Random Photos of the last few months

 Ansley insisted on wearing Spencer's pink tie to church. She is getting her own style I guess

 Westen's first time playing in the snow. He loved it... for a little while anyway

 Clay loved helping me grind our own wheat. He was a champ

 This is what I had next to me one morning. So Sweet

 I love my kids and how they love each other so much even though it doesn't always show.

Polar Express Party

On the last night the girls were here, we decided to have a polar express party with homemade hot chocolate and cookies. The kids got in their PJ's and made a bed of pillows and blankets and watched the Polar Express. You would have thought Westen was in heaven with all the rolling and laughing he did on the pillow bed. He played on it almost the whole time. We enjoyed having Mike, Cherie, Rylin and Jordyn with us this Thanksgiving. We missed our other family members in California and Missouri though and wished they could have been there, too.

Thanksgiving

 Cherie made this deep dish pumpkin pie. We had a good laugh about it. 

 All this cooking has wiped her out. She need to tak a rest in the bather

 Helping type up things we are thankful for.

 My Thanksgiving baby

   

Thanksgiving was wonderful. Cherie and I brinned the turkey, had candied yams, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, rolls, roasted balsalmic asparagus. The kids made some little turkey from puff balls and made up stories. While dinner was cooking we took the kids for a little walk over to a neighbors yard were they had a thankful tree. We wrote what we were thankful for on a paper leaf than hung it up on the tree. The kids thought that was neat. 

Scheels Fun

 

 Stinky

 opening presents

 Christmas PJ's

 We went to Scheels for a winter activity. They had some fun scenery's you could take pictures in. Than we came back home and our kids opened Christmas gifts from Papa and Nana. They loved them and wanted to play with them/wear them right away.

Westen's Birthday

 Excited about his cupcake...or the fire of the candle

 Cousins enjoying the cupcakes 

 

Westen turned one on November 22. It seemed like I blinked and he is already one. We had a busy and eventful year plus handling two other kids makes it go faster. We were excited because Papa, Nana, Rylin and Jordyn came to town on his birthday and were able to celebrate it with us.

Westen is very laid back most of the time. He is such a affectionate baby. Always giving kisses and loves. He loves Clay and loves wrestling with him and daddy. If he is ever crying, you just put him on our bed and he is ecstatic about life. He screams for everything and in every mood. Its something we are working on because I don't know how much of it we can take. He eats more than Ansley and sometimes more than Clay. Where does he put? He used to say Mamma and Dadda, but when he started saying "whats that?" he stopped saying those other words. He just started saying "wow", "look", "boo", "yeah" and "no". He hasnt' ventured out in walking yet, but soon coming. 

He is my cuddlier. I thought Ansley was a cuddlier when she was a baby, but Westen is our cuddle baby. He is very curious and wants to explore and touch everything. He loves books and Clay's toys and taking a bath.

He is a joy to be around and he makes you feel like your the most important person to him at the time with all the loves he gives you. He makes you laugh with all the face expressions he has and the games he plays. He is a ham and we love it. He is so much like his Dad, in looks and personality. We love Westen!!

Halloween

Carving pumpkins

 

 Trunk or Treat

 We did the Nightmare Before Christmas theme

Spooky Dinner 

 

 

 Dressing up for School

 Trick or Treating in the neighborhood

 

Wow! This year was so fun during Halloween. We were able to wear our costumes many times so I feel like the money was worth it. The kids loved how the pumpkins turned out. Ansley kept saying "look its spooky".

We have never had a ward that did Trunk or Treat, so I was excited to dress up our car. I did a Nightmare before Christmas theme. It was so easy, I had everything I needed for it except the black table cloth. I carved the pumpkin out and painted it. We had the sound track of the movie playing in the back ground. People new the movie thought it was clever, but some of the kids who didn't kept telling Spencer that we had the wrong holiday. It was funny. Some people don't do candy, they do hot chocolate, popcorn machines, fire pits where you can sit and roast things. It was a lot of fun.

Our Spooky dinner was so fun too. This year we decided to invite my brother's family and my parents over. They dressed up in their costumes and had a feast of spook things to eat. The kids loved dancing, the green light above the table, the mummy cups, the strobe light and the floating ghost above their heads. It was a great time!

Our neighborhood is so fun with their decorations for Halloween. The house with the ghosts in the garage and the skeleton pirate ship said that he had been working on it since April. What?? I'm sure it was worth it to him to see all the kids loving what he created.