A year in review part 2

Happy 5th Birthday Rahel!!!

Three cheers for Rahel who:

loves chili and cornbread, beans, almond milk, icecream and chocolate

will do anything to make people happy

can never wear too much jewelry

won't go anywhere until her hair is just right

is in love with clothes

gives the biggest hugs and kisses

is the best snuggle buddy

loves giving massages and compliments

We.like.Rahel...Alot

Rahel's Birthday Breakfast

 Rahel and Uncle Dan at her Birthday party

Daddy's Birthday Lunch.  The girls love surprising us with special meals (o:

Faith's fairy outfit for the festival 

Rahel's outfit for the Festival

Uncle Mark

The girls camped out in our sitting room this summer.  We hit Deseret Industries for books all summer and they had a great time reading in their tent.



A Year in Review Part 1

Those of you who know us know that it's been a rough couple of years.  I have spent alot of time neglecting my blog and focusing on my family this year.  Go me!  I am so proud!  I will do a few posts catching up on 2012. 

Here are a few pics of our "Temple Day" we had in April.  The girls were dressed in their Traditional Ethiopian dresses for Easter.  We ate at our new favorite Ethiopian restaurant "The Blue Nile" downtown Salt Lake.  We spent the day at Temple square and the girls really enjoyed the visitor center. 

While listening to the presentation at the visitor's Center on Temple Square, we caught the girls being lovey dovey.  These are the moments I live for (o:

Valentine Fun

These are the girls' valentines this year.  They're going to glue a Hershey's Kiss to the heart.

So fun!

My silly family (o:

Hee Hee

DIY Valentine Cupcake cloches

Here's a little diy for Valentine's Day.  I am in LOVE with ALL things where a cloche is involved.  Problem:  Cloches are costly and hard to find the size you want if you're thrifting.  Solution:  Plastic Dollar Store Wine Glasses and Marbles! 

Begin by cutting the stem off of the wine glass with a small saw.  Don't worry it's super easy because the glass is plastic.  Just make sure not to squeeze it too hard while sawing.  It will crack the glass - don't ask how many times it took me to figure that out.  Use hot glue to attach a cupcake liner lid to the top of the stem.  Flip the glass over (fits perfectly into the cupcake liner lid) and hot glue a clear glass marble into the hole left from removing the stem.  That's it!  A CUTE mini cupcake cloche for pennies!  A mini doily would also be cute on the plate under the cupcake.  Walmart sells great mini cupcakes that fit perfectly!

Catching up

My cute little snow girls! 

...Bwahahaha!  The surprises I find in her hair each time I comb it is shocking!

Here's your laugh for the day

VISITING TEACHING BLUNDER

I forgot to bring the address of a sister that I visit teach when I went to bring her a loaf of bread so I randomly stopped at a house and knocked at the door hoping it was her.  Luckily her husband said I had the right place.  When she walked out, my stomach hit the floor.  This was not the same sister I had been visiting teaching.  I have been visiting an Asian lady who lives on the same street at the address I was given by the relief society.  Our visits were always awkward and she never invited me in.  I never could figure it out until now...  She had no idea who I was.  I don't even know if she is LDS.  She probably thinks I am some sort of psycho stalker.  I am mortified!  That poor woman!  I so want to apologize to her, yet I hope I never see her again, I am so embarrassed.  WOW.  As for the girl I am supposed to be visiting, I have been standing her up every time I call to arrange visits and end up showing up a few houses down the road at her poor unsuspecting neighbors house.
I was so flustered when the woman I am supposed to be teaching came to the door and I realized I had been visiting the wrong woman, I just left her with the loaf of bread, explained my blunder and drove off.  I wonder what she thinks of me.

All Rahel

Rahel has really been through the ringer these past few months.  She is such a trooper!  In her prayers, she would ask Heavenly Father to make it her owie day so she could eat some Jell-0.  So sweet (o:

Rahel got a left ear drum in September.  Yay!

Cutest fro EVER!

Seizure testing

Okay.  Who looks this beautiful in a head bandage?!?  Would you just look at her?  Sigh...

We found her sleeping with her face in her "frowup" bowl

Rahel got a Right ear drum last week!  We are SO blessed.

The coloring is WAY off in this picture.  She isn't at all this pale.

We love our sweet baby doll (o:

Our Trip to Heber Valley

As many of you know, Thomas and I were going through some rocky times and decided to separate.  I don't think there are words to describe my happiness now as we are a complete family once again.  For our Anniversary this year, Thomas took me to the Zermat in Midway where we enjoyed swimming in the "crater" - a cave with a deep natural spring inside.  The water was warm and clear.  Scuba diving classes were being held while we swam around and enjoyed the warm water. 

We ate probably 4 gelattos between the two of us (o: and the BEST brick oven pizza we have EVER encountered at a small place in Midway.  We ate alot of amazing food and enjoyed resting by the fire in our suite.  We really had a wonderful time.

The view out the window in our suite was like a dream (for me anyway :) - there was a field with cows and an old house that the cows frequented while we were there.  The house even had it's beam for tieing up your horse still.  I LOVE old buildings.  It was just begining to snow and the stream that cut through the field steamed a little.  The Mountains were beautiful behind it all.  It was like looking at a live painting.  I enjoyed sitting out on my balcony in the crisp cold air watching the cows and the snow.  I felt so spoiled! 

On our last night there, we boarded the Heber Valley Railroad to enjoy their Comedy Murder Mystery.  It was fun, the food was good and it was COLD!  The heaters didn't put off much heat.  Right before the 3rd act, the train broke down.  Yes, it's true.  The heaters stopped working when we broke down (of course) so we all ended up piling into one car.  We were practically on eachothers laps for an hour until a new engine came for us.  We were only about 3 miles from the station, so nobody was particularly worried except maybe the actors (o:  They seemed to take it the hardest.  We really had a good time.  Who can say they broke down on a 1930's train during a murder mystery?  How cool is that?....literally...

On Sunday, we attended a local ward and enjoyed driving around Midway and Heber.  What a dreamy place to live!

A bit of randomness!

Thomas went in to check on the girls and found Faith asleep like this (o:

Rahel cleaned my sink for me - what a doll!

Faith "wrapped" a bag of half-eaten cheetos for Thomas (o:  She even colored and cut out a bow for it.  So cute!