Davey, Lauren and Ava

"Octurbo 25th"... a very special day!

2011-10-30T08:34:00.000-07:00

According to Webster:
de- light- ful
giving great pleasure or delight;
highly pleasing:

a delightful surprise.

If you asked me to describe our daughter in one word,

I think I would say...

Delightful!

Lauren Elise,
this is our prayer for you.

"Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart." Psalm 37:4

We had lots of fun celebrating Lauren's birthday! She woke up to a decorated house and birthday balloons. She loved her pizza party and princess cake.She waited all day to open her present from Mommy and Daddy. She was excited and thankful for all the gifts she received from family and friends.

She is such a gift to us.

She brings so much joy, sweetness and humor to our family

and we are so grateful to God for our

"delightful surprise".

Happy 3rd Birthday Sweet Lauren!

birthday morning sleepy head!

Lauren and Uncle Scotty

Birthday Breakfast


Baby princesses to help celebrate

Baby Cinderella and sparkle shoes from Ella!

Matching robe for "mommy and baby"

Grammie came to play too! Thank you for the great gifts :) xoxo

"I riddy wanted this!" - thanks Auntie Kat

Cinderella!

Davey was kind enough to help Lauren open gifts :)


Princess castle for our happy little princess! Thanks Scotty :)

Pizza, cake and all Lauren's favorite people!

Happy Birthday Dear Lauren...

"three years old!"

"THE" cake!

Sleepy Ava ready for bed!

The greatest gift of all... God's faithfulness to our family!

our three little pumpkins!

2011-10-30T07:05:00.000-07:00

Pumpkin patch time!

our summer...in (a few) pictures!

2011-09-02T07:37:00.001-07:00

...JUNE... june... JUNE ...june... JUNE... june ...JUNE ...

Davey and Ava have always been buddies

and Lauren and Ava are developing a special
sister bond. So thankful they have eachother.

at the beginning of the summer...
Ava was happy laying on the floor, or in her
jumperoo... my how time changes things!

"back in the day" when Ava was on the blanket you left her
on when you left the room :)
6 months old

See the turtle by the tree! Davey watched this little guy
for a long time!!!

June 24th, Davey turned 4 years old. Here is the
Buzz Lightyear cake! We had a fun party
with friends we rarely get to see :)

the boy and the space ranger

Davey and Lauren's birthday night campout

this little cutie loves the beach!

Watermelon! 'nough said

...JULY ... july... JULY ...july... ... JULY...

All American Girl at the 4th of July Parade!

water balloon fight on the 4th

roasting marshmallows

you don't have to tell me how scary this photo is!
I was there :)

Happy little Ava... in July she started the
"earthworm" scootch!

God has used this little baby's sweet smile to encourage
me and give me hope many days this summer.

Davey's great catch- Fishing with Daddy

my little country girl!

an exciting project in our backyard provided
a free babysitter for mommy :)

Davey's not the only Buzz fan around here!

lots of time at the park

little ballerina- little bow- little hair
7 months - sitting up on her own

makes my day!

...AUGUST...august ...AUGUST ...august ...

Davey at the Carver Co. fair

Checking out the ostrich!
"yes" he was warned many times to keep
his fingers away.
"yes" he tried to feed the bird after we
told him not to.
"yes" he got got bit!
"Yes"- we laughed after he assured us he was
ok. "ouch! He bit me, but I'm ok!"- Davey

Ava LOVES this toy!

August 14th is DAVE day at Famous Dave's
if your name is Dave...you get your meal free!
We were surprised to see THE Famous Dave
when we arrived. He was very kind and Davey
had fun talking to him :)

Ava was there too!

Famous Dave with the "bar-b-cutie" ! (if you know me,
you already know that I was very amused by that!)

and now Little Miss Ruffles can pull herself up!

At the park with our fun little neighbor girl.
She loves "Aba"

Davey is learning to ride his bike without

training wheels! I am so proud of him :)

He is doing great!!!

last day at the beach :(

lots of fun playing in the sand

beach baby!

she's been busy mastering crawling and she

is now quite efficient!

"look mom! I made an elephant with my toast!"

definately time to put the rails up on the crib

Lauren and Zachary at the park

and last but not least... our end of the summer

tradition with Papa Cookie Maker-

MN STATE FAIR!

Ava's 1st time at the fair!8 months old

Davey insisted he hold his hot dog in a bun in his hand.

Lauren picked up on the novelty of food on a stick and ate

every last bite!

in the "bubbles" with Papa

Ava got a bite of Davey's ice cream...

she quickly opened her little birdy beak for more!

driving the tractors is something we

look forward to all year long!

funny face #1

driving the bobcat

funny face #2

EXCAVATOR!

funny face #3

Ava got a bite of mommy's favorite state fair food!

Thank you Papa! Let us seranade you for the rest of our

time here at the great MN get together!

(For now,these are OUTSIDE toys!

It's possible that someday, they will be "LOST" toys :)

a nap with Papa for a tired girl after a long day!

Riding the bus back home...with spiderman and cookies!!!

Overall we had a great summer and hope you did too!

This spring/summer brought many changes for our family.

I believe God is using what seemed like a very hopeless

situation to change our hearts, and bring about good, healing

and restoration for our family and ultimately glorify Him...

no matter what the outcome!

God has used many people to encourage me this summer,

friends, family and people I don't even know. These people

have helped build my faith in the Lord and He is renewing

my strength everyday.

If you would like to pray for our family we would very

much appreciate it. I am praying that God's perfect will would be

done for EVERYBODY in our family. I often find myself confused

by all the mixed information I receive so another specific prayer

request is that the "Voice of Truth" would ring very clear and

that we would listen and obey Jesus...ALL of us!

I have already seen God doing miracles in our family and I believe

with God's help He could bring total healing and restoration

to our family...just praying for patience while He does His work.

"So we are not giving up. HOW COULD WE? Even though on the

outside it often looks like things are falling apart. On the inside,

where God is making new life, not a day goes by without His

unfolding grace." 2 Corinthians 4:16-18

"I've seen miracles just happen,

silent prayers get answered,

broken hearts become brand new.

