iceman bike race

fresh air, family, up north, biking and snow!

a fun packed weekend

josh and papa {dad/warren} road in... 

we headed up north late thursday night and spent the day friday checking out the bike expo with the kids and papa.

ellington helping papa sign up

also took a little venture into TC and checked out the cherry pit at the cherry republic store

we found cherry pits in the kids boots, pants, mittens and hats the rest of the day :)

friday night grammie, aunt anna, & our favorite MK {mattie kate} joined the fun at the cottage.

ellington was super excited to wait up for them.

saturday was the BIG RACE day

the boys headed out early to get to the race and the rest of us had a lazy morning at the cottage

we packed lunches and headed out to meet the boys at the finish

aunt anna & mk waiting for the boys to arrive

we had a little bit longer wait than we thought and in true up north fashion it was snowing a little. so pretty but cold...brrr 

thankfully there was a ski lodge not far from the finish so the kids, gram & aunt anna hung out there while i stood watch for the boys {camera duty}

finally we got a phone call from josh to let us know they were still a hour out. we warmed up and then headed back out to catch the boys in action.

way to go!

still smiling....30 miles later

awesome job babe, so proud of you!

he didn't realize i was there taking pictures...focused on the finish line

and they're DONE!

way to go guys

we had a fun time cheering you and spending time as a family together

trick or treat

happy halloween : trick or treat

we had our preschool class at our house on halloween, so we had a little costume halloween party with the kids. it's such a fun group of kids. ellington loves school and has really enjoyed meeting these new families and kids.

our little buzzing bumblebee

sorting stations with our school friends

craft time: Gg is for ghost

abc matching station

a little impromptu "dance of the bumblebees"

leaf raking with daddy

josh and i had a fun night out with friends at a costume party

the 2 versions of a "gold miner"

carving pumpkins 

beckett was determined to scoop his pumpkin out alone

still working at it :)

the 3 cravers

so proud of their creations

on halloween we joined our friends for a kid friendly halloween dinner and trick or treating.

ani, julie & i taught at school together, now 2 of us at home with our little ones and ani is watching julie's girls while she continues to teach.

it's so fun to see these girls (and now beckett & max) grow up together

the gang (minus max)

our silly girls

our lil lion

sortin' the goodies

poor beckett couldn't have the majority of this candy (no peanuts for him), we had a secret stash of skittles just for him. 

happy birthday grammie

we love you!

wrapped the night with a little cuddle/story time in our skeleton jammies

these 2 had a busy day filled with lots of fun

can't wait till next year with 3 little ones heading out to gather their treats

such fun memories

girl day @ the salon

the before...

ellington has only had her hair "trimmed" 2x by our dear friend martha

she's been asking to go get her hair cut, so we decided to have a girl day at the salon.

she was a little nervous to sit in the chair by herself, but the hairdresser was so sweet with her.

a little pampering & head massage

trying hard to keep her head down and still watch through the mirror

getting her hair done

she was so proud of herself afterwards and loved feeling like a big girl.

i realized i didn't take a picture of the "after"

nothing to drastic, just a few inches off.

baby #3...boy or girl??

february 2013...boy or girl?

we still don't know!

2 months

 3 months

 4 months

5 months

 6 months

only a few more months to go....

if you ask ellington what the baby is, she'd say sister

beckett: baby

either way we're excited to meet this lil baby and share the love with him or her

ellington is far more aware of the baby this time around than she was with beckett. she's asked many questions about the baby and one's that i need to make sure i write in the baby's memory book and ellington's. here's a few of our favorites...

ellington: how can the baby see in there? is there a light in there?

{after looking at the dark ultrasound picture}

what does the baby eat?

what is the baby doing right now?

i think we should name her lollipop.

both ellington and beckett love to give the baby kisses and i'm pretty sure that will continue once he/she is here. we'll see how the both adjust to another lil one in the house needing some attention.

stay tuned, february isn't that far away!

happy birthday son

dear beckett warren white,

how can it be that you are already 2 years old? you have grown so fast and are ever changing. i couldn't be more happy to say that you're my son. you make me laugh, cry, pray, praise and simple stand awed at times. you have filled our family with love and joy! 

our continued pray for you is that you would be a doer of the word...doing is your thing, and hopefully as you grow to know your lord and savior you will learn to share his love with others. 

do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. do what it says.

james 1:22

your zest for life and enjoying each day to it's fullest keeps us on our toes and helps us to realize what's important...recognizing our blessings and enjoying them. we are so thankful for how God has created you to be. you are smart, always thinking and problem solving {mostly to keep up with your sister}.

we are so proud of you working hard to talk, although you get frustrated you don't give up. remember to always try your hardest and don't give up, but do remember you can always ask for help. 

we love sweet beckett and we are eager to see where God leads you in your journey. we pray that we can continue to show you the realness of God and help you create a personal relationship with him. he loves you more than we do! trust in him and you will be blessed.

here's a few things you're into at 2 years old:
- your car ramp
- looking at books
- singing Jesus Loves Me at bedtime
- praying at meals and bedtime
- serving others
- helping in the kitchen
- feeding tackle, letting tackle in and out, giving tackle treats
- your blankets: ALL of them!
- running, dancing, tumbling, jumping, etc
- bathtime! you love to splash, pretend to swim, float & getting everyone wet :)
- you love your fruit & veggies
- you can say you're 2, but only hold up 1 finger
- can count 1, 2, 3
- can pick out hello kitty or minnie mouse in the stores for sissy
- can say several words and trying to repeat a lot more
- you like to vacuum and actually do a great job with the mini-vac
- know where "things" go: car keys, phones, you put your own clothes away, diapers, tv remotes, etc
- know how to use the iphone & ipad
- like to be friendly when we're out and about
...so many more things! you're one smart little 2 year old.

we are so in love with you beckett. soon you'll be a BIG BROTHER. we know you'll be a lover and a great helper to the baby.
much love xoxo,
mommy & daddy