The Walker's go to Washington

Party's and Performances

2011-12-19T17:00:00.000-08:00

December is is always a busy month with lots going on. It seems like the older my kids get the busier we are. Here are some pictures from just a few of the things we've been up to lately.

The first week of December Becky had her 6th grade chorus concert. She has really enjoyed her chorus class so far and she was looking forward to this concert a lot because she got to sing a solo with two other girls at the beginning of one of the songs.

A few days later Becky and JJ had their annual Christmas Piano Recital and they both played their songs perfectly!
The girls have really blossomed this year in piano. We just love their teacher, Sister Harris. She is WONDERFUL!

Sister Harris was in charge of the music program for our ward Christmas party. She wrote a beautiful Christmas song called "Mother tell Me of Jesus" and was kind enough to ask me and my three girls to sing it for the meeting. I don't have any pictures because the program took place in the chapel but it was such a privilege to be able to share that memory with my girls.

About a week later Dallin had his preschool Christmas program and party.
I have the hardest time getting that kid to smile for the camera!

After the program we got to go to his class room and decorate gingerbread houses. I think more candy went into his mouth than on the house. :)

A Preschool Thanksgiving Feast!

2011-11-17T09:53:00.000-08:00

Dallin is really enjoying his preschool class this year. His class is very small. Only four kids, and he's the only boy! He doesn't seem to mind though. They have been working on some cute songs and finger plays. Tommy and I went to watch his program and then have a Thanksgiving feast of chicken nuggets and tater-tots!!!! The kids thought it was great!

I learned that Dallin has no problem with stage fright. He sang his little heart out! You could hear him above all the other girls!! I loved it!

Happy Halloween!

2011-11-01T10:20:00.000-07:00

Halloween was lots of fun this year. The kids got really creative with their pumpkin carvings.

Becky carved this pirate skull:
JJ carved a halloween cat:

Emmy (and Mom) carved Cinderella:
Dallin (and Dad) carved Iron Man:

Between school activities, church activities, and Halloween day itself, it was like "musical costumes" around our house.

Last week was the Halloween Dance at Becky's school. She dressed like a Devil. If you ask me, she's the cutest little Devil I've ever seen. :) It was Becky's first time going to a school dance. She was so excited! She and her best friend Lauren went together.

Her favorite part of her costume was the red eyelashes.

For our ward trunk-or-treat the big girls went together as dice. Emmy was Cinderella. Dallin was a BYU football player. And Tommy was a Bat. I somehow missed taking pictures of everyone so you'll just have to take my word for it when I tell you they all looked adorable.

For Dallin's Preschool party and parade the kids were supposed to dress up like one of God's creations. Dallin dressed up as a Lion. (Again, I forgot my camera that day!)

The Kindergartener's at Emmy's school were supposed to dress up like one of their favorite story book characters. Emmy went as Angelina Ballerina:

Then finally on Halloween night, the girls went trick-or-treating as Dice:
Emily was "Briar Rose" and Dallin was "Batman":
And Tommy was a BAT:

It was a fun couple of weeks. Now we have WAY too much candy in our house! Let the sugar high commence! ;)

Happy Birthday!

2011-10-25T12:46:00.001-07:00

Yesterday was Joe and Julianne's Birthday!
This year is a big one for JJ. She is now officially double digits!!!! The big 1-0!
We had a little family party for them on Sunday.

(don't look too close or you'll see where Tommy swiped a big handful of frosting off the front of the cake!)

After months of asking for a skateboard, JJ was so excited to finally get one!!! And it turns out she's a natural!!!

It's a Girl!

2011-10-18T09:08:00.000-07:00

So I had my ultrasound last week and ......

We are so excited! Everything seems to look ok so far.
Even after having five kids the miracle of it all is still so amazing to me.
She was sucking on her fists the whole time. What a little sweetie.
I can't wait to meet her. 21 weeks down....19 more to go!

Grandma and Grandpa Nattress!

2011-10-17T09:41:00.000-07:00

My Parents were in town over the weekend and we had such a great time with them. The boys and I took Grandma and Grandpa down to Luray Caverns and the Car and Carriage Museum.
Uncle Tony took us all shooting Saturday Morning. Grandma took the kids shopping Saturday afternoon. And we had a nice relaxing afternoon on Sunday before they left for the airport.
We miss them already!
Here are a few pics from our fun weekend!