That's what faith can do."

"the BIG giant says,

'little boy you will never win!'

but the VOICE of TRUTH

tells me a different story.

The VOICE of TRUTH says

'Do not be afraid'.

The VOICE of TRUTH says

'this is for My glory'

Of all the voices calling out to me,

I will choose to listen and believe

the VOICE of TRUTH...

Jesus is the VOICE of TRUTH."

" I will praise you in this storm,

and I will lift my hands, You are who

You are no matter where I am.

Every tear I've cried, you hold in

your hand, you've never left my side.

And though my heart is torn,

I will praise you in this storm."

"No matter where I am, what I'm doing or

what I see, the Lord is working mightily in me!"

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths. Proverbs 3:5-6

For my David Alexander

2011-07-01T15:27:00.001-07:00

I typically try to keep this blog light and happy. Not to say this post won't be happy but allow me a sappy post just this once.

In honor of someone who just turned 4 years old last week...

David: Beloved
adj. dearly loved, much loved
n. a person who is dearly loved, held dear

Alexander: Protecter of Mankind
n. a person who protects, a guardian

I would say he was given a name that suits him perfectly!

Lately the song "The Words I Would Say" by Sidewalk Prophets
has been really making me think about Davey as he grows.
Davey this is my hope and prayer for you.

Please join me in praying these words for my son as you think about him.

"Be strong in the Lord, Never give up hope.
You're going to do great things, I already know.
God's got His hand on you so don't live life in fear.
Forgive and forget, but don't forget why you're here.
Take your time and pray.
Thank God for each day."

I love you sweet Davey. God has used you as an endless source of encouragement and strength in my life. You are loved beyond measure and that doesn't include how much you are loved by your Heavenly Father.

David :Beloved...yes, you are!

my little darlin's

2011-06-23T07:31:00.000-07:00

my friend Amber took these pictures of the kids at the beach

last week. She did a great job! these are just a few of my

favorites :( Thank you Amber! You can find her on

facebook...look for Amber Lianne Photography.

2011-05-15T06:19:00.000-07:00

Picture a "double blade axe" with those
"hobnail boots" and you've got Paul Bunyan!

Davey took this picture of Lauren who typically
only shows her sassy side to Davey himself!

(I said "typically")

This is the sweet face that greets me when naptime is over!

Ava is 4 1/2 months already and brings much sweetness and

joy to our family. She is very loved by her brother and sister :)

Enjoy this goofy peter piper!

for Auntie Kat a.k.a. "Uncle Tat"

2011-04-26T22:40:00.001-07:00

behold....

2011-04-14T09:53:00.000-07:00

they're ALL smiling... at the same time...and looking at ME!!!

...strong to the finish...

2011-03-26T22:33:00.001-07:00

"...cause I eat me spinach!"

That's right... Davey was never happier to try

spinich and he claims he liked it! If I can get

my 2 and 3 year olds to happily eat spinich

I guess listening to 30 minutes of "poopeye"

is a fair trade :)

finally...new pictures!

2011-03-18T07:52:00.000-07:00

So, we have had a busy feb/march

and I finally found a few minutes to

post some pictures. A very exciting

event took place February 12th and

that was Bama and Tim's wedding.

We are so happy for Bama and we love

Tim... win win for everybody!

We enjoyed having family here

from out of town and Ava especially

loved being held the ENTIRE weekend!

my cousin Gabe- wish he lived closer!!!

Great Aunt Jan and Great grandma Eadie

so happy

flower kids!

fighting Captain hook's shadow!

sleepy sweetie pie

I love this little girl!

All three

Davey and Ava = pals!

Ava Claire - 11 weeks old

happiest baby girl

"king Arfur" :)

funny faces for Davey

In other news:

Lauren now sleeps in a "big girl" bed in Davey's room. So now instead of going right to sleep she and Dave party til the wee hours of the morning...and I'm not kidding. Think last night it was 12:15 am when I finally heard the last peep! My little night owls...grrr!

Lauren has rediscovered a serious fear of Ladybugs thanks to the nice weather.

Ava weighed in at 12 lb 14 oz and 21 in. at her 2 month

well baby check-up. That's one oz more than Davey and over

a pound more than Lauren at 8 weeks. She also eats better and

sleeps better than Davey and/or Lauren ever did/do!

She takes a morning nap, a 3-4 hour afternoon nap, a before bedtime catnap and then she usually goes to bed around 8-8:30pm and sleeps til 5am when

she gets up to eat then goes back to sleep til 8am-ish. I love her!

Davey is rarely seen around these parts anymore...instead we

spend lots of time with "Robin Hood", "Captain Hook"

"David/Goliath", "Davy Crockett" and most recently the " paper boy"

complete with rolled up "newspaper" and a bag to throw them from while

he rides his trike... wild imagination that kid!!!

ps. Jodi...we miss you! Must see you soon!!!

Lauren singing "You are my sunshine."

"...you'll never know dear, how much YOU
love me..." :)

Just Ava

2011-02-21T18:51:00.000-08:00

still waiting on a hair growth spurt ...

just enough to put a bow in would

thrill me!

Late nights with Ava Claire!

somebody's getting bigger!

2011-02-05T21:14:00.000-08:00

growing rolls!

VERY special visitors!

2011-01-31T22:40:00.000-08:00

Henry

Maddie

Charlie

We love you guys SOOO much!

Thanks for coming to visit and for

all the fun gifts you brought for

the kids. They had so much fun!

Ava was so happy to finally meet

you and to be held all night long :)

hugs and kisses!

January at our house

2011-01-21T19:34:00.000-08:00

Ava is here!!!

2011-01-01T14:35:00.000-08:00

Ava Claire Bendell

December 28th,2010

7# 2 oz 19 in

5:27 am

random funny photo

2010-12-04T07:49:00.001-08:00

here's Lauren watching our fishy

(who has since taken a ride down the dark black hole)

2010-12-04T06:53:00.001-08:00

remember this little santa baby!?!

