Jakob's 6th Birthday & Kellen's 1st Pinewood Derby

My mom, Sara and the kids came out for a week to check out the new house. My mom helped me spend my money on decorating the house. They were here the week of Jakob's birthday so it was great timing! This is my nephew Rhett, Riley's little boy- You can see the resemblance.
Opening presents.

He got all the candles out!
His Star Wars dirt cake!

Kellen's Pinewood Derby!
Working hard to get it just right.



Kellen decided to go with a Star Wars Derby Car... did that surprise any of you? Luke is driving with R2D2 in the passenger seat. He did not win any races that mattered, however he did win some races against the others boys that they set-up for fun.

Lexibug is 1!

So I am only 2 1/2 months late...pretty good I think.
I can't believe she is already 1! (2 1/2 months ago)
For her birthday party we went to our church building. It worked great. We played a game in the gym, had cake in the kitchen and played games in a room with closed doors! No one escaped!This is Alexis' friend Lydia.
This is her BFF Dayna. They are 11 days apart and hung out a lot in primary before we moved.

Alexis had many helpers opening presents.
It was a little chaotic!
MORE FRIENDS!!
Hannah playing "pin the dot on the ladybug".
Alexis pinning her dot!
The kids decorating their bags
Friends playing Winter BINGO
THE CAKE
At first she was being very picky with her cake.
She eventually figured it out...
and started digging in.

The final product of the cake...

and the final product for her. And umm yes, I forgot a bib.

Kellen gets baptized

Kellen was baptized in November with his cousin Abby. They are 2 weeks apart, so we had a very special day for both of them. Kellen is a great example to his brother, sister and friends. We are so proud of him, he is a blessing to our family.

STAGES OF OUR HOUSE

We have been going out to our house every week since September when they broke ground. The boys are tired of going out but are excited to finally stay. It has been fun to see the progress. We are very excited to move into our new house, but are sad to leave our friends in Richland. I guess it's a good thing Pasco is just the next town. We will move the end of January.

The Gifts of Fall

Fall brings the harvest! For the past 2 years my sister-in-law Andrea and I have been canning together. The first year we did peaches, pears, applesauce, apple pie filling and peach salsa. Last year we just did peaches and pears. This year she decided to move away. A great opportunity for her family but left me without my canning partner. My applesauce was running low and my Bishop's wife found a great deal on apples. So I decided to can by myself. Not as fun without a friend but still very rewarding. I do enjoy canning. Next year might have to be another big canning year. We need to stock-up again.
A store bought apple VS. locally grown.
One of my 2 big boxes of HUGE red delicious apples. "I am sorry beautiful red apples, but you will be mashed into yummy applesauce."
The process with the "applesaucer", so easy! Boil the apples to soften them up and put them through. No peeling or coring required.
The final result. Two boxes = 16 qts and 16 pts all for $12.00!

A fall favorite for the kids and family tradition- The Pumpkin Patch!!
Kids do get taller every year. No matter how many times I tell them to stop.. they don't listen!

Alexis' first pumpkin patch, she is cheating a little bit with dad holding her up.
Mr. Scarecrow and his 3 little pumpkins.
Riding out to the pumpkin patch.
Alexis' 1st pumpkin.
Kellen's pick
Jakob's pick
Are you ready for it? Wait for it...My little pumpkins with their pumpkins. :)