Grandpa and Dallin in front of a 1941 Lincoln

Tommy, hangin' out in his camping chair eating gold fish.

Check out this "smokin' gun"! ;)This is Grandpa shooting a 50 caliber! You have to lay on your stomach to shoot it and the "boom" is so loud it shakes your whole insides if you're anywhere near the gun when it fires.

Grandpa shot a perfect bulls-eye!!!!!

Dallin's first day of Preschool!

2011-09-13T10:16:00.001-07:00

Dallin started Preschool today. I enrolled him in a two day a week program this year. He was so excited to go to school just like his big sisters. On the way home when I asked him how his morning was he said, "It was great! I loved it!"
But just a few minutes later he got quiet and said, "Mom, I missed you so much."
Talk about melt my heart!!!!!

Seriously?!

2011-09-10T15:03:00.001-07:00

So it has rained all day (and all night) every day this week which has resulted in major flooding all along the east coast. They say catastrophes come in three's. First the earthquake, then the hurricane, now this. I'm hoping this is the last of our weather catastrophes for a while. Luckily we haven't had any flooding in our house, but I know some people in our area who have not been so lucky. It didn't seem so bad until I ventured out to go to an appointment. Tommy's been pretty sick with a respiratory infection and I finally decided a trip to the doctor was a must. It took me twice as long to get to the office because several of the roads were closed due to flooding.

Here is a blurry picture of the "reservoir" in our back yard:

It seems like things are drying up this weekend though. Yay! It's been so nice to actually see the sun again. Tommy's doing better too. He's been on antibiotics and a nebulizer for a few days and it's really helping.

I couldn't help taking a picture of Tommy with his little breathing mask on. Is this little face sweet or what?

First Day of School!

2011-09-06T14:04:00.000-07:00

School Supplies......$200

New School Clothes......$190

Co-pay for immunizations and physicals......$30

Only two kids at home during the day........Priceless!

Gotta love the first week of School!!!!!!

This year is a big one for us. Becky starts middle school!!!!! And Emmy starts Kindergarten.
*sigh* .................I can't believe how grown up all three of my girls are getting.

One Last Hoorah

2011-09-05T15:46:00.001-07:00

The Ahren's invited us down to their lake house on Lake Anna last weekend. We spent the day swimming, tubing, wake boarding, and just relaxing on the water. We all had such a great time. It was the perfect way to end the summer.

Leapyear Baby!

2011-08-29T08:49:00.001-07:00

It's official. I just got back from the Doctor's office and baby number 6 is Due February 29th 2012!
Most of you who read my blog already knew I was expecting but for those out there who didn't know here are some answers to some FAQ's:

Was this baby planned?
Absolutely NOT! Not only were we not trying, but we were actively trying not to have another baby! Our only explanation is that it is meant to be.

How do we feel about it?
Well, it has taken us a few weeks to get over the shock of it all. But anytime you have a baby it's exciting right? :)

How far along am I?
I am a little over 13 weeks now.

Have I been sick?
Yes. But it hasn't been too bad. I'm hoping to be through the worst of it in a few weeks.

What do we think it is?
Well Joe thinks/hopes it's a boy. I think I'm ready to have another girl. Either way we'll both be happy.

Is this our last one?
Well, I thought Tommy was our last one so that tells you how much I know. I really do feel like this is the LAST Walker baby. Unless there is some sort of divine intervention, (I really doubt there will be) this is it for us.

So... there you have it!

Hurricane Irene

2011-08-28T18:24:00.001-07:00

So Hurricane Irene came and went and we survived! Actually, more than survived. Truthfully it was a little anti-climactic.
We stocked the shelves with food and water. Gathered all our flashlights and emergency supplies and hunkered down. We watched the news and waited. The worst of it was supposed hit us early this morning around 1am.
We lost power for just a few hours yesterday evening and there were a few big gusts of wind last night that rattled the windows enough to wake me up. But other than that we didn't have any other problems. No trees down in the neighborhood, no flooding, and no extended loss of power.
I know there are a lot of areas closer to the coast where there is significant damage. Luckily we live far enough inland where it wasn't too bad for us.
They said on the news that it's the first time in history an area has been hit by an earthquake and a hurricane in the same week. Sheesh! It makes you wonder what we're doing wrong out here! :)

Dallin is Potty Trained!

