The Nutcracker

Sydney goes to different ballet school this year than she did last year and I really like it. I think she likes it too! Each class is split into three sections: tap, ballet, and tumbling, so she's been learning a lot. Its neat to see her and how proud she feels as she has learned to do new things. She has also gotten better at making friends since she didn't know anyone in her class when she started this year. In their performance of the nutcracker, they go to participate in three different dances to show off all of their new skills. She was super cute and most excited about the rose her teacher gave each of the kids at the end of the performance. 

Ugly Sweaters

Here is the gang at our Ugly Sweater Christmas party! We played a bunch of silly minute to win it and ate tons of good food. Below are the winners of a reindeer antler contest! We like having so many friends here that we get to have over at least once a month :).

Wynn's 4th Birthday

We celebrated Wynn's birthday a day early with his friends and royal party.

Wynn likes knights and decided he wanted to have a knight party so we sped up our plans to build a castle in the corner of our playroom for his party. He has made more and more friends this year and is always eager to play. He truly is so sweet and at his party took time to show each of his friends where his toys were and give them some to share so they could play too. 

Andy made a catapult for the kids to use to shoot the dragons on the wall on the other side of the room. Then we used small Popsicle stick catapult to storm the castle cake with Reese's Pieces!

All in all I think he had a really fun day and his cake was so huge we had cake for them to snack on for days!

Grandma and Grandpa Pack

Grandma and Grandpa Pack visited us back at Halloween this year. We didn't have fabulous weather so we couldn't do a lot outdoors but we had a few moments where we could get out and enjoy the fall weather. The kids felt very special that Grandma and Grandpa took time to spend time with each of them one and one and take them on a little date. They got to join us trick or treating downtown while Andy stayed home with Abby who was sick :(, and even braved trick or treating in Wynn's preschool's neighborhood the next day in the rain! They love playing with Grandma and Grandpa Pack and having them around. I am grateful my kids are able to have such fun and loving grandparents who the kids love so much! Thanks for visiting :).

Little Treasures

Wynn loves his preschool, Little Treasures. He was never interested in learning number and letters with me, he'd just say, "that's boring mom," but he has learned so much in the four months at preschool! He can now write his name, recognize lots of letters, all his shapes, and count to 10. He is so excited to learn about things. If I ask he only tells me about the stories they read at school, but he constantly surprises me with random facts that he has learned from school. His teacher's name is Sonya and she is so much fun. It is exactly what he needed being a middle child... to have his own place, with his own friends, where he can feel special and big. When he walks in, all the other kids yell WYNN!! He feels so special and loved there. I can always tell by the smile on his face as soon as we walks in and sees all his friends and how happy they are to see him. His birthday is tomorrow and I can't believe how fast he is growing up! I love him so much. I think my favorite thing about Wynn is that he holds his emotions on his sleeves. If he is super happy about something or feels super loved, he can't contain it. He will tell you when he is happy or excited about something out of the blue, and when he's really happy he looks at you with wide eyes and a smile and then starts in for a running tackle hug where he buries his head in your shoulder and smiles. Its the best honor in the world to receive one of those. We love you so much Wynn!

Happy Place

For Veteran's Day last week, Sydney's school had an awesome program on Tuesday where they invited local veteran's sangs them songs, read them poems and gave them all flowers. Then since there wasn't school on Wednesday we went to the Veteran's Day parade downtown. It was raining and I was SO HAPPY! This is my happy place... rain and cold. It was so fun to pull out all our rain gear again and go out despite the weather. I'm excited for winter and all the fun that brings. The kids had a ton of fun and it didn't matter that it was cold and wet. I still miss Alaska quite a bit and this felt like a little peace of Alaska here in Oregon. We are so thankful for our family here and this community where the kids can learn and have good friends. We are also grateful for those who provide our safety by serving this country as well.

First Friends

I have started watching a friend's two little girls a few times a month for her while she works. Abby is in heaven! She has so much fun playing with Hailey (who she calls Kailey). They are in nursery together now so they get to see each other pretty regularly and its so sweet how Abby is willing to share with her and play with her rather than just by her. This is a picture of their cupcake party they set up all by themselves last week. They had fun pretending to pour drinks and put sprinkles on their cupcakes and share them .The pictures were taken by Wynn too! 

Pumpkins!

We did a lot of fun things this fall. The kids got to visit several pumpkin patches with their schools. It was fun to watch how many different pumpkins they picked up before they found the perfect one! Wynn enjoyed being able to help me chaperon on Sydney's field trip to the pumpkin patch and kept up great with all the kids while they tried to find their way through the corn maze and climb the hay tower. He is such a sweet boy and picked out a tiny pumpkin for Abby to bring home. After Grandma and Grandma Pack came we carved pumpkins true to tradition and put them out on the porch for Halloween night. The sugar gliders even got their own tiny pumpkin to play and eat in!

