Serenity and her Alphabet

Becca has been doing a great job at teaching Serenity everything she needs to know, and I thought I'd share her progress with you :-)

My 22 Birthday

Oh yeah baby! 5x optical zoom, 16 mega pixels, 720p video, PINK! This is what Greg bought me for my birthday, and a 16gb SD card too! And these are the images I took on my birthday.

I wanted a party, but I didn't have friends to invite so I decided to go to the dollar store and buy princess party stuff with pink streamers and balloons. I decorated the house and Greg bought a Snickers Cheesecake. It was actually a pretty normal day, but with cake for dinner.

Serenity had the most fun. With the money she got from her birthday, she bought herself a pool. She loves that thing! As soon as she wakes up it's "poool, poool" and she doesn't like to go in alone, so make sure you wear your shorts when you go outside. I wish birthdays were as fun as when you were little.

Family Photos 2011

Ok here's your task, Pick your top 3 for our "Official Family Photo" (the one I hang on the wall, and is sent to grandparents etc) keep in mind the frame I have is for vertical but I can alter the photos to fit if need, but its not a requirement.

Also mention which ones you think are totally scrapbook worthy or deserve some notoriety in my home.

Work it Baby!

"blues clues, sesame street, or pbskids.org
hmmm.... which one?"

click, click, click, "watch videos!!!"

oh yeah. I know how to work this machine...

Feeding the Ducks

Today was so nice out. We decided to skip nap time and enjoy the park. We brought along our old stale bread and fed the ducks. Serenity had so much fun. She loved to make the quaking sound. She kept asking the duck if they "a-bite?" (want a bite?)

My Little Garden

So I've decided to start adventures is gardening this year. I've picked a plot near the front of our yard and used some logs on the property to make it a semi-raised bed. I've started a bunch of vegetable seeds in a green house, and I have an herb garden on my window sill. I should be planting the seedlings some time within the next few weeks. I'll keep you updated on my progress.

Easter Egg Hunting

Listen carefully to the cute little sounds she makes while hunting eggs...

Bubbles

BTW: She is saying thank you in the beginning

Easter Dress

Egg Dying for Easter

She was very good at dropping the eggs into the dye gently.

This is the Easter Dress that I made for her. We had matching dresses but Greg doesn't really take pictures of me. Sad thing was, when we put the dress on her Sunday morning it didn't go over her head and we were running late so I had to pick out the stitches and leave for church as is. Thats why the collar looks a little funny.

This is what the Easter bunny got for her. She loves that doll AND stroller to death. She never goes anywhere without it. I made a matching dress for the doll with the scrapes.

P.S. I would like a new digital camera for my birthday...

Sweet and Sassy

Watching Blues Clues with a thumb, a blankey, and Missy Mouse

Too cool for clothes...

Working hard with Daddy... Watch out! Babe with a screwdriver!

Breakfast Time on a Saturday in March

Can you imagine eating a doughnut that was as big as your face?!?!

You would hold two in your hands too, wouldn't you?

Dinner with Dr.Seuss

So, as a next step in getting over my anxieties I decided I would try something really different. I bought my first tickets to an activity organized by some of the students at the school. There was a costume contest, so I thought of turning Serenity into a WHO or Green Eggs and Ham, but I didn't have the right material. But thanks to an amazing friend, she gave me a blue blanket and I got the idea for 1 fish 2 fish red fish blue fish.

It's kinda hard to see, but I made a hoodie like shirt out of the blanket and used velcro to close it and using pipe-cleaners, I made fins that kept their shape and added details to parts of the fins. I had a one and she had a 2 I was red and she was blue. I cut up an old red t-shirt into scale shapes and sewed them loosely on a red hoodie (already made) and added fins to my elbows and a dorsal fin to my back.

Unfortunately, I looked like one of the "Things" (red with a 1 on it can you blame them?), and there were soooooo many other "Thing 1 and Thing 2's" that I just blended in unless I kept Serenity with me at all times. We had a dinner of green eggs and ham, corn dogs (all the foods had Dr.Seuss-type names and I don't remember them all), Diced potatoes, peaches, rolls, Sneeches Salad. After we ate it was story time and Serena didn't want to sit still, so she found a ball and played her own rules. She made friends with all the big kids. Before we knew it, it was time to go and the costume award went to a thing 1 and thing 2 with blue hair.

