Beautiful afternoon playing outside with the boys...

how did i get so lucky to be their mom?!

While Halle is away and the boys are asleep...

mom will PAINT!

This is the first redo that we have done on the house since buying it.. AND I LOVE THE CHANGE

This color does a great job brightening up the entry way.

We also painted the bathroom as well.  The brown orange color was just not my thing.

Both places exceeded my expectations and I AM IN LOVE!

Halle LOVES going to grammie's to sleep over.  She has been talking about it all day and grammie did not disappoint!  They had a great time playing, watching batman, having snacks, and hanging out.

Halle sure does love her Grammie! 

I got to watch Reagan and Nash this morning.. and poor Nash was real tired and fell asleep like this on me.

It was actually pretty sweet and I loved the 30 minutes cuddled up with him!

preschool screening

Halle was such a big girl today.  We had to go and do the preschool screening that Rochester Public Schools wants you to do before you go into kindergarten.  Halle was pretty nervous at first but once we got in to the first room she was pretty excited about the different things that she was asked to do.  The first thing that she did was to get her height and weight.. and she passed that with flying colors being in the 95 percentile!! Then the next thing that they did was check her hearing.  She had to wear head phones and when she heard a noise she had to place a banana in to the monkey's mouth.  Halle thought that this was a pretty fun thing!  and she passed her hearing screen as well.  Next we moved rooms and she was asked to look at the wall wearing funny glasses and check her vision.  She passed that as well and enjoyed wearing the fun glasses.  Then they went to a table and worked on vocabulary, fine and gross motor, and problem solving.  Halle did a great job with it all.. and she passed the screening!  I had no idea that if she did not pass that we would have to come back again, so I was glad that she passed.  YEA HALLE!  and cannot believe that you will be a kindergartner next year!

oh our way home...

Here Abel is relaxing.. while the rest of us slave away cleaning up the cabin..

And here is what a fun filled weekend at the cabin will do to a person!

knock you out cold on the ride home!

It was a perfect start to our summer!

can not wait to be back up there is just a little over a week! 

YEAH!!!!

Abel had his first incident with nail polish today.. and it was quite the mess.  All over himself and all over the floor.  Most of it came off of him, so that was a positive.  The floor was not so lucky...

Here we are after a long day of rain enjoying some relaxation and milkies!

Noah trying to escape from his mom this morning... and these pjs are about 2 sizes too small.  You are literally able to see every crack and cranny on this sweet boy.  Reminder to self:  need to go through clothes soon!

It was a beautiful day up at the cabin.  The sun was out.  Sun screen applied.  and swim suits on!

Noah looking like a stud in his swimming suit!

I was able to try out the paddle board that I got for mothers day and it was so much fun.  Harder than I thought it was going to be, but really a good time!  Looking forward to using it many more times this summer!

Noah enjoyed jumping on Grammie down at the lake.

and these are our sweet beach bums.. so looking forward to a summer full of cabin memories!

Here is the birthday girl and her mom being goofy after dinner time!

and here is Alan... welp.. being Alan!

4 years old

This sweet girl is 4 years old today.

where has the time gone!?

I am still asking myself this question.

Halle you are one fantastic lady.

You are kind to your brothers.

You are a great friend.

You listen, most of the time.

and you love spending time with your Dad, grammie, and grandma Blake.

Thank you for these past 4 years... we can not wait to see what comes next!

The only thing wrong with this picture is that it happened at 6:00am... the cabin has lots of windows which equals early rising for lots of the kids.. It also makes for good nappers though later in the day!

First trip down to the beach.  not is swimming suits.  But all of the kids managed to get all of their clothes wet.  They all had a great time in the frigid waters! But we are not complaining about the perfect beautiful weather!

Here is the wet, beach ridden clan!!!

Sweet, sweet cousins!!!!

Here is Abel completely drenched from the diving head first in to the lake!

After naps we were better equipped with swim suits.  and the kids had a blast!

and this was Abel's signature looks this whole weekend.. butt crack showing!  cutest crack I have ever seen!

That night we headed into the A&W and got a yummy ice cream treat!

Tomorrow the rest of the crew will be up to enjoy the rest of the weekend...

Best cousin friends.. for sure!

and we tried to take handsome down to the beach.. but that was just real dirty and all he wanted to do was put sand in his mouth... so he just perched himself up at the cabin all weekend long!

First Cabin Trip of the Summer

Handsome Abel and mom on the drive up.  We took Nate and Ashley's big van.  We had grammie, grandpa, Halle, Abel, Noah, and I, and then Hannah, Jocelyn, and Reagan.  We all packed in and started the drive up north!!!

Here Noah is getting around all over the place at the cabin.  He thought that it was pretty fun to play under the chair.  But just about 3 minutes in to the fun.. it ended in tears from hitting his head on the top of the chair.  poor buddy!

and I totally forgot the pack and play at home.. so Abel had to sleep in a big boy bed for the first night.. it went okay.  But for sure back to a crib when we get home!

Today Al and I had a little mid week date.  We packed up plastic bags full of food for children at pinewood elementary here in Rochester.  This bags are given to these kids on Friday before they go home.  This bag of food is to make sure they get some sort of nutrition during the weekend while they are away from school.  How grateful I am that we were able to serve this children and their families today.  My heart aches for them, but I am grateful to know that they will have food over the weekend because this program in Rochester is in place.

and here is our sweet Noah boy.. probably enjoying some cookies!!!

he loves..loves..loves cookies!

and some days are hard on everyone.

being a parent is the hardest thing that I have ever done in my life.

