Happy 7th Birthday!

It's my beautiful 'baby' girl's bday today! I can't believe 7 years have passed!

We love you very much and are so proud of you. You are such a great sister and friend. You are an amazing daughter and we couldn't imagine our lives with out you!

Love you!

It's "fly" to be free!!

I am totally thrilled to talk about SHUTTERFLY today. Life is a bit crazy in our household, but let's be honest, between having kids AND the Holidays, who's isn't, right?

Anyway, I wanted to show a few of my favorite Christmas Cards with you...Yes, it's true. I still haven't sent my cards off, let alone ordered them, but with the help of Shutterfly, I'll be able to do this quickly and for free! Yep, that's right, they are giving me 50 free christmas cards. Woot!

So, here goes nothing:

1. First off, who wouldn't LOVE to have this polka-dotted Christmas Card delivered to their mailbox?! I love how fun it is, with a dash of elegance with the "Merry Christmas" script.
Peppermint Dots Christmas Card

**For the next 3, I can't help but drool over the red/black combo. I am sucker for how elegant and classy it looks. With that said,

2. I love toile. It has a timeless appeal and you can't go wrong with doing anything with it, including decorating your home.

Pine Cone Toile

3. This next one makes a statement with the red stripe banner in the middle. It's big enough to show who the card is from and it doesn't get swallowed up by the background.

Pretty Poinsettia Print

4. This next one says, CHRISTMAS, to me. Big, fat snowflakes....

Snowflake Elegance Noir

5. I love anything with initials. I love black and white. With this card, it hits the mark. I think the snowflakes circling around the initial really bring it forward and I really love it.

Snowflake Wreath Christmas Card

6. This last card is perfect for a quick update. We weren't going to send a letter out with our pictures, but there is a chance with this card. There is a limited amount of space, so no going on about anything and everything...(I may tend to do that sometime.. :)

What a Year Christmas Card

If you aren't on the ball like me, head on over to Shutterfly and pick something up!

going to the temple

We went to the temple today!! Holy cow, it has been FOREVER...at least 2 years.

We were out of the house by 7:40 a.m. and drove the 2 hours to get there...the kids were great and when we dropped them off at the Stake Center next door, we couldn't have been more more excited to enter the temple.

The 2 hours flew by! I was so exhausted and may have closed my eyes for a minute or two...but it was just so wonderful. Now that we know we can travel down WITH the kids and do a session, we are looking forward to doing some family names.

When we lived in Rexburg, I never realized how hard it would be to NOT have a temple so close. We quickly found out when we moved to Kansas City and our temple district was St. Louis..4 hours away! With a nursing baby, etc. It just wasn't meant to be. We went when we visited my parents in Chicago. Once.

Fast forward to Ohio. Another nursing baby. Another long distance to go. BUT now that the kids are older, we can leave them (although VERY close by) and feel that peace as we enter the temple.

While in the temple Luke and I just looked at each other and knew that this is where we need to be. We can't be here weekly, it's just not feasible, but if we can make the effort to go monthly or bi-monthly, we know how much it will enrich and bless our lives.

Thanksgiving 2010

We traveled to Chicago to visit my parents.  It was such a great time!  The cousins always love spending time together:
Spencer & Samuel:

Livi and Annalee found some old dance dresses.  Impromtu fashion show:

Museum of Science and Industry

The boys loved the Children’s Area:

Outside the Omnimax Theater:

Christmas trees from around the world:





FUN FILLED FRIDAY:
Mom and Dad brought us to the jump zone:


The fun ended when Luke sprained his finger…while jumping in a Princess Castle-hahaha!

*I wrote this post on November 26, 2011 a year AFTER the fact.  After talking to my mom about Thanksgiving in the past, I realized that I hadn't posted anything!