I HAPPY!

When Audrey is busy with school work we play together.  Today she was putting figurines to bed.  She liked putting the bed together just like hers...complete with a blanket.  She required the blanket, not having it wasn't an option.  

Right now she is obsessed with a few things.  She loves to climb all over me if I am on the floor.  She usually climbs on my back and says triumphantly, "I ride horse". She loves to read books.  She doesn't care about the kind of book.  She will even sit and flip through a chapter book pretending to read it.  She love playing hide and seek.  She struggles with the hiding part and usually gives herself away far before she is found, but she's a pretty good seeker.  She's not so good at covering her eyes and waiting to find people as pictured below so it's sometimes a struggle to run away fast enough so she actually has to look.  When she finds someone she always has to announce it by saying, "I find you!"  She's loves music and it's not uncommon for her to request at least three songs throughout the day.  And lastly, my friend Melissa said it best when she said, "Rae is joy personified".  She is very good at telling me how she is feeling and usually says randomly throughout the day, "I HAPPY!"  She also has moments where she tells me she's sad too but most of the time this girl is just happy which makes me happy.  

Audrey is adjusting.  So far between sickness and holidays we have not had a week where we've been able to attend any homeschool co ops or make any friends.  I know at times she feels a little lost.  At church she is also moving up to a class for Young Women instead of younger kids which with all the rest of the change has been a little emotional for her, especially with me having just be calling in to teach the music to the younger kids. There will be some stretching over the next year and I know she's up for it, but it's not going to come easy.  I'm hoping the New Year brings time outside of the house for all of us. I've realized over the years that being apart of a community of homeschooling families is so important for me and for Audrey.  Without one I'm not the best homeschooling mom and Audrey's not the best student.  We work together better when we have time away from home learning and socializing.  

Here's to a new year living in a new place, making new friends, and learning new things.  

 

Photo Challenge

Today I'm starting where we are because going backward stresses me out and I'd rather write than not.  I may go backward later as I find myself writing more often.  I have been wanting to do indoor photography with families during the winter for a long time.  The struggle is that lighting conditions are never predictable and that makes for a little bit of a struggle.  I have decided to start taking at least one picture a day in hopes of learning more about light indoors.  I also just want to get back into taking pictures of my girls regularly with a real camera.  I have a great cellphone camera....the best, and yet when I look back on the year of photos I took with it I miss my camera.  My cellphone will never take it's place.  Don't get me wrong, I'm grateful.  I don't always have my camera and my phone takes good enough photos, but I'm coming back around to a daily use of my camera.  

Here is today.  Audrey has been getting Rae ready for the day lately.  This morning Raelyn ran into my room with the biggest smile on her face with her unicorn shirt on and a handmade bead necklace.  She has worn her necklace all day and even got upset when I took it off for her nap exclaiming that it was her necklace.  

I will forever be grateful for a space that is not the kitchen table to do school.  I parked our desks in front of the window which has been so nice.  It's really good to be able to see outside for both of us while we are learning.  It's also nice to watch the older people walk by in the morning on their walks.  Raelyn is a gem.  She sits and colors, plays blocks, or reads a book next to me while Audrey and I do school. She's gotten so used to it that she misses the structure of it on the weekends.  I go back and forth with my attention and it seems to work most of the time.  

For some reason, probably the Trash Truck show Rae has grown a liking for the trash truck and she looks for it everyday.  I have to remind her regularly that he comes on Tuesday.  She's always excited to see it and waves hello and goodbye.  She loves that it comes by twice, once for each side of the street.  I'm not sure that the person driving that truck knows just how much they mean to this little girl every Tuesday but it might make their day if they did.  

An almost 10 year gap does not change the fact that Audrey and Rae are sisters.  They fight and Rae is the biggest tease.  She knows just how to push Audrey's buttons and Audrey is always good for a reaction, which is just what Rae loves.  Together they are two peas in a pod.  Ying and Yang.  The most peaceful of times are when they are reading together.  Audrey will often read to Rae or they will just sit together in the library and read by themselves for quite a while.  I will be forever grateful to Audrey for that.  Rae thinks books are a huge part of a good life because Audrey spends quite a bit of time each day reading them.  She wants to be just like Audrey and I wouldn't rather her have any other example to follow. 

