Before and After

Before: Ronchy (is that a real word...?) old frame and kind of unattractive painting from Goodwill.

After: Frame with a fresh coat of paint and a little sanding for a "distressed look", 2x3ft. piece of wood with a couple coats chalkboard paint...Homemade Chalkboard!

Ode to the kiddos!

I just had to post in honor of my children. These two little people SLAY ME!!! Brandon and I can talk about these two for TOO long and TOO late. These photos speak a thousand words...

I found Jemma and Carter sitting on the floor...Jemma looking at books, Carter watching Jemma in between his snacking on the books. PrEcIoUs!!

CARTER DID IT! Oh the Talent.

Mischeif Maker!!!! This boy is into everything these days, but his curious nature cracks me up! His favorite thing to get into is...you guessed it, the bathroom. Mostly the toilet paper and garbage can...YUCK! If that door is left open, he army crawls as fast as he can right in there and...Mischeif Making Begins!

One of Jemma's favorite things to do is "HELP"...me with dinner (wonderful), Carter with getting onto the couch(not so wonderful), Daddy with eating a snack while watching a Disney favorite...ya know, all the really important stuff.


The park is a big time favorite for Jemma. We just found this new place called "Out of this World Pizza"...holy cow they have two 2-story slides and any and every other fun play equiptment you could imagine...and it's all indoors! Perfect for here in Oregon! Last time we went, Jemma played for three hours straight...I had to bribe her with gum and fruit snacks to get her to come home with me.

Our SWEET BOY!

What in the world would we do without these two? We are SOOO THANKFUL for their sweet spirits, for the good times that are more precious because of the not so good times :o), for the love they have for each other and for us. Thank Heaven for these little ones!

SNOW snow SNOW

Off to the slopes we go!

Reed, Melanie, Emma, Brian, Jacob, Eric and Brandon in the Northstar Village...getting ready to head up the mountain!

Eric, catching some SWEET air!

Brandon, trying out a jump.

The Boys: Eric, Brandon, Brian, Reed, Jacob and Dad.

The Girls: Emma, Jen, and Mel.

Brandon and me. We havn't been skiing/boarding together since before Jemma was born! That's THREE YEARS! So, it was a real treat to go together.

Thanks Mom, Sharee, Natalie and Jewels for watching our kids!

Reed, with a nice board grab.

Jacob is my hero. I guess I am just too weak to get my legs tucked in that tight.

Brian doin' some kung-fu moves mid-air.

Brandon with a board-grab...oh so talented.

Emma rockin' the jumps...what a dare-devil!

Home for the Holidays

Our family has been so fortunate to be able to travel home and spend the holidays with family. The Christmas Season is such a wonderful time to reflect on all of the many blessings we have been given by our Father in Heaven and His Son, Jesus Christ. I truly feel that our FAMILY is one of the greatest blessings we have.

We had such a wonderful Christmas...thank you to all of the family and loved ones who were so generous with our family.

Jemma and "Nina" being creative with their gingerbread house!

Jemma and Aunt Jade...and baby Trey!

Carter in his lego dump truck! He was so adorable Christmas morning...If he wasn't eating wrapping paper, he was just observing the excitement!

Jemma was super excited this year about Christmas...it was the first year she really understood what was going on.

The kiddos...Jemma was kind enough to help Carter open his gifts too!

We made my Mom a scrapbook of her mother's life this year. (Grandma Packard passed away in June of this year.) We were so glad to be able to preserve these memories for her. WE LOVE YOU MOM!

The girls...Jemma and Daphne...playing with there dolls.

Sharee, Emma, Jemma, and Jenny.

Working on the Christmas FEAST!

Carter learned to crawl up STAIRS while at my parents' home!!!

Me and Mom!!

Carter, headed up the stairs!

Jemma eating her DELECTABLE pie!

Grammy and Grandpa Stone with Dad, Carter, Jemma and me.

Just a few of my FaVoRiTe shots from the last month...or two or three!

Carter!!!

Man, he's growing up so fast! We're already prepping him for his driving permit! :o)

This bottle is his most favorite bath toy. We can't get a shot of him without it!!!

At the beach. He really loves to be outdoors!!!

Goin' for a ride at the Portland Zoo. (We are "official members now...Jemma and I even have special cards to get in and out of the park! Oh, how we love the animals!...especially the baby elephant and the tigers.)

Jemma and Carter on Halloween. A lot of folks thought Carter was a lamb, but he was actually a little bunny, the idea was for him to be one of "Snow White's" forest friends. Oh well. They both looked AdOrAbLe!!!

One morning, Jemma and Carter were just chillin' on the couch together, and he seriously couldn't take his eyes off of Jemma...always a very serious expression...must have been wondering how he got so lucky and ended up with such a super big sister! :o)

Jemma all geared up for the snow. We got a TON over the last 3 or 4 days, but that didn't keep us inside!

Brandon and Jemma headed out on a walk in...the snow...whatelse!

Jemma at the Zoo.

Jemma is a fearless little explorer when it comes to the outdoors. I sure wish it made her half as nervous as it makes me to be far from the rest of the family. Here's ione of her and the stick she found on the beach.

Our little family on the beach at Seaside, Oregon.

Just a fun fall photo...Thanks Jewels and Eric for taking it for us! We can't wait to see you again over Christmas!