A Very Merry Christmas

This Christmas was one of the best ever! Rylan made each moment so special. Even though he's still a little too young to understand the whole Christmas thing, he still enjoyed opening gifts, playing with family, and eating yummy treats. What a joy he is! Life wouldn't be nearly as wonderful without him! Thank you Rylan for making Christmas so merry and bright!

This chair was mine when I was little and I have similar pictures of me sitting in it at about this age. It is special that Rylan can enjoy it now!

Rylan loved to look at all the ornaments on our Christmas tree. He particularly loved the reindeer who's mouth opened to reveal a Hershey kiss. Our son loves his chocolate!

Lisa, Chris and Breanne

We spent Christmas Eve with my family. As always, we had a wonderful time! Thanks Mom and Dad for the yummy food and wonderful gifts. We love you!

Mom, Jerimiah, Ty, Jeff, and Dad

My nieces, Ava and Jada opening their gifts with the help of their mom (my sister Jenna).

Dad reading the Christmas story to Ava and Rylan
"You mean Jesus used to be a baby just like me? Wow!"

Auntie Bre and Rylan

Rylan was overjoyed to see Auntie Bre! She's been away at school so we hadn't seen her in awhile. Auntie Bre used to be Rylan's nanny and he sure loves her. He couldn't take his eyes off of her all night.
"Auntie Bre is just so beautiful!"

Ava and Rylan loved wearing reindeer antlers!

"I love my new toy! I'll play with this for hours!"
Rylan got lots of new toys for Christmas. He loves them all and especially enjoyed ripping the paper off the gifts. He's pretty good at it now since he had lots of practice.

Rylan didn't think it would be Christmas without singing Christmas carols, so he hopped up on the piano bench and played us some tunes. We call him baby Beethoven.

"What did Santa bring me this year?"
Rylan seemed more excited about the oranges in his stocking than the toys.

Bryon's parents came and spent Christmas with us too! We were glad they made it here with all this snow. Thanks for making the trip! We really enjoyed your visit!

The day after Christmas we headed to Coeur d'Alene to see all the beautiful lights on the boardwalk. It was a sight to see!

It was so cold outside that we headed in to the Coeur d'Alene Resort to warm up. We sat by the fire, drank Starbucks coffee, listened to music, and enjoyed watching Rylan eat a cookie and wander all over the place.

What a wonderful Christmas! Children make everything so magical!

Winter Wonderland

Those ten inches of snow I was talking about in my last posting was nothing compared to the two feet of snow we ended up getting. It snowed for over 30 hours straight, school was canceled for two days, and everyone was pretty much stuck at home. While most people whined and complained about this treacherous weather, we turned it into an adventure. We enjoyed giving Rylan his first sled ride ever!

"Weeeeeee...faster, faster!


Rylan also enjoyed playing in the snow with his friend Blake.
"Wanna go make snow angels?"

Here's our whole family, including Libby, bundled up in all our snow gear. It sure was a Winter Wonderland outside.

"Don't let go of me Mama, or I'll be buried in snow."


"This was the best day ever. I love the snow! I hope it snows again tomorrow!"

Let It Snow

It has snowed ten inches today and counting. As I sit and type, the snow continues to fall so I can only imagine how much snow will be on the ground by morning. We took Rylan outside to enjoy the first big snowfall of the season and he loved it just as much as we thought he would. He loves to be outside and loves the cold weather too, just like his dad.Just look at these two snow bunnies! They are quite the pair, don't you think?

"Is is time to go sledding, Dad?"

"I love the feel of snowflakes on my cheeks. Mommy says that they're angel kisses. Isn't that nice? I love winter!"

Watch me NOW!!!

"If you thought I was good at walking before...you should see me now. I'm even better than before! Mommy finally got a good video of me. It's too bad she cut the video short or you would have seen me grab my milk and continue walking. I'm all over the house now and I'm so fast that Mommy and Daddy can't even keep up with me. Why crawl when I can get everywhere I want on two legs? Boy, am I having fun!"

Watch out everyone...here I come!!!

"I took my first steps weeks ago, but I am much better now. I can take ten or so steps before falling now, and then I get right back up again and keep going. I'm so proud of myself. I'll be running before you know it!"



"I also love to walk behind my fire truck because I can go really fast!"

Laughs with Libby

There is nothing better than the sound of a child laughing.

FYI-We don't normally feed Libby from the table, but everyone breaks the rules sometimes, right?

Thankful on Thanksgiving

We were fortunate enough to have two Thanksgivings this year! We spent Thanksgiving day at my family's lake cabin in north Idaho. It is so beautiful there no matter what time of year, and always so peaceful. We had so much fun just enjoying each other's company and watching all the kids play together. We all fit perfectly around the dining table and the food was delicious! The only thing missing was my sister, Breanne. We sure missed you! It wasn't quite the same without you and we're excited to see you in a few weeks!We couldn't fit everyone in the picture. Bryon, Rylan, and my dad are missing.

We had to get a four generation picture while we were all together. Here's me, Rylan, my mom, and my grandma.

Our next day of celebration took place on the west side of the state with Bryon's family. It was the first time in two and a half years that Bryon and his two brothers and their wives were together at the same time. It was very nice to all finally be together. We enjoyed a delicious meal and had a blast playing games together!

"Hey Uncle Brad, it's me Rylan! You are so fun! I loved how you swung me around and played with me. I can't wait to see you again. I'm excited for my new cousin to arrive too!"


This was the first time Uncle Brett and Aunt Laurie got to meet Rylan. They live in Virginia so we don't get to see them very often. We were so glad they could finally see our precious boy in person. The wait was worth it...Rylan enjoyed every moment with them!


During our visit we spent one evening in Bellevue watching the Christmas performance in Bell Square. Rylan enjoyed the music, the big friendly bear, and the candy cane suckers, but wasn't too sure about the real-life toy soldiers. They walked on stilts and their height seemed to frighten Rylan to the point of sticking out his bottom lip.


As we do on almost every visit, we took a nice walk along the beach. Rylan found some seaweed, some shells, saw some scuba divers and seagulls, and enjoyed hanging out with this big whale.

Many times over the course of our two day celebration I found myself feeling so thankful for our wonderful family! We feel very blessed to have so many people who love us! Thanks everyone for making our Thanksgiving so fabulous!