Here's hoping I can continue with my picture a day and hopefully it will keep me documenting this little ones life with her big sister.  

Our January

It's cold here and after the holidays and with nothing else to distract me I find myself begging for summer to come so I can move past all the gray days and cold...and the sun going down at 4:00.  That might just be the worse part of living in Montana.  The seasonal depression really gets ya!  

I got a new phone this month which was awesome.  It's nice having a nice camera I can take with me everywhere.  Rae is growing so much and I can't handle it.  Her words are exploding.  

Audrey lost a tooth this month and she wrapped it up nicely with a note attached to it.  The tooth fairy was late in getting to it, so guess who found the tooth package sitting on Audrey's kitchen shelf, yep, Rae.  She was wandering around playing with it and initially I thought it was a piece of paper. I quickly found that it was Audrey's tooth.  Audrey started giggling and calling her a tooth thief, she thought it was pretty hilarious.  Rae can't stay out of anything.  I finally had to lock up some of the cabinets, which I never had to do with Audrey because Rae is so so curious about everything.  Her favorite is a drawer in the kitchen where she pulls out dishes as fast as she can before I get to her and then runs off with both of my strainers.  She also likes to empty my bathroom drawer.  I still do my makeup with her in my lap and have found that to be a bad thing.  She learns really quickly how to open things and now she knows too much.  I guess it's time to lock up the mascara.  

Montana has some of the best sunsets and sunrises in the winter when there's no cloud cover.  Audrey was lucky enough to grab this one.  She has such a gift a seeing beautiful things where most people would pass by without a thought.  I hope she's always that way.  

Paul came to teach at our co-op.  He did a fabulous job drawing the kids in and showing them practical examples of what he does.  They all loved it and some...even the adults stopped by afterward to ask questions.  I'm grateful he took time away from work to teach them. Happy January!

 

Christmas Vacation

My pictures loaded backward so the timing isn't quite right.  It's been a while so I'll so my best to re count the moments that stick out in my mind as being my favorites.  

It's so hard to travel for Christmas but I love it so much.  I love celebrating with my family and Paul's.  It's pretty magical.  I was so grateful for so much time taken off to spend with our family.  It means so much that we got to see so many of our family members.  I enjoyed seeing Michael's family, playing Minute to Win it games with them and Karalee and Benje was one of the highlights of the trip.  We also got to spend time with Michael and Chrissy at the mall and painting bowls at Color Me Mine.  
Benje and Karalee are rock stars.  Karalee has been terribly sick during her pregnancy.  Despite receiving fluids through an iv and puking regularly she insisting on spending time with us and even made us a couple meals despite our trying to stop her.  They were there Christmas morning with Mom and Dad in addition to every other day we spent with my parents. 
We watched Encanto, drank hot cocoa, played Mario Party, ate good food, opened gifts, baked cookies with Kimberly and played games with her kids, and enjoyed Christmas Eve with all my local siblings.  
Dad read to the kids on Christmas Eve which is always one of my favorite things.  Jenn's kids came over for another movie, and there was definitely a lot of eating pie.  
Paul's brother took time off to spend time with him which was super sweet of him.  We socialized, we played games, went to the traditional Chuck a Rama which is always so good and watched some Christmas shows.  Audrey sewed a couple of her Christmas gifts while we were there.  We had second Christmas of course and went and checked out the Orem Temple.  It was so beautiful and despite all the temples so close I'm happy that people are attending the temple enough that God sees fit to bless us with more.  
 Each year we go back to our parents houses things change a little bit as our families change and I find myself being so grateful for each year we get to spend together like this and the memories my kids are making with their cousins, grandparents, Aunts and Uncles, and of course with us.  This is what life is all about folks and I'm just grateful I get to be apart of it with these people that mean so much to me!