This is "snow" fun!!! (can be taken one of two ways :)

2010-11-15T16:48:00.000-08:00

I'm not sure this photo actually captures the thrill
of seeing the 1st snow through the eyes of two little
ones but it's probably pretty close! (please note
that this sweet moment was followed by many more
moments of continuous begging to go outside and play...
that meant that mom "got" to go outside too!)

Davey was eager to pull out that new shovel and get to work!

Happily posing with our faceless snowman...

(before he was knocked over by a certain 3 year old)

Lauren loved the snow!!!

Not faceless for long (but nonexistant shortly after this photo was snapped!)

A lesson learned down on the farm...

or just as easily in your kitchen!

How to make butter :101

1st you carefully pour the cream into a clean jar

(or all over the counter...depending on whose turn it is and their interpretation of the word "carefully")

Then you shake, shake, shake!!!

...and shake, shake, shake some more!

if your arms are getting tired you can roll it back and forth

(but do avoid playing soccer or getting out the hockey sticks in an effort to

make butter faster)

If you have a hard time waiting, you can always get out
the handy mixer or a blender!

Start whipping the cream on high. (We stopped for a minute at this point

to take out some whipped cream for our pumpkin pie baking in oven. Yummy!)

Keep whipping...keep fingers away...keep foreign objects out of bowl...

Keep your hands out of your nose...need I go on?

Soon it will separate and you will have what looks like

curdled milk and buttermilk, that's when you know it's done!

Pour out the buttermilk and do your best to squeeze out as

much liquid as you can. You can save the buttermilk for baking

if you'd like.

If you are hoping to keep the butter in the fridge longer than

a few days you need to wash the butter with ice cold water.

You can do this by putting the strained butter back into the

mixer/blender and adding cold water. Give it a whirl (slowly) then

strain the water off. You can add salt to your butter if you'd like.

We started with a pint of cream...lost several tablespoons from the carton

into the jar and used a bit for whipped cream. We ended up with

about 1 cup of butter. I've read that it takes about 2 quarts of

cream to get a pound of butter.

This was a really fun project for the kids they loved it...

it was quick and easy...

I think you "butter" try it too!

(sorry, HAD to get that in there somewhere!)

the many adventures of Davey and Lauren

2010-11-01T19:06:00.000-07:00

From this tiny little pink bundle...

One year ago...

...To this tiny little lady!

We celebrated Lauren's 2nd birthday last week and she loved it.

a pink basketball/hoop from Uncle Scotty

an adorable cradle from Bama, PaPa, Scotty and Kat...

(now she come downstairs to tell me "shhh, baby sleepin")

Pumpkin cupcakes!

(I realize these are likely the ugliest cupcakes I've ever

concocted...but in my defense, I used all natural food coloring

and nature's definition of Orange is different than mine)

Birthday morning balloon!

Lauren loves to take care of her baby.

AND NOW...

the reason for my lack of blogging this past month...

We moved!!!

We owe a world of thanks to all our family and friends who have helped in countless ways to get our new house ready for us to move into. From ripping out carpet, painting, painting, painting, laying floors, cleaning, vacuuming, scraping, sanding, you name it, someone did it!

And to all our wonderful grandma's who graciously took care of our kids so we could work.

How can we thank you? Please know how thankful I am!

fun weekend!

2010-10-01T06:34:00.000-07:00

A fun new surprise for Davey and Lauren
at Grammy and Boppy's house !

Last weekend we went "hiking" at Taylor's Falls

on the St. Croix River. It was a beautiful sunny
cool day! Perfect fall weather :)

this was the best "christmas photo" attempt

out of about 600 takes! Looks like we'll be

doing a reshoot :)

Davey LOVED climbing on all the rocks,

throwing stones in the river and giving
us near heart attacks with his quick moves!

2010-09-11T20:18:00.000-07:00

Davey built this big choo choo track!

one scary sister!

GOLIATH!!!

Davey's 1st Twins Game with Daddy, Bops and Uncle Joey!

He Loved it!

one last beach day and davey's present for Mom

2010-09-03T20:00:00.001-07:00

Lauren had fun playing with "Bama" at the beach.

Davey was kind enough to race up the stairs,

and smash through the front door to bring

me this "present"! (yes, it's dead and Daddy

seemed to think it was pretty funny!)

Fun at the fair

2010-08-28T20:26:00.000-07:00

Davey was kind enough to share "HIS" corn on the cob
with his constantly starving sister!

Davey and Uncle Scotty on the slide

Here comes Lauren- she loved it!

Davey always looks forward to riding the tractors at the fair!

Recently, Davey has been very interested in

(obsessed!!!) the story of David and Goliath.

Mostly his obsession has to do with the

sling shot used to slay the giant :) Anyways,

he likes to dress up like David and uses

whatever he can find ( in this photo its a

wash cloth) to whip around as

his sling shot.

Below is a picture of the ferocious face

David used to scare Goliath!!!

Davey's very 1st haircut

2010-08-24T20:38:00.000-07:00

It took Davey 3 years and 2 months to grow
all the hair on his head. It was time for a little
trim. Here is the before photo!

And here is end result!

Davey likes to shake his head and say

"Look Mom! No hair in my eyes!"

p.s. Thanks to our "personal stylist"

Richard. He did an awesome job :)

Fastest Haircut ever!!!

pink or blue?!?

2010-08-21T20:39:00.000-07:00

That's right... our 2nd little girl is on her way!

We are looking forward to a New Year's Baby ;)

from there to here...catching up!

2010-08-14T11:59:00.000-07:00

Davey's favorite sport...this week. Soccer!
We have had a busy summer...so busy that we haven't
even had the time to share it all with you.
Here is July/August in pictures!

We went down to Iowa for the 4th of July weekend.
Who doesn't love a good picnic!?!

We were so happy to see our cute little cousin Levi.
He and Lauren are only 3 1/2 weeks apart but since they
live all the way down in Arkansas we were thrilled to
spend several days playing together!

