Category Archives: sophia

Nov 1 2011

Pumpkin follow-up

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Our Three Pumpkins

I told you I would give an update on the pumpkins that we grew in the garden.  That’s right I said pumpkins.  Last time you saw one of these it was just a blossom.  I hand pollinated 3 more for a total of 4.  One pumpkin got the size of a baseball and then shriveled up and died.  These pumpkins kept growing and growing and growing.  I had to pluck them off the vine while they were still green.  I then put them on my porch and let them turn orange.  They all still have green on them but the kids didn’t mind.  They are  27lbs, 24lbs, and 19lbs.  These were the biggest pumpkins our family has ever carved.  Definitely going to try growing pumpkins again next year.  I just hope we get some blossoms about a month earlier than we did this year.

I let each kid design their own pumpkin.  Preston decided he was going to name his count pumpkinstein.  Corey had a little trouble with all the teeth Levi wanted on his.  Sophia likes the circle (hers was nice and easy to carve).  They turned out pretty cute and the kids had tons of fun scraping out the guts.

So being the forgetful person that I am I forgot to take pictures of the kids in their costumes 🙁  Preston’s was the most creative.  He wanted to be an ice cream man and unfortunately I don’t have a picture of him.  Sophia wanted to be a fairy.  Levi wanted to be Dracula. There was one day last week that Levi had a School Program and we got pictures of him and Sophia dressed up.  We went trunk or treating at our church and then Corey took  Sophia and Levi around the block some more.  Preston is getting so big, he wanted to go with his friends this year.  One of the other parents went with them and they really scored on the candy.  Pretty soon he is going to be too old to go trick or treating and I ‘m having a hard time coming to that realization.  When did he start getting so old?  I haven’t aged any so what happened here?

Corey Carving and Levi being a goof while Preston watches intently.

The kids in front of their pumkins

Three little pumpkins sitting on a bench.

Pumpkins all lit up

 

Levi and Sophia in Costume. Levi is sad because his dracula teeth hurt his mouth.

Sep 2 2011

Survived the first week of school

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Sophia didn't want to be left out. Can you see the anxious look on Levi's face?

That’s right school started this week.  On the first day Preston and Levi were so excited.  They were up and dressed before the sun was.  We all made the trip to the bus stop only to find out that the bus was early.  It is a few blocks to the bus stop from our house and when we rounded the corner the kids took off on a mad dash.  The bus waited for them and they made it on just fine.  They got on the bus before I could even wish them luck and say goodbye.  Since the bus was there so early it waited for a while.  Corey and I were able to catch up and wave to the boys through the windows.  I could tell Levi was a little anxious and was on the verge of tears.  Later that day he told me he cried when Corey, Sophia, and I walked away.  You can see his silhouette in the bus picture on the top right window.  Other than that everything went without a hitch.  The kids love their teachers and are excited about getting back to work.  Preston has already started and finished a book and has started a new one.  It has been really nice and quiet around here with just Sophia and I (and sometimes Corey).  I seemed to have acquired an extra shadow.  Sophia doesn’t have her brothers to keep her busy so she just follows me around all day.  It is funny to see how she plays.  Just today she was saying “I love you” and I told her I love you back.  Then she informed me that it was her elephant talking to her not her talking to me.  The kids are loving school.  I’m loving the alone time with Sophia.  Corey is liking the quiet time he has for work.  We are all happy! Yay for school!

Preston going into 4th grade

Levi going into 1st grade

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Walking to the bus stop

Goodbye bus

Jul 14 2011

Reed’s Dairy

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We are so fortunate to live so close to Reed’s Dairy.  It’s our favorite place to go on a hot summer day with the family.  Last night was especially great because Reed’s was celebrating that they were voted #1 in the area.  Reed’s gave out free ice cream and cake.  They started to hand out the cake and ice cream at 6:00 pm.  So we headed out after dinner and got there around 5:50.  A line had already started but it wasn’t too long by then.  We got our cake and ice cream pretty quickly and were able to beat the crowd.  We sat down and enjoyed.  I didn’t tell the kids we were going there so it was a nice surprise for them.  I love these moments I have with my little family.

