Happy Birthday isla

Isla turned 3 this year.  It was definitely the most fun birthday so far.  It was the first year she could anticipate it, be surprised, open her own presents, and be excited about them.  There are certainly few things more precious than seeing pure delight on your child's face.  She told us all day about the things she didn't need us to do because she was most definitely a big girl now. 

Isla has a lot of spunk.  She is quite good and adamant about expressing herself with an exceptional vocabulary.  This little girl is just about as sassy as she is tender-hearted.  We feel honored to call her our girl.

We thought we would share some photos of her special day.

Being surprised as she wakes up in the morning to her birthday party

Being given our birthday hats (please ignore my morning hair)

The birthday girl

Sawyer checkin' out the balloon action

Opening her new doctor kit and doll

Testing our her fairy wings from the Hunts and Addleys

Trying on Grams luxuriously soft tutu and some new clothes

Enjoying a new birthday book ... she is a book worm through and through

Protecting Penny from the rain storm thanks to Cooper

1st Tea Party

This is Isla 90% of the day ... taking care of someone or something imaginary.  This is Penny her new doll

Visiting the Johnny Appleseed park in Elko for her birthday activity

And finally finishing off the party with the much anticipated cupcakes

Sawyer focusing on his next attack

Delish!

Visit from Grammy and Pops

Grammy and Pops came up to surprise Isla for her birthday.  It was a wonderful surprise.  We started the weekend off with a walk up to the house.  It's taking on color this week!

They also brought some boxes for us.  They were a big hit with the kids.

Island Lake

Since we learned of our future move to Elko, we have hardly been able to wait to venture up to the Ruby Mountains.  With out first free weekend we set out for a short little 4 miler hike.  Isla loved the hike.  She couldn't help oohing and awing at all the wild flowers, catching ants and crickets and other "wildlife" and jumping over every sings rock.  Sawyer loved the nap he got from the hike and crawling around the top of a ginormous boulder we at lunch on.  The top of the mountain not only welcomed us with a beautiful view that was quite the reward from so little mileage, but also a crystal clear glacier lake.  And we have proof that the lake was enjoyed!

Isla was the first to strip down and insistent upon Sawyer joining her.

No complaints by this little man!

Such beauties.

This last picture is Isla going to pick up a rock to throw in the water.  At this same moment Jared turned away from her to hand Sawyer to me and I looked down to put on his socks.  Out of the corner of my eyes I see Isla's lips level with the water.  Guess she decided to make a break for it and take the swim she had so desperately pleaded for. We snatched her out of the water just as she was realizing that the glacier water was just a bit more refreshing than she had anticipated and the water a bit deeper too.  Another close one with this little water bug! She's a brave one I guess.

360

A 360 view of Island Lake

Cowboy

My dad is a cowboy at heart and in practice.

We were playing at this little park in the apartment complex here in Elko and Sawyer found his park feature.  I couldn't help but take a bunch of pictures that show his perfect smile and his mad cowboy skills.  Check out he rides that horse!  I thought my dad would be proud.  Perhaps it runs in this genes? As a side note, Sawyer is wearing my favorite outfit in both pictures; his coveralls.  I am sure my dad will be one of those old me who wears coveralls as he tinkers in the basement ... someday.

Happy Birthday Dad.

Come on in ...

... have a look see.

New

I know I have a lot of catching up to do, which was my plan while we are in this apartment, but I didn't think about all our pictures being on our desktop rather than our laptop.  And unfortunately, I only brought our laptop.  Therefore, I will just be posting our current business; which contains a lot of new.

First off, the house.  You have all been asking so here are a few pictures.  I wish I would have taken pictures each day because it has been fun to visit each day and see the house growing, forming, and taking shape.  But ... C'est la vie ...  Right? So here's a few from the beginning of second week framing and the end of it.

Back of House

2nd Day Back of House

2nd Day Front of House

Exactly two weeks later .....

Front of House

Back of House

Love

I am not a cool mom that knows how to facebook, tweet, or instagram.  I blog solely for the purpose of my family and friends that I rarely live in the same state or country with; and even then, I barely do that.  Our really cool babysitter gifted me with this instagram of Isla that I am totally in love with.

