Wonder what baby #3 will look like...

Norah Jane... 2 1/2 years old

Brown hair, green eyes, short, chubby little legs like her mom...

Lucy Bee... 5 years old

Blond hair, big blue eyes, and long, skinny legs like her daddy..

I wonder what baby #3 will look like???

Guess we will have to wait and see.. coming mid-february 2012!!

Just got home from my 2nd dr's appointment and everything looks great! We are so excited!

Traverse City, Michigan

Dave had one of his 3 weeks off and had heard from a resident friend and an attending that northern Michigan was a must do! Well, they were right! We had such a good time!

All ready to go!! I think it took us a little less than 8 hours and that was with a lunch stop. The kids did awesome! As long at the DVD player and iPhones were charged they were set and happy as could be.

We hiked to this place called Pyramid Point.. it was sooo cool! I was thinking it was going to be this wussy hike but it was a legit hike. We even ditched the stroller because it got so steep at one point. Dave giving Norah a ride.. right before she drooled in his hair haha

Northwestern Michigan fair, we had to check it out. It had some great rides that the kids loved! The fair food... not so good. The weather was perfect!

Fish town, lots of little shops and places to eat.

We went to Empire beach the first day after hiking Pyramid Point and then to Bryant beach the day before we left. The beaches were so pretty. I guess I just always assumed only the ocean had cool beaches but Lake Michigan sure has some nice places to play in the sand and swim. The water was a little chilly but the kids didn't care. Dave even got in one day. I sat on the beach and read magazines... well atleast I tried in between making sandcastles and taking pictures. We also went to Glean Arbor the first day and had lunch at this place called Boondocks. I have to remember this because we have to eat there if we ever go back to Michigan. It was soooo good!

Exploring and getting some energy out of the kids.. next on the list that night.. swimming in the hotel pool.

Cute pic of Dave and the kids

At the top of Pyramid Point. You can see behind us how it drops.. you would think it was a cliff but it was pure sand the whole way down. Lots of people hiking down to the beach. Dave and I both took a turn.. it was sure fun going down but not so fun coming up.. it was so steep and hiking up in a foot of sand wasn't so easy but it was fun!

Looking down at the beach..

Empire Beach, on our way down to look at the lighthouse.

Cherries are big there, they had this big cherry store with different cherry stuff like salsa, candy, jams, etc and they had this pit full of cherry pits that the kids played in forever.

We went to the drive-inn one night.. something I haven't done in a really long time! We saw "Zookeeper" the kids loved the bed Dave made for them on the front of the car.

I don't think we have ever been to a drive-inn together so this was a first!

Lucy making sandcastles and putting rocks in the top and singing happy birthday to everyone :)

Playing following the leader on the way out to the car..

Every friday night during the summer the city closes down the main street down town and they have all kinds of entertainment.. it was so fun to walk around and hang out. We ate at this really yummy restaurant after.

It was a fun, relaxing trip and I am so glad we went. Thanks to Dave for researching and finding cool things to do. Next on our trip list.. Destin, Florida in October. I love having something to look forward too!

Summer randoms

Here are some random pictures from the summer..

Lucy was in safety town for 2 weeks in July (afternoon session) which was a great thing to keep her busy. It makes me really excited for her to go to kindergarten. As much as I love her, afternoons are hard because she is sooooo bored and Norah still naps so once she is in school it will be a great time for me to have some time to get things done that I need to do.. safety town was a great teaser for me cause I got a taste of what it will be like. Can't wait! Norah had to get into the safety town action the day of graduation.

Lucy with her graduation badge.. they learned about bike safety, stranger awareness, water safety, fire safety, seatbelt safety (yes, I get in trouble every time we get into the car and I don't have my seat belt on :)), police day, animal safety, bus day, and other stuff I can't remember but you get the idea, they sang lots of cute songs, they had to take a helmet everyday so they could ride tricycles around their own streets with real traffic lights (kid ones) etc it was really cute how they would teach them about different aspects of safety. She loved it!!

Playing at one of the many parks close by.. they love this dinosaur for some reason.

Dave is riding in the Pelotonia this week and so OSU had a kids bike race at the stadium.. it was really fun! Lucy and Archie Griffin at the finish line..

Lucy ready to race.. there were a ton of kids behind her, it was pretty cute. She pedaled her little heart out.

Norah loves kitties!! This was at an Amish farm, the kids loved the animals!

Not sure how this picture made it in the mix, it's cute I guess!

