we've performed together and it was nice to rekindle that part of our relationship. The mother's also had a chance to share their advice.

Chris & Shalom: Pictures

2009-04-14T09:30:00.002-07:00

Chris & Shalom: The Wedding Luncheon

2009-04-14T09:25:00.006-07:00

Jacob, Joshua, Ashley & Hannah ready for the day.

Chris & Shalom giving speeches.

Leah, Megan, Josh, Jesse & Ashley

Cami, Hannah, Jacob & Brent

Megan & Leah

After the wedding there was a luncheon for those who were at the temple. It was fun to get to know Shalom's family and enjoy the yummy food.

Chris & Shalom's Wedding Day

2009-04-14T09:20:00.003-07:00

Here are a few pictures from Chris & Shalom's wedding day April 7, 2009. They got married at the Columbia River Temple in Washington. It was wonderful to share this day with them and we are excited for their new journey together.

The Best Western

2009-04-13T13:28:00.000-07:00

Hannah & her water-wings with Aunt Lisa.

Jacob & Brent

Jacob hanging out in his floaty.

Joshua & Ashley ready for swimming!

We LOVE staying in hotels! We love the continental breakfast and the fresh, clean towels and sheets every day. I also thoroughly enjoyed the King-sized bed. After a week of Hannah's feet in my back, it was nice to have some space. Brent was a little disappointed, however, that he couldn't find me even though we were in the same bed! Best of all is the swimming. The kids had a great time swimming with cousins and with Aunt Lisa.

Lunch at The Cedars

2009-04-13T12:40:00.000-07:00

I had a surprise at lunch when everyone sang to me and I got spoiled with a cake. The kids could hardly stand it and wanted to eat a cupcake SO badly! Check out Hannah and Ashley eying the cake! Thank you to everyone for helping me have a special birthday!

The day before the wedding we had lunch at The Cedars with the Fielding family. The Cedars is right off the Columbia River. The food was delicious and the company was even better! That night we took the kids to Monsters vs. Aliens.

In-Between Activities

2009-04-13T12:20:00.000-07:00

Aunt Lisa was kind enough to entertain the children one morning by painting their fingernails & toenails. Even Joshua wanted in on the action. The kids were all thrilled and loved showing off their nails to anyone who would look. Thanks Lisa!

We went to the river one afternoon and fed the birds. The kids went through one loaf in less than 3 minutes and then Uncle Chris came to the rescue with more bread. Ashley enjoyed a little snack while we were there.

The Easter Bunny visits the Fieldings

2009-04-13T12:01:00.000-07:00

Ready and waiting!

The Fielding family did an Easter Egg hunt for the kids. They have a fun yard with lots of good places to hide eggs and the kids all had a great time. Thank you Fielding Family!

Visiting Bozeman

2009-04-12T12:55:00.001-07:00

We were able to do a photo shoot with our good friend, Sabine, while we were in Bozeman. She is very talented and we felt very spoiled to have this opportunity. Thank you, Sabine, for taking some amazing pictures of my kids! (more to come...)

We were at our friend, McKenna's house, and Hannah fell in LOVE with their dress-up box. They even had this Spiderman costume. I couldn't believe that Hannah wanted to wear it since it wasn't a pretty princess dress. This girl is all about pretty. Needless to say, it didn't stay on very long.

One of Jack's favorite things to do is dump out his ball basket and wear it around on his head.

Jack and Jacob had a great time catching up with each other. Jack has grown and changed drastically in the past three months. He is walking and talking and reminds me a lot of how Hannah was at that age. We spent an entire week visiting with our friends in Bozeman. We had 2 to 3 play dates per day and were thoroughly exhausted after all was said and done. We were all very relieved to see Daddy by the end of the week. Thank you to the Enslinger's for putting us up and for putting up with us. Thank you to all of our Bozeman friends for letting us come and see you. We miss you all!

Happy Birthday to ME!

2009-04-07T00:00:00.003-07:00

Happy Birthday to ME!
Happy Birthday to ME!
Happy Birthday to ME...EEEE!
Happy Birthday to ME!

Oh ya.... and happy wedding day to Chris & Shalom. Love you guys!

Happy Birthday Sweetheart!

2009-03-27T00:00:00.008-07:00

You are my everything! I love you SO much! I'm sorry I'm not there for your birthday, but I hope you know that I love you more today than ever. I would celebrate with you if I didn't HAVE to go and visit my friends in Bozeman. You are my best friend. Thank you for taking care of me and loving me so well. Happy Birthday Sweetheart!

Part of Brent's present:

To My HEATH:

I'm sure you will SNICKER when you read this. Sharing your Birthday with you is as exciting as PAYDAY. You have been my SWEETART and given me MOUNDS of ALMOND JOY & STARTBURSTS. Thank you for giving me MIKE & IKE and treating me GOOD & PLENTY. When I get back you'd better ROLO because BUTTERFINGERS and all you're going to SKOR WHOPPERS and WHATCHAMACALLIT. You are my best friend and I love you!