2011-08-26T08:57:00.001-07:00

Hooray for Dallin!
I actually attempted to potty train Dallin at the beginning of this year and he was NOT interested AT ALL!!! So we put it off for a few months and decided to try again later. Well, a few months went by, and then a few more months and all of the sudden it was August!
Have you ever heard the phrase "Good things come to those who wait" ? I'm not exactly sure that the person who said it first was talking about potty training but it sure worked for us. I can't believe how easy it was. I basically had a little conversation with Dallin about two weeks ago and said, "Dallin, do you want to go to preschool this year?"
"Yeah!" he said.
"Ok, well you have to use the potty like a big boy if you want to go to preschool." I replied.
"........OK!" he said.
That was basically it, and he's been practically accident free since then!
Way to go Buddy!

First Earthquake!

2011-08-23T18:44:00.001-07:00

So today we experienced our first earthquake! So Weird!!!
Luckily it was fairly mild. No damage to the house or the neighborhood. It actually took me a minute to realize what it was.
Joe called me right after it ended. I guess it was a lot worse in D.C. He said he could feel his building swaying back and forth! SCARY!
But, like I said we're all fine and we feel very blessed no real harm was done in our area.

Disney World!

2011-08-01T08:07:00.000-07:00

Amy, Brock and Sami came for a visit the last week of July. We love them so much and we always have a great time with them. They spent a few days here in Virginia with us. We spent a day at Luray Caverns. We took the girls to the new American Girl store in Tyson's Corner. The boys went to a Nationals game. And we just had a nice time hanging out and relaxing.

Then we all piled into our cars and headed south to DISNEY WORLD!!! Amy and Brock have never been down to visit Andrea and it's hard to pass up the great deal we get whenever we go visit her.
We arrived in Orlando just in time to meet Andrea and sweet little Xander at the Dinosaur restaurant in Downtown Disney. Then we did a little window shopping and took advantage of some picture moments with all the grankids.

We started the first day at the Disney Junior Character Breakfast. It was a delicious breakfast buffet in Hollywood Studios where we could sit, eat, and relax while all the Disney Junior characters came around to each table to meet the kids, give autographs, and pose for pictures.
Then it was off to do some cool rides!

The second half of the day we spent in Animal Kingdom. We had VIP seats to see Andrea perform in Nemo. She does such a great job! It's always so fun watching her. We did a few more rides, had dinner, and then went back to our cabin to CRASH!

We spent day two in Magic Kingdom. Even though it was way HOT, I still think it's the most magical place on earth! I think the heat kept the crowds down too because it really wasn't too bad. We spent the day doing lots of fun rides (and drinking lots of water!) The highlight of the trip for me was the end of the day. Andrea arranged for us to enjoy an exclusive dessert buffet and front row seats to the light parade and fireworks on the Tomorrow Land Terrace. It was the perfect way to end our trip.

Even though we were only there two days we had a blast! And we can't wait to go back someday!

4th of July 2011

2011-07-07T17:50:00.003-07:00

We had a great 4th of July this year. Joe's cousin Amanda and her cute little family are in the area this summer for an internship, so we took them over to the Ahren's home for a little bar-bq and swimming. Then we went back to our place for some fireworks.

Summer in Utah!

2011-07-07T17:50:00.001-07:00

Well, it wasn't really the whole summer in Utah, just two weeks. But we did enough in those two weeks to fill a whole summer! We spent some quality time with Grandma's, Grandpa's and cousins and just had a whole lot of FUN!

We started our trip at my parents house in Kaysville. My mom took the kids shopping for new summer clothes, we spent a day at Boondocks for some good old "family fun", and we spent a day at Lagoon.

Then we headed down south to my parents cabin in Fairview for the Nattress Family reunion. The kids had so much fun playing with their cousins, riding four-wheelers, swimming, playing tennis, shooting hoops, playing dress-up, and a whole lot in between.

We had Emmy's Birthday party. She's FIVE now! It was extra special for her to have her cousins there to help her celebrate.

After the reunion wrapped up we headed back up to Utah county to have Sunday dinner with Joe's family. I wished we had more time to spend with them but we had lots of fun. Grammy even planned a little surprise birthday party for Emmy, complete with a Rapunzel cake and Doll!

We kicked off week two with a surprise birthday party for my brother-in-law! My cute sister went ALL OUT and planned a Huge LUAU complete with dancers! It was a real party!