Halloween Race

Lindsey and I decided to run the Halloween 5k here in town last minute. After perusing the internet the whole night before we finally came up with a great costume idea. I think if I had more sense I'd be embarrassed about posting this, but it was too fun not too! Plus, I won the best costume award. So grateful for good friends and good times. The "running of the bulls" challenge was completed! :)

Superpowers

A quick note to record the cutest thing that happened yesterday...

On the way home from dance Sydney was distraught and almost crying said, "Mom there's a boy in my class who wants me to be his girlfriend." 

As I pried more into the situation she said that he keeps asking her and that she just ignores him (as a side note we discussed what she should do and why she was so upset about it after, but that's not what this post is about...) Wynn was listening quietly and looking at her since she was crying and then she said, "He even told me he thought I was cute." .... to which Wynn all of the sudden yelled, "I'll punch him in the face Sydney. I'll punch him." 

Lol. Sydney then got all embarrassed and was like "NO Wynn you CANT punch HIM in the face."

I loved that Wynn was so protective of her and that he thinks he can do anything. Wynn adores his sisters and they are always on his mind. When he gets something fun or a treat he always sets some aside for his sisters and whenever there is a problem he always says he is going to protect them. I can get enough of his sweetness! So even though he thinks he has fighting superpowers... I think his superpower is that he loves people especially his siblings and is always trying to make others happy and be with them. If he gets in a fight it can almost always be traced back to other people not wanting to be with him or him feeling left out. He just wants to be with people and be happy with them. He's just genuinely nice and happy!  

A witness

This weekend was the semiannual General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and yesterday afternoon three new apostles were called and sustained to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. The passing of Elders Boyd K Packer, Richard G Scott, and L Tom Perry in the preceding months made these new calls necessary at this General Conference. As the new apostles were called, I recognized Elder Gary E Stevenson and Ronald A Rasband from former General Conference talks and callings in the church. Elder Dale G Renlund was a new name to me. However, even though I was not familiar and only slightly familiar with their names, I felt peace upon hearing of their call. In this morning's session of conference, as I heard them bear their testimonies, share the stories of their calls, and give their first direction of apostles of the Lord to the Church, the witness I received by the Holy Spirit of God was undeniable that these men were called of Him to lead the church in these latter days and guide us down the path to return home to Him.

Their words were the ones that struck me most deeply, touched my heart, and helped me desire to improve and change. The witness I received that their words were the will and words of God was indescribable, and I am so grateful to be a member of this Church where the Lord guides His prophets and apostles. A Church where individuals are called of God not for themselves, as one of the newly called apostles said today, but for God's needs and His Church. I am so grateful for these new apostles and their willingness to follow the Lord's will and lead His church. I look forward to learning at their feet and hearing their testimonies and learning from their life's experiences.

I have a strong testimony of these new called apostles now. I know them to be called of God. I know God speaks to his prophets on their earth today and leads His church through them. He is the organizer; He is the voice; He is anxiously waiting to teach us His will so we can do His work on the earth and all that is necessary to bring ourselves and all of His children home to be with Him forever again. I know without a doubt that these men will lead us in the way and are chosen of Him, in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Apple monster

An awesome friend of mine invited me to pick from an acquaintance s orchard. There were like ten apple trees loaded with apples. Wynn and Abby were in heaven! They even had branches hanging low enough for them to help pick. In 20 minutes we gathered about 50 pounds of apples.  In 20 minutes we gathered about 50 pounds of apples. It is such a blessing to have this season of harvest where we live and that so many are willing to share. We've made caramel apples, apple pie, and lots and lots of apple snacks. So fun! I just had the idea to make an apple something and take it and some apples to some friends to pass it on. I'll do that tomorrow!

First day, First Grade

Sydney was very excited to start school this year. She feels very big too because she gets to walk to school with Dad in the morning and walk home all by herself in the afternoon. She chose some lace up shoes for school this year (Thanks Grandma Pack!) so she got to learn how to tie her shoes. It only took her a day and now she doesn't need any help at all. So far she likes her class and teacher, Miss Webster, and is having fun!  I just had to include this pic of Abby too because she is such a cutie and loves to smile at everyone and be silly. Can you believe its already chilly enough for a jacket! The kids need one in the mornings and evenings everyday.

New interests

The kids are changing so fast its hard to keep up! Abby is talking up a storm and trying to say anything we say. She loves to pretend and is currently obsessed with the Little People sets we have. She loves to have a shelf or short table to set up all the people on. She makes them talk to each other in her baby babble and it is so cure! She and Wynn gets lots of playtime with Sydney at school and its definitely a learning process for both of them. I'm grateful that this time I know there is an end because it was very hard when Sydney and Wynn were at this stage! 

