kailua kona hawaii

Andrew had another work conference in Kailua Kona Hawaii and we were all so excited to tag along with him again. Andrew and I had the best type of miscommunication that led to us staying in Hawaii for 9 days. I was pretty worried we would all be tired wrecks by the end of our stay, but as it turns out, you can never be in Hawaii for too long. We loved playing at the beach, snorkeling, seeing dolphins, sea turtles, eating shave ice about everyday, seeing a white tiger up real close, spying lots of water falls, and even holding sea horses at a sea horse farm. I didn't take many pictures with our nice camera, but glad I documented just a bit of our trip with my phone camera. We are already counting down until we can head back again!

tank's new smile

Tank lost 3 teeth in one week while at school! He came home and proudly announced the school nurse now knows his name. He was also pretty stoked to get those fancy mini plastic tooth containers each time to carry his tooth home in. The nurse informed him she now needs to order more of those. 

Bitsy's 4th

Oh this little girl counted down the days to her birthday for months! She had a very particular birthday wish list, exercise clothes, a fishing pole, a lizard flashlight and a unicorn cake. I tried calling 2 bakeries to order a unicorn cake, but apparently I didn't call soon enough. So I got to work making it myself. I would not call myself a professional cake decorator by any means, but Bitsy was so impressed with my skills and kept telling me she couldn't believe I was a "real maker." She had a very pleasant birthday. We hosted her co-op craft group that day so she got to play with her good friends and then chose to have homemade pizza and Italian sodas for dinner. 

We sure do love Bitsy. She keeps us on our toes! She has a passion for life and all the emotions that come along with it. She dives down slides head first, thinks she can swim by herself, has the best imagination, loves a variety of foods and when she tells you she loves you, you know she means it. Her favorite things are still babies, animals and stuffed animals. In particular dogs and unicorns. She requests a made up original song every night at bedtime that usually involves one of these things for the subject matter. She's also already asking and asking for a dog. She was pretty insistent that her dog stuffies join her for her birthday pictures. We're so grateful to have this little character in our lives and love all the excitement she brings to our family.

leavenworth

We managed to get our annual Leavenworth trip in this year! Once again it was a pleasant day sledding, window shopping and enjoying all the pretty Christmas lights.

Mr managed to conk out once the hat was over his eyes.

Mr won't keep gloves on, so we've discovered socks work really well.

bug's 9th

Bug turned 9! She was so excited to celebrate her big day. The Saturday before her birthday she invited a few close friends to go roller skating with her and have some pizza and do some cupcake decorating afterwards. Everyone had a great time! Her actual birthday landed on Thanksgiving this year, She was so thrilled to have so many family members around to sing her happy birthday! And Andrew and I made all her dreams come true by getting her a little cotton candy machine. We're not too sure we've seen her more excited. 

We all love that Bug is apart of our family and can't imagine life without her. She is such pleasant company to be around and we have quite enjoyable little chats together. She is smart, kind, can be pretty silly and is helpful to all of her siblings. Bug's most favorite past time is reading. She love love loves to read. Every night before bed she's always looking for another good book to settle down with. When she grows up she says she wants to be an author and illustrator. Currently she's working on her own book entitled, 'A Light in the Attic' and is on chapter 11. She also loves soccer and wishes that it was a year round thing. She plays the piano and although she would probably not call it a love, she willingly practices and is good at it. This year in particular, I've noticed her piano songs sound like actual music and its so pleasant to listen to as she practices. Her favorite colors are teal and mint. Take note of the pictures below. We also can't get this hat off her...she sports it all day and night! Happy birthday my beautiful girl. We sure do love you! 

bitsy meets thanksgiving

The animal lover in Bitsy came out and she was horrified to find out Thanksgiving involved a real dead turkey. 

dear santa

Dear Santa,
I've been really good this year and very helpful. Mom says I'll never get a second date with my table manners, but I'm not old enough to care yet. Forks are overrated. Please bring me something awesome and I promise I won't poke my younger siblings as much in the car.

A messy but great girl

Dear Santa,
I'm making great strides this year. My parents think I save all my good behavior for school, but I'm good at home too. It is just plan bad luck that they always catch me teasing. I'd like something cool, but maybe something I can take apart would be best.

A destructive but creative boy

Dear Santa,
I'd fit in great at the North Pole. I eat a very balanced diet of candy, candy canes, and syrup. I'm also just one bundle of fun. I'm all set to be super excited on Christmas morning. I'd really like my own dog, but Dad says they don't clean up after themselves. So please bring me more baby stuff and I'll promise to take my daily cry/tantrums down a notch.

A fierce and excited girl

Dear Santa,
I finally learned to walk and I have a few words down this year. I know mom and dad don't like it when I give them my chewed up food, but I think mom is trying to keep me as a chubby baby. I'd like to play with the big kids without being mauled and maybe a ball.

A dirty and patient boy

happy halloween

This year we had a unicorn, fire fighter, princess and puppy. Happy Halloween!

pumpkin patch

We all loved our annual family visit to the pumpkin patch!

our littles

 With two kids in school and a bit more energy and time, I've been feeling the need to snap some more pictures of my kids. I sure do love this clan of mine.

I love my two bookends.

A friend and I recently did a family photo swap and got some much needed family pictures. I'm pretty sure its about self preservation, but I've created an arbitrary rule that only once the youngest in the family is one do we need a new family picture. Thanks for capturing these Lindsey!