The next day we loaded up my parents motor home and drove to Idaho. On the way we stopped to see my sweet Grandmother. She just turned 92! Can you believe it! I haven't seen her in years and she is still just beautiful. We've corresponded in a few letters and cards over the years, but it was so nice to see her and hug her again. She hadn't seen Emmy, Dallin, or Tommy in person yet so we took advantage of a few picture moments.

We spent a couple of days visiting my two brothers in Fruitland. The kids had fun watching 3D movies at uncle Dave's and one day uncle Brett took everyone boating for the day. Sufficeth to say my kids were thoroughly spoiled.

We wrapped up our trip back in Kaysville where uncle Joe put on a little pre-Independence day bar-bq and firework show.

Whew! What a party! Although we had a blast, the kids missed their dad a lot. We are happy to be back home and we are looking forward to the rest of summer!

Tommy Turns One

2011-07-07T17:47:00.000-07:00

June was a busy month here at our house. The girls finished school, Tommy turned ONE, and the kids and I went on a two week trip to Utah. Over the next few posts I'm going to have to play catch up so here goes.......

My baby boy turned ONE on June 17th. I can't believe it! This year went by so fast. He is so much fun right now. He's such a social little guy. He loves to talk run and play with his brothers and sisters. According to him he's 1 going on about 6! We laugh about the fact that he doesn't seem to know he's little. He thinks he's as big as everyone else, and boy does he act like it! We love our little T-man. Here are some pics from his party:

Preschool Graduation!

2011-05-26T09:03:00.000-07:00

Emily had her Preschool Graduation last night. All the 4 yr. old classes did a little program and she was so cute up there singin' her little heart out.
Emmy had such fun time in school this year. She did the Monday-Wednesday-Friday program at Bethel Lutheran Preschool. She loved every minute of it and would wake up every morning and ask, "Mom, is it preschool today?".

Her teacher, Mrs. Sande, is one of those special people who just radiates happiness and love. She and Emily were kindred spirits from day one. We will REALLY miss Mrs. Sande.I can't believe it's time to get ready for kindergarten now! Can my baby girl really be that old?

Look Who's Walking!!

2011-05-16T06:45:00.001-07:00

Just one day shy of 11 months, Tommy has finally figured out the walking thing. He's been working on it for a while. For about 2 months he's been cruising along the furniture and pushing his little walker all over the house but he hasn't been brave enough to try to walk with out help. He finally got brave the last week or two and he's getting pretty good!

Easter 2011

2011-04-24T18:22:00.001-07:00

You would think that after spending the day at Busch Gardens yesterday the kids would have slept in this morning. We were not so lucky. The kids were up bright and early this morning and eager to see what the Easter Bunny had brought them.
The Easter Bunny was good to us this year. The kids all got new Sunday clothes and LOTS of candy. Tommy was so funny this morning. It took him a minute to figure out what was going on. At first he thought he wasn't supposed to pick up the eggs. Every time he grabbed one I would say, "Tommy, what did you find?" and he would drop it like it was a hot potato. It's always fun watching the kids get all excited about their little prizes. It brings back memories of fun holidays we spent together as a family when I was a kid. It was an added bonus this year having Grammy, Grandpa, Beth and Brian here this year. It will be a fun memory for the kids.

Later this afternoon between our family, Joe's family, and the two Padilla families we had about 30 people here for dinner. It was a party! All the cousins had a great time together. It's always more fun spending holidays with family.

Spring Break 2011

2011-04-24T18:21:00.001-07:00

Spring Break this year was extra special. Joe's parents flew out and together we drove up to see some of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints historical sights. First we drove to Palmyra NY to see the Joseph Smith home and the Sacred Grove. It was snowing when we pulled up to the visitor's center. (We knew April weather in upstate NY might be a little unpredictable but we weren't really expecting that!) No worries though. We put on a few extra layers and started on our tour. After visiting the homes we walked into the Sacred Grove.

All of us in front of the "Smith Log Home"
Grammy, Grandpa, and the Kids standing in the "air space" where Moroni stood when he appeared to Joseph in his room.

