Winter Has Come and Winter Has Gone......

WOW-it is amazing how quickly your kids grow out of their clothes. This year both Natalie & Corbin needed new coats. So we bought the kids new snow outfits (new coats, snow pants, matching hats, and mittens) so we would be prepared for all the fun in the snow. Well, so far during 2011/2012 winter season we have seen snow come and we have seen snow melt away along with TONS of rain and very warm temperatures. I was beginning to wonder if they would be able to use their snow pants this year. Finally in 2012 we now have a forecast with LOTS of snow, very cold temperatures, and LOTS of fun in the snow with a little bit of rain.

Monday we finally had enough snow on the ground that the kids could go outside and play. Daniel & I weren't exactly excited about going outside in the very cold temperatures so we bundled the kids up and sent them on their way (into the back yard). Natalie has been looking forward for so long to make a snow Angel and now that goal has been accomplished.


Natalie and her Snow Angel. Corbin is not too sure about the whole laying down in the snow idea quite yet.



I walked outside to check on them and saw this. They had eaten all the snow off of the table. It was so cute because (I am not sure if you can see) of Natalie's cute little tongue sticking out to pick up the snow.

When we bought their snow suits we bought them in a 4T. When we tried them on they looked a little big but not too bad. When they put them on for the first time WOW...they both looked like they had plenty of padding on underneath. The good thing is that they will definitely last them for a few years.

Wednesday and Thursday brought some good snow fall so they have since had plenty of time to play in the snow while I shoveled the driveway. I don't have snow pants but I do have boots so I decided to have some "fun in the snow" with my kids so Natalie and I went and made some snow Angels. I even wrote out names above our handy work. It was actually a lot of fun except for when I was freezing Natalie chose to go in but Corbin wanted to stay outside and play so I froze for 30 minutes longer so Corbin and I could have some fun in the snow. We went and played in the back yard while Natalie sat in the warm house and watched a movie. Today it is supposed to be about 38* so we will receive some rain but then Sunday night and a majority of next week we are supposed to receive snow and maybe 1 day of warmer temperatures for rain. The kids have had a lot of fun. Now we just need to go buy some sleds and go sledding. Natalie tried to use some boards from a bookcase to go sledding. I advised her it wouldn't be a good idea so now we have to go buy some sleds.

Natalie's Prize Pony

Natalie and Corbin entered a color drawing at our bank for "Kids Day". We got a call a week ago that Natalie's picture was chosen for her age group and she won a Wells Fargo Pony. She was very excited. However I told Natalie it was for her and Corbin because I knew what would happen if we told Corbin it was Natalie's. Now that we picked it up and they have both ad a chance to play with it and she has taken it to show and tell at the Library Corbin is ok that it is Natalie's. The pony came with a name and his name is "Al". Very cute and very soft.

Christmas 2011

WOW! I can't believe another Christmas has come and gone. Christmas shopping is getting a little more complicated. I have to rely on Santa more now than i ever have in the 3 years I have had children. I visited a lady in Airway Heights, WA who was selling lots of things I was getting my kids for Christmas. I took the kids with me thinking i could just hide the stuff I was buying because they would see it and forget. Well, I had only intended on buying specific things but when we got there Corbin found a shopping cart and I knew we would not be leaving that house with out a fight so I bought it. My intention was to give it to him for Christmas but every where I hid it in our home he found it. So I finally had to give it to a friend to hide. He asked about it quite a bit but. So Corbin has always been an early riser so when he came down Christmas morning he had to walk right be the Christmas Tree to get to our bedroom and as soon as he walked by the Christmas Tree he saw his shopping cart. It took A LOT of coaxing but I told him he had to wait until Natalie woke up to play with his toys. So he came and climbed in bed with us but couldn't wait so he woke Natalie up. He was SOOO excited to see his shopping cart. I kept telling him through the weeks before Christmas that Santa was going to bring it to him for Christmas. When I was growing up every year I got a toothbrush for Christmas. So I have carried that onto my family. So the kids were with me when I bought the toothbrushes and they were both excited. Every year Daniel & I also buy the kids the candy canes with the PB Cups in them and they were with Daniel & I when we bought them and again they kept asking for both the chocolate and the toothbrushes. I told them I didn't buy them and Santa was going to bring them. So on Christmas morning when the opened their stockings and found the chocolate and toothbrushes they were excited that "Santa" brought them their candy canes and toothbrushes. Thank you Santa for saving me this Christmas.

Corbin is not quite sure how to use our Christmas stockings.

I have always tried to find a creative way to count down to Christmas and last year I saw a friend who had candy bars for her kids on a stocking. I decided to try it this year. So we got miniature candy bars and applied numbers. It really worked for the kids. They of course really liked the idea. Next year I will use something else other than ribbon and construction paper. The numbers fell off just after I put them on and the chocolate wouldn't stick to the ribbon. Better luck next year.

Every year that we have been up here we go to Lake Coeur d'Alene and look at the lights. It doesn't quite beat SLC Temple Square but the kids enjoyed it. This is us on one of the towers over looking the lights. It was a very cold night but the lights were fun.

Corbin got these "Pleasant Journey" track from Grandma & Grandpa Aikele. He really likes it. The two cars that it came with use up A LOT of battery power and they are still learning to keep the trucks on the track and turn them off when they are done playing. There are a few times they leave them unattended and the trucks will run off the track and keep going. There have been a few times we have had to tear his room apart just to find the trucks.

This is the infamous shopping cart. He LOVES it. Then Natalie got her La La Loopsy doll that she loves. Her loopsy doll came with a "pet cow" that Natalie insists stays with the Loopsy doll. She took it for show n tell at the Hayden Library and I forgot I had put it in her pocket so it wouldn't get lost. She was insistent when she got up to show her doll that we find her cow. She also got this from Grandpa & Grandma Aikele. She also got a VERY cute poodle purse from her cousins that carry ALL the jewelry she got for Christmas also. Needless to say this Christmas was a success.

Fun Random Adventures from 2011

We have had fun this last month. We went to our Ward Christmas Party and the kids saw Santa. Corbin has always been shy and very reserved about walking up to a stranger EVEN Santa but this year he stood in line and when he got to Santa he wasn't too sure but once he sat on his lap...HE SPOKE TO SANTA. Santa asked him questions and he answered. I was SOOO shocked. So then I started to help clean up and lost track of both kids. When I turned around Corbin had made his way back up to Santa AGAIN. Corbin is slowly starting to come out of his shell. We really talked up Santa this year with the help of Natalie she always talked to Corbin and told him how fun Santa was. So he is now pretending to be Santa and has the whole "Ho, Ho, Ho" down. Natalie really also made her way up there twice. The video doesn't show him talking much but it was too cute.

So as of right now we have a skiff of snow on the ground. The kids get so excited. The very first snow storm came I believe in November and Natalie has been waiting so long and was so excited when we had snow she had to make a snow angel. So cute. So once we got the snow the kids needed coats badly so we decided to just to buy them new coats with matching snow pants. Well, since them all the snow has melted and if we have received snow that has stuck it is very little and just enough to stick to the ground but now it is frozen so it is not "Snow Angel" snow. We are hoping to get some so they can use their snow pants.

OH and this was my latest craft project. I was just released from being the Beehive Advisor in the YW and my last activity with the girls they did this craft. It was meant as Christmas for their Mom's. I liked the idea that I created this for my Mother-in-law for a Christmas gift. This was the finished product. It turned out very cute.