December 19

The annual gingerbread house raising! This year, Jim and Marcie Hays gifted Sophie and I with a great gingerbread house. I attempted (as always) to put the thing together, and then Sophie gets to decorate. She loved "painting the roof with snow" and adding candies all over it. This was the first year we put snow on the ground so the trees and gingerbread babies could stand in front of the house. We also made a walkway to the front door and other miscellaneous decorations. We had a lot of fun making it!

December 18

Rayna and Abby Brandon joined us for a mommy/daughter date today. We lunched at Red Robin, spoiled the girls with some clothes, and took them to the Nutcracker for the first time. The girls really enjoyed the show, but Sophie had a tough time sitting still towards the end. When the pretty ballerinas came out, she wanted to be down on stage dancing with them! She settled for some dancing in front of her seat! Hopefully the people around us didn't mind!

December 17

Every year, thanks to dad's gigantic yard, I put together a Christmas bouquet. It's the only time I really try to arrange flowers, and I do my best. I pick up cranberries for the vase and red carnations, but everything else comes from dad's yard. It's a cheap bouquet, but it looks beautiful, and lasts for a long time!

December 12

We went to the Capitol building this afternoon to check out the big Christmas tree in the rotunda. I got Sophie all gussied up for a photo op, but she wasn't really having it. I was having a hard time with the lighting in there, and she pretty much wanted to run around the whole time instead of posing. I managed to get a few cute shots and hopefully will be able to make a scrapbooking page out of them!

December 9

I took the day off since Sophie had a few doctor's appointments, but thought we'd start it off with breakfast at the Bread Peddler. Sophie chose the maple frosted pumpkin bread, and no, she didn't eat it all! Good thing we started out with something sweet since Sophie had to have her eyes dialated (hated it) and got two shots. We ended the day at the Hands On Children's Museum so the day wasn't a total bust!

December 7

The Santamobile came down our street tonight! As Sophie was getting ready for bed, I heard the telltale sound of sirens and music and said, "Sophie! Santa's coming down our street!" After she freaked out because I was so excited, we got on our boots and ran outside in the rain to see Santa. Sophie clung onto my leg and finally eased up when Santa showed up. It was a lot of fun!

December 6

Sophie got her first teeth cleaning this afternoon. She was quite a trooper and stayed still while the hygienist cleaned her teeth, flossed them, and put fluoride on. I was amazed how well she did and only got a little skittish when Dr. Danny came in. She was happy to get her prize at the end though!

December 5

Sophie and I had fun decorating the tree this evening. The tree is a little bottom heavy, since Sophie put all of her ornaments within her reach and I tried to even out the top. The tree looks great though, and I'm keeping her organized chaos because it's so her!

December 4

We met up with Dad and Marcia at the Ames Tree Farm to find the perfect tree. We were there a little early, so Sophie and I walked around and checked things out. She was very interested in the tall weeds that were growing, but we ultimately found our lovely noble fir. I asked Sophie several times if this was the one, and she said YES every time!

November 28

Gramma Sue bought Sophie her Christmas pajamas and she tried them on for the first time tonight. She looked adorable in them, but even more so once she started dancing to Christmas music. One of our favorite things to do is dance while no one is watching and we have a great time!

November 25

Happy Thanksgiving! We had a quiet Thanksgiving with Gramma Sue and it was perfect. Sophie enjoyed being the center of attention and no, she didn't eat that turkey leg!

November 23

Snow day!! Sophie and I got to stay home today due to snow and ice, so we played outside for awhile before it got too cold. I taught Sophie how to make a snow angel and we tossed some snowballs around. The snow was very powdery, so she didn't do too much damage on me!

November 21

First snow of the season! Sophie didn't get home until almost dark, but we still went out there, built a little snowman and threw some snowballs. Super fun, and I look forward to more times like this!

November 18

Sophie went in for her first eye doctor appointment today. She had a hard time staying focused on the correct screen and kept wanting to look behind her at the pictures. During the color blindness test, she got to try on these awesome glasses and I just love how cute she looks!