The night was a disaster for me I couldn't get over the anxious feeling. But Serenity got a lot out of it... a corn dog (fav food), a balloon, a new favorite warmie coat that is soft like a blankey, and because I needed some shop therapy afterwards, I bought her a bunch of Blues Clues Books. It was fun, but I don't think I'm ready to do it again.

Pi(e) Day

We enjoyed Chicken Pot Pie for dinner with friends the we made Apple Caramel Crumb Top Pie, and our friends made Oreo Pudding Pie, and this AMAZING Cookie Pie... It was like eating cookie dough! We had plenty of pie left overs and it was just a small way to add a little fun to our dinner.

The Things She Eats...

We've had to make special adjustments to our budget so that we can keep a steady supply of cheese sticks in the fridge. She loves to open the drawer and pull them out herself, and then close the drawer. She can't quite open the package yet but she knows how to ask nicely. This is a picture of her eating her cheese on my desk and talking on her phone to her grandma.We received a package today during lunch. It was really cool because it was filled with packing bubbles. So another one of her favorite foods in PBJ sandwiches and they taste the best on the go. So keep your eye out for jelly bombs on the floor!

Making Waffles

Lately I've been trying to have a lot of quality time with Serenity in between homework and classes. Everyday we play, we talk, we sing, and we have a learning experience. This month we have been working on cooking. It was my hope that she would learn how fun it was to play in the kitchen. So when we get our matching aprons on she knows its time to cook, and I sit her up on the counter. It's her job to hold the measuring cup very still while I fill it and then she dumps it. Sometimes she gets a little to excited about the dumping that she forgets to aim and spills it everywhere. Then we take turns stirring. We were making waffles one morning and she was watching how I would pour the batter onto the waffle iron, and she wanted to do what I do, so she found the next best thing... a frying pan. If you watch carefully you will see that she even spins the cup to fill up all the gaps.

She gives a little squawk to let me know that she is ready to eat her waffle, even thought its still to hot to eat. But she has learned to "blow it" until its cool. Her other most important job is to let me know when things are done, she always gives a surprised gasp when the times goes off or the light turns green, (or when my cell gets a text).

She is my awesome little helper.

Daddy's Version Of "Watching" Serenity

Latest Stories

We actually had a warm day, the sun was out the air was above freezing and it was really nice out, so Serenity and I went for a walk along our street. She rode her slug half way down, and on the way back she insisted on walking on the snowy parts of the road. It reminds me of the footprints in the sand poem, but with snow.

This picture was taken for one of my art projects, I just loved it so much I just had to share.
This is Serenity on her favorite riding toy. Greg and I were discussing a tricycle for her birthday. We think she will love that even more.

Still Sharing with Dad

All Set for Singing Time

She cant really sing the words yet but she knows the songs of head shoulder knees and toes, once there was a snowman, intsy winsey spider, wheels on the bus, and sunbeam.

She is ahead of all her nursery classmates when it comes to singing time.

First Haircut

Serenity has such beautiful locks of red hair and I just can't bear to cut it short. But after harassment from Riley and Connor about her mullet on our Christmas cards I decided I should just go and do it so that the rest of her head catches up. I think it looks really cute. I'm mad that I cut her bangs, because now she looks like a boy, but it doesn't look so bad when I swish it to the side.

First Day of School

Since it's kind of a tradition, I had Greg take a picture of me on my first day of school.

College is awesome!

My first class is Science with Bro. Kelley. Our first homework assignment from the textbook was to read an article by a general authority. Science and religion in perfect harmony, love it!

Next I have an Art class with a fun professor who loves to go off on tangents. Like, he mentioned

that the famous picture "American Gothic" looks like Henry B. Eyring

Then he had a random slide of clowns in his 1st presentation and they were really creepy looking.

Then I had lunch with Jake briefly before heading to Doctrines of the Gospel class. And the teacher there is really cool. He used the word nifty on his quiz.... COOL!

I'm really excited about my first semester. I have math, design, and drawing online. And I'm already ahead in most of my classes.

Serenity is staying with Greg's, co-workers, wifes, sister. Serenity seems to really like her and I have a really good feeling that it's a good place for her to be.

I don't have class again until tuesday. I feel confident and ready to learn. Especially because I have my $200 shopping spree wardrobe for a christmas present.