enjoying the cake and ice cream

Having fun

 

 

Jul 5 2011

4th of July

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I hope everyone else had a great 4th like we did.  It ended up being a pretty busy day.  Corey was gone before I even had a chance to wake up.  Every year the city puts on a 5k fun run that runs the parade route.  This is Corey’s second year of doing traffic control for that event.  He was gone by 6:30 am.  He made it back just in time for us to head out and see the parade.  We had a great time at the parade.  Sophia looked so cute dressed all patriotic.  After the parade we went home and packed up a lunch and headed out to meet some friends at Gem Lake.  The kids loved eating and swimming with their friends.  We spent a good 2 hours there.   When we got home we finally had some time to relax.  The kids and I watched a movie while dad took a nap.  After dinner it was time to head out to the firework show.  Idaho falls has a pretty big show.  It’s actually the biggest firework show I have ever seen.  They light them off at the greenbelt and since we don’t live too far from there we only have to go a couple of blocks to get a great view of the fireworks.  By the time we got home it was around 11:00 pm and the kids were beat.  We had such a wonderful day and I feel such a great gratitude for all the men and women in the world who have made it possible for us to have the freedom that we do.

Sitting and waiting for the parade to come

Sophia waving her flag

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kids swimming at Gem Lake

Amy and I watching the kids swim

 

 

 

 

 

 

playing frozen bubble while waiting for the fireworks

fireworks

Jun 29 2011

Summer!!

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Yay!!!  Summer has finally reached South East Idaho.  We have had a very long winter followed by a very wet and cold spring.  It is starting to look very promising.  On Saturday June 25th the sun was out and it was warm.  The kids asked if we could get the slip and slide out.  They ran and got their swim suits on and out they went.  It took them a while to figure out how to slip on the slip and slide, but that didn’t stop them from having fun.  Corey had the idea of pulling them with a rope along the slide and they loved it.  It was nice and refreshing on a warm summer day.  Hope we get a lot more of these.  It’s been cold for too long.

Preston being pulled with the rope (sorry it's blurry)

Levi playing with the water spraying out the end

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sophia Sliding

Cheeeeese!

Jun 28 2011

Playing at the Park

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One of our favorite things to do in the summer is play at the park.  We are lucky enough to live close to a park.  We do spend a lot of time there but sometimes we like to explore new parks.  This particular day we went to Tauphaus park.  We have been spending a lot of time here lately because Preston also has tennis lessons at this park and instead of just dropping him off.  Levi, Sophia, and I go and explore the different playgrounds at the park(there are 4 just at Taphaus park). There are so many parks around Idaho Falls that I hope we get to explore all of them this summer.

Sophia ringing the bell

The boys monkeying around

Sophia going down the slide

Preston going down the slide

Levi and Sophia in the tube

Jun 27 2011

Summer Thunder Storms

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Something about the summer I love are the thunderstorms.  We have a really nice beautiful day and by four or five o’clock the dark clouds move in and the thunder starts to boom.  I like to sit on the porch and smell the fresh rain and watch the lightning.  I know not the safest place to be during a thunder storm and I wouldn’t recommend it.  This particular day the kids came out with me.  It was raining off and on and the lightning was far away.  Levi started to dance around and as soon as he did it started to pour.  I told him he must have a great rain dance.  He just looked at me puzzled.  Sophia joined in the dance and they had a great time.   I love evenings like this.  It’s peaceful and the kids are happy and best of all I’m happy.

Levi and his rain dance

More rain dance

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sophia joining in

continuing the dance on the porch

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jun 26 2011

Free Fishing Day

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The second Saturday in June is free fishing day in Idaho.  We have made it a tradition and like to take the kids somewhere and fish as a family.  This year we tried a little pond just south of town.  It was pretty crowded and we fished for about an hour and didn’t even get a nibble.  All the while we are hearing the people just down from us whooping and hollering about catching fish, after fish, after fish.  Even though it is fun and exciting to catch a fish it is also nice to sit and enjoy the nature around you.  The kids had fun and it was a nice evening to relax.  We did see a turtle in the water.  I wasn’t quick enough to get a picture but it was pretty exciting.

