through white and drifted snow

over the river & through the woods,
to grandmother's house we go!
but watch out because the wolf might just be waiting in grandmother's front yard.

& might just eat you.

what a brave little red riding hood!

snow days

SO excited to go feed the ducks & play by the falls AND to be forward facing in the car!!

in her "idaho stroller".

we all took turns whipping her around. uncle zach went fast enough to make her squeal!

it was really pretty out by the temple.

we've also spent some time out in the backyard. packing snowballs, shoveling, sledding, making snow angels, & flying off jumps. there's a ton of room to run around.the jellybean was deadly serious out in the cold. every once in a while we'd get a happy squeal but mainly it was a zoning out, straight laced, staunch sack of potatoes that we didn't recognize. it was actually pretty funny. heeelllloooooooo?!

how we have missed the snow!

baby's 1st christmas

we're having quite the festive time in IF for the holidays...

ellery's has a few new tricks but a particularly strange one is lifting austin's shirt & giving him raspberries. that or picking imaginary lint out of his belly button and handing it to the person behind her...

trying to take her tights off before church. yes before, not after. i love this.

eating like kings, more new toys than elle has ever seen in her life, beatles rockband, wii fit, climbing stairs like a mad woman, talking to elder logan, dancing, singing, snowboarding, gyming, talking about baby jesus, & waiting for mr. claus. & seeing snowfall for the first time...

merry christmas to you!

missing her girls

how cute are they?! ellers is being spoiled rotten here in ID & having so much fun but she wants to play 'mommy' with her cousins & misses them. love you girlies!!!

disney!

i've been stressed about packing for our winter vaca. we're gone for quite literally a month & taking along car seats, snowboards, laptops, presents, etc.

but we're going to DISNEY!!!!

... drive.

in idaho.

so to limit my anxiety i remembered this little gem!

after i purchase this (can we say christmas list?!) my life will simplify in ways i can only dream of!!! heck, let's buy in bulk & open a daycare!

ps. i would pay substantial bucks to see this shoved under someone's desk at work...

all the leaves are brown

fall is coming to a close.


& i love winter, don't get me wrong, but there's just something about this time of year.

i know i will get another autumn next year. but i'm still sad to see it go.

trying to redeem yourself, universe?!

it has been insane as of late & i am trying to keep my head afloat. i'll tell ya, i'm not doing a great job. haha. my to do list makes me nauseous. so until the baby wakes up, i'm blogging.

go ahead. judge me.

we went to the a hockey game with some of austin's work buddies. this chap is a hockey virtuoso himself & we prodded him the whole game with questions too embarrassing to repeat. i distinctly remember commenting on how he has a smashing good set of teeth for a hockey player.

which made me cringe all the more when austin showed me a picture of his teeth a few days later, um... shattered & looking like a hockey players. poor mike!

the jellybean did great, dancing & yelling with the crowd, until it was double overtime in a shootout & an hour past bedtime. then she was ready to go.

we're number one!

a clueless sharks fan is still a sharks fan.

we've had bad bad luck lately. our tv died (it's 3 yrs old), ike has a grand worth of boo-boos, really a whole mess of crap, & i've been super bitter about it all. really. you can just ask.

but then my mr. stone called with this tidbit: he got into stanford for grad school. & i am proud. & feeling less bitter at the universe.

the city by the bay

on saturday we trekked up to san francisco for a beautiful day in the city. we spent the morning at the california academy of sciences in golden gate park with bopi, michael, kira, jonathan, mama dollar & papa dollar (name that movie). it has a "living roof" with grass, sprawling hills, & solar panels. that was my favorite. we also caught a shot of ellery trying her darnedest to leap over the railing & swim with the sting rays. good grip aust.


it's a huge, really impressive building with a natural history museum, planetarium, & 4 story rainforest. austin & i have admired it from afar but would have to skip some meals to pay for it. seriously. thanks dad!!!

in the basement of the museum they have a great aquarium. it was extraordinary! elles was beyond obsessed with all the fish. she squealed & trotted alongside the tanks, following the animals & telling us all about it. seriously she was adorable. even when i videoed her & confused a pakistani teenager for austin, "c'mon! say hi daddy!". he was mortified & tried to avoid us the rest of the day. what?! he was hot. my bad.

afterwards we just had to find a sports bar so we could watch the u/byu game, did some shopping in union square for the men, then off to the trolley cars. david, kara, & the girls met us while steph, dad, michael, & kira left for the lakers game.

every year a family in my home ward has a group of us up & we've always gone when we can. it's a fun tradition: hanging off the sides & singing carols & bundling up & seeing san fran's holiday lights & window displays. always gets me in the christmas spirit. ellery was quite the fan once she got the hang of it. looking out onto the streets & holding on to the pole, she was a happy girl.

fun day!

"you are fortunate to live here. if i were your President, i would levy a tax on you for living in san francisco!" -mikhail gorbachev