It is trying each and everyday.

but at the end of the day my most favorite thing is to sit, cuddle, and read books with my babes.

They make life absolutely worth it!

Tonight we visited Grandma Vera.  She has been having health problems lately and is not doing very well.  Today we went over and Keith brought her the sacrament and then he had the people that were there bare their testimonies.  He also had Vera bare hers.  Hers was short and sweet.. but profound.  She said, " I know that the church of Jesus Christ is true.  I know that all the good that happened in my life was because i choose to follow God's plan.  I know that Jesus is my Savior.  And i know that because of him I will meet my Heavenly Father again."  The spirit was strong in the room baring and affirming to me that what Vera was saying was true.  I am grateful for Vera.  She is an amazing lady.  She is a women of faith, love, patience, and comedy.  We love you Vera.  You will continue to be in our prayers.

peek a boo!

This is Noah after breakfast this morning.

Noah is loving playing this game with his bibs lately!

I just love his pretty blue eyes and those long eyelashes..

how did I get so lucky to be your mom!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY PARTY HALLE

We celebrated Halle today!

She has bee requesting a painting birthday party for a very long time.

so I delivered with a painting birthday party.  I went and got canvases.  Put the first initial of the kids name and for finger paint!

It was a perfect little activity for when everyone first got here... and I think that the kids and especially Halle LOVED it!

After painting the kids went and played in the back yard and park and then we had lunch.

Halle choose hot dogs.  We added watermelon, a salad, chips, and baked beans.

Halle also wanted donuts for her cake this year... so we splurged and went to the gingerbread house and got cake donuts and donut holes.  and they really hit the spot!

It was a perfect day to celebrate Halle turning 4!!!!

lounging and drinking his bottle... our sweet Noah boy!

Birthday Tradition

It is birthday tradition around these parts that grammie and grandpa take the kids shopping for their pick at birthday presents.  Halle got to go tonight.. and she picked a brand new bigger bike!

as you can tell from the ear to ear smile  she is pretty happy with her decision!!!

Before I headed to our Relief Society activity tonight I put the kids in the bathroom for a steamer.

The kids are a little stuffed up.. so in the steam room they go!

I am not going to lie.. but I am kind of getting tired of having stuffed up/sick kids!

I am hoping that all will be on the mend soon.. and we will not longer have to deal with ear infections/colds.

Noah is doing a great job entertaining himself lately.

You can put him in a place on the floor with different toys and he will sit there for a while and play.

He also has been getting better at crawling around.

and his smile.. really is the best  thing ever!!!

it.melts.my.heart.

Today after naps, Halle and Noah cuddled up and watched a little movie together while Noah enjoyed his milk.

It is moments like this in the day that make me so beyond happy to be their mom.

Halle really is the best big sister our boys could ever hope for.

She is kind, caring. loving. and fun!

Thank you Halle for loving your brothers... because they sure do love you!

Happy Mother's Day

I have been doing my studying this week from many different talks about mothers.. This talk from Elder Jeffery R. Holland really spoke to me.  This was some of my favorite thoughts from the talk.

“May I say to mothers collectively, in the name of the Lord, you are magnificent. You are doing terrifically well. The very fact that you have been given such a responsibility is everlasting evidence of the trust your Father in Heaven has in you. He is blessing you and He will bless you, even-no, especially — when your days and your nights may be the most challenging. Rely on Him. Rely on Him heavily. Rely on Him forever. And “press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope.” You are doing God's Work."

Today we are headed up to the waterpark of America up in the cities. My school is putting on an event.  I will work while the family plays!!! but the best part is that they all get in to free!! SCORE!

Here is me and my sweet girl.. She sure is pretty!

And the waterpark was crazy!!!! so Alan only got these two pictures of our sweet babies!

They are going to fishes for sure this summer.  It is going to be so fun to go swimming at the pools and the cabin this year.

These two love their donuts.  On Fridays we normally make it a point to go and enjoy a donut for breakfast.  

and here are these two goofballs armed and ready for anything!

Thank you for making our life interesting each.and.everyday.

9 months old

Noah Spencer Blake.

you are 9 months old...

Where has the time gone.

You are a sweet baby.

You have this smile that makes the darkest days bright

you have a great belly laugh

you are eating most table food 

you have 8 teeth

you are getting around, but not by crawling.  You try really hard to crawl but normally end up in your "harp seal" dance.

You are taking 2 naps a day

you love to be outside

you are enjoying the car seat more and more

you love to stand up on furniture and also against your play table

you love love love bath time!!!

You have taken baths with your siblings this month, and do not prefer that!

You have been on medicine this whole month for your ear infections that you have had.

you are currently wearing 12 month clothes.

and your hair really is red and also has curls

Thank you for being so wonderful Noah... we sure do LOVE YOU!

those eyes...

those cheeks...

that neck...

that smile...

Addy and Lauren are getting a new baby brother today...

so they are hanging around with us today and evening.

I was giving Noah a bath and then everyone decided that they needed a bath too.

So COUSIN BATH FUN!!!!

It did not get too crazy, but they did enjoy handing out with each other in there.