Exciting News!!!

We just wanted to let everyone know the exciting news in our family. We are expecting our fourth baby! I just had my first doctor's appointment last week and that made it so much more real for me. There was actually a heartbeat and I could see the little "peanut" on the ultrasound. We didn't want to tell anyone until we knew FOR SURE. So, now it's official. My due date is June 11th, so it will probaby come at the beginning of June or very end of May. I am currently 12 weeks along. We are all really excited. The kids are looking forward to having a new baby in the family. So far, I have been feeling pretty well with not too many adverse symptoms. We'll let you know when we find out what is is! What a wonderful thing to be grateful for this Thanksgiving weekend!

Kyle's Birthday

My little boy turned four years old on Nov 10th. We had such a fun day together! In the morning before daddy went to work, Kyle couldn't wait to open some of his presents. He was thrilled to get some new CARS, of all things, and a backpack to put them in. He also got a few other odds and ends. It was fun just to watch him get so excited about a few little cars. He got his birthday present early this year- a bike, which we gave him in August so he'd have a chance to ride it a little before it got too cold. That's the challenge of having a November birthday. He also got a new helmet and knee pads (Lightning McQueen, of course.) It was really cute- when he opened the knee pads, he said, "Yes! Now I can go work with you, dad!" He had seen his dad out building with knee pads on and figured that was what they were for. He loves to be daddy's little helper and has been out back "helping" Aaron build the garage in our backyard.

I got to go with Kyle to his preschool and talk about the four years of his life and how much he's changed and learned during that time. It was fun to watch him interact at his school, and to help the teachers out. Heidi got to join in the fun, too.

Kyle had requested to go bowling on his birthday so later that night we went to "Wild Bill's" bowling alley where we enjoyed pizza and hamburgers. Kyle was so into the bowling he hardly had time to eat. The best part for him was that he got to have his own bowling pin with his name on it. He got to color on it and put stickers on it. We all wrote a birthday greeting, too. We all had a great time! Then, we went back to the house for some cake and ice cream. I had spent HOURS on the Lightning McQueen cake for his birthday. (Before, whenever we asked him what he wanted, all he would say was, "I want a Lightning McQueen cake." That was it) I think it turned out okay.

We love our Kyle. He is such a fun boy and adds so much life to our family. Thank you, Kyle, for letting us love and teach you. You bring us so much happiness!

Halloween

We had a great time this Halloween. Erika decided she wanted to be a mummy for Halloween so I made her costume. It ended up being a bigger project than I thought it would be so I was up until 11 pm the night before, gluing and cutting. She got to wear her costume for the Garland Elementary parade the day before Halloween and it was fun to go and watch her at the school. It is fun to see all the kids dressed up and having a good time. Erika ended up winning an award at the end of the day for "The Best Mummy in the School". Yeah!!! (There was more than one mummy- I promise.)

Kyle wanted to be a skeleton this year so I made him a costume and he got to wear it to preschool the Thursday before for a little Halloween party. I was going to paint the bones with "Glow-in-The-Dark" paint but got too busy and so he wasn't quite as cool as he could've been but I don't think he cared.

Heidi, of course, was an adorable bunny and just happy to wear whatever we put on her. She was smiling so big. (I think she knew she looked dang cute and wasn't afraid to flaunt it).

Halloween night, we went out as early as we could and the kids had so much fun, they didn't want to go home, even though it was well past bedtime. We have a great trick-or-treating neighborhood with most everyone home and people we know so it makes things easy. Also, the weather was simply wonderful. We brought Lucky along and he had fun saying "Hello" to many new people. Aaron and I took shifts with the kids and each took a block. I took Heidi in the stroller and she kept climbing in and then wanting to get out at every door. (This made it a long process!) At our house, we had over 100 trick-or-treaters and hardly much time to sit down in-between. It was a great night. My favorite part was just how excited my kids were to get out, especially when they saw all the candy.

My brother's wedding

On October 24th, 2009, my brother Nathan was married in the Salt Lake temple to his sweet wife Jordan. She is so great for him and I am so happy for him. I could tell they were both so happy and I think they are at the start of something truly wonderful. There is nothing like a wedding to bring so much excitement and joy, especially when it is under such good circumstances. I am so proud of them for the good choices they have made to make this such a special event. There is no other decision more important in this life. They had an open house the night before the wedding at my parents' house and that was a lot of fun. I enjoyed playing the piano for some of it. The kids had a great time playing with their cousins Lucy and Logan from New York. I was glad my sister was able to come down for the wedding with her kids. They are so great! The wedding day was truly wonderful! The sealing room was packed full of family and close friends and the spirit there was greater than I have ever felt in a temple sealing. It was a really neat experience for me. Afterwards, we got some pictures in front of the temple, but it was quite windy so we had a hard time getting the kids to take off their jackets. We walked around temple square for awhile and then had the wedding luncheon at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. It was a truly wonderful day that I was glad to share with my family.