Jared's new job has created a lot of opportunities for growth for us individually, as a couple, and as a family.  As we pray for strength and do better some days and weeks then others handling our life; I have learned a lot.  In my effort to do better with "mommy-hood" and "solo-hood" I have been really trying to focus on recognizing the things that make me happy, cherish them, and try to feel and show more love.  Call it corny if you will, but focusing with a serious degree of effort on doing these things really has become a survival mechanism.  So when our baby sitter sent me my new favorite picture of Isla and I enjoyed the afternoon with my daughter I just wanted to put down the things I loved about today, to help make it a happy one for me.

I loved that my babysitter sent this picture out of the blue.  I love the warm light of an instagram and how it gives every picture a warm memory feeling.  This one particularly exuding the pure joy that Isla is filled with.  I loved that Isla had an unexpected and rare super long nap that allowed not only for a very happy daughter the rest of the day, but the only two cherished hours I got alone with my husband this entire week.  They were a perfect moment of sweetness and real love to face this next week with and feel like a real team despite our locations.  We talked without judgement or personal needs.  We helped each other prepare for the week.   And just enjoyed a few quiet moments together.  I love that Isla woke up happy and cuddly and just as sweet as can be.  I love that she happily played without spilling water all over the kitchen floor, while I made dinner.  I love that not only does she know her numbers but has learned to apply them to counting objects, which she happily did while I picked tomatoes.  I love that we have delicious fresh tomatoes in are garden.  I love that Isla loved every bit of our dinner main dish  (A favorite dish of roasted butternut squash and garlic pasta) and even our side of fresh tomatoes, basil, and cottage cheese.  I love that she ate all her dinner, did not throw it on the floor and played well till bedtime.  I love that she said over and over, "Oh mommy, thank you very much for that noodle," when I causally handed her a noodle to test out of the pot of boiling water.  And I love that she loves to read and we read together before bed and she quickly drifted off to sleep without coaxing or reminders.  I love that I got to talk to three of my sisters today.  And I love and feel grateful to have been blessed with such a nice Sabbath day that helped me to feel the sweet Spirit all day long.   I am grateful for such a blessed day that did not try my patience to the Nth degree.  I am grateful for a day that truly felt like the Sabbath all day long in the most subtle yet Christ-like way that is love.  I will try to hang onto the gift of this day and expand on it this week so that these feelings will become more of my character. 

I love that this picture captures all that I felt today.

2 Years Old

I am guessing at three years old kids start to really understand and can anticipate birthdays.  We  anticipated Isla's for her, again this year, and tried to get her excited about it too.  Though she didn't get we were talking about the week leading up to her birthday, she loved learning a new song for it, "Happy Birthday," and was stoked about going to sleep in her new cupcake pj's from Grammy, only to have an even better surprise of loads of balloons to greet her on the big day.  Daddy chose right with the Micky Mouse balloon and nine other colors of the rainbow.  Of course her birthday treats of white cheddar popcorn, pistachios, fruit leather, teddy grams and oatmeal were hard to "tare" her away from in order to open her actual birthday gifts.  And I will apologize in advance that most of the pictures aren't really in focus.  I seriously need to learn how to work our camera.

Grammy gave Isla a real pint sized shopping cart.  Isla filled it will all the special animals that Grammy has.

She wasn't sure about the whole, blowing the candles out, thing.  Hence the skeptical look she is giving us as she blew out her candles.  I am pretty sure she was thinking, "You guys are kind of weird.  Who lights up what we are going to eat, only to blow it out seconds later?  Oh well, I sure want that cupcake, so I will just do what they say."

It was also kind of a, "it's my birthday and I will do what I want to" day.  Isla was helping clean some dishes in her diaper, when the next thing I knew she was in the sink cleaning the dishes.  Then later we were cutting up watermelon and she wanted some.  I explained to her that I had to cut it up and then she could have some.  Apparently that wasn't a good enough answer because the next thing I new she pulled up a chair next to me, climbed up, and leaned over and took a bit right in the middle of me removing the rinds.  Oh well.  That's a true birthday part for a two year old right?

Bear Lake

Bear Lake was actually back in July.  I forgot our camera, not that I am a great photographer anyway, but nonetheless, just got a few pictures of Isla I thought I would share.  I am pretty sure Isla was confident she had stepped into some sort of "heaven on earth."  There were loads of fun people and kids to play with, endless treats to swipe from everyone down at the beach, enough water and sand to play in for as many hours as we would let her, and late bedtimes.   Most of you know Isla is definitely a little water baby and the following depicts her at her finest.

Who needs pants when you have a helmet?

Okay help me up mom ...

All right so that's how you do it?

I'll take it from here then, you can get off mom.