The kids had lots of fun playing in the pool.

The big reason we went down to Iowa was to visit
"Great Poppa and Grandma Eadie" (mommy's grandparents)
Poppa Eadie was diagnosed with cancer that spread to several
areas of his body . We are thankful for these memories and
photos since this is the last time we were able to see Poppa.
He died July 25th, 2010. He died quietly and peacefully with
just Great-Grandma and his beloved dog Meggie by his side.
We are glad to know that Poppa finally feels better. We know
that he is finally Home but we will miss our Poppa.

Watching the trains that run through the field right outside
Poppa's window.

Secrets from Great Poppa to Great Grandson :)

Davey and Lauren with Grandma and Poppa Eadie.

A priceless photo in mommy's eyes.

Another priceless moment... Poppa and Lauren.

Lauren sat very patiently with Poppa while

he brushed her hair...something he used to do

every night before bed with his own daughters.

So sweet.

Story time with Great Grandma.

Mommy's last photo with her Poppa.

And now...on a lighter note...

Davey Crockett is back!!!

"Lauren, I love you. You are my best girl."

(yep, he said that!)

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

Lauren would like to be wearing undies

everyday but we still have a little work to do.

One morning, Davey decided to help Lauren

by reading to her while she...uh...waited for

something exciting to happen!

Not to change the subject but

here is something exciting that happened!
(ignore that dramatic little girl in this photo. Regardless of what it looks like, she loved

every minute of this little adventure!)

There he is...There's THOMAS the TANK ENGINE!!!

Davey got a Thomas tatoo while we waited for

our train to depart.

Lauren did too!

Waiting for a train ride isn't so hard when

there's lots of fun stuff to do!

ALL ABOARD!

We climbed all the way to the top of the train...

(where the air is stuffy and mommy almost passed out from the lack of airflow...Goodtimes!)
because that's where Davey REALLY wanted to sit!

And a good time was had by all (well by two at least)!

Here is one excited little Thomas Fan!

Back at the station (20 LONG minutes later) the kids

had a blast playing in the ball pit!

And finally... the "fat controller of the railway"

(I didn't make that up...there's a song about him)

Sir Topam Hat!

We stood in a long line (with the blazing sun beating down on Mommy) just to get

this photo :) But in the end, seeing Davey's excited little face made

every minute worth it!!!

Lauren...wearing boots, pigtails and lipgloss!

(And Jada's cute little hand-me-down dress :)

Davey and "Bama Loree"

We took a special gift to our

Great Bama Loree on her birthday.

Davey loves her because

"she is so so nice, and she

just plays with me and I like

her treats!" :)

Davey and Lauren have been very blessed to have lots of

family that love them so much. Bama Loree is still spry

enough to babysit quite a bit and we are so thankful!

We love you "Bama Loree" !

My 3rd walk down Davey's memory lane...

2010-06-24T20:27:00.000-07:00

Three years ago...

Two years ago...

One year ago...

Today...

Davey woke up to a birthday

celebration in his honor!!!
He is three years old!

Davey and Lauren had lots of

fun playing with all the balloons!

(oops...this picture should be up there )

Davey had so much fun wrestling with his balloons.

And Lauren enjoyed watching him :)

Davey's new Moto-cross shirt!

This boy loves motorcycles!!!

This Daredevil stunt set had his name on it at the store.

He LOVES it!

And of course... the crane he's been itching for:

Cranky! He finally got it and he is so excited :)

This little go-cart can really move if you put the right kid

behind the wheel. Look out everyone...watch your toes!

The cake

He really liked his Thomas cake.

Like I said...He really liked his Thomas cake!

We had a fun day celebrating Davey. I forgot the camera

in the car when we went to Nickelodeon Universe this

afternoon. Davey got to ride as many rides as he wanted

to as many times as he wanted to. (thank you birthday

club for the FREE unlimited ride wrist band) However, it didn't seem to click with

him that when the ride attendant says it's time to get off the ride...

you actually have to GET OFF THE RIDE! I'm sure the fine

folks at the giant jumping Pineapple were happy to see us go :)

It's hard to believe Davey has been here for three years already!

What a fun (and more recently, challenging) three years it's been.

He is our "son"shine and we are so lucky he is ours!

We love you SOOO much Davey. xoxo

new pictures

2010-06-20T07:21:00.000-07:00

Another big Thank You to our friend

Diana who took these pictures

of the kids! She did a great job :)

I know, I know...it's about time!!!

2010-06-07T20:54:00.000-07:00

We've had a busy few weeks...so busy in fact, that we haven't even had the time to share new pictures with you all! Here's a look at what these 2 have been up to in the past month.
They are enjoying summer!!! Hope you are too :)

love drinking from the freezing cold sprinkler!

Davey's 1st catch of 2010

So proud of himself :)

Tuckered out after a busy day!

Yes...she's eating "noni" (macaroni) for breakfast.

It's her favorite food and she eats it by the bowls.

We are having fun at the beach this year!

Look what else is new!!! SOOOOO exciting :)

Dave is potty trained and we are thrilled!

(even if that means he pees off the deck)

uh oh...

"lil buckaroo" and "Calamity Jane"

what have these little rascals been up to ???

2010-05-06T18:22:00.000-07:00

It started out as an innocent camp-out with popcorn...that's all!
(although Dave's looking a little more creepy than innocent in this photo)

The popcorn camp-out turned sour quickly and
Davey soon learned that the consequence to his behavior
wasn't quite as fun as the original behavior that got him there.

Here is a picture of Davey's new bed!!!

My little buckaroos!

We visited "Bama" (Grandma) at her new house.

A little on the small side, only one bedroom

but isn't it cute and cozy?!?

Lauren likes it!

o.k. So this isn't the particular unit Bama

lives in but it sure is fun to have our playhouse right outside

Bama's living room :)

We also like the lakeview at Bama's new house! So pretty :)

Bama and Lauren

"I'll take tar-a you, Noren." -Davey

(I'll take care of you, Lauren)

Good Morning...Good night!

