Home and School

Here's a catch up post with lots of random photos from winter and spring 2017.

Yule Family Ball

Afternoon exploring at Thanksgiving Point

Leisel posing in her new vest from the Rupps.

4-H training with my new youth council for our school group next year 

learning about the North Pole with Tessa and Leisel's class at Commonwealth

Jordan's art

We bought a rec center pass to get moving during the cold months.  It was great for P.E. a few times a week. 
This time with cousins and Uncle Eric!

Caught in the act.  I love these book moments.

Tessa recited the Queen of Hearts nursery rhyme for the Poetry activity and Valentines exchange.    

Valentines Day pancakes.  I'm loving using my wheat flour with natural yeast. 
The fruit is strawberry jam made with chia.  :)

Another of Jordan's Wedo projects

I love this cute class, "Daughter's of Virtue."  We learn about amazing girls and women from around the world.  We learn a little about the countries they represent and about their talents and area of contribution.  Here's our class trying different musical instruments.  We also had a ballet class in this same spot a few weeks later when we learned about Anna Pavlova.  Ballet skirts and slippers too.  Soo much fun.  

Jordan works hard in math.  He advanced to 6th grade math with Aleks Math half-way through his 4th grade year.

Around the World to Russia in Leisel's preschool class.

Jordan's STEM\tasty creation.

a homeschool Science Fair

smiling pancake boy

This girl has style.  fanny pack, velvet dress, polyester scarf, sunglasses, etc.

The ultimate goose egg.  She crashed trying to flip over the couch.  Black eye was soon to follow.  

I think Michael spent too much time on the computer last year: typing writing assignments, "going" to an online leadership class, doing audio mixing for his technology class, and sometimes doing math.  This year we are trying to go easy on computer time.  

cute friends in school. 
We'll miss seeing them every week next year, because we will be changing things up again and doing other things next year.  

Tessa put together her "Little House in the Big Woods" paper dolls.

break time with baby brother

new couch!

Some Winter

Here's one photo of more winter play.  We tried to use Jordan's 4th grade free skiing for an outing to Brighton.  We fit in lots of good runs and let the boys remember their skills on the slopes.

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Grandpa let us squeeze in a trip to the cabin at the beginning of March. It's always a beautiful get-away.  The end of winter snow was soft and we shouldn't have brought our van on some of the snowy roads.  We all needed an adventure and it was.  

Leisel really wanted to try the snowshoes and she tried hard to keep up with the big kids.  

Tessa took 20 pictures of her snowman.  :)

roughing it. ;)
on the way home

JoNaThAn is TwO - Feb 21

This kid is so great!!  Here are a few thoughts about Jonathan for his birthday.  We have had a wonderful year watching him grow.  Everyone loves Jonathan, and he loves being with the special people in his life.  He can be a little shy at times, but he is known to be a bit pushy to little people like himself.  And he needs a constant referee during playtime.  

Jonathan loves to play and be busy, but sometimes you can catch him in quiet moments looking through books by himself.  He loves music and singing the songs in nursery.  Some of his greatest loves are dogs and horses.  (Somehow his fascination is also a enormous fear..)   Some of his first words are mama, puppy, neigh-neigh, Ash (the cousin), ball and thank you.  

Our Jonathan has a bit of humor and sass.  He is often the boss with plenty of opinions about foods he doesn't like and naps he doesn't want to take.  He is our sweet heart and we are so excited for another year with him ahead.

Two with Jonathan is so great!

Some of our EPIC Joy in the Journey 2016/17

Pioneer Park in Provo

We went to the Family History Library and the exhibits at the Joseph Smith Building.

This year our focus was on family history and temple work.  Michael helped us dig into Family Search and Ancestry a little more so we could take names to the temple.  He is visiting most of the temples in Utah before his 13th birthday.  Another highlight was celebrating the birthdays of some of our ancestors.  We were able to learn about their lives and characters and even try some of their favorite foods.  

As life is pulling us in more directions lately, our EPIC lessons and activities have become less frequent and intense.  But I love having a theme to center our thoughts around for the year.  Somehow so many of our experiences tie back into it.  

It has been a good year to Find Joy in the Journey.

Christmas 2016

The classic 2 year old Santa shot.

I'm not sure if Jonathan's or Santa's expression is more distressed.

Meeting Santa again before Marvin's Bethlehem party

We love the Hulls.

Silent Night in Espanol for a Christmas Eve program

the nativity with a host of angels, good shepherds, some handsome wise men, lovely Mary and Joseph and a wonderful narrator 

busy holiday moments and quiet ones too

sledding and ice skating while cousins were in town

sledding, sledding and more sledding

As long as there was snow, the kids couldn't get enough.

Our homemade cards this year

Tessa's submission for the holiday art show in her photography class.