Thanksgiving Day

We enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving Day. Lloyd preached and I lead worship to start the day off. Then we had an amazing meal with the VanderMeulens (Our college friends serving a church in Escalon.) Anika & Ella disappeared into her room to don costumes, make tea, and play "Dora" castle. They were soon fast friends. We stuffed ourselves on wonderful, sentimental favorites and Lloyd and I have a few more "must have" dishes in our Thanksgiving line up thanks to the VM's. We are so blessed!

Kathryn's New Moves

She is growing up! Kathryn now enjoys her exersaucer and johnny jumper. She brings so much joy into our lives with her ready smile and infectous giggle. Her sister and brother pretty much adore her too.

Scout gets her licks in. . .

I've heard that I need to give more coverage to Scout on the blog so . . .

Scout truly gets her licks in as she goes for Kathryn's toes.

Family Togetherness

Anika thought I should get this shot of her snuggling with her daddy and brother. Then she wanted to be the one to take the picture. A camera is at the top of her Christmas list right now. (She is definitely improving!)

Ballerina

Anika's dress-up of choice today was a ballerina. She was very creative with yarn and made herself ballet shoes. (With a little bit of help from Mommy!) She couldn't help but admire the shoes in the mirror.

Photo Shoot

Just a few pictures of the kids

Anika took this shot of Kathryn!

Flattery???

They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. . . For a mom that is both blessing and curse. I went to a Banner writer's workshop over the weekend. (30 hrs away from the hubby and kids -- they may have fared better than I did:-)) Anyway, this morning in true Anika fashion, she popped up in this ensemble. I had to ask about it and I discovered that she was going to a "confer'nce" -- wearing her boots and jacket, just like mommy. Then I discovered her lounging on the couch "doing a crossword puzzle":-)

Be Still My Heart. . .

Our dearest friend, Linda, gave Anika this "bride dress". Do I even have to say that Anika loves it! She is a little bit too enthusiastic about this -- more that her mom and dad. (She told me that when she grows up she is going to marry Andrew -- that is after she found out Daddy is taken. I'm sure she will be mortified by that all too soon.)

Harvest Fair

Well, we were able to enjoy another Harvest Fair with our Sunnyside friends. It was so much fun to walk in and see all the double-takes as people recognized us. It has been 10 months but it still felt like home. We miss so many of the people there!!!

Anika: cheerleader Kathryn: Pumpkin Andrew: Spiderman!

A Cow's Life

A trip to Oregon is never complete without a stop at the dairy. Anika and Andrew LOVED the calves, barns full of hay, the injured bird that Aunt Patti is caring for, cousin Jennifer's horse, and of course the big, moo-ing cows.

Pictures with Pake

Silver Creek Falls

Pake took us on a drive to see the waterfalls at Silver Creek Falls. It was beautiful - the pictures just don't do it justice, but I'm including a ton of them anyway:-)

Time with Pake

We are back home after a week of traveling to see family and friends. We spent a few days in Salem with Lloyd's grandpa and then visited with wonderful friends in Sunnyside. The kids were so excited to see their Pake again. We also enjoyed the cool weather, beautiful colors, and tons of leaves. Anika and Andrew were able to burn up lots of pent up energy after our 13+ hours of travel.