A new baby nephew!

A few weeks ago we got to down to Salt Lake and see our newest little nephew. His name is Colton Ullrich Michel and he was born on September 17, 2009. We saw him the next day in the hospital. He is adorable! I am happy for John and Madison in the start of this new little family and hope that they can find joy in the adventure of parenthood.

We also had the opportunity of attending my cousin Chris's temple sealing in the Salt Lake temple and that was really neat. I don't think there's any way my kids could not know how important the temple is to us with how many times we have been there together. I am so glad to have the knowledge that we CAN be together forever as a family! After the wedding, we got to go on a tour of the roof of the conference center and also walked through a very inspiring art display there. After that, we got to spend some time with grandma and grandpa Parkinson, Aaron's brother Thayne and his lovely wife and daughter at Liberty park. It was soo great to see them! What a great weekend!

A trip to Boise

September 25-27th we headed up to Boise to spend the weekend with Aaron's parents. We had such a great time! We enjoyed the Boise zoo and rode the paddle boats on the duck pond. Mom and I went to the Women's Conference at her church with a nice dinner served just before it. She is serving as the Relief Society President in her ward and keeping very busy. Dad is also very busy being on the road so much with his job. We are so glad that they are doing so well in Boise and we are always grateful when we get a chance to spend some time with them. They are such great grandparents.

Back to School!!

Erika started first grade on Aug 31st. It was such an exciting day for her, but I'll admit it was a little bit sad for me, and for Kyle. I think we all adjusted to the initial change a lot better than I had anticipated. I had been preparing myself for this for weeks before the big day came. I was starting to feel a little sad that I'd be losing my little buddy ALL DAY LONG!! Having kindergarten last year was a good preparation time for me to get used to the idea. I cried when I dropped her off last year. And, Kyle was even worse than me. He cried and didn't want to leave her classroom. I pretty-much had to pry him off of her and take him out. He was very distraught about losing his playmate. I'm just glad that kindergarten wasn't a whole day thing. The half day helped both of us adjust to the change a little easier, so this year wasn't quite as hard.

The night before school, I told Kyle about Erika going to school all day and he got really sad. But he's done okay. I actually put Kyle in preschool two days a week because I knew it would be lonely for him to have Erika gone all day long and it will give him some time to get out. He will have two years of preschool but I think he can use it. We have been trying to work with him at home on "school" but I know I could've done way better this summer.

It has actually been really nice to just be home with Kyle and Heidi now. Kyle has become my new "little buddy" and helper. He has "blossomed" now that he is the big brother and I have noticed that he talks a lot more with me now, one on one (since Heidi doesn't talk yet.) I look forward to spending more time with him and strengthening our relationship. I also think Kyle will enjoy preschool and I'm excited for him to learn and to gain some confidence in his abilities.

I really do miss my little girl, though. Now that we are into the swing of things, it is starting to hit me that this is forever--- and it scares me a little. She will no longer be home with me all day, except for during the summer- for the next 12 years! Aaah! I am a little nervous about the increasing influence others will have on her (teachers, friends, etc) versus the influence she has had at home. It makes me feel a little helpless in a way. It also makes me want to be so much better during the times she is home- to be a positive influence and to teach her more intently. As my time with her diminishes, the quality of that time will need to increase. This is one reason I would actually consider home-school, simply because it can be so much more customized to my child and I can teach her what I think she needs. But, I will readily admit my limitations and I don't think I can give her what they can at school, either. And, she LOVES school, too. It is what she wants. And eventually, like it or not, I will have to let go and let her fly. All I can do is teach her and then she will be left on her own. (I can't even imagine how it will feel someday when she leaves home for good. I don't think I can even comprehend it yet.)

It haven't been able to be too sad about the big day simply because Erika was sooo excited!!! Every day for 2 weeks she was counting down the days. She drew pictures and wrote letters to her new teacher. She couldn't wait!! So, I was excited for her. She loves school and learning, socializing. And, I'm sure her new teacher will LOVE having Erika in her class. She tries so hard to be good and excels in whatever is put before her. I am so proud of my little girl. I hope this is a good experience for her!

