Porters

Milk and cookies with Santa

2011-12-17T06:18:00.000-08:00

We got to attend the Milk and Cookies with Santa party at the Treehouse this year.

We had to coax Santa to come out by singing "Santa Claus is Coming to Town". The girls' faces both lit up once he came out ringing his jingle bells.

Milk and cookies were a big hit.

Annie even made a new friend who she calls "my bear friend". What a fun night!

Halloween

2011-11-12T06:59:00.001-08:00

The girls had a "super" Halloween. They were so excited to be "Super Sisters". This was the first year they actually ran from house to house trick-or-treating. Big Sis couldn't get enough. We could barely keep up with her! She is already planning what she and Little Sis are going to be next year.

The Preschool Adventure

2011-11-12T06:38:00.001-08:00

These pictures are actually from the end of August, but I thought I'd post them anyway. I decided to try my hand at teaching preschool out of our basement this year. It has been quite the adventure! Things get a little busy, but overall it has been a fun experience. I have learned so much from these adorable 3 and 4 year olds. My daily experiences have led me to research that is hopefully helping me become a better teacher and most importantly, a better mom. My toolbox, as some say, is being filled with things I wouldn't otherwise know. I'm really grateful for the experience and hope it continues to go as well as it has been. Big Sis loves getting to see her friends three times a week, and Little Sis has become a little social butterfly. Thanks to all the moms who are giving me the opportunity to teach (and learn from) their kids!

Little Sis decorates her face on the first day.
Big Sis by the reading nook.

Black Island Farms

2011-11-12T05:58:00.002-08:00

The girls were sick on the day of our preschool field trip to Black Island Farms, so we packed up the family and went on Oct. 29. They loved it!

The cow and pig train was a huge hit. They rode it as many times as they could before it got too dark.

We had a blast watching the girls play. The biggest hit was the Corn Chute. Big Sis took one look at it and raced to the top as fast as she could. As soon as she came out, she darted back up to do it again....and again....and again (hence no pictures of her, she wasn't in one place long enough). Little Sis was a little more cautious. It took three or four tries of climbing all the way to the top, then climbing all the way down and back up again until she dared do it. She finally decided to try it (with a death grip on Mommy the whole way down).

Once it was too dark to do anything else, we headed in for the corn maze. Papa P was a little ticked off when he realized we were walking around in an image of Edward and Bella. He followed the map and got us out of there as quickly as he could. The girls were amazed at his navigating skills. I was pretty impressed myself! All in all, a fun night at Black Island Farms!

Easter Day

2011-04-26T13:09:00.001-07:00

Peter Cottontail visited our house this year.The faces say it all :)

The girls in their Easter dresses.
The Easter Bunny also came to Grandma and Grandpa's.

We sure love "Grampa!"

The kids look forward to Grandma and Grandpa's annual Easter egg hunt.

The kiddos couldn't get enough. They kept hollering, "Eggs! Eggs! Eggs!"
The smiles on their faces may be caused by all the candy they are looking forward to eating; but when I look at them, I'm reminded of the joy I feel at this time of year and of the gratitude I have for our Savior. Wishing you a very Happy Easter!

Coloring Eggs

2011-04-26T12:54:00.000-07:00

The girls colored some masterpiece eggs this year over at Bubba's.

Our hands were just about as colorful as the eggs.

And what were the boys doing during all this? Setting up a new swing set in Bubba's backyard. The girls were so excited! Swinging and sliding is always fun, even in the dark!

A Hairy Adventure

2011-04-23T09:07:00.000-07:00

The other day, I had one of those moments when I realized things were just a little too quiet. Upon investigation, I discovered that Big Sis had gotten a hold of the kid scissors and taken them into her room. She must have been channeling an 80s punk rocker, because she had cut her pants apart....
....And she had also cut her hair. I had to bite my lip to keep from crying as she handed me clump after clump of her long, beautiful hair.
Although the mullet was very nice, we decided it had to go.
Big Sis is now sporting a short bob that she proudly says looks "just like Dora!"
She couldn't be happier with her new 'do. It turned out very cute in the end, but we will be keeping the scissors under lock and key from now on :)

Let's Go Fly A Kite

2011-04-23T08:20:00.001-07:00

The girls are growing up

2011-04-23T08:08:00.000-07:00

Nothing Like a Day at the Park

2011-03-04T11:14:00.000-08:00

It's a bright, sunshiney day, so it's off to the park! The girls had a blast. Halle developed a new sense of courage and climbed everything she could. And Annie was right on her tail. We love the sun. Welcome back, Spring!

PeeWee PowWow

2010-11-20T10:22:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I got to take the girls to the Ogden Nature Center for a PeeWee PowWow. We learned a lot about Native Americans.
Halle got to try a bite of "Journey Cake" hot off the fire.
"Coyote" (a puppet made from an actual coyote hide) told us a story inside a TeePee.
And we made a mini rainstick. (Check out Halle's necklace she made out of an elastic headband and a slap bracelet. Pretty creative)
Afterward, we got to explore the grounds where we met some enormous turkeys.
We also checked out the "Birds of Prey" exhibit, which was very cool. We discovered first hand that a Raven can have its back turned to you and then tilt its head back far enough to stare at you (kinda creepy). They had falcons, hawks, eagles, pelicans, and owls. I think it was the first time I'd ever actually heard a Great Horned Owl hoot. Halle summed it up best when she said, "I heard him 'Who'! I heard him 'Who'!" Later she informed me that Annie's favorite bird had been the Bald Eagle. Annie responded by exclaiming, "Bald!"
Walking around the grounds was very cool. The girls enjoyed checking out the moss and checking every hole and burrow to see if there were any animals home.
We walked down Birdhouse Path to get back to the truck where there were probably close to a hundred very creative birdhouses lining the way.
I thought the adventure would be over once we got settled in the truck, but of course I took a wrong turn on the way out and we ended up nearly surrounded by a family of about 10 deer, one of which was a 5 point buck. "Wow, he has antlers!" Halle said. You've got to love how excited kids get, but in all honesty, I think I had just as much fun as they did.