Dave did a half ironman in Muncie, Indiana last month. It was so stinkin' hot, I melted just being outside with the kids so I am glad he survived the heat! It's a lot of work to train for one of those races. I'm proud of him.. he doesn't have much spare time to train but he finished it and did it well! Way to go babe!

Lucy with the ironman hat! The kids were troopers that day!

4th of July.. we watched fireworks at OSU (Red, White, and Boom) had a BBQ with friends from the ward, Dave took the kids to the parade.. I had worked all 3 nights of the holiday weekend so I was sleeping, heard I missed out on some sweet parade action, maybe next year.

Our family at the BBQ.. fun stuff. Can't believe another 4th of July has come and gone. I love the 4th of July! My favorite holiday hands down.

I thought I would shrivel up and die missing the Clark festivities but Columbus isn't that bad after all. We really love it here and are grateful for friends to share holidays with!

Lucy is 5!!

Happy 5th birthday to Lucy!! We had a really fun birthday party for her with lots of her friends from preschool, neighbors, and friends that we hang out with. We had everyone come in their swimsuits and got the pool with slide out, slip n' slide, sprinklers under the trampoline, and other water toys. We had hotdogs and chips (Lucy's favorite), cupcake ice cream cones, and popsicles. That is what she wanted!!

Dad got out the sidewalk chalk and left a little message for Lucy.

Classic blowing out the candles picture..

After singing..

Before singing..

Norah eating and trying to keep up with all of the older kids. She loved having them all over to play.

She had presents galore!! She was still opening presents days after cause she had so many!

A picture of all of the kids that came to her party! One of the little boys from her preschool class officially declared Lucy's party "the best birthday party ever!" We all laughed because it really wasn't a big deal but the kids had so much fun!

Norah giving the #1 sign at McDonalds.

Dave had called on his way home from work on the actual day of Lucy's birthday and told Lucy we could go anywhere she wanted for dinner because it was her birthday and guess what she chose... yup, McDonalds.. Gross! Haha but she loves it and was really excited that we all went together as a family to eat on her birthday. Then we went to Greaters for icecream. Fun birthday night with the family.

Then... her birthday present. A new bike, which she really needed. She grew out of her little kid tricycle last year so we figured it was time to upgrade. She loves it and is still getting used to the training wheels but I don't think it will be long before the training wheels come off. She was so cute when we showed her the bike, biggest smile on her face. She is so darn cute!

Lucy and daddy taking a stroll.. I love all of the trees in the summertime.

I can't believe Lucy is 5.. where has the time gone? I remember the day she was born and it seems like yesterday. We love her so much and are so grateful for her sweet, energetic, little body and funny personality. She makes us laugh everyday! Happy Birthday to my little (not so little anymore) Lucy!!

Summer visitors!

We have had a packed summer full of fun things.. especially fun visitors! We made some great memories and hope they will come back to see us here in Columbus!

The Moss family (Dave's sister) came at the end of June and were here for 5 days.. we went to King's Island, the zoo, and Amish country and spent the night in a fun little cabin. We played at the parks, caught lots of fireflies, talked a lot, and ate lots of good food. We had so much fun and the kids especially loved being able to play together. The day they left Lucy asked when they were coming back so hopefully they will someday.

The kids at the zoo.. the animals really put on a show for us that day. We saw the cutest little baby elephant swim.. it was perfect weather too!

My mom, dad (his first time to Columbus), and Aunt Jenny came to visit in August. We went to the outlets, mom made a whole bunch of yummy strawberry and raspberry jam for us and my favorite chicken to keep in the freezer for soups, chicken and rice, enchiladas, etc we ate out a lot, went to Amish country again, Jen helped me with some scrapbooking, we took the kids swimming at the hotel my parents were in for a couple of nights and mainly just hung out and stayed up late. I really miss Jen and her back tickles.. she put me to sleep every night! I'm kicking myself for not getting more pictures with them.. we will see them again soon and can get pictures then.

My mom and sister, Sarah, and her kids are coming to visit in October so I'm really excited for them to come.

Dave's mom and dad came to visit us as well in July. We went to the zoo a day, took them to German Village for some real German food and culture, checked out this huge book store while it poured rain, Franklin Park Conservatory, Columbus Fish Market, tour of Columbus, and swimming at the hotel, which the kids always love!

Grandma V-Ann and kids (above)

Grandpa Vic and grandma with kids (below)

I printed all of these pictures and put them on the fridge, the kids love to look at them and reminiscence about how much fun it was to have so many visitors come from Utah and about the things we did.

Thank you for coming to visit us! We will always take visitors with open arms. We love them so much and it makes it being so far away from home not so bad when you get to see family every once in a while. We love you guys!!