Sydney reads and reads and reads. She loves to do activities in the Friend and highlights magazines I get for her sometimes. This has really helped on our monthly trip to Boise too. we don't use our car's TV as much because both Sydney and Wynn are content to look at books.

Wynn loves to build. Today he made a Magformer gun and was shooting Abby and I while we played people. He has come up with some really interesting creations. 

Both older kids are very interested in helping me cook right now so we went to the library and got kids cookbooks. they each picked out recipes they wanted to make. Sydney got to make breaded chicken for our Sunday dinner and did really well. We just helped her cut the chicken! She did the other steps while we watched/reminded her to wash her hands :D. She was grossed out by the raw chicken and wasnt sure she was going to be able to eat it after it was cooked, but she did and was very proud :). I think we'll stick with an easier cookie recipe for Wynn this weekend. Getting excited for all the fall baking.... we even decorated the house for Halloween today!

Bracelets

I wanted to write something about our everyday life rather than just our outings and I wanted it to mean something so this was my idea. I wear 6 bracelets everyday, three for Wynn and three for Sydney... I will for Abby too when she gets a bit older. The idea is that they all start on my right wrist and every time I verbally acknowledge something positive about my child's behavior/listening to them I move one to the other wrist. So its more than good job or thank you. I have to notice and point out a good choice they made. Anyway some days are easier than others but I wanted to take note of the great trends and habits I've noticed for each child.

Sydney has now started to recognize and empathize with others around her. She is conscious of when other people do things for her and often takes the time to say thank you for helping me with this or I really enjoyed going there or this food is really good and I like it. Her positive comments are very kind and helpful and make my day definitely brighter. She is also really good at recovering when things don't go her way. If a play date gets canceled for example, she is quick to think of a positive solution like maybe next time it will work out or can we try to reschedule it for tomorrow? She seems to know when she is super disappointed and usually asks for some alone time or a hug. Her ability to recognize and start to manage her feelings at such a young age is awesome. I am very proud of her ability to do so. It is tempting to try to solve any problems she has for her, but I hold out most of the time to see what she can do and love that she is learning to deal with disappointment and frustration in healthy ways, be resilient, and choose to move on. I am so hopeful that this learning will continue and think it will help her have a much more peaceful and content life. I hope that acknowledging it to her verbally will help her see she is on the right track and how proud we are of her.

Wynn's most frequent good behavior is that he is kind to others. It is a rare moment when he doesn't go along with Sydney's idea or share something with her when she asks. Even if he got a special treat for doing something special, before he even considers it for himself he runs to find Sydney and share it with her. Its like its more exciting to show her and share it with her than it would be to have it to himself. He is a very selfless little boy. He idolizes Sydney and thrives on her positive attention. He also has learned to start solving more problems himself  before giving up and running for help, and even though he may whine and pout while doing something he doesn't want to, he has definitely improved on trying. If we just leave him alone, even if he whines and cries the whole time he is finishing his task, when he finishes, the light just beams out of him with pride. I love seeing him learn what he is capable of and being so proud when he accomplishes something he found challenging. As he has done so he has started whining less and has been able to more things on his own. I hope to keep encouraging him to learn perseverance and problem solving so that he can help himself overcome trials and keep going his whole life.

Abby doesn't understand obedience, choices, and behavior much yet but she is such a sweet girl. She is a true true people person and loves to please. She definitely wants to be big like her siblings and loves to see that people like her and hug her, kiss her, clap for her, hold her, play games with her, anything positive. She will even go up to strangers and ask for "up" or try to get them to smile and play with her. She is so cute and just hams it up to get more attention and love.

Weekend at Wallowa Lake

Andy and papa got Summer Salt all fixed up so we took a weekend and joined the Wrights camping up at Wallowa Lake. We even took up the water trampoline and it was a blast! The first night we were there Wynn got sick though. I am so grateful for andy and papa who were worthy to give Wynn a priesthood blessing and with a few meds and some gatorade we were able to stay and finish out he weekend camping. Wynn was a trooper. he remained sick but was well enough to play a little and spend time with his cousins. I feel so grateful to be able to enjoy outdoors and spend time with family. the part I miss the most about Alaska is being outdoors, so it is nice when we have the time to go further away and enjoy nature... plus have our family around! the Wrights are such awesome kids and they are so kind to their little cousins. Sydney, Wynn, and Abby adore them and feel so cool that their cousins will play with them and have fun with them. It really makes them feel important and special.We love having them around. I appreciate the example they are setting for my kids that when they get older it can still be fun to spend time with family, interact with younger cousins, and treat others kindly. Sometimes I worry that they'll grow up and get too cool for family or cousins and anything but what is "trendy." Its awesome for them to see others who don't act this way and I love it. We had a great weekend and since this was our last camping trip for the year we'll have to just look forward to next summer!