Everyone in front of the Palmyra Temple.
Inside the "Smith Frame Home"

For a short time the Gold plates were hidden under the bricks in front of this fire place.Grammy and Grandpa in front of the "Alvin Tree"

Emmy and Dallin walking toward the Sacred GroveI wasn't sure if the kids would actually be able to appreciate most what we were seeing or doing while visiting all these places. For several weeks prior to our trip we devoted several Family Home Evening lessons to learning more about the people and places we were going to visit, but I still wasn't sure it would "sink in". But as we walked into the grove the presence of the spirit was undeniable. We stopped at a quiet place and read Joseph Smith's account of the First Vision. Of course the adults were all tearing up but I was a little surprised when I looked over to see Becky tearing up. When her Dad asked her why she was crying she said it was because she was feeling the spirit. Then he asked her what she thought the spirit was trying to tell her and she answered that she felt like the spirit was telling her that Joseph Smith's account of the First Vision was true.
As a parent there is no greater gift than to see the seeds of faith and testimony begin to grow in your children. It was definitely a highlight of the trip for us.

Our next destination was the Hill Cumorah. It was still pretty cold. Lucky for us we got to drive to the top. (It's a pretty steep hike.) It's the tallest hill in the area and the view from the top is beautiful.

After Cumorah it was time to head for the Border! The Canadian border that is. The next stop on our trip was Niagara Falls. We stayed on the 47th floor of the Hilton. We had floor to ceiling windows in our room with an amazing view of the falls. We did a little swimming in the indoor pool, had dinner, did a little shopping, and walked down to the falls. (At least as close as we could get with out freezing to death.) It was overcast and there was a lot of mist from the falls that prevented me from getting a good picture but they were absolutely spectacular! It was so fun being in Niagara, but I think we decided if we ever go back it should be in the summer when it's a little warmer :)

Next on the travel agenda was Kirtland Ohio. We had a really neat experience in Kirtland. My father-in-law has some "friends in high places" who introduced us to Brother Karl Anderson, a well known member of the church and authority on LDS church history. He was gracious enough to guide us through tours of the Kirtland Temple, John Johnson farm, Issac Morley Farm, and other historical sights. He also invited us to have dinner with he and his wife and a group of couple missionaries at an Amish farm. Liz and her husband (an Amish couple) graciously opened their home to us and we had a wonderful time visiting with them and learning about them and their beliefs. Our kids really bonded with some of Liz's grandchildren and it was definitely an experience we won't forget.

Becky and JJ with sister Joyce Anderson.
Emmy posing in front of the original table that Emma Smith owned while she and Joseph lived in the Whitney store.

After Kirtland we headed home to get ready for Easter. The kids had fun coloring eggs with Grammy.

The Saturday before Easter we all piled in the car again and drove down to Busch Gardens in Williamsburg. We had a blast! It was nice to finally have a little warm weather too!

Uncle Brian was the hero of the day when he won this for Dallin!

Emily got to visit the Easter bunny! (Dallin was in line too but he chickened out:)

It was such a great Spring Break week, filled with lots of fun memories.

They're Hooligans I tell you......Hooligans!

2011-04-07T19:10:00.000-07:00

These boys.....Don't let these sweet faces fool you......they are becoming evil little partners in crime.

Earlier today, while I was upstairs, Tommy got into the pantry and spilled cereal all over the
floor.

About an hour later I was in the kitchen and I heard a ripping sound coming from the couch in the family room. I went to investigate and this is what I found......

Dallin was playing with my scriptures and ripped out over 100 pages!!! I just about died when I saw this mess. Let's just say it wasn't a real 'banner morning' here at the Walker's. Hopefully the rest of the day goes a little better.

First Place!!!!

2011-03-28T16:01:00.001-07:00

Becky entered the school Science Fair this year and earned 1st Place in her category! She entered in the Earth and Space category and did an experiment to try and learn more about harnessing Geothermal Energy. She worked really hard and put a lot of hours into her assignment.
We are so proud of her!!!!!

JJ's 3rd Grade Program

2011-02-25T15:19:00.000-08:00

We went to Julianne's school program last night. It was a patriotic program this year. She has been singing the songs around the house for the last several weeks and she was really excited to perform with her class. It has been a fun year for her so far. She has a good group of kids from church in her class this year and it was fun seeing some familiar faces up there.

Julianne and her friend Kim:

JJ was so excited to have her Dad come to her performance. With his crazy work schedule the kids don't get to see him much. But he does a great job making the most of the time he has with them. So far he hasn't missed a school program yet!

