October

Wow, where has the time gone? I didn't realize how long it has been since we blogged!  I was a little distracted the first 17 days of the month with Grant home due to the government shutdown.  I had a lot more competition for computer time!  It was great to have Grant home but it was really stressful wondering when he would go back and we would get payed again!  Glad everything is back to normal even though I am a little lonely now. 

So this month has been a little busier since Leah started preschool.  She absolutely loves going which is a relief.  I wasn't sure how she would handle having to get ready by 8:10 in the morning to leave but she does just fine.  Her favorite part so far was a field trip to the pumpkin patch.  She and Emma both got to go on school field trips there in the same week and bring a pumpkin home.  Leah has 4 friends from the ward in her preschool class which is wonderful.  She brings home lots of fun projects she has made and is super proud and insists they be hung up on the art wall in the dining room.

Emma is doing well at school. She keeps bringing home scary story books from the library.  One was too scary for me.  I told her we had to stop reading it and she needed to take it back to the school library but she snuck it back up to her room and read it anyway and then of course woke up twice with nightmares.  Oh well.  Live and learn!

Becca continues to grow up too fast!  She is constantly imitating her sisters and now her dad too.  She has figured out how to laugh maniacally like Grant does and does it everytime she takes something away from her sisters.  She loves to help me cook but insists "i do it" and dumps it on the counter instead of in the bowl. 

The baby continues to grow and get ready to join the family.  I am officially in the third trimester and enjoying all that comes with it.  It will all be worth it in the end though!  We are having a hard time coming up with any names yet though.  Coming up with a 4th girl name is hard!

Last weekend we visited Shenandoah National Park for a little day trip since it was finally back open.  It was a little past peek color but beautiful none the less.  But a little underwhelming compared to the grand national parks of the west we are used to!

I have also included some pictures we took of the girls at a park one day when Grant was home. 

Leah's 5th Birthday

Leah is 5 years old!  I can hardly believe it has been that long since she was a little baby.  We celebrated all day long! We picked up Grant from work and went out to lunch.  She picked chik-fil-a and then asked to order a hamburger! Silly girl.  She was happy with her chicken though.  She got to pick her favorite dinner-meatballs with mushroom sauce- and then open presents and have an "ice cream" cake that was literally just a block of ice cream with frosting.  Live and learn the east coast quirks I guess. She even got to open presents while skyping with Grandma, Grandpa, Spencer and Mckay!  I think she had a great day.  She starts preschool in one more week and is soooo excited!

Emma is doing well in school.  She loves going and brings home a new library book everyday to read.  She is a reading machine and likes to stay up reading in bed something she gets from both her parents! She and Leah are doing soccer this fall and she seems to like it.  She was so excited she slept in her new shin guards and then got up at 6:30 on Saturday so she would be ready in time.  She is eagerly awaiting her birthday, it is hard to have a sister get so many fun things and have to wait 6 weeks to get something of your own.  She recently checked out a book about how to draw cartoons and has been drawing us all with different funny faces and eyes.

Becca is busy being an adorable 2 year old.  She continues trying to say every word she hears and some we aren't sure where she picked up!  She is also putting 3-4 words together to say sentences.  Dinner usually goes like this "it gross, don't want it" or less frequently "mmm delicious."  She loves her routine and frequently reminds us if we doing anything out of the ordinary.  She has become very particular about what she will wear and insists on wearing her yellow dress for church.  She loves playing and trying to be like her sisters and is always copying their words and actions. 

Grant is doing well at work.  Finally got the microscope up and running and will hopefully start getting lots of data to crunch through and write about.  He has been slowly trying to get the swing of boy scouts and how to be a committee leader. 

The baby and I are doing well.  She wiggles all day and it feels like all night! We are constantly joking around about weird names to use but haven't come up with anything we like so far.  Somedays it feels like she won't be here forever but I know the time will pass quickly.  I have been feeling better this last week and we have been enjoying the beautiful weather.  Why can't it be 70 year round?

Last but not least pictures!

Opening presents

Gearing up to blow out the candles!

Yummy ice cream

The birthday girl!

I just thought this was a funny face!

Go Leah, Go!

Emma "helping" Leah pose for the picutre, doesn't she look happy!

Air and Space Museum and Labor Day Weekend

So I realized today that I haven't updated the blog for awhile.  I thought for sure I did after we went to the Air and Space Museum but I guess I got all the pictures ready and never posted them.  I must be pregnant or something!  Speaking of we found out that baby #4 is another girl! We made pink cookies to celebrate and presented them to Emma when we picked her up from school. She just kept asking why did you make pink cookies? So we told her she would have another sister and she said Oh well, I will just teach her to put on makeup.  She has been hoping for a brother because little sisters just ruin everything she says.  Leah just said I told you it was a girl! 
A couple weeks ago we visited the Udvar-Hazy Air and Space Museum in Virginia.  It is still run by the Smithsonian but it is by the Dulles airport, which makes it a lot easier to park at and get to and a lot less busy.  The girls got to ride in a simulator and had a grand time.  I think that was their favorite part but the stars wars memorabilia in the space exhibit was a close second.  They wanted to play with the dolls and space barbies that were on display! Here are some pictures:

This is the observation tower where you can watch planes coming and going from the airport.

Emma and Leah taking a break!

Becca wanted her picture taken in front of the yellow plane!

Space Shuttle Discover

Just a funny pic of Becca eating her fruit by the foot

Leah in from of the museum

On Labor Day we visited Brookside Gardens just outside of DC.  It was kinda hot and humid so we didn't stay too long but we had fun exploring the different plants!

Leah and Becca on the butterfly bench

Emma inspecting the Bird of Paradise flowers

Last but not least a few funny/random pictures from the last two weeks.  Most of them I took but a few the girls took.  Emma has been experimenting with the camera and I found a ton of random pictures of our house on it when I downloaded pictures today.  She took a picture of the tile, wood floor and carpet and a picture of her bread for her sandwich.  So funny! There is also a picture of Emma's first day of first grade.  She is loving school much more this year.  She loves that she gets to go to the library everyday during reading time and has been finding books that either have her or Leah's name on them as an author or in the title.  She also told Grant when they tested her reading they told her she reads on a 5th grade level!  She is a reading machine!

Emma with her hair all curled for church

Becca being silly!

Emma took this of Becca just after she got out of bed

Sisters cuddling watching a movie

Emma's first day of First Grade.  She's a grader now!

Quick Update

We have been enjoying the lazy days of summer lately and gearing up for school to start in about a week.  2 weekends ago we went on a fairy ride to Virginia for a rainy day outing.  I am still surprised by all the rainy summer days.  This Utah girl is not used to rain in the summer almost everyday. 
We went for an ultrasound on Monday but baby was being shy so we couldn't find out the gender, maybe next time! Here are a few pictures of the girlies- enjoy!

Sisters cuddling in the morning!

Becca sure enjoyed painting-mostly herself and not the paper!

Watching the ferry

View while riding Whites Ferry

Riding the ferry

This is what happens when your sister leaves out the open Nutella!

And this is what happens when your big sister leaves out a marker!