Great Parent Moment

In the bathtub tonight Karsten said "Mommy come see!" I turned to see her pouring water over the head of her bath toy and saying, "he is getting baptized".

From the mouths of babes! :-)

Santa's Cheerleader!

Sporting her "Santa Rocks" shirt and poinsettia pom poms, this girl is for sure on the nice list this Christmas season!

Cousins Dinner

After planning out FAR in advance, the Idaho cousins and their kiddos were able to spend an evening hanging out together. It was LOUD and total chaos with more kids than adults, but it was a great reminder of us when we were kids. We were only missing Tori, Ali and her family so the turnout was great! It was a nice time to catch up with everyone.

Parade and Tree Lighting

Today was the annual Christmas parade and tree lighting with fireworks in downtown Coeur d'Alene. Thankfully the weather cooperated and it was only a bit chilly. Karsten loved the parade and the highlight of the night was seeing Mudgy Moose and Millie Mouse from her favorite book Mudgy and Millie. What a great way to get into the Christmas spirit-a great time had by all!

Happy Thanksgiving!

We had a great Thanksgiving with the Towery family this year. All of the family was in town, even Great Grandma Nancy. It was a day full of yummy eats, good times and wonderful blessings of family. As you can tell, Auntie Kimi had the camera all night!

A Warren FOR SURE!

Is there any doubt that she is a Warren? Uncle Blake would be proud!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Watching the Macy's Day parade this morning! Thinking of Grammy and memories of my childhood watching with her.

Baking Buddies!

Karsten is having a great time baking with Auntie Kimi and Grandma. Chocolate crinkles for round one!

Mr. Nice Guy Gets Hosed!

What happens when you mix a nice son-in-law trying to clear his in-laws driveway when they are out of town and a driveway filled with 8-10" of snow? A snowblower clogged with the hidden newspaper...not funny!

Poor Chris got the raw end of this one and now is trying to salvage the snowblower. He has cuts all over his hands and arms from trying to maneuver around the very sharp blade. He is hellbent on NOT taking it to get fixed, so now it is a team effort to get this figured out! After his dad gave it a whirl, now his mom is after it. I have to say that this is actually becoming entertaining!

Wish us luck...!

Feeling Like Winter!

With more snow all day and night much was left to shovel. The dogs were so excited to frolic around the neighborhood with each other as everyone was out shoveling the snow. Sierra was having a blast playing with new friends!

Great Grandma Nancy's Visit

We are so excited to have Great Grandma Nancy visiting for Thanksgiving. She and Karsten have been reading up a storm!

Winter Wonderland!

We woke up to a beautiful blanket of snow this morning! So peaceful and quiet. Everyone is ready here for the winter season with lots of excited skiers and snowmobile fanatics! Schweitzer and Lookout Pass both are opening this weekend. But it looks like it will not stick around for long, unfortunately.

Doing Nails

Tonight Karsten had her very first manicure. Not sure how the conversation got started, but it ended with us on the bathroom floor painting on dainty pink polish. She LOVED every minute of it...minus the patience to let the polish dry all the way!

Jingle Bells

Someone is ready for Christmas! She has been practicing at school for the Christmas program so we were serenaded tonight with bells and song! She is pretty good!

Ready for the SNOW!

With our first snow in the books, Karsten and Daddy went to play outside in what was left of the snow. Sporting her new snowsuit for the year (first year in bibs) and some great new boots, off she went! K could not make it far without her beloved monkey hat :-) HAPPY WINTER now bring on some more snow!

Game Night

Tonight we had family time over a great game of Chutes and Ladders. Karsten LOVED it and she even won-fair and square! Teddy sat watching close by guarding Karsten's goldfish snacks. We had a great time and now need to acquire some more fun, family games.

First Snow

Well today's the day. We woke up to a skiff of fresh snow. Happy soon to be holidays!

Sister Friends

Hannah and Sierra are having a sleepover for weeks while Gaga and Papa are in Europe. Tonight was snuggle time!

Karsten and Abby weekend

After a big move back out west for Blake, Lizz and Abby, a weekend of cousin time was definitely needed. With just 7 months separating them in age, Abby and Karsten went non-stop all weekend long! It was so wonderful to see them interact with each other. ALL of us were thankful for family and good times. As you can see, it was silliness abound! What a special trip-we cannot wait for next time. Thank you Warrens for hosting the madness for 4 days :-)

Old Friends are the Best Friends

My dear friend Tina from Las Vegas, friends since we were four, was going to be re-married and asked us to join in the festivities. We make the trek to Vegas and has a couples only night on the town (thanks Blake, Lizz and Abby for watching Karsten). It was a swanky evening and was wonderful to catch up with some old friends that I had not seen in about 18 years!

Tina and her new hubby Tony as they were married at St. Viator Catholic Church (where my family attended as a kid!)
Laure, me and Michelle-the old crew from freshman year. We are missing Tina P and Tina F, though!

The day after wedding brunch at the Four Seasons. The kids did not care what type of fancy establishment they were in...it was wrestle time. Karsten is dog piled on top of Tina's six year old son Hudson, dress and all!