Givers and Growers

I attended a local photography group a few weeks ago called "Givers and Growers." It was a fun couple of hours and I loved the pictures I took away from it. I posted them here if you would like to see them. http://www.jenniferberryphotography.blogspot.com/

Glimpses

Sometimes I look at my children and catch small glimpses of their incredible spirits and who they are going to become. It is overwhelming to think I am accountable for teaching them. Sometimes I think it is they who should be teaching me. I pray every day that I will be guided in they way I interact with and teach them.

Yet another haircut

While Aunt Kara was here the night before the baby blessing, she gave Estella ANOTHER haircut. I can't believe this little girl's hair. This time she cut two inches and it is still very long.

Alexander's Blessing

With all the craziness, I didn't even get a picture of Alexander. It was wonderful craziness! We were so lucky to have almost all of our family be able to come to the blessing. We had:

-Jackson's parents
-My parents
-Judd, Amber, Clarissa, Newell, Brynne, and Juliette
-Julia, Chris, Ethan, Aiden
-Aunt Diana and Uncle Alvin
-Aunt Camary and Uncle Lee
-Grammy
-Grandma Berry
-Grandma and Grandpa Groesbeck
-Jake
-Kara and Cody
-Uncle Walt

We had a dinner in the park afterward and enjoyed each other for the short time we had together. It was so special to have everyone there.

Boys do the silliest things :)

After a music performance at the Mesa View retirement center, I noticed Thomas had a big sore on his forehead. When I asked him what happened, he grinned and said that Newell told him to rub his head on the carpet. I laughed. He said, "What? Newell did it too!" Sure enough, both he and Newell were adorned with big rug burn spots on their foreheads for a week.

Estella

A few things to remember about Estella...

-She loves to dance- When I turn on music, she dances around with big graceful steps, twirling and reaching to the music. I love watching her graceful, fluid movements.

-She is very strong-willed- She has two older brothers, and she knows how to stand up for herself. The problem now is reminding the boys that they don't have to give in to everything she demands.

-She is an excellent communicator- She speaks very clearly for a three year old and loves to talk and be talked to.

We love you Estella!

Nicholas

A few things to remember about Nicholas...

-He is learning to read- He can now read Bob books and sound out many words. He loves to make up stories and will often write them down. Lately, he has been making up poems.

-He loves to draw- He started a "Monsters vs. Aliens" book. I don't know where he got the idea. I think there is a movie by that title, but he hasn't seen it. He has a notebook and at the top of each page he writes Monster or Alien and then draws a picture below. He has filled almost an entire notebook with pictures.

-He LOVES Alexander- I am a bit blown away by how much Nicholas loves Alexander. Every moment that Alexander is awake, Nicholas is by his side cooing and talking to him.

We love you Nicholas!

Thomas

These are pictures from our "School Picture" session that I want to have in our family album.

Thomas is growing up so fast. I can't believe he will be baptized in less than a year! Here are a few things about Thomas at this stage in his life:

-He is a reader!- He will sit up at night reading as long as I will let him. If I forget to go in and ask him to turn off his reading light and go to sleep, he will still be sitting there reading when I go to bed two hours later! He can read anything he wants to now. He has read almost every Magic Tree House book available. I think there are only two in the entire series he hasn't read. He will often turn to me, bursting with enthusiasm, and say, "I just LOVE reading! I don't know why, I just LOVE it!"

-He doesn't like to be late- Every morning, he is very aware of the time on the clock and always wants to get out to the bus stop early so he won't miss the bus. He had violin lessons one morning of the week at 7:15, but we recently had to change it, because he was so stressed and worried the entire time that he was going to be late for the bus.

-He loves to perform on the violin- He requested that I ask his teacher if he could play his violin for his class. She said yes, and I came and helped him. After school that day he asked if I could set up a time with his teacher for him to play the violin every week in class. I told him once was enough. I am glad that he enjoys performing. He is learning very quickly and is a teachable and cooperative student.

We love you Thomas!

Fall colors on the Grand Mesa

These pictures are from about two months ago. We love to drive the hour or so up to the Grand Mesa to see the beautiful fall leaves every fall. This year we did it for family home evening. We hiked around a bit and found a nice grove of trees. We sat down in a small clearing, talked about Joseph Smith and how he prayed in a grove of trees. Then we had a prayer as a family and listen in the quiet for the peaceful feelings of the spirit. I hope the kids remember that experience.