Love,

Your DOVE

Fun weekend in Utah

2009-03-24T10:11:00.002-07:00

Silly Grandkids!Ashley, Hannah, Megan and Joshua (Jacob in the back).

Megan and Grandma Powell

Megan

Here are some random pictures from this weekend. The kids had a great time playing together and it was so much fun to meet little Megan. She's a great snuggler. Thanks, Leah, for the pictures!

Megan's Baby Blessing

2009-03-24T08:53:00.005-07:00

Megan in her blessing dress.

Jacob chowing on lunch.

Sweet Megan with a cute grin.

The kids eating lunch, Hannah and the Thatcher cousins.

Leah, Megan, Ashley, Jesse, Josh

The Powell Family: Me, Jacob, Chris, Ashley, Hannah, Grandma, Megan, Grandpa, Shalom, Joshua, Leah, Jesse.

Megan is my brother, Jesse's, third child. We were able to be there for her blessing this weekend and had a great time visiting with family. Thanks Jesse and Leah for a wonderful lunch and a great weekend!

Shalom's Bridal Shower

2009-03-24T08:26:00.004-07:00

On Saturday was Shalom's bridal shower in Utah. Leah was gracious enough to host and I helped with the food. We had a great turnout and Chris and Shalom got lots of great presents.

Me, Shalom and Leah with the food.

Grandpa and Grandma Powell with Ashley.

Sandy, Sierra, Nicoel & Olivia

Grandpa Powell giving loves to Megan.

Chris and Shalom with their presents!

Up and Running Again

2009-03-18T16:21:00.003-07:00

The Dinner Dilemma Blog is up and running again. Let me know if you'd like to be an author and share your amazing recipes with us. Dinner Dilemma is a wonderful resource for new and delicious recipes and we hope you will all continue to share with us!

Dinner Dilemma

Sunny Days

2009-03-18T15:25:00.002-07:00

We have been going to the church parking lot so that Hannah can ride her bike. It's been SO nice and warm lately we've been going a lot. These pictures are from a week and a half ago when my parents came up to visit. Hannah was THRILLED to show off for Grandma (hence the silly faces). She is doing great and we're excited to get into a house soon that doesn't have so many hills around it and has a park that we can ride to.

Ward Luau

2009-03-17T13:39:00.004-07:00

We went to our Ward Luau a few weeks ago and had a great time. Hannah learned how to hula and had a great time running around with all of the kids.

Silly Kids

2009-02-27T09:52:00.003-07:00

Our kids were in a funny mood the other night and we got some silly pictures out of them. Jacob loves Hannah's bracelets. He wears them and carries them around in his mouth. Jacob was also playing with Grandpa's old cell phone and talking to "Pa-Pa" while we were playing. Hannah loves to pose and this is one that she thought was really creative.

Good bye Old Friends! A Tribute to Us!

2009-02-19T13:45:00.002-07:00

A Tribute to US from the Enslingers Click on the link to see how amazing we are!

We LOVE you too! Thank you for being such amazing friends.

Our Friend Brielle

2009-02-18T16:01:00.002-07:00

Hannah and Brielle are great buddies. They love to dress up together and at church they primp each other instead of paying attention to their Sunbeam Lessons. Brielle is six months older than Hannah, which is apparent considering their matching dancing dresses are the same size!

Valentine's Day

2009-02-16T09:32:00.007-07:00

Here is a video of the kids playing with their pinwheels that they got for Valentine's Day. There is a special message in there for three very special people in our lives. We love you Grandma Luke, Grandma Powell & Heather!

Brent treated me to a yummy Chicken Cordon Bleu dinner and then we went to the Stake Valentine's Day dance. It's been a long time since we've danced and it was wonderful to get out there again. Thanks Brent for a wonderful night!

Bugged

2009-01-30T14:41:00.002-07:00

I've been BUG tagged! Here are 10 things that BUG me!

1. Hannah puts her night-time pull-up by our bed every morning so that we have a pleasant smell to wake up to.
2. Naked feet touching me, especially toe nails.
3. Getting hit in the face by a flying blankie.
4. Mini-vans! I drive one, but only because I have to. Every other mini-van in the world drives 5-10 mph below the speed limit, especially when you can't get around them.
5. White walls. I need some color!
6. Hour long bathroom trips.
7. Money. The good, the bad, and the ugly.
8. Kids who ask for food all day long and then don't eat their dinner.
9. "Mommy? Mommy? Mommy? Mommy? Mommy? Mommy?"
10. Non-assertiveness. If you want something than go out and get it!

