Great time at Laguna Beach over Thanksgiving break!
The Nutcracker!
Amelia was cast as a sheep in the Nutcracker! Elyse cant wait to be in ballet next year!
Countdown to Thanksgiving (6 days left)! And we got a little rain today! Feels like fall!
little miss Claire and Amelia, such sweet girls!
Got the bricks and grout up on the fireplace! Just have the wood mantel to do and we will be done! Wahhooo!
So appreciating this life...everyone is healthy and the Holidays are getting close!
Kristin and little Emma Rae stopped by yesterday for a visit! It was great to see them (bummed Eric couldn't make it!) and the kids had a great time together!
Beautiful sunset with a cutie pie!
Our front loader clothes washer gave up the ghost yesterday so...Craigslist to the rescue!
Big Doors for the Shed and a start on the fireplace!
After dinner walk...
Greenhouse is close to being done!
Fall Update
Fall is here! It is even a little early this year! Cold nights and warm days with the sun low in the sky. Does it get any better?!
Can't believe how lucky I am to have Kimberley as my wife and best friend! She is so fun, beautiful, and an amazing mom!
Rain, Rain, come again!
We are finally at average rain fall here in Southern California and it is only the beginning of February!
Big sister Elyse and Claire. Such sweet girls.
Fun "tummy time" with Claire.
School is out for Summer!!!
frost in the field a week ago
Rainy day fun!
Love playing cards with the kids! Go fish; old maid; and crazy eights!
Got the bread maker out! Too bad the bread wasn't finished before the kids' bed time! ;)
Chicken coop foundation
first side set.
both sides set!
The foundation pillars are set and ready! With all the wild life around we are taking extra precautions to keep our feathered girls safe. We will be laying down 1" square hardware cloth under the entire coop and the welded wire on the outside. This will be the Fort Knox of coops. :)
The hen house will be 5' x 5' and the run will be attached and be 5'x 10'. We will have a larger enclosed area for them to explore while we are home so they will get plenty of space.
Below are more details of the beginning from Kimberley's camera.
Horse day camp for Charlotte and Nathan
Some how I didn't get a photo of Nathan or Charlotte but did get this one of Amelia and Elyse!
Sunrise over valley fog
Beautiful morning!
Charlotte and Nathan are at a day long horse camp today. Hard to believe that they are old enough to happily spend a whole day away from us. We stayed a couple of hours watching them and quietly wishing we could all be spending the whole day at horse camp. :)
The game of life...
2015
This year has been incredibly busy! We are so fortunate to have amazing family and friends! I have been reminded multiple times recently that the only thing that matters is how you treat those who are around you. We are expecting our 5th baby in June and looking back at pictures of Charlotte and how fast she (and Nathan, Amelia, and Elyse) have grown up it is more obvious than ever that they will grow up WAY too fast and all that will stay with us will be our love for each other and the times we spent enjoying each other. It sounds depressing but it isn't. I am so proud and lucky to be their father and am trying very hard to enjoy every minute of this crazy time!
So Christmas morning started rather early today. At 3:43 am I was woken up by Elyse standing in our doorway sniffling. She was upset and I tried to calm her and put her back in her bed. She was having nothing of it. She started to cry and then began to throw a fit. nothing I got her (that she requested) was right and so Kimberley came in and laid down next to her to try and calm her. Well the fit got worse and she woke up all her siblings. I ended up taking her outside in the cold air to try and calm her. In the end it was her sweet sister Charlotte who sang her to sleep. There is something so special about your children soothing each other. They are better at it and it seems to be so much better received.
So as the sun started to brighten our rooms Kimberley, Charlotte, Nathan, our dog and I had been up since the three o'clock hour. Needless to say we are closing in on the 12th hour of consciousness and the nerves are starting to wear thin. MERRY CHRISTMAS! :)
8:30 pm update:
The night ended with me falling asleep while laying on the floor next to Elyses' bed so that she would stay quietly in her bed. I am not sure when she fell asleep but it worked. Merry Christmas to all and to all a GOOD NIGHT! ;)
Updates for the week of December 12th
Looks like Sadie our black Dachshund has accepted Remy our "new" old dog. But she still makes him give up the best part of the dog bed! Hahaha!
The week before Christmas Break Nathan and I had some father-son time at French Valley Airport Cafe. Got to see a helicopter and a small plane take off!