February happenings

We've done a lot of things this month and since it's the shortest month of the year, it feels like it's been even busier than usual. We've had ballet recitals, princess preschool parties, birthday swimming parties, Valentine's Day parties, visits up to Idaho to visit cousins, preschool field trips, lots of doctor and dentist appts, etc. Whew! I'm ready for March and a little slower pace and hopefully warmer weather!

Here's Abbie and Leah before their nutcracker recital

Abbie is the reindeer standing in the back left side and Leah is in the box just to the right of her

Being snowflakes

Queens for a day in preschool when we learned about the letter "Q"

Porter and his cousin Kaleb

Swimming at an awesome indoor pool for a cousin birthday party

Porter loved splashing and getting wet, way more than last summer

Abbie getting her Valentines ready for her classmates

Playing Bingo at her school party

We got heart-attacked!

They left some really yummy heart cookies too!

Abbie spent over an hour drawing with chalk all over our back patio one warmish day

She made me close my eyes and then she led me down the steps and to a certain spot before she would let me open my eyes. She loves drawing hearts and rainbows!

Visiting my sister's house in Idaho. Grandma came to visit too and read the kids stories and sang them songs for an hour before bedtime, they loved it!

Taking turns on their computers

Porter loved playing the piano and Abbie was a really good helper

Doing a duet with cousin Kaleb

Now that's a happy boy!

Visiting the Discovery Children's Museum with some cousins

A little car just Porter's size

Getting ready to go

What cute girls!

I'm so glad my kids live near their cousins now and that they can play with them all the time (and that I get to be near my sisters and play with them all the time too)! What a wonderful blessing family is!

Christmas Morning!

The girls were so excited for Christmas this year! They are old enough to remember last year and how fun Christmas morning is but young enough that they still believe in Santa and the magic of it all. Here they are on Christmas Eve with their pillow pets that they got to open early so they could sleep on them.

The cookies and letter to Santa

After Santa came

All the presents under the tree

Opening stockings

Abbie was really excited to get this Rapunzel doll

With all her gifts

Leah with her loot

Porter with his presents, he doesn't seem too excited about them...

Getting everything out of it's box seemed to take forever

Everyone having fun with the fire going, what a perfect Christmas morning!

Abbie and Leah with their huge lollipops

Porter eventually got excited about this ball popper toy and loves to play with it now

My cute slobbery boy, who wouldn't want to kiss that?

The best present under the tree by far!

Cousins, Grandpas, and Uncles

We've had a lot of family visiting over the past month and it's been so great for the kids to get to know their cousins better. Here's Emmett and Porter, who is are just two months apart in age.

Hailey and Leah, who are about 8 months apart in age

Abbie and Caroline, they are a year apart in age but both in kindergarten.

We had a fun mommy/daughter date with my sister-in-law Millie and we went out to lunch and shopping at Ikea. It was so fun!

We had a cousin gift exchange at my sister's house on Christmas Eve, here all all the kids with their presents

We went to my Dad's house on New Year's Day to celebrate his birthday and we got to see even more cousins and family there.

Abbie jammin' out with Uncle Frosty on the guitar

Porter having a great time with the cars!

All tuckered out after a long week of parties and presents

Think they could win a modeling contest?

I got the kid's yearly pictures taken recently at Sears and here are the highlights.

Abbie 6 years old

Leah 4 years old

Porter at 10 months old

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from the Butlers!
We've had a wonderful and eventful year! Jared got a new job and we moved back to Utah after living away for 8 years. Christina survived having a new baby and moving with three kids in tow. Abbie started kindergarten and has made lots of new friends. Leah started preschool and ballet and is adjusting well to being a middle child. Porter changed a lot from being 6 weeks old last Christmas to over a year old now and he is pretty happy and easygoing most of the time. We are so glad to be settled into our new home and to be closer to family and we hope you have had a great year also. Thanks for being our friends!