What a busy month...

December was filled with parties left and right and also the Preschool Christmas Program.  We have enjoyed every minute of it even though we were exhausted at times.  Christmas Eve was spent with Boone's family this year.  We had a great time as always at his parents house.  The kids were beyond excited this year for Christmas.  The begging to get up routine started at 2:30 in the morning.  Finally at 6:00 we decided to give in to the begging and get up.
We have had a fun December and have enjoyed spending time with family.  We are so blessed!

 Grandma and Grandpa Allen at the Preschool Christmas Program

 Grandma Hathaway

 Kenzie as Mary

 Easton as a wiseman

 Madison as a shepard

 The kids lined up at the stairs (just like my dad used to do with my family) waiting to see if Santa came!

 The girls standing by their new dollhouse.

 Easton standing by his new train table with his Iron Man mask on.

 The kids

 Madison

 Easton

Makenzie

I hope all of you have a fantastic 2011!!

Never Ending FUN!

What a fun-filled Thanksgiving we had.  The kids had a blast every single minute we were in Utah.  It was so fun to spend it with extended family.  We had Thanksgiving dinner at Little America and it was spectacular!  It was an enormous room filled with every kind of food you could imagine.  The kids liked picking out whatever they wanted.  They even made their own ice cream sundaes for dessert.  I've never seen so much food in my life.
The hotel we stayed at was by far the best for kids.  It had an indoor water park, a game room, and it's own theater.  Across the street was also a Family Fun Center with laser tag, a carousel, and roller-skating.  Who knew the adults in my family are such good skaters?  It was hilarious!  My sister Danette even made up a skating routine for everyone!
We had such a fun time and there was a lot of laughter!  We plan to do it again really soon.

We are counting down the days for Christmas at our house.  The kids are so excited for all of the fun.  We look forward to spending more time with family.  What a wonderful time to be together with family and friends, remember those loved ones that are gone, and remember our Savior Jesus Christ.  We are so blessed!

Halloween

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

I am so thankful for these little people in my life.  They bring so much joy and laughter.  Also tears and headaches, but I wouldn't have it any other way. 

We are looking forward to the upcoming holiday fun with friends and family! Next up, a Thanksgiving getaway to Salt Lake City, Utah with the Hathaway side of the family.  

GOOD TIMES!

We love adoption!

We have been blessed with three beautiful children. Two of our children came to us through adoption.  We are forever grateful for the miracle of adoption in our lives.  We know that Madison & Makenzie are meant to be part of our family.  We thank Heavenly Father every day for this great blessing.  

With that said...we know several couples that are anxiously waiting for that miracle at this very moment.  

Click here to learn more about Kolby & Heather.
Click here to learn more about Gabriel & Heather.

Adoption is a great blessing!

Back to Pre-school!

 My two babies started pre-school.  Easton was a little bit shy, but he got over it quicker than I expected.  This was Makenzie's 2nd year so she felt so important that she could help Easton .  They both had a great time and they enjoy going together.  They are growing up so fast!

Easton

Makenzie

Easton & Makenzie


Look at their GIANT BACKPACKS!  Don't you love it?

A few things.....

Madison started school today..... and I'm not sure who is happier. Her or these two:

Kenzie and Easton enjoyed playing with all of Madison's toys and not being bossed around by a 6 year old all day. They even got to go to I.F. with mom and grandma for a little bit.

Here is Maddy waiting for the bus. She was a little nervous and couldn't finish her cereal.

Madison the big 1st Grader with a big backpack!

I have been blog lazy this summer and have missed blogging so many things, but I wanted to make sure I documented Kenzie's big day in August. "Little Bean" turned 4 this year.

She wanted a princess cake and she got one!

She is a silly 4 year old and we love her to pieces!

My dad's birthday...

Yesterday would have been my dad's 67th birthday. I spent the day with my mom and sisters. It has been a long three years and we sure do miss him. Today, I am visiting his grave.

I miss you dad, and so do my children. We often wonder where you are and what you are doing. We love you!

