A Little Something for the "Twilight" in all of US!

So we went boating with the Halverson's last week and had a BLAST!! We road on a raft behind the boat and the boys loved going fast!!

They road with me first and then with Adam.

For those who are reading this blog and have read the Twilight Series, I had my very own "New Moon" moment! After we road on the raft, we road out to look at a campsite on an island. Eventually we made it to some cliffs where apparently people go cliff jumping. For all you Twilight fans- I HAD to make a jump! The first jump Gabriel did as well which was at least 20 feet above the water. This jump was the ledge on the far left in this picture a little more than half-way up the cliff.

After being told that it was way too high for him, Gabriel climbed up and jumped almost immediately and the look on his face as he came down said mom and dad were right...it was WAY TOO FAR!! He didn't jump again but after jumping this cliff myself, I was told there was a higher one. Again, if there is a higher one-I HAVE GOT TO JUMP OFF THAT ONE!!! Since everyone was in the water, no photos were actually taken of me jumping. However, when I got in the boat I took another picture of the 2nd cliff I jumped off of. In about the middle of the picture you can see the rock sticking out at the top of the cliff which is where I jumped!! It was an AWESOME adrenaline RUSH!!!

Liah briefly enjoyed staying with Debbie while we played!

The sun on the water was beautiful!!

A little mischief for Liah!!

Liah is starting to crawl now. BACKWARDS, but none-the-less she is moving. Isaac had left his bag of goldfish on the floor and Liah seized the opportunity! She made her way to the bag and apparently dumped them out because when I came on the scene this is what I found. She was so proud of herself!!

Isaac lovin' the soccer!!!

Gabriel has never been one to enjoy organized sports. He would rather socialize on the sidelines!! Isaac, however, may be my one hope for a sports fan! He had his first ever soccer practice and seem to LOVE it. I was so excited that he was actually practicing the whole time and not sitting on the ground or on the sidelines talking to parents. His coach is experienced yet realizes they are kids and not college athletes which is great!! He got them together and told them he has two rules. The first is to always listen when he is talking. And the second was to always have fun! I thought that was perfect! I couldn't have said it better.

He loved talking to the ball as he kicked it down the field and into the goal. You could hear him saying "I'm gonna get you ball!...You get in there!...Take that you!...HI-YAH!" This was HILARIOUS!! Mind you all the parents heard him as well. Check it out...again, make sure you turn off the music :)

He was listening intently as his coach was teaching him the basics :)

The First Day of School

So the dreaded day finally came to usher my oldest off to kindergarten!!!

Gabriel had been saying emphatically all summer when asked about going to school, "I AM NOT GOING TO KINDERGARTEN!!" This concerned me, however, I was hoping that he would warm up to the idea. After dropping off Isaac at preschool and seeing an old friend, Gabriel shed a few tears as he missed his friend and the preschool. All the way to his school, I heard him giving himself a pep-talk in the back seat. This was both cute and sad! He mustered up the courage to get out of the van with me and Liah and walk into his classroom. Even though several other kids were crying...and he didn't want to wear his name tag, he went right to the circle of kids on the carpet and began to sing. I must say that I was pleasantly surprised when he got in the van after his first day and could not STOP talking about his GREAT day!! I feel I owe this in part to prayers answered! Gabriel has been so excited every day since to go back to school and have more FUN!! Isaac was excited as well but sad that he and Gabriel were not in the same school.

WOW!! They sure are growing up fast!

A little family time at the lake...well...kind of

So for the last month I have been training for a triathlon. The swim portion of the race is in open water. For me, this means I swim with...well...other "things" and not just people. This surprisingly bothered me! Adam had the idea to go to the nearby state park and get in the lake there so I could get over my fear. We have gone twice now and are trying to go at least once a week as it seems that swimming with the "things" still bothers me. For those who are still amazed that this picture is of ME as well as the kids...you may now pick your jaw up off the ground. I actually requested Adam take this picture. Not because I thought it would look cool or that "I" would look cool (believe me I KNOW how I look...like a dork!!) but because I wanted to have a picture to motivate me :)

The kids love swimming there because they "get" to swim with the fishes! And it's water and what kid doesn't love water!

This picture is of course the masked Gabriel again! He loves to use my goggles because they don't leak like his!

Wow...they grow up fast...

So Gabriel headed off for kindergarten testing and much to my surprise...I had a moment. I really didn't expect to feel the way I did because he was JUST going to testing but MAN!! Taking him to school and realizing that he was growing up struck me!

It seems like yesterday that I got married and found myself juggling being a wife, a new mom 1 year later, and being a full-time student. I think about the good times I had then and how simple things where as well. When I look at Gabriel, I see myself in so many ways!! I started looking through some photos of him and wanted to share a few. However, I will be sharing more!! I love this little boy!!!

OK...any guesses for what song the kids are learning in Primary this month?!

The boys were playing with cars and ALL OF A SUDDEN broke out in song...this is just a small clip we were able to get! Make sure you turn off the music and pay close attention to the "UH!" that Gabriel puts in the song :)