Camping at Oneida Narrows

August 17-19th we went camping up in the Oneida narrows, about 15 min North of Preston, ID. It was such a beautiful camping spot, right next to the river!! There was a spot kind of off the river that was almost like a small wading pool where we swam with the kids and floated around. Oma and Opa came up for the first night and stayed with us. The second night was just our family and we left late in the afternoon on the third day. We made several trips down the river on our float tubes and that was a blast!! First, Aaron and I went with Erika and Kyle while Oma and Opa stayed back at camp with Heidi. Then, my parents went down with Erika and Kyle. The third day we decided to go down again with our whole family but there was no one else there to drop us off at the top so what we did was drive our truck up to the top and float down and then I rode my bike up to get the truck after we finished our run. The river is perfect for floating- pretty slow and smooth with a few little "rapids." We jumped in and swam in a few spots. I thought we were being pretty brave to take our whole family down on Aaron's little pontoon boat, but it turned out great and Heidi enjoyed sitting on my lap and splashing her feet in the water. I love camping! We had a great time playing games, roasting marshmallows, going for bike rides, and just hanging out. One funny thing is that a skunk came into our camp both nights and my dad almost shot him the first night but he got away while he was trying to load his gun. The skunk sprayed twice and we could smell it faintly in the morning. The second night, Aaron and I were just sitting by the fire and the skunk wandered over as close as 6 feet to us! He started digging through our garbage. We snuck around the camp to our tent trailer and didn't come out until morning. I was so worried about our s'more stuff which was still out on the table and was tempted to go out and save it! Fortunately, I learned that skunks can't climb up on tables or he would have gorged himself on marshmallows and chocolate! It was a great time. I know the kids had a blast.

Summer Fun

I have really enjoyed this summer with the kids. In June we signed up with the "Up to 3" Program. This is a child development program sponsored by the state to help children who are behind developmentally. I was getting concerned about Heidi. They came and evaluated her in many developmental areas to see where she would qualify for services. As a result of this, she qualifies for a speech therapist once a month and some classes every week for speech. These are all paid for by the state which is so amazing!! She didn't start walking until 25 months old- a few days before the Physical Therapist came to evaluate her. Fortunately she has taken off after that and is now walking proficiently. She isn't running or jumping yet as would be expected, but has made a lot of progress toward her age limits. I also take her to a gymnastics class once a week. The speech delay was more of a concern for her. She wasn't even making any sounds, even babbling. She stopped doing that at about 18 mo. We have been really working on teaching her signs to communicate so she doesn't whine all day. Now she can say 2 things: Uh-oh and Woof-woof. Anyway, with the Up to 3 program, they had some fun activities this summer and I took the kids to the fire station to get a tour and see how the fire engines work. They all really liked that. The kids have also had a blast this summer swimming out in the back yard in a little pool. We had a little water party with a bunch of neighborhood kids a few weeks ago and they had such a fun time! We are fortunate to have a lot of kids in the neighborhood to play with! I love my mom for getting out there with her swimsuit and goggles and swimming with them!! We had a great time when Aaron's parents came from Boise to spend the weekend of "Wheat and beet days" with us. I posted a picture of Aaron's mom lying on the grass with the kids before the fireworks. We love our family! They are the best!

Michel Reunion 2009

We had a great time at the Michel reunion this year. We brought our tent trailer and stayed outside the cabin because there were so many people there. The kids had a blast going for motorcycle rides, boat rides, and even being pulled behind the boat on a tube (this was their first time ever and they loved it! We went really slow.) They also went fishing with Opa and we swam in the lake. (There is about a 2 week window when the water there is warm enough to swim!) Erika had fun playing with my youngest cousin on that side- Gentry. It was a great time! We are so grateful to my dad (Opa) for all the work he put into the cabin over the last few years. We have already had so much fun up there. It is an amazing place with so many fun things to do! Thanks Opa.

Erika's birthday!

We celebrated Erika's 6th birthday on July 24th. I can't believe how big she is getting! She will be going to First grade this year. The morning of her birthday we had her favorite breakfast-crepes and then opened presents. Then, we finished packing and headed to my parents' cabin up at Strawberry Reservoir for the Michel family reunion with all my dad's side of the family. There were a lot of people there and it was so much fun!!

Young Women's Camp

I had the chance to go to Young Women's camp in July. It was my first time since I was actually a young woman over 12 years ago. Young Women's camp was one of the best experiences for me as a youth. I am the personal progress coordinator in my ward so I was in charge of getting some personal progress done with the girls. I interview them to keep track of their progress and have a monthly activity to help them pass it off. We had camp at Cinnamon Creek over by Paradise, UT near Logan. It was so much fun!! Being a YW leader has been really fulfilling for me. It is fun to share my testimony with them and to go and just have FUN! I made a "Return to Virtue" flag which they all signed. We carried it up on our hike and posted it at the top of the mountain. We hiked to "Rosy's Mine" and walked through it, which was a cool experience. There was a shortage of flashlights and so we had to help eachother see. It made me think about the gospel and how we are there to help eachother through the dark times. I put together a really fun treasure hunt about virtue and I felt like this really sunk in with the girls. They were so hot and at the end they got a cold treat :) I celebrated my birthday the last morning of camp (I hit the big 30 and was feeling kind-of OLD). When I came home from camp, in a way I also felt kind-of young again. I was not afraid to laugh and have fun with the girls and that's what made it so fun.