2010-04-11T19:53:00.000-07:00

rockstars!

2010-04-10T21:32:00.000-07:00

My little rock stars on stage at the children's museum!

(Sorry the video is a little funny but Dave's hardcore rockin' out and workin' the audience so I just had to share it with you :)

Easter!!!

2010-04-08T06:15:00.000-07:00

We had so much fun playing outside on Easter Sunday!
What a beautiful day :)

Yummy! Fruit trifle...our favorite :)

APRIL is here!!!

2010-04-01T21:23:00.000-07:00

We are LOVIN' this great weather!
Davey zips around on his bike like a madman!!!

Lauren's new boots!

"Wee Willie Winkie runs through the town.
Upstairs, downstairs in his nightgown.
Rapping at the window, crying though the locks.
Are all the children in their beds?
For now it's eight o'clock."

What a great day!

2010-03-20T05:44:00.000-07:00

"that turtle is eating salad Mom!"
"yep."
"I like salad too!"

this guy was a big hit!
They loved watching him swing from tree to tree.

Fishies!!!

Davey thought this spotted shark type thing was pretty neat.

Lauren was a little freaked out since she and

the spotted shark type thing were matching.

Such a boy thing!!! As we were walking the path Davey

stopped dead in his tracks, turned on a dime and

went back to stomp in this tiny puddle behind the gate!
Good thing he's been insisting on wearing those clunky
rain boots everywhere :)

Aahhooooooooo... Coyotes!

Look Kids... A symbol of our freedom!
(chained to a log, wings clipped,stuck in a cage)

More fishies! Lauren liked them :)

It doesn't get much better than this.
A picnic lunch with the dolphins!

What a great day :)

finally...new pictures!

2010-03-13T21:36:00.000-08:00

Peanuts (Snoopy, that is) and Popcorn!

Flying!!!

Uncle Joey and Lauren reading "boos"

...Don't ask...

Sledding!

Lauren's 1st time :) She liked it!

one tough little dude!

2010-02-19T11:23:00.000-08:00

Let's hope his bite's not as mean as his bark...yikes!

There's nothing cooler than kilts in February!

2010-02-14T19:04:00.001-08:00

This weekend we went to the Scottish Ramble in St. Paul.

It was fun to look around at everything and hear the great

live music. The kids got a fun introduction to their heritage.

It's not a skirt...it's a KILT!

a wee monster all right!

The Beautiful sound of the bagpipes.

If this doesn't make you proud to be scottish...

Davey and Lauren really enjoyed the music!

Boppy and Davey

Love those little dancers!

These are my sweethearts...everyday!

2010-02-11T19:23:00.001-08:00

Happy Valentines Day!

Here's what we've been up to...

2010-02-06T21:43:00.000-08:00

Lauren brushes her "teesh" like a big girl now!

Our little tricycle motor!

Playin' some serious trains!

Davey and Mommy made brownies.

Davey helped "clean up" the bowl!

Lauren had to go to time out for throwing a

major fit. As you can see, she quickly mended

her wayward ways and seems to have learned

an important lesson... we're in trouble with

this one!!!

Davey was intrigued by the time-out corner and joined her

for what became an on-the-spot photo shoot. What?!? a rarely

seen photo of Davey and Lauren smiling at the same time!

(I said smiling, not looking at me...you can't have everything!)

Here is a video of Bob Dylan...uh...I mean Davey

jammin' on his guitar and his harmonica!

mommy's big helper

2010-01-31T20:27:00.000-08:00

Davey decided(on his own) to feed (a very impatient)Lauren her yogurt at breakfast today.

looking for a reliable mechanic?

2010-01-21T14:48:00.000-08:00

Car need a tune up?
Reasonable rates...
fast, honest worker...
free estimates...

Davey
1-800-fix-it

*disclaimer...due to lack of experience and Davey's
favor of the saw and hammer as tools of choice...waiver must
be signed by car owner before any mechanical work will begin.

"Davey...Davey Tockett...man - a -frontier"

2010-01-10T19:07:00.000-08:00

Our little Davey Crockett in his buckskin
and Coonskin cap from Uncle Jack!

Lauren insisted on taking a turn!

Here is a little video of Davey singing

the Davey Crockett theme song.

that's what he said...

2010-01-03T18:46:00.000-08:00

Davey and I were shopping for a new candle today. We were taking turns smelling them.
I handed him one to sniff and after he took a whiff he handed it back and said,
"hmm...smells like poop." We didn't buy that one!

DECEMBER...in pictures!

2009-12-31T14:45:00.000-08:00

An extra special Christmas gift for our family...
photos of Davey and Lauren!
It was SOOOO cold that day but Diana did a great job.
Here are just a few of my favorites:)

Uncle Scotty and Lauren

Visiting Family in Iowa.

We FINALLY got to meet our charming cousin Levi!

snow!!!

Christmas Eve at the Larson's house

Christmas Morning pancakes!!!

Christmas Day with Pa Pa and Bama,

Uncle Scotty and Auntie Kat

Loving those Christmas tree bubbles!

Lauren was extremely excited about her

new outfit!

modeling the new bathrobe!

Lauren takes Bitsy for a spin!

Davey and Scotty spent lots of time outside!!!

Merry Christmas to all!!!

a new means of travel

2009-12-19T22:44:00.000-08:00

Lauren can walk!!!

(ignore the "setting up" of the camera at the beginning.)

Now that's one ferocious pirate!

2009-12-13T12:10:00.000-08:00

Arrr...

Thanksgiving fun!!!

2009-11-27T07:46:00.000-08:00

Davey and Lauren "helped" Grandma decorate
her tree for Christmas!

We're so thankful for our Family!

This ratty old rocking horse was mine when

I was little.

Lauren LOVES Uncle Scotty

The Bird...(I'm referring to the poultry)

fun weekend with the kids!

2009-11-22T21:24:00.000-08:00

"ABC" sounds better amplified!

Making Uncle Joshy proud!

