Christmas

 David's parents got to spend Christmas with us this year. We did our traditional trip to the zoo on Christmas Eve. The Boise zoo was super disappointing and small and cold. I'm thinking this tradition might come to an end this year. But it was fun to go see a new zoo all the same!

We made gingerbread houses a couple days before Christmas.

Then we did the Nativity.

Rachel got to be the angel this year.

After Rachel's part as the angel I said okay sit down now you're done. And she said, "Why did I die?"

These kids are so good to do this every year without a fight.

Then we played Christmas Bingo. This is one of the things the kids love the very best.

And new Christmas jammies. 

I love these kids and Christmas so much!!

Ashton turns 13

 Ashton turned 13 and I can hardly believe we have a teenager. Ashton has thrived with this move and has made friends easily. He loves hanging out with friends and is a great kid. He loves making things out of cardboard boxes and duct tape. He still loves Legos and reads like crazy!

When Ashton first started school with the Covid weirdness he was having trouble making friends. So when I told him that the GT (gifted and talented) crowd had smaller classes with the same group he asked if he could test in. He signed up for the test and made it in. I'm proud of him taking care of himself socially and academically.

Volleyball

 Hannah and Mallie got invited to play volleyball with our neighbors right as we moved here. Carrie coached and they loved every minute of the season. Mallie couldn't get the ball over the net with a regular underhand serve so she learned a chopping method that was hilarious and went over with some serious force. These girls were darling!

Rachel turns 5

Rachel turned 5 and is a burst of energy. She wanted to decorate cupcakes for her birthday!

This girl is a spit fire. Sometimes she'll knock on our nextdoor neighbor's door and ask if their teenage daughters want to come out and play. Physically she is so coordinated and super strong. She has all the questions all the time and we love to hear what this little girl comes up with.

Lucy gets baptized

Thanks to Covid Lucy got her own private baptism. We were thrilled when we moved here to find out our stake center shared a parking lot with the Meridian temple. What a blessing. Lucy was so excited to be baptized and we were so happy that both sets of grandparents could be here and her great grandparents.

We love this special girl of ours and are so grateful her siblings can feel the Spirit of how important baptisms and making covenants are. Mallie teared up as she was being confirmed as she remembered her own baptism day. I love that we can feel Heaven so near on these special days.

 

Lucy turns 8

 Lucy turned 8 pretty quickly after we moved to Meridian. We were so happy that her great Nana and Pops invited us to go boating that day! We woke up and she opened her presents and then we headed to the Lake! We drove through the Taco Bell drive thru (her fav) on the way home and then did an ice cream party when we got home at 8pm. Lucy is smiley and happy and a peacemaker. She loves to nurture and love the little girls especially Sophie. We love her so much and are so excited she gets to be baptized soon!

Mallie turns 10

 Mallie always seems older than she is. She's 10 and feels like she's been older for ages. She loves to bake and organize. She is always so helpful in the kitchen. Lucy is her little BFF and I caught them playing UNO in her hammock chair that she bought herself. She is motivated and I would trust her to basically do anything because she is determined and responsible. We love this girl!!

Hattie turns 3

 Hattie turned 3 right after we moved here. This little girl is more talkative at three than any of our other kids. She used to be so sneaky and would get into everything. She is getting a little less mischievous but thank goodness she still has her giant personality. She loves to chat and laugh and has the best smile. We love this little girl so much! 

Getting ready to leave MN

As we were packing up and getting ready to leave MN we had to say goodbye to a lot of our favorite people and places.

One of our last nights with the Barnes family. Bethany and I hooked up pretty quickly when we got there and swapped babysitting weekly. It was the best!

The Lam kids from across the street moved in when we had about a year to go and our kids played outside together daily. They made chalk towns on driveways and drew roads across the street to link them together. They were the best neighbors.

David didn't get a formal graduation because of covid but he and the fellow residents had a little park send off with the faculty. He got to work with some pretty amazing coresidents for the last two years!

We went to Nelsons to celebrate since we couldn't do anything really official at a restaurant. Man we love Nelsons and their supersize cups of ice cream for so CHEAP.

I had to throw this one in there. One day the three big girls were wearing overalls and they just looked so cute together. Harmony my best friend from MN had gifted us two pairs. She kept us in a steady supply of hand me downs from her girls and we were so grateful1 Oh Minnesota we will miss you!!