I tag whoever wants to make their own venting list!

Back in the Saddle Again

2009-01-23T11:49:00.004-07:00

We are settling into Greeley and finding our places. Just this week I was able to audition for and get accepted into the Greeley Chorale. It is a community choir that is very good and has all varieties of people in it. They are even going on tour to Greece in May. I'm pretty rusty as far as singing goes and my audition was HORRIBLE to say the least. BUT, the wonderful conductor saw past my faults and could see what I really can do. I talked with him after rehearsal on Wednesday night and he was extremely impressed with the quality that I added to the soprano section. I think he's pretty excited to have a young, fresh voice in the choir. There are a few warbly voices that need the balance of an even voice. I'm very excited for the chance to sing again. The only draw back is that my brother, Chris is getting married in Washington two days after the spring concert. So, given the situation, travel, activities, etc. I will be opting out of the concert. It is the only concert of the spring season. The conductor loved my voice so much though that he wants me to stay in and keep rehearsing with them until the concert. It feels great to be "back in the saddle again!"

http://greeleychorale.org/

Ballet & Tap

2009-01-14T15:53:00.002-07:00

Hannah went to her new Ballet & Tap class last night and had a fabulous time! We went to the two year old class last night, but will start the three year old class next week. I have never seen anything so cute as these little two year olds prancing around in their ballet outfits and having the time of their lives. I was very impressed with how well they listened to directions and did what they were told. Notice Hannah checking herself out in the mirror as she prances by with her horsie.

Baby Bums

2009-01-14T15:49:00.003-07:00

Baby bums are the absolute best! (next to baby laughs and chocolate.) Jacob LOVES to be naked, so we let him roam around for a while the other night. The poor kid was totally oblivious to the fact that we were taking embarrassing photos of him that are going to haunt him for the rest of his life.

Tumbleweeds

2009-01-14T15:45:00.003-07:00

We had a really windy night one night and woke up in the morning with two large tumbleweeds on our back porch. This is the smaller of the two. Jacob was enthralled with them and sat at the back window for probably 10 minutes staring at them.

Christmas Morning 2008

2009-01-14T15:18:00.004-07:00

Christmas morning was lots of fun. We were thrilled to see that Santa had eaten all FIVE of his cookies and drank his milk. Hannah had been up discovering the loot before she came to get us, so all ready new what was down there. When the kids got down the stairs, Jacob made a bee-line for his new activity table and spent most of his day there, literally! He would play with it and go to something else and they come back and play with it some more. This table actually got him to stand himself up. He wasn't doing it before he got it. Hannah was excited to get a doctor's kit, a play dough kit, jewelry, and a cd-player, which she dances to and plays music on while she's in her play room every day. She also received a new princess coloring book and was very excited about the sparkly stickers that were included (see the video). Brent received the 3rd Eragon book, clothes and the Court Jester. Cami got new slippers, a bag, and TWO Carrie Underwood CD's. Santa left his loot and we had a great Christmas. Thanks Santa!

Christmas Eve

2009-01-14T15:12:00.002-07:00

The Jurich Family: Nick, Linnea & Gracie

Hannah in her new pajamas from Grandma Luke (Thanks Grandma!)

Hannah opening pajamas.

Hannah & Gracie "helping" with the cookies and having a grand time with the flour.

We had the great pleasure of having our friends, Gracie, Linnea & Nick over for Christmas Eve dinner. These wonderful friends of our moved to Fort Collins the same weekend we did and have no family here. We had a great time eating dinner, making cookies, catching up, and reading the Christmas story with them.

Jacob's 1st Birthday: The Cake!

2009-01-03T12:09:00.003-07:00

Jacob THOROUGHLY enjoyed his cake! He dug in to it like a pro. We actually gave him two pieces since he downed his first one so quickly.

Jacob's 1st Birthday: The Presents!

2009-01-03T11:46:00.004-07:00

Jacob had a great time opening presents. He got new clothes, a pop-up toy, and an interactive riding toy that he loves! Hannah was trying very hard to be a big helper and ended up in tears a few times for trying to help too much. This is the same day that we moved into our new house. We were very lucky to have Grandpa & Grandma Powell here to help us get settled and to help celebrate Jacob's birthday.

Buddies

2009-01-03T11:28:00.004-07:00

Jacob and Jack have become great buddies! They get very excited to see each other and play with each other. Here are some cute pictures of them hanging out in the tent together and a video of both boys dancing.

Snuggles

2009-01-03T11:25:00.002-07:00

This was in Bozeman when I came home from work on a Saturday afternoon and found everyone asleep. Nothing is sweeter than a sleeping child snuggled up to the guy you're in love with!

Happy New Year!

2009-01-01T22:54:00.001-07:00

That's all... HAPPY NEW YEAR!