8 Months Old!

2011-02-17T07:10:00.000-08:00

Tommy is 8 months old now! It's seems like he is changing by the minute. He's still a BIG boy! He is already almost out of his 12 mo. size clothes. He's been crawling for a about 6 weeks now and he loves to pull himself up and cruise along the furniture. He loves to talk but the only words we understand so far are ba-ba (bottle) and Hi. He says ma-ma-ma when he's sad and da-da-da when he wants to play but I'm not sure if he's referring to Joe and I or not. (I like to think he is ;) He likes to dance and play patty cake and he loves to pound on the piano. He's discovered books and loves to sit and look at them, but most of all he just likes to do whatever his big brother and sisters are doing. He has four teeth and I think he's working on a another. He likes to give kisses and hugs and he is very friendly. He has a bit of a temper too! It's kind of funny to see him get red in the face and squak when he doesn't get his way :) He loves attention and will reach out to almost anyone who will oogle over him.
We moved him out of our room and in with Dallin. It took him a few nights to figure out how to sleep through the night but he's doing really well now!

He was not very cooperative while I was trying to get some pictures but here are a few:

He wasn't very happy with me during these next few pics. I love his little bottom lip :)

Happy Valentines Day!!

2011-02-14T15:03:00.000-08:00

The Newest Member of our Family

2011-02-02T10:20:00.001-08:00

A week ago or so we traded in our beat-up little van for this:

I Love It! It's so much roomier than our old van and it's a tank in the snow! We're so excited!

Snowpocalypse part deux

2011-01-28T16:09:00.001-08:00

We're on our third day of no school and it's been a day of making forts, building snowmen, sledding, shopping at the mall, making homemade valentines, and doing iron-bead art.

Snowpocalypse 2011

2011-01-27T06:32:00.001-08:00

Ok so it's really not "snowpocalypse" but it was a pretty good storm this time. Here are a few pics of the kids playing in the snow.

The BIG 3!

2011-01-17T15:36:00.000-08:00

Dallin is 3 today! His day has been filled with everything JAZZ.
It just so happens that the Jazz are in town playing the Wizards today so Joe took Dallin to his first professional basketball game. Joe's parents sent Dallin the cutest Jazz sweatsuit for his birthday and so Dallin was decked out in all the right attire for the game.
They had a great time eating pizza, nachos and ice cream at the game. Joe said Dallin actually slept through most of the second half! Too funny! He was soooo excited to go, I guess the anticipation of it all just took it out of him.

Dallin in his new Jazz outfit under his Deron Williams fathead in his room:

Our Jazz boys heading off to the game:

While the boys were gone the girls helped me make a cake and decorate the house. We had a fun little family party tonight with cake and presents.

The girls were so proud of their decorating efforts:

Dallin's Jazz cake:

Grandma and Grandpa Nattress sent a card with money! I'm sure we'll put it to good use!

Dallin got a frog pillow pet from his sisters and brother:

He got a Woody doll from mom and dad:

One happy birthday boy!
Make a wish!

Then to top it all off--Padilla's stopped by with what ended up being Dallin's favorite gift of the night. A big Buzz-light-year tent!!! It was so cute, as soon as he got it set up he ran upstairs to change into his buzzlightyear shirt. Dallin was in 7th heaven. (Or maybe more aptly "the 7th galaxy"! :)

Christmas

2010-12-25T17:05:00.001-08:00

We had a wonderful Christmas this year. It was a bit of an adventure as some of us were sick all day yesterday but we are doing better today so hopefully no one else gets sick so we can enjoy the rest of Christmas break.
We had originally planned to have Christmas Eve dinner with some friends but with the unexpected illness we had to improvise. Joe cooked a delicious dinner for those that were not sick and we had a quiet night here at home. We read the Christmas story from the scriptures, opened pajamas and watched Christmas movies.

Christmas morning was so fun!!!!! We decided to try a new tradition this year as far as how we planned gifts for the kids. We decided to give everyone 4 items. 1-Something you want. (Santa helped us out with this one.) 2-Something you need. 3-Something to wear. 4-Something to read.
We were hoping this formula would help us keep Christmas simple and affordable. But it's amazing what happens when you add gifts from grandparents, cousins and friends. After setting everything up Chiristmas Eve, Joe and I looked at each other and said, "I thought this was supposed to be a 'small' Christmas!"
Everyone was thrilled with their gifts. We had a great time watching everyone open presents. Then we all got dressed up in our new clothes and went to breakfast!!!! (One of my favorite traditions!)

