Where have I been?

Well lets start with SUMMER IS HERE! In Alaska we have learned to take advantage of having sunlight, well, all the time! The warm weather and sun means we spend a lot of time outdoors taking the kids to the lakes and rivers, camping, hiking, making s'mores...!
One of my little sisters is here visiting. Hopefully enjoying her visit, too. Though I think she finds us a little crazy.

Also, for a while I was huge and pregnant and it felt like a chore just walking down the hall! And of course my due date came and went with no baby! Luckily she showed up only 2 days after!

Miss Alissa Faith arrived Memorial day morning weighing only 8 lbs. 5 oz.!

We took Alissa to the beach at birch lake, that was pretty uneventful because she just slept the whole time.
She went on her first hiking trip when she was 2 weeks old. I wonder if she is the youngest person to ever hike in Denali Park? Anyway, she slept through the hike, too.
Not like you can expect a little one to do anything else anyway. LOL. Anyway, our trips lately have been memorable enough for us, just uneventful for her.

So we have been keeping fairly busy... besides enjoying the new baby and the great Alaska outdoors, the other kids have been keeping us busy as well. Madison and Liberty had a dance recital recently. They did very well... Liberty got a little lost, but she was still very cute! Christian has started T-ball. His first game is coming up this week! We have also been continuing storytime at the library, participating in the summer reading program, visiting the gym so mommy can get back in shape, and hitting the farmers market when the schedule permits.

So there you have it...Where we have been and what we have been up to.

Sitting in front of the sewing machine...

The Apron I made for myself... I wanted something for when we are at booth sales :). I still need to add our troop numbers to it... and maybe some patches :) I included a few pockets for pens and receipt books! However... This would probably work better if my big belly would fit behind it. Maybe I should try to make another designed around my round tummy.

And of course... the patch I put on Christian's pants earlier this week! BATMAN!! He wore these pants all week...LOL. I put a layer of material then the felt pieces.

Oh My Valentine... hair

Made Madison a St. Valentine's dress and did her hair for her party at school.

Explore and Observe : Freezing!

We made ice cream today as part of Christian's lessons. We have been working on our senses (sight, smell, sound, feel, and taste) this week and this tied in well to those. It also worked for us because Christian thinks that when you put things in the freezer, they melt. So our "bag freezer" is going to help him see what happens to liquids in the freezer first hand and the difference between frozen and melted. Anyway... on to the instructions.

Ice Cream in a bag:
You will need:

1. 1 cup of milk
2. 2 tablespoons of sugar
3. 1/4 cup of salt
4. ice cubes
5. 2 resealable sandwich bags (ziplock or other brand)
6. 1 larger resealable bag
7. towel
8. plastic shopping bag
9. string or twist tie

First add the sugar and milk to a small resealable bag. I let the kids taste it, mush it, and we used the term "melted". Let some of the air out and seal it. Then put your milk bag into another small resealable bag.
Next, Put ice cubes in the big resealable bag. We put just enough to fill the bottom to start with. Add the small bags of milk and surround with more ice. We put just enough to reach the top of the milk. Put salt on top of the ice and let a little air out when you seal the large resealable bag.Then, Wrap a towel around the bag of ice. Tie up your towel to keep it around the bags. Place the bundle into a plastic shopping bag and then tie.

After you have everything sealed and tied shake the bag! Have fun with it... get friends to help... but continue to shake for 15 minutes. We ended up sitting in a circle and tossed the bag around.


Finally, when the 15 minutes is up take the small bag out and rinse off the salt. I let the kids put it in a small bowl and describe the changes, before digging in and enjoying the ice cream!

A hat for Christian

Christian has been asking for a hat for sometime now. I think he feels a little left out that he doesn't get leg warmers made for him. So I started this later last year, and finally finished it up the other night. He loves it. I crocheted the whole thing, of course without a pattern. One of these days, I will learn to read patterns so I can make things without having to build the design up myself. With this hat, I was sweating it the whole time! Just praying that it would actually look like a hat. LOL. I think it came out pretty good now, and the best part is Christian LOVES it. He never leaves the house without it now.

