School is in session

1st day of school 2009 - 2010!

Anthony is a 4th grader and Luca is now in 2nd grade!

Ella returned to preschool and Aiden was super excited to join her!
In fact, I think Aiden might have been the only one excited for school (or for pictures) on that first day!

Mini Mariachi

At the end of last school year, Luca's 1st grade class performed the "Bottle Dance" as part of an end of year assembly. I rediscovered these pictures recently and felt they had to be shared. Enjoy!

Ashton Kutcher was right!

I was the lucky recipient of a Nikon "CoolPix" camera for mother's day. The boys, having seen multiple commercials for said camera, knew all of the cool tricks that could be performed. Our favorite, and most requested, is to decorate a picture. Here are a few we are proud of (or rather, the boys find hilarious!).

Luca asked to be a cat. He turned into a devil-cat-thingy. He was happy.

Pirate Anthony

Anthony and cousin Mikel: Pirate meets Elvis

Too Much!

Man can time fly! It's been ages since my last post and I have really debated about whether I should try and catch up or just pick up from here. I guess we'll all just have to wait and see!

We did just get family pictures taken. This is the first time EVER that we have had pictures of all of us together. We are super grateful to Heather McDonald of Heather McDonald Photography for these amazing shots. She and some other photographers here in Utah got together and had a little giveaway where people could nominate families, and we were nominated and chosen! She was so nice and did a great job with a bunch of grumpy, hungry kids!

we're still alive!

Yes, we are still here, just amazingly short on time! So what's new?

Ella turned 3!
I went back to work
Ella started preschool
Aiden is almost potty-trained
I'm still the Primary President (not new, but never-ending)
We became foster parent "ambassadors"

Well that's it in a nutshell. Obviously, I don't get much rec time on the computer anymore, but I'm going to get back to blogging! Keep an eye out for us!

boy meets girl - TAG

I was tagged a while ago by my friend Kathy, and I'm finally getting around to doing it, so enjoy!

This tag is called "How I met___."
1. Where did you meet? Puert Rico, San Juan Mission
2. What was the first thought that went through your head when you met? Poor little "green" elder!
3. Do you remember what he was wearing? White shirt, black name tag. He was probably wearing a really nice suit. He worked at Macy's before he went on his mission and had some really great suits!
4. Where was the first time you kissed this person? On the sofa of my apartment in Las Vegas.
5. Where did you go for your first date? I honestly don't remember. We hung out a lot as friends before we "dated" and I can't remember exactly where friendship ended and dating began!
6. How long did you know this person before you were a couple? 6 years
7. How did he ask you out? Refer to question 5 (sorry, don't remember)
8. Has this person ever proposed to you? Of course!
9. Do you and this person have kids together? 4 little monkeys and counting!
10. Have you ever broken the law with this person? Not that I know of.
11. When was the first time you realized you liked this person. Sometime in February of 1999
12. Do you get along with his family? Most of them.
13. Do you trust this person? Usually (of course I do!)
14. Do you see him as your partner in the future? FOREVER
15. What is the best gift he gave you? Too many to name, maybe not: Anthony, Luca, Ella, and Aiden!
16. What is one thing he does that gets on your nerves? Bites his nails!
17. Where do you see each other 15 years from now? Hopefully in a little bit bigger house!
18. What causes the most arguments? Kids
19. How long have you been together? 9 years
20. Are you married? I sure hope so! Of Course
21. Who do you tag? Kirsten, Elisa, Natalie, Lupita and Sabra

ours eternally!

On November 15 we had the blessing and privilege of taking Aiden to the Salt Lake Temple to be sealed to us! What an amazing experience. When we were sealed to Anthony and Ella in March, Aiden wasn't allowed to be in the temple with us. When we came out for pictures, he was happy, but the minute we had to go back into the temple to change, he began to cry and call for "Papa". He didn't stop crying until we had come back out in our regular clothes. It was so special to be able to go into the temple this time as a family! Aiden was wonderful! He's such a good little guy, I wasn't worried about his behaviour at all, but I wasn't expecting to see him so happy. He glowed! From the moment he walked in to the sealing room with his brothers and sister, he didn't stop smiling. I am so thankful for our family and for this amazing year we've had! I can't wait to see what next year has in store for us!