FAM PICS!

My good friend Alex knocked our pictures our of the park AGAIN! She is so darn talented and knows just what perfect shots to get. This time we begged for snow and also to bring our doggie along! I wasn't sure how it was going to go! But she did great! These are some of my very favorite photos! I just love Alex and how she captures my family!

We interrupt this photo shoot for a dance party!

How family pictures with 4 kids and a dog sometimes makes us feel!

Oh precious dog!

And sometimes the kids were harder to get to cooperate than the dog!

Handsome man!

 Stay tuned for our second photo shoot that we opted to push back a little later so we'd have snow for our outfit choices!

Just things...

We love family movie nights! 

Morning faces. 

My cute sign I made from my sister in law, Carrie's shop! I love how it turned out!

Mol made gummy bears.....they were questionable. 

Ry and Bri learned how to play Minecraft and are often found on my bed playing!

As hard as we've tried to keep this lady off the furniture, she just hops up there and helps herself. And she looks so darn cute doing it too. 

When I was in high school, I really wanted to have a truck, marry a farmer, and have a dog that would ride in the back of my truck. Well, I didn't marry a farmer (thank heavens), and I have a truck but she hasn't ridden in the back yet. So the mini van will have to do for now. Here I am, living the dream. 

 

Gratitude

Finding gratitude this year has had us all digging deep! While we know we have been immensely blessed so many times through this year, we also faced many disappointments that sometimes made it hard to see the blessings until later. But what tops my list of gratitude this year and every year is family. We did decide to gather as a family for a short time for thanksgiving and be as careful as possible with lots of hand washing and some wore masks. Feeling like I shouldn't hug my parents or siblings has made me want to even more. And I'm more grateful for the time we do have to be together.  

We had a lovely Thanksgiving dinner at moms house and apparently I didn't take very many pictures because this is all I have! But everyone pitched in and we had a very nice turkey dinner with all the regulars, even spaghetti!

Had to get a picture of mom's toes and mine. We had matching turkey pedicures!

I'm super grateful for my kids and how resilient they have been through this year. As we went around the table and talked about our thankfuls, a few of my kids mentioned that they were thankful for COVID! WHAT?! And how it had brought more time for our family to spend together. That made me feel good and totally amazed at their strength and positive attitudes during this disappointing time. 

The girls made sure to find grandmas play dough and make a turkey feast with it. 

And there were lots of baby snuggles...or attemts anyway. Cam and Wren getting too cool to snuggle much anymore. 

I was thankful we could gather. I am thankful we are all still healthy. I am thankful for siblings who care alot about each other and our parents well being. I am thankful everyone was safe driving. I am thankful for the lessons we have learned through this year that have brought on more family time and an awesome reminder of what matters most. I am thankful for the home church we had in place that felt mostly normal to do at home. I'm thankful for growth and the uncomfortable trials that come with it. And I'm thankful for my testimony and hope that I have clung to more than ever during this year. Some days I had no choice but to pray to get me through it. I know we will get through this and I hope we never forget to be thankful for the little things and that we always cherish the time we can spend with family. 
 

Craziness

 I don't love to add political things in my blog, but I suppose some day we might want to look back and remember what we made it through! 

It started with a murder of a black man by a cop. He was a criminal and was high and had health problems. Was the cop to harsh? Yes. Did he know he'd kill this man? I don't think so. But the unrest of people went CRAZY! Crimes were committed police brutally attacked, business looted, cars set on fire, fights, violence and destruction prevailed. For a few days, it was several states away. But I sat in complete shock one night as I watched the unrest that was happening in my state just 30 min from my home. A cop car was flipped by some protestors and then lit on fire! I just couldn't believe it. For several days this lasted! Many peaceful protests also happened. Its just so sad our country is so divided. 

Then the 2020 election happened! It's hard to say what happened because we only can know what the media tells us. But it came down to looking like Trump had lost on Nov 4. Many more upsets and protests and violence ensued. The election took several months! When congress gathered to finalize the vote that Biden won, the capitol was breached and protestors and groups of evil people stormed it. More violence broke out.  As I type this, it is the week of inauguration. Many more protests are expected to happen. Businesses are boarding up. I think everyone is bracing for the worst. 

It seems like any difference people can find anymore to disagree is what is on the front of everyone's minds. I hope somehow we can find unity. I hope justice will be served for the evil doers of this world. I hope my kids can grow up in a peaceful environment. I know things will get more wicked. It has to unfortunately until Christ can come. I hope I can keep my head when times get hard and trust the Lord. 

God, Please Bless America. 

Haircuts

It was time for this baby to get a groom! She could barely see because her fur was in her eyes so I searched out a local lady and took a chance! She came back SOOOO soft and fluffy and looking SO cute! The groomer wasn't expecting to be able to do everything she did but was able to do her nails, bath and haircut and she said she did so good! She's a rockstar!

But this haircut made me cry! Ry has been begging to get her hair cut for a while. I think she gets overwhelmed with her coat, and hair, and mask all being in her face all the time. So I finally caved. As soon as the hair lady made the first cut, I remembered family pictures were in 2 days!!!! AHHHH! Well, it was too late. 

Long or short, she's a doll!

She cut off a good 8-10 inches! And as cute as it was on her, the lady did an awful job. I really need to give up on going to great clips! Look at that neck line! I ended up cutting a good inch off at the nape of her neck. Other than that, its pretty cute on her!