Levi, Sophia, and I casting out.

Just your average fishermen

May 27 2011

Big Girl Sophia

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Sophia had a birthday last week.  She turned 3 years old.  This was a really fun birthday because it is the first birthday that she really knew what was going on.  I woke her up and sang happy birthday to her and she was so excited.  All day I would spontaneously sing happy birthday to her.  Eventually it got to the point that she would also spontaneously sing happy birthday to herself.  In the evening we had her open presents.  This is also the first year that she really didn’t need help opening the gifts.  She was so excited about everything.  Then it was time for cake.  Don’t look too closely at it.  I had Corey make the cake and frosting and I decorated it.  He used butter in the frosting that wasn’t completely softened and it wouldn’t come out of the tips very well.  At some point one of the tips exploded on the cake and made a big pink mess.  So then I just gave up on making it look decent.  Sophia loved blowing out the candles it took a few tries and a little spit spray but eventually she got them out.  We cut into the cake and something was very wrong.  I asked Corey if he followed the directions and he said “yes”.  We used a boxed cake but I used half of it for Preston’s cake a couple of weeks before.  So we were using the other half for this one.  Corey remembered to follow the directions but forgot to half the recipe.  So we had too much egg, oil, and water.  I didn’t care for the texture and taste of the cake but the kids still liked it so it wasn’t a total disaster.   All in all she had a wonderful birthday and we had fun celebrating it with her.  I can’t believe she is 3, what a big girl.

Money from Grandma and Grandpa Tiffany

Hat and Purse made by Nami Edwards. The cuitest things in the world.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

She loves to dress up

It's my birthday raw raw raw.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blowing out the candles

 


Cool new cup from Nami and Nampa Edwards

 

May 16 2011

Busy Weekend

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This past weekend we were really busy.  It started Friday night.  Preston had his spring concert with the Eastern Idaho Children’s Choir.  Ever since he was really young Preston has loved to sing.  He was singing “I am an Child of God” in Japanese by the time he was two.  When I found out about the local children’s choir I knew it was a good fit for him.  This has given him an opportunity to meet new people and to develop his talent.  He is learning the fundamentals of singing.  I’ve heard a great improvement from when he started.  He tells me he would like to be in choir again next year.  They had a good concert.  The only thing I would change is that they have a better sound system.  It was difficult to hear the children sing especially the youngest group.  They only had one microphone and that was only used to announce the songs.  It’s a shame because that’s why we go, we want to hear the kids sing.

Prelude Choir

Doesn't he look nice

 

 

 

 

 

 

On Saturday we went on our first family day hike for the year.  We went to Hells Half Acre.  This is becoming a yearly tradition.  It didn’t take us as long as it did last year.  The kids are becoming seasoned hikers.  Next year we think we might do the red trail which is considerably longer.  We were a little worried about Moxie and what the lava rocks would do to her paws but she did really well and by the end she was leading us to the next marking post.  We were only there for a couple of hours and it did start to sprinkle on us a little but it was really fun.  We can’t wait to go on another hike.  Next weekend it is Fathers in Sons camp out.  The boys will get to explore a cave and Sophia and I get to have a fun girls night (princess movies, painting nails).

Hells Half Acre spring 2011

Levi Climbing down the rocks

Levi needed a little help getting down

 

 

 

 

 

 

Preston climbing down

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sophia, Mommy, and Moxies backside

Me: "Levi watch out" Levi: " I know dad's behind the bush"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Whole Family

Also on Saturday was our 12th anniversary.  It is hard to believe that it was 12 years ago that Corey and I were sealed for time and eternity in the Portland Oregon temple.  He has been the best thing that has ever happened to me.  Saturday night my friend Jenn came over and watched the kids for us.  We went out to dinner and then had a nice quiet drive and walk.  We love our kids but it was really nice to have an evening without them.  We played a game of name what happened to us each year that we’ve been married.  It was fun to reminisce and remember both the good times and hard times.  Really makes you appreciate the here and now.  Thanks Jenn for giving us a great evening.  I’m sure the next  12 years are going to be just as fun.

Twelfth Anniversary