It's a whole new year....

I just wanted to remind myself how awesome last year was and how great this year is going to be....

Last year started off with a lot of snow and cold. Of course, we are in Alaska, so that shouldn't be to much of a surprise. We took the kids sledding, snowboarding, skiing, and ice skating. Of course Madison participated in Girl Scout events. Madison also participated in her first science fair and received a first place ribbon for her project on clouds! We really got into the Library's story time where Christian and Liberty participated regularly and I even started helping with crafts and such. Before we knew it the school year was coming to an end and the snow was already melting.

Spring brought with it a lot of sludge as all the snow and ice melted. The warmer weather had us dying to spend time outside. The family went to a Girl Scout event that had us flying kites and cleaning up the beach for summer. A spring concert at school and a pre-school graduation for Christian, and we were ready for the heat!

Summer came with long days and new friends. Spending almost every waking hour playing, hiking, camping, sitting around a fire, bbq's, swimming and so much more. Madison and Christian both celebrated birthdays! Soccer, the fair, and a trip to Anchorage made the summer even fuller. Christian learned to ride his bike without training wheels just before the cold weather started kicking in again.

Fall gave us amazing colors and cool weather. It also brought a brand new school year. Madison moving on to 1st grade and Christian staying home and going to speech therapy in preparation for Kindergarten. By October the snow was falling and the kids were ready to get out their sleds.

The holiday's felt amazing and full! Halloween was a blast and Thanksgiving was full! Before we knew it Christmas break was upon us! More sledding and ice skating. I finally talked Todd into buying some tools, and I mean real tools... Like saw and sander and so on. So over the Christmas break we started building things together.
Here we find ourselves in a new year with all the love and joy of last year! This new year will bring us so much I'm sure and we already have some exciting things planned! The science fair, a visit home, another year of Girl Scouts, summer activities, and a new baby!

Expecting ... Again...

This makes baby number 4 for us! We are so excited!
Today we made a trip to Fairbanks to see an ultrasound tech. She was wonderful and allowed our whole family, of 5, in the room at the same time. She was very pleased with how well behaved and well mannered our yes ma'am/no ma'am kids were. Which is always nice for me to hear because it offers some reassurance that I am doing well raising well adjusted, respectful, one day adults. Anyway, when we left the office we were equipped with pictures, a dvd, and new knowledge of our little kicker. We are having another girl! Christian was not to thrilled with the idea at first, because he has been asking for a brother. He says he needs someone to share his toys with. I think a girl will be great for us. Christian will be our only boy and that makes him that much more special. Of course each one of our girls are special to us, and they seem to have a knack for making themselves so.
With enough chatter from me I will get on to sharing the video I made. I used the song "Come To Me" by Celine Dion on her Miracle album she did with Anne Geddes. Hopefully baby will enjoy it as much as we do.



Lyrics:
I will always love you no matter what
No matter where you go or what you do
And knowing you
You're gonna have to do things you're own way
And that's okay
So be free, spread your wings
And promise me just one thing...

If you ever need a place to cry
Baby, come to me
Come to me
I've always known that you were born to fly
But you can come to me
If the world breaks your heart
No matter where on Earth you are
You can come to me

Don't walk around with the world on you're shoulders
And you're highest hopes laying on the ground
I know you think you've gotta try to be my hero
But dont you know the stars you wish upon they fall its true
But I still belive in you

If you ever need a place to cry
Baby, come to me
Come to me
I've always known that you were born to fly
But you can come to me
If the world breaks your heart
No matter where on Earth you are
You can come to me

And the seven sea's you sail
All the winding road you're on
Leave you lost and feeling all alone
Let my heart be your beacon home

If you ever need a place to cry
Baby, come to me
Come to me
I've always known that you were born to fly
But you can come to me
When the world breaks your heart
No matter where on Earth you are
You can come to me