November 16

We had a crazy windstorm last night, so many areas lost power, including my school! We got the day off and I was so glad to be able to spend more time with my kiddo! The morning started out slow (see above), but after Will and Karen showed up, it was busy and fun! The kids had a great playdate and got along fairly well!

November 15

Sophie is very much into dressing up these days and tonight was no different! "Mom, help me into this dress please!" she said. While listening and singing along with "My Favorite Things" from Sound of Music, Sophie danced all around. I could sit and watch her do this for hours!

November 13

Sophie and I went over to Dad and Marcia's house tonight for some picture taking and dinner. I attempted to take a shot of Dad and Marcia with all of the grandkids, but found it quite difficult! The lighting wasn't great and I couldn't get everyone to smile nicely at once! I hope they found one that will work for them!

November 9

I started giving Sophie a $5 allowance each month - $1 to save, $1 to give, and $3 to spend. Last month she spent her money on a few knick knacks at Wind Up Here. This month, she decided to save her money. She would like to buy Toy Story 3, but that would be around $20 and she would have to save her allowance for the next 6 months! I figure if she can save up her money for 3 months, then I'd pay for the rest. She's like her momma - a saver!

November 3

We have received several toy catalogs in the mail recently since the holiday season is upon us, and Sophie enjoys thumbing through them. It's interesting to see the things she wants or finds fascinating. So far, she wants basically everything... I hope she's not too disappointed come Christmas morning!

November 2

So proud of my grocery shopping tonight! All of this should have cost me about $65, but I got it for $22! Had I not bought 4 12-packs of soda, I would have only spent $10! I love Albertson's and coupons!

October 31

My little princess was trying to turn me into a frog tonight before we headed to Karen's house for fun and trick or treating! I tried and tried to get her to make a pretty pose, but I had no luck. We had a wonderful time and Sophie did great trick or treating. She got a little spooked by some scary costumes and such, but she ended up with 2 large containers of candy! Whoo hoo!

October 29

It was a lovely fall day, so Sophie and I raked leaves in order to clean up the yard, but also to let her jump in them! She had a great time and I got some fun pictures of her. This is probably my favorite, with the light shining in her hair.

October 28

I am a year older today, and I really feel like I've aged. My 33rd year was quite a stressful one, and I'm looking forward to a new year full of possibility. I enjoyed a nice evening with the parents and Sophie. I got some great presents, topped off with a Cinderella princess doll from Sophie! Love it!

October 27

Sophie got her first school picture today and I couldn't be happier with the results! She is posed so perfectly and I'm shocked that they could get her to stay like that! I am so glad that I bought these!

October 26

Sophie has been in love with her Cinderella "computer" from the moment she received it. When she is playing it, she is so sucked in, and it's hard to get her away! I am amazed that I got her to look up for this shot!

My Sweet Princess

After Sophie enjoyed dressing up, she decided that she wanted to dance to princess music. She's just so sweetly dancing, that I couldn't help but share.

October 24

Here's my little cowboy pirate princess! Sophie had a great time dressing up tonight and then she dressed me up (no pictures of those... thank goodness!). I absolutely love the silly get up and she did too!

October 23

Sophie and I made our annual trip to the pumpkin patch this morning. We went to Schilter farm when it opened to avoid the crowd and I'm so glad! Sophie got to play in the Kid's Corral, climb on hay bales, visit animals in the petting zoo, go on a hay ride, and we even had time to pick out three pumpkins! It was a great time!

October 17

We are in the midst of "Veggietown" at church and our kids have had a great time! Here Sophie and Caiden are singing during our worship time. It is so fun to see the kids have joy in the Lord!

October 5

Tonight was Sophie's Open House at Kiddieland, and I enjoyed seeing what her day was like. It was fun for her to show us around the classroom and to see all the fun things she does there! Here she is with Linda, her beloved teacher.