Lauren's turn :)

He loves that little red guitar

Lauren showing me her version of the sign for "more"

LOOK... they're having a tea party together!!! I had to sneak

this picture from afar and zoom in so they wouldn't see me.

It was SOOO cute!

Thanks for the many multi-colored washable

markers Bama! Davey had good fun

"coloring" while I was putting Lauren to bed

one night :)

NOvember = NO time for blogging... :(

2009-11-20T14:06:00.000-08:00

If you look closely, you'll see the "D" on the window
that Davey wrote all by himself!

"Rockin' Dave" takes the stage!
He blew us away with a fantastic rendition of "ABC".

Lauren's turn to play guitar

Kisses for Lauren- her big brother sure does love her!

Leaves!!!

2009-11-01T08:32:00.000-08:00

Davey loved it!

Lauren liked it!

Mommy loves this!

Baby Beau cooperated...as usual!

another birthday celebration!

2009-10-24T10:58:00.000-07:00

Mommy and Lauren with all her pretty flowers
and her CAKE!!!

Uncle Scotty's favorite niece!

She liked this cake!

So did Davey!

Love my messy PINK girl!!!
How is she already one year old?

the very PINK of perfection!

2009-10-18T11:48:00.001-07:00

Yesterday we celebrated a very special event in our lives...
Lauren's Birthday!

We had a "perfectly pink" tea party
and a "perfectly" grand time too!

Lauren enjoyed having 2 doting
grandmas, 1 adoring great- grandma,
1 fabulous Auntie, and several very special friends
join in the fun. If only she'd enjoyed
her cupcake as much it would've been
a truly perfect day! (how was I to know she
doesn't eat "gluten-free?)

Lauren and Auntie Kat

"yay for Lauren" - she loves to clap for herself :)

Zachy was the only boy allowed at our girls only tea party,

but we made an exception for him since he was Lauren's 1st friend!

We were so happy to have Maddie here!

the tiniest crocs for Miss L's tiny toes

a kiss for Bitty Baby!

Make a wish!

I thought she'd dig in and smear frosting everywhere,

but surprisingly she didn't like it!

*cupcake side note* I went to Lakewinds in the

morning before (o.k. 45 mins before) her party

was going to start. I had planned to get her a

pink cupcake to smash but all they had were

yellow Gluten-free cupcakes with pink sprinkles.

Since I was in a bit of a hurry I had to settle for the

GF yellow cupcake. Oh well... this just makes us

extra thankful we don't have to follow a Gluten

free diet!

Lauren and Ella

What a fun day! Thank you everybody for helping us celebrate

Miss Lauren. She and Davey having fun playing with her

new toys!

apple of my eye...pick of the patch!

2009-10-11T11:29:00.000-07:00

On Friday we went to the apple orchard with our friends Jada, Ethan and Zachary.
We had so much fun, the weather was great and the apples are tasty!
Here are a few pictures from our fun day!!!

New...

2009-10-08T18:08:00.000-07:00

NEW...picture of Davey and Lauren, BOTH smiling!

NEW...well, this short-fused temper is not new!

NEW...actually this dumping food on the floor is getting pretty old!

NEW...tricks! (this is his "Toby Tyler" trick)

NEW...sleeping positions!

NEW...crayons for writing on the window! (thanks Grammy)

NEW...friend! Last week Mom and Lauren started watching

baby Beau 3 days a week. Lauren likes to kiss him!

NEW...hat!

My Sweet Davey

2009-10-02T19:19:00.000-07:00

Chit chat between me and Davey, last night @ 10:30 pm, while trying to fall asleep in bed...

"Mom."

"What Dave?"

"Mom."

"Yeah, Davey?"

"mom...mom...MOM...Jessita...JESS"

"WHAT DAVE?!?"

"Mom... Lub you Mom"

"I love you too, Dave. Go to sleep!"

"....(sweet silence)..............Mom."

"shhh..."

"mom... mom... Jessita...Jess.."

This "conversation" typically goes on until he finally conks out while I'm ignoring him.

Oh I love that little boy!

For Jodi...

2009-10-01T05:41:00.000-07:00

Look how adorable Lauren looks in the sweater

you gave her! It finally fits and she is so cozy in it :)

She has the slippers on too but the hat she promptly

ripped off! What a sweet and unique gift...I love it!

Hope to see you soon Jodi, we miss you!

the last days of summer

2009-09-28T10:52:00.000-07:00

what we've been up to...

2009-09-25T18:14:00.000-07:00

Dave's still beatin' his drums...
although they've been stuffed for the sake of Mom's sanity!

Lauren is recovering from a long week fighting Roseola. She had a high fever for 5 days and felt pretty crummy. Thankfully she's pretty much back to her sweet, stubborn self.

This incident occured AFTER I had just vacuumed the living room and was working on

the bathroom. Thank you Davey! Yes, that is cheese puff powder smeared all over the

coffee table.

We had a camp fire and Davey really loved his s'more!

Lauren is SO big!

whose idea was this?

2009-09-16T06:11:00.000-07:00

God help me!

Through the years...our VERY special friends!

2009-09-09T10:19:00.000-07:00

5 1/2 years ago...these were my "babies".

annual christmas photo with Santa '04

Summer of 2005

Christmas photo with Santa 2006

(Davey is in this picture but you can't see him yet :)

June 2007 - DAVEY IS BORN!!!

Henry, Maddie and Charlie were his

1st (very excited) visitors and his 1st friends.

October 2008- LAUREN IS BORN!!!

Henry, Maddie and Charlie arrived before

any other visitors to meet Miss Lauren...this time they

brought along Maddix and Patrick too :)

September 2009

Tuesday morning we got up early to see

these very special friends get on the bus to

go to school. This year, Charlie started

Kindergarten and we couldn't miss his big day!

Kisses for Maddie... Have fun in 3rd grade!

Hugs for Henry...4th graders are cool!

All my "babies"... Look how big!

Henry, Maddie and Charlie are SOOO very special to me

and Davey and Lauren adore them too!!!

