grace's baptism

We were so excited that Grandma Olsen and Kyleigh were able to come back to Arizona for Grace's baptism. We were happy to have family here to support here. She also had lots of friends from the neighborhood there.

visiting santa 2012

This year we went to our usual place to see Santa. We have gone to Bass Pro Shops every year that we have been in Arizona. They have a great Santa and lots of fun activities for the kids to do while we wait in line.

They also have a free carousel for the kids to ride. I think Garrett decided that this would be his last year riding it.  He is getting a little to old for that, of course he will still be part of the Santa picture. He really has no choice about that. :)

2012 spelling bee

This year it was Grace's turn to be in the school spelling bee. First she had to win her class bee and then she was able to compete against the other class winners in the school. I was so nervous for her, but she did great. She made it to the third round, I am so proud of her.

merry christmas to all!

Wishing everyone a safe and relaxing holiday!

happy birthday grace!

Grace definitely was ready for her birthday to come this year. Usually we celebrate Jack's birthday and Grace's birthday at the same time, so she was a little jealous when Jack was opening his presents and she had to wait two more days. 

But, I think she would say that it was worth the wait. She got some great, girly gifts this year. I think her favorite was a new pink Nintendo DS to replace the one she lost. She also got some cute clothes, headbands, a garden kit, some American Girl dolls, a fun ruffly bag, and lots of lip gloss.

And of course the day wouldn't be complete without a princess birthday cake!

happy birthday jack!

I am not sure how it is possible that my "baby" is 7 years old! This year we just had a low key dinner and presents at home. Jack got a lot of fun gifts to play with, but I think the highlight was the hamster cage. Of course we had to go to the store and buy some hamsters to go in them :) We ended up with two panda bear hamsters. They are adorable and very popular with all the kids!

jack {the artist}

During the month of October, Jack was selected as one of the few art students to display a piece of art at the school district building. We were super excited as only a handful of students are picked from the whole school each month for this honor.

Jack and I were able to go down to the building and check it out. He was so excited to see his work up on the wall and recognized it from down the hall.

The description of his piece simply says "Sharpie and Crayon". Jack really has a knack for drawing and I love seeing his work come home. I need to come up with a better way to display it, though.

halloween 2012

Phew! We made it through all the tricks and treats this year. We all decided on a pirate theme for our family and we just went with it. I made the tutu skirts for Grace and myself so we could be pirate princesses, of course!

The boys got good old store bought costumes because I ran out of time, but I think they look great! I picked up all the eye patches and swords at goodwill for cheap to complete everyone's look. 

I even got extra ambitious this year and made coordinating trick-or-treat bags for everyone. I think they were a big hit!

As you can see, I even got into the spirit of things and dressed up myself. It is hard to see in this photo, but I have a skull and crossbones painted on my shirt and a big pirate princess skirt.

And of course we made it out to Glendale for Erika's annual Halloween pizza party and trick-or-treating. This is our 3rd year going and we always have a great time. 

A bunch of cute girls!

And a great group of boys!

And lastly, here is our annual girls photo. It is fun to think that we used to trick-or-treat together when we were kids growing up and now our kids get to do the same thing!