October 4

Sophie is all about doing things herself, and she's recently taken up washing her body and hair. I do help her of course, but it's fun to watch her grow and learn.

October 3

Today was the second Sunday of Veggietown, our new and improved children's ministry kick off. Meg and I are working in the doctor's office - she is the doctor, I'm a janitor (like the suit)? We had a lot of fun with the rambunctious 1st-3rd graders this morning. Here we are doing "Take off, touch down" to get to know each other.

October 1

Sophie, Grandma, and I went to Arts Walk this evening, and Sophie got her face painted first thing. She is already excited about Halloween, so a pumpkin was quite fitting. She loved watching the belly dancers and the spanish dancing. It's amazing how enamored she gets, so maybe dancing is in her future? We'll see!

September 28

Today is Sophie's real birthday, and yes, she gets another Cinderella cake! This one wasn't nearly as exciting as her party one, but it tasted pretty good! The grandparents came over for some present opening and a lovely round of "Happy Birthday." Sophie's favorite gift... hard to tell... she loved her new Tag pen, but is really enamored by the Cinderella coach.

September 27

Sophie and I walked up the street to feed the ducks this evening. There are several that live in one of the retention ponds in the new Kensington neighborhood. Sophie enjoyed feeding these loudly quacking ducks!

September 22

So you'll notice that I haven't been as on the ball with my pictures this year and I'm letting that go! I will post pictures when I take them, but I'm trying to not add anything extra to my plate. I'm still taking pictures, but am not so worried about doing my 365 page. Just wanted to let those few that view my page! Thanks!!

September 21

Picture to come soon... Sophie got her first black eye! No, she wasn't in a playground brawl at school, she bumped heads with another little girl. The bruise is located on her eyelid and she looks pretty pathetic. Hopefully she won't get another shiner anytime soon!

September 19

We had Sophie's 3rd birthday party a little early this year since things are so hectic with school and the children's ministry kick off at church. I wanted to really enjoy it and not have to worry about other things, and that's exactly what happened. I enjoyed getting the party together, but got to hang with Sophie and see her excitement and joy instead of being the "hostess." She had a wonderful time with her little friends and even got a visit from Trooper Brandon!

September 13

It ended up being a lovely afternoon, so we took Sophie's play doh and played outside. She loves using this contraption to squeeze the play doh through, but especially enjoys when I do it... over and over!!

September 11

Sophie and I met Mara and Soren at the Puyallup Fair this Saturday. We got there early, so it wasn't too crowded, and we had a great time! Sophie walked around almost the entire time, taking everything in. She loved seeing the animals of course, but probably enjoyed eating a warm fair scone the best! I was proud of my little girl, she had to walk a lot, didn't coplain, and she didn't ask for anything other than a hot dog!

September 6

Sophie was up in the middle of the night, throwing up, but seemed fine most of the day. For a kiddo who had a temperature and is constipated, she had a ton of energy tonight! We made a jumping area into pillows, and had a ball!

September 5

Julie and I taught the K-2 grade class at church today and they were a bunch of squirrely munchkins! It was a lot of fun, but being a sub isn't the easiest job. I had kind of forgotten about that! Two of our kids, Ethan and Taylor had just celebrated their birthdays, so we honored them. Later in the afternoon, Sophie, Gramma, and I went to the RAC park in Lacey for the first time. I was thrilled to see that they had a tire swing, one of my favorites as a kid. Sophie loved it too!

September 4

I just love this shot of Sophie. I got it on a whim and she just looks precious! She got her bangs trimmed today, so Jack and Jill's put her hair up so cute!

September 3

I spent the better part of today working my tail off staining the deck! I forgot to take a picture of my handiwork since I was so exhausted. I felt good, being able to accomplish it on my own, but I am glad I don't have to do that again for a few years!

September 2

Nothin' today...

September 1

I was feeling lousy tonight, so Matt met Sophie and I for swimming lessons and I took pictures. He hadn't had a chance to have some shots of them in the pool together, so since he did me a favor, I could do one for him.