They were so fun as babies but they seem to get more

wonderful as time goes on. We miss seeing you everyday

but always look forward to the special times we do have

together. Hugs and kisses for our very special friends.

Love,

Jess, Davey and Lauren

p.s. Thanks for the delicious heart cookie you made us Maddie!

You are one fine baker and someday you will be the best

babysitter for Davey and Lauren!!!

Warning!!!

2009-08-30T21:09:00.001-07:00

Do not eat the "straw-boo-dees" at our house.
Seems Dave may have helped himself.

Good bye sweet friend...

2009-08-19T09:03:00.000-07:00

On Saturday we said goodbye to our sweet Mr. Chips.
He was the BEST. DOG. EVER. and will be
forever remembered and always loved.

Hugs for Chippy

About a year ago Chippy was adopted by a great couple

who totally adored him! Shortly after he went to live with

them he had surgery to remove a large mass in his stomach

due to cancer, unfortunately the mass grew back and because

he was so weak and tired they knew he wouldn't make it

through another surgery. He was old and had lived a

great life. As a puppy and most of his adult life he lived out

at the ranch with 6 "big brothers" that threw balls

and sticks for him to chase endlessly, he hung out at the bon fires

in the summers, swam in the pool when he was hot and

had a cozy place to lay his head at the end of each day.
He was loved.

He spent the past 15 months with Joe, Christy and Max where

he was treated like a king and lived out his "golden" years to the fullest.

We said a bittersweet goodbye knowing he was happy, adored and ready to go.

We love you Sweet Chippy! You will be missed.

a little of this...a little of that= new pictures!

2009-08-12T22:06:00.000-07:00

Late nights with Lauren (our little night owl)

"All ready Mommy" - I told Dave we were going to get dressed and get shoes on to get ready to go. While I was busy getting Lauren ready he "got himself ready" too.

helping mommy with Laundry

- she likes to "help" by emptying baskets for me :)

the "hel-topper" right outside out house!

Miss L standing in Davey's crib

Naked driver

Can't turn your back on him for even a second...

Rub a dub dub two babies in the tub!

Best Ever Banana Bread

2009-08-04T21:20:00.000-07:00

Davey has recently discovered a new love for "ananas", mostly due to his latest obsession with the movie TOBY TYLER which involves a Monkey taking a banana right from the hands of Toby himself. Lucky for Davey, at my new job I am able to bring home several bunches of bananas every night for free! Davey and I made several loaves of Banana bread this morning and I thought I'd share the recipe with you! Of course, if you're not up for making it yourself or just need a few bananas, stop by...there's a good chance we have some here that we'd be happy to share!

In a medium sized bowl mix together:

Flour, Sugar, Baking Soda and Salt .

Set aside.

Mash the bananas really good

In another bowl mix together:

Eggs, Bananas, oil, buttermilk and vanilla.

Add to flour mixture.

stir it up and be careful NOT to fling it out of the bowl like Davey does :)

Finally, pour mixture into a greased bread loaf pan.

YUMMY!!!

Best Ever Banana Bread- preheat oven to 325 degrees.

1 3/4 c. Flour

1 1/2 c. Sugar

1 Tsp. Baking soda

1/2 Tsp. Salt

2 eggs

1c. Ripe Bananas (2-3)

1/2 c. oil

1/4 c. +1 Tbsp buttermilk

1 tsp Vanilla

1 c. walnuts (optional)

Bake at 325 for 65-70 min. or until done.

*note- I have found that working with room temperature ingredients works best for baking.

Also, be sure to wrap the bread in plastic wrap after it's cooled. Even if the outside feels a little hard after it's cooked the plastic will keep it moist.

I like to make bread at night, wrap it overnight and it's perfect for breakfast! Enjoy :)

born to be wild!

2009-08-01T06:56:00.000-07:00

Davey is totally obsessed with motorcycles right now! We found this "Harley" on craigslist and had to get it for him. He LOVES it and thinks he is pretty cool on his "mo-er-cycle". Hopefully we're not feeding too much trouble down the road!

He was pretty excited when he saw his surprise!

Lauren even got a ride!!!

look what I can do!

2009-07-25T21:50:00.001-07:00

Davey went poopy on the potty today and got a treat!

Lauren is pulling herself up on whatever she can reach!

Too busy to blog?!?

2009-07-22T19:36:00.000-07:00

Grandma a.k.a. "Bama" brought us corn from the farm stand she works at...Lauren loves it!

Lauren watching the monkeys at Como Zoo

Sparky is still at it!

"Choo choo train, Dadey, Slotty" -Davey talks about this adventure all the time.

Lauren found a little something...

a few firsts...

2009-07-06T20:58:00.001-07:00

Davey's 1st time fishin'...

1st time on the lake (this summer)

Lauren's 1st 4th of July

sun- ripened..."berry" sweet...

2009-07-02T21:32:00.000-07:00

Today we picked strawberries! Davey "helped" me pick strawberries in between jumping rows , stomping on and eating a load of sweet berries (typically frowned upon by hard working berry farmers). Time to make jam!

"berry" sweet indeed

Mom's pick of the patch!

Davey says they're "a- lik-ish" (delicious) and I agree!

SUMMER!!!

2009-06-30T21:37:00.000-07:00

a VERY Happy 2nd Birthday

2009-06-24T21:32:00.001-07:00

From this...

To this...

June 24th, 2007

June 24th, 2008

To this... June 24th, 2009

We are SO happy to have Davey in our lives

His smile is contagious and he brings us

so much joy

How did we get so lucky?

Happy 2nd Birthday Davey Boy.

We love you SOOOOO much!

Davey's Happy Birthday

Davey woke up to orange balloons and streamers

all over the kitchen!

He shared some with Lauren :)

After the rain stopped, we went to the park

for a party with his friends!

Davey LOVES Maddie!

We had a picnic lunch

Davey's friend Ella

Mmmm...yummy!

Davey and Lauren with Colin, Ella and Nick.