Tommy's loot:
Dallin's Loot:

The Girls:
Emily and her "Emily" Doll:
Julianne and her "Julie" Doll:
Becky and her "Rebecca" Doll:
A Happy Mess:

Becky's Birthday

2010-12-25T17:04:00.001-08:00

Yesterday my little girl turned 11!!!!!
This year we celebrated her birthday on the 23rd.
For breakfast she had a pancake birthday cake and then opened presents. Her favorite by far was a DDR (Dance Dance Revolution) game her Grammy sent her. It's one of those games that you just plug right in to the TV. We don't have any kind of game system at our house so all the kids thought it was pretty cool. The girls have been plying it non-stop since she opened it.

That evening we took everyone to Medieval Times! None of the kids have ever been before and I haven't been since high school. They all thought it was so cool to eat dinner with their hands!
All the kids really got into the show, cheering and waving their flags for all the knights. One of the knights even tossed a flower to Becky! It just made her day. :)
We had one little hang-up when Emily decided to throw-up all over the floor half way through the show. We made it through the night though.
Happy Birthday Becky!

Piano Recital and Preschool Program

2010-12-20T12:25:00.001-08:00

December is always a busy time of party's and recitals. This last weekend was no different.

Emily had her preschool Christmas program and class party on Friday. She was so cute up there in here angel costume. She sang her little heart out. Then we got to go back to her classroom and listen to stories, play games, and decorate a gingerbread house!

I invited my piano students and their families over this weekend for a mini Christmas recital and some treats.
They all did a great job.

Julianne played a duet version of Silver Bells. She sounded awesome!

I made Becky perform at my recital too. (Just to make it a little longer since I only had 4 performers :) She did great.

Six Months Old!

2010-12-17T12:30:00.001-08:00

My baby boy is 6 months already!!!!!!
I can't believe how fast he is growing up!
Tommy is such a sweet and good-natured baby. He is a BIG boy too. Already in 12 mo. clothes!
He is sitting up on his own. I just started him on a few solid foods. He likes squash and bananas the best so far. He loves to babble. He gives hugs and kisses. He likes to be in the middle of everything that's going on. He is sooooo close to crawling. He actually does everything else but crawling. He army crawl/inch worms across the room already. He gets up on his hands and knees or hands and toes and rocks back and forth. I think he'll be all over the house in no time!

First Snow of the Season

2010-12-17T12:29:00.000-08:00

The first snow of the season is always exciting!

The kids were home from school of course. It wasn't really enough snow to play in or build a snowman but the kids had fun anyway!

Tommy had fun watching them out the window. :)

Becky's Recital

2010-12-11T15:22:00.001-08:00

This year Becky "graduated" from taking piano lessons with me, and she moved on to taking piano from Sister Valerie Harris, an amazing musician and piano teacher in our ward. She has blossomed under Val's instruction and I think it's been a great thing for her to be accountable to someone else besides mom when it comes to piano.
She had her Christmas recital this afternoon and she did a great job!!!! She played an arrangement of 'O Come all Ye Faithful' in the style of Mozart. She had a lot of fun learning it and she performed it beautifully!

Clara's Christmas

2010-12-04T15:48:00.001-08:00

This year Becky and Julianne participated in their ballet studio's version of The Nutcracker called "Clara's Christmas". It was a great opportunity for them. They both love to perform and they did such a great job!

Grandma and Grandpa Nattress flew in for the weekend to watch the girls perform. We had a great visit with them. Seeing them always makes us remember how much we miss them!!!!

Thanksgiving

2010-11-26T09:16:00.001-08:00

We had a great Thanksgiving! I realized it was our 6th Thanksgiving here in Virginia. It's amazing to think how our lives have changed in the last 5 years. We have so much to be thankful for.
I know it sounds cliche, but as I look back I am most grateful for the people in our lives that have made this move to Virginia such a wonderful one.
I remember our first Thanksgiving.......just a few months after we moved across the country, away from everything and everyone we knew and loved.
I was so homesick. I was counting the days, hours, and minutes until we were going to be on a plane, headed home for Christmas.
This year, I have to say, Virginia feels like home. Over the last few years things have changed so that many of those we love most are now here.
I still get a little homesick for family and friends back west, especially around the holidays.
But, I will cherish the memories we've made here forever.

Daddy and Tommy having a little pre-feast nap....

Thanksgiving is always more fun with cousins!