New Year, New Adventures...

Blake started Sunbeams this January.  He turned three last February, so he was ready to move up to Primary.  I just got a new calling - primary chorister.  He has a hard time when I don't pick him to be my helper, but other than that he does great!

Blake modeling his cute new robe for cold, snowy mornings.

I have a love/hate relationship with uniforms.  I miss the fun of picking out and wearing regular clothing.  However, uniforms make it easier to get dressed in the mornings, and they sure do look spiffy.

Since I live in a house full of boys, I don't think they really care or notice most of my seasonal decor.  However, it makes me happy to change the decorations for each holiday, and hopefully the boys secretly enjoy it too.

One evening I was waiting to pick Wesley up from ski school, and I had to stop to snap a picture of this beautiful view.

After we bought our first house (a few months before Wesley was born), we purchased a "cheep" washer and dryer from Costco.  I was really excited to have my own set, in my own house (located right next to all the bedrooms so laundry was much easier to complete). Growing up in an apartment, my mom had to use a laundromat my entire childhood.  When I went to BYU, I had to use a laundromat.  When we lived with Jason's mom for a year we had to share their old set with Jason's family. When Jason and I lived in our old apartment for a few years we had to use a Laundromat. Needless to say I was very happy to have my own set.  They were not fancy, but they did the job. The dryer took a long time to dry, and even after an hour a load of jeans were often still damp. However - I was grateful to have them. They washed years worth of baby clothing, burp rags, potty training underwear, blankets, bedding after illnesses, and so on.  With three boys, these machines worked hard. They broke down a few times, but Jason was always able to fix them.   In January the dryer stopped working, and we started looking at new sets.  Jason was able to find a spare part and fix the dryer, but we decided to go ahead and sell the old set and buy a new one.  I get attached to inanimate objects, and was a little sad to see them go.  However, I LOVE the new set we bought.  The new washer and dryer have a HUGE capacity. They fit a king sized comforter, which is one of my favorite features.  They have a steam and sanitize option for extra dirty clothing or bedding (like after an illness).  There is an allergen setting to help combat allergies, a water proof setting for all our snow gear, plus a ton of other settings.  They even play music after the cycle is complete! The dryer can steam/sanitize items that cannot be washed (like pillows, stuffed animals, and so on).  With active, dirty boys - this set is going to get a lot of use!

I can fit twice as much laundry in these as my previous set.  Here is a picture of one load I was able to wash! 

Museum fun

"Look Mom!!  I can hold on with just one hand!!"

My cute little cowboy - always dressing up!

Blake's last day of gymnastics - we tried moving him to a sports' class (which was really cute), but he still wanted to quit.  These little ones have a mind of their own!

A new fancy dessert place opened up near us.  Lets just say -  I am in BIG trouble.

Blake falls asleep in the car almost every Wednesday afternoon.  He plays with Addie all day, and then stays in the car for about an hour and I drive to pick up Chase from school, drop him off at piano, wait 20 min, and then drive back to the school to get Wesley from violin.  Lots of driving and waiting! He is often so tired that I can take him out of the car and place him on the couch, and he will sleep for another hour.

This Winter has been very dry.  The top picture was a picture from January 2018, and the bottom one was a year earlier - January 2017.  Even though we have not received as much snow, it has still been pretty cold.  I am anxiously awaiting warmer temperatures, and greener surroundings!