I used to babysit Nick and Colin when they were babies...

they're not babies anymore :)

Another birthday party at Grammy and Boppa's later .

Uncle Jack came home from "workin' in A-Laka" (Alaska).

We were so glad he could be at Davey's party!

checkin' out the bugs in his new bug catcher

We ended a great day with a camp-0ut party

before bedtime. Actually, Bedtime had already

passed but Davey was not ready to say goodnight.

He informed us that instead of going to sleep

he'd prefer "toc-orn" (popcorn) and a "mawt" (malt)

Since it was a special day ( and it's so hard to resist that cute face)

we let him get up and have treats in his tent with his

new bug catcher/lantern.

After a LONG day of celebrating the special day Davey was born

he finally crashed, all snuggled up next to dad.

Happy birthday Davey. We are so glad you are our boy.

You are better than anything we ever imagined.

We love you TONS!

kisses and hugs,

Mommy, Daddy and Lauren

ps. Go easy on us this year :{

new pictures

2009-06-21T22:32:00.000-07:00

Davey's cure for rainy day blues

"Pa-Pa" and "Ma-Ma"

Lauren and Zachary

Lauren's 7 month photos

2009-06-05T22:24:00.000-07:00

Little guy, Big wheels

2009-06-02T20:38:00.001-07:00

Davey loves his new "Big Wheel" bike,

he calls it his Motorcycle.

Davey's big surprise!!!

2009-05-25T19:09:00.001-07:00

We were lucky enough to receive a few new toys for the kids this weekend. Davey was very excited when he woke up from his nap to his big "surprise"!!! Thank you to our generous friends for outgrowing this :) we will put it to good use!

We also celebrated Grandma's birthday with a trip to DQ!

Happy Birthday "MaMa" -xoxo

what's new...

2009-05-24T06:59:00.000-07:00

Lauren shows off her new tooth. She's got 2 now!!! (yes, it hurts when she bites me)

We're still working on solids...she's getting better but she's still not a big fan of fruits.

We spent last weekend with our friend Ella while her Mom and Dad were out of town.

..."you know who"...

2009-05-12T19:45:00.000-07:00

For mother's day this year, Lauren was thoughtful enough to get me a card (thanks Grandma)that pretty much sums up my life to date.

"Would you say that being a MOM is a Joy and a Challenge?

With ME being the joy and "YOU-KNOW-WHO" being the challenge!"

I thought it was pretty funny and very fitting.

Speaking of my charming challenge... a recap of my day.

7:30 am- 1st meltdown- Davey decided to play basketball with an orange he found in the fridge. Turns out, oranges are not for shooting hoops.

9:35 am -2nd meltdown- While trying to get out the door to get somewhere by 9:45, Davey decided a nap was in order... on the back of the couch.

I carried him kicking and screaming "night...night!!!" down to the car where he proceeded to arch his back and straighten his legs to ensure a more difficult job for mom.

10:45 am- 3rd meltdown- While wandering the isles at Costco, because he escapes the cart, he decided he'd like to add a box of Graham Crackers to the cart. I made the fatal mistake of saying "no" which led to a full out, drop to the floor, screaming fit in the middle of Costco.

3:00 pm- a series of unfortunate events led to meltdown #4- After being woken up by pounding on the roof (seriously, who fixes a roof on the windiest day of the year?) Davey wanted to take a nap. With me. But not Lauren. However, he communicated this by kicking and screaming instead of kindly suggesting Lauren go to her own bed, thankfully she prefers that anyways.

4:30pm- meltdown #5- Davey let me know he'd rather ride in Daddy's truck than Mommy's. See meltdown #2 for end of story.

6:00 pm- meltdown #6- Instead of joining us at the table for dinner at Granny and Papas, Davey wanted to "Jump" on the beds instead. This time, I let Granny deal with him and soon enough, Davey joined us for beef stew.Ok... so it was MY beef stew and MY spoon and MY lap, but he was there and not jumping on beds or screaming.

Did someone tell "you-know-who" that he'll be turning 2 soon?

a few firsts...

2009-05-11T06:22:00.000-07:00

Lauren's 1st time in the swing at the park

Davey went down the BIG slide (this is not

the BIG slide) at Starring Lake park all by himself

for the 1st time.

1st time in her excersaucer at home

And another 1st for Lauren...(sorry no picture)

1st TOOTH!

2009-05-02T22:07:00.000-07:00

While Lauren tries to convince us that rolly arms and dimply thighs are "in" this season...

Davey tells us that boots are better seen if worn without pants.

our little slice of cutie pie

2009-04-24T08:56:00.001-07:00

Lauren will be 6 months old tomorrow! Where does the time go? Here are a few of my favorites from our most recent photo shoot.

Grandmas, Uncles and one cool dude!

2009-04-18T18:39:00.000-07:00

Lauren and Grammie Julie- Happy Birthday "Mammie"

"MaMa" loves her boy!

Uncle Scotty and Lauren on Easter

Uncle Josh teaches Dave a few new tricks

Drum lessons from a PRO!

Lauren and Uncle Joey

At the Park- He can do everything all by himself now

One cool dude with some funky teeth :)

Love ya Dave Dave!!!

We love our "Great" Grandparents!

2009-04-11T17:17:00.000-07:00

"helping" Grannie do the dishes

We are so thankful to have such great family so close by. Davey and Lauren are very lucky kids to be so loved. We love you Great Grannie and Papa!!!

this week...

2009-04-09T21:56:00.000-07:00

This is what I saw when I walked into the room the other day... Lauren peeking up over the rail!

Uncle Scotty came to play and Lauren was totally enthralled by him.

My babies and their "nu"s

Davey LOVES Lauren

Looking rather dapper in his new clothes

"Please sir, may I have...more?" - Oliver

Davey's little friend Ella.

Monday

2009-04-06T21:58:00.000-07:00

Here is some rarely seen documentation of Davey sitting still in one spot for more than 10 seconds.

He tends to favor the color "oreenj"

Sweet Lauren at 5 months -