Sweet Success!

Sweet success at our house! Easton has graduated to "BIG BOY" status. No more babies or diapers in this house. Do you think he looks happy?

Sooner than we thought!

It looks like we will be buying this sooner than we thought!

Easton spent his first day today in his underwear and stayed dry! I can't believe it.

He woke up this morning and asked to put on his big boy underwear instead of his pull-up. I was a little nervous because I had to take Maddy to dance in Idaho Falls, but I said o.k. We have spent a lot of time today running to the bathroom, but he stayed dry!

He even went to the bathroom at Boone's office when we went there this evening for an hour or so. He is a POTTY MACHINE! Every time he goes, he reminds me that he gets his big Buzz and Woody toy.

JUST LOOK AT THIS HAPPY BIG BOY GIVING US THE THUMBS UP!

A lot going on this month....

We celebrated Easton's birthday this last week. He is now 3. He is on his way to being potty trained too! We love him and his CHEESY grin!

Blowing out his candles. He asked for a cake with cars on it.

He loved all of his new cars, trucks, and tools.

I managed to snap a photo of the kids before church last Sunday. They are a handful, but we love them!

We also celebrated Madison's 6th birthday this month. It is hard to believe how big she is. We love her to pieces and we are so glad to have her as part of our family!

She was so excited to have her very own princess cake.

Madison FINALLY got a trophy! She had a dance competition this last weekend and her team did really well. On the way home I told her that she should put her trophy on the shelf in her bedroom so her brother and sister didn't break it or ruin it. She thought that was a good idea and after a few minutes of thinking exclaimed, "Mom, I'm going to need a bigger shelf for all the trophies I get!"

I just love her and the funny things that come out of her mouth!

He may or may not be potty trained!

Easton may or may not be on his way to wearing underwear and a Buzz-lightyear toy may or may not be in the near future. I don't want to jinx anything.

This morning I caught the little superhero pushing and straining in the hallway. I said to him, "Hey Buddy, why don't you go in the big boy toilet!" He looked at me with a smile and said, "OK!" That was it! Five minutes later he was flushing the toilet and telling me he was a big boy and he wanted the Buzz-lightyear toy I promised him.

I put him in a pull-up and told him no more baby diapers, and he agreed!

We are keeping our fingers and toes crossed!

Do I get a trophy?

Madison loves to dance. From the moment she stepped foot in the dance studio and saw all of the trophies, she has asked for one. I explained to her that at the end of the year after a lot of hard work she has the chance to get a trophy at any of the dance competitions she attends.

She can't get the trophy out of her mind. Last night she performed at a basketball game half-time. When we pulled up to the school she let out a scream and said, "I am so excited to perform!" "Do I get a trophy when I'm done?" I laughed out loud. She cracks me up these days.

She is not my little baby anymore. She is getting so big. She is a head taller than all her friends. She is such a beautiful little girl and I love her to pieces.

Superhero!

Oh, the joys of potty training. This has been the topic of conversation lately between Easton and I. He wants to be a big boy and he is interested in the "big boy underwear", he just wants nothing to do with the big white scary toilet. He won't even sit on it for fun.

He is obsessed with Buzz-lightyear from the movie "Toy Story", so we made a trip to the store yesterday. He picked out underwear and we took a trip down the toy aisle. He went crazy over the big Buzz-lightyear toys. He wanted a super cool toy that was a super $100. His birthday is in March and we will save a lot of money not buying diapers. Oh, who am I kidding, it is worth $100 not to have to wipe his stinky rear anymore! I told him that if he learned to go potty in the toilet, Buzz-lightyear would be his. I purchased some Buzz-lightyear wings to ease the pain of leaving without the toy he really wanted.

Fast forward to today. We have a super hero flying around our house keeping us out of harms way. He protects me as I make my way from the laundry room to the bedroom. He uses his special laser to keep the bad guys from getting me. So, what happened to the underwear? That is not a hat he is wearing. At least they are clean!

I guess superheroes are even hard to potty train!