October 2010

2010-11-05T05:45:00.001-07:00

This Halloween was lots of fun. We had 3 or 4 costume parties, a ward carnival, and trunk or treating, so the girls got to dress up a lot. I decided to try and be crafty by making everyone's costumes. It was a fun project that resulted in a lot off hot glue and costumes that were so original that the average person couldn't tell what we were :)

So I'll sum it up for you: Annie was sunshine, Halle was a rainbow, I was Spring, and Justin was Fall.

After about the 2nd or 3rd costume party, I had to revamp the girls' costumes. Apparently costumes that are hot glued together tend to fall apart. So Annie ended up with a tutu and Halle ended up with an even puffier tutu. The girls really loved dressing up. Then the highlight was the night they got to trick or treat. It was so fun to watch the two of them: Halle running from trunk to trunk just as fast as she could with Annie toddling right behind her. It sure doesn't take long for a 1-year-old to figure out what to do when she has a big sister to follow after. All in all, it was a fun time.

Playing With Food

2010-04-07T16:21:00.000-07:00

Life becomes a lot more exciting when you have a baby eating solids: Splatters on the wall, splatters on the floor, splatters on me...and some pretty adorable pictures. Annie has been eating solids since about four months and it has been one fun and messy ride :)

Let's just say our girls like to "get into their food". That's why I was excited to try this cute idea I found in a Parents magazine.
It's called a DIY salad. You fill a muffin tin full of salad fixins and let your toddler go to town. Well, it was a hit. Halle tried everything, even the raw vegetables!

My thoughts: "I didn't even have to grind up the veggies and hide them in something else! We are definitely doing this again."

Well, that lasted a few minutes, and then Halle started experimenting and making some interesting combinations.

My thoughts: "How cute, she's a little scientist."

The combinations became a little weirder...and messier.

My thoughts: "Is she really going to eat that?"

Pretty soon, Annie became distracted from tossing Cheerios off her high chair tray to watch her scientific sister work on something that no longer resembled anything edible.

My thoughts: "Is she actually going to--uh, don't do that--keep your soup out of there---keep that out of your soup--don't splash that all over the place---wait---stop---ARRRRG!"

Well. Now we've got salad fixins keeping the scattered Cheerios on the floor company.

My thoughts: "NEVER AGAIN!!!!" Or at least until we get a little better control over science.

Happy Easter!

2010-04-07T16:20:00.000-07:00

Enjoying Some Easter Goodies

Halle's Rockin' Outfit...Guess who picked it out all by herself?

Fun with Bubbles

Vikings, Damsels, and a Grumpy Old Troll

2010-04-05T10:01:00.001-07:00

Halle the Viking

Halle, Annie, and I joined Bubba and all the cousins for dinner and a movie on Saturday while the guys were at Priesthood Session. We saw "How to Train Your Dragon". Really cute movie, but a little intense. I even found my heart pounding in parts. Annie slept through most of it, which was nice. It's been awhile since I've been to a movie in theaters and I was a little nervous to take her. I was even more nervous to take Halle, but apparently, she can handle vikings and fire breathing dragons. Kinda funny since the day before she was playing the damsel in distress at Playgroup. She kept climbing on top of the shoe rack and calling out, "Save me!". Then her little rescuer, Grant, would help her down. They did this over and over...and over. It was pretty cute. She sure picks up on random things. And I'm not quite sure how I feel about the influence of tv yet. For instance, she's been learning a lot from Dora the Explorer. The other day she needed help with something and she said, "Help, Mommy! Ayudeme!" "Cool," I thought, "She's learning Spanish." But then today she called me a grumpy old troll. Suddenly I'm not as big a fan of Dora. ;)

Gramma and Grampa's Egg Hunt

2010-03-29T08:48:00.000-07:00

The girls really enjoyed the egg hunt at Gramma and Grampa Porter's.

Grampa helped Halle find lots of eggs.

Annie was content with one egg as long as she got to chew on it.Jeremy chows down on some candy.

Alisa and Wes

Our Handsome Photographer

Note: For some reason, I'm not able to upload any more pictures to this post right now. There were a lot more people there like Gramma, Gramcracker, Spencer, Lyndee, Tyler, Melissa, and Halle and Annie's cousins who they absolutely adore: Landon, Brecklyn, Jaxon, and Khilyn. I'll post more pics when I can.

Family Phases

2010-03-29T07:40:00.000-07:00

Part of the fun of family life is seeing the different phases we all go through. Halle is going through an "Imaginary Friend" phase. Right now, she has a friend named Roxanne. We have to include Roxanne in everything we do. One time I set a box down and Halle informed me that Roxanne was sitting there and I would have to move the box. It must be hard to be invisible.

Halle and Roxanne having a conversation.

Halle and Roxanne running from a monster.

Justin is going through a "Flashlight Phase". Actually, there are three things he feels he can never have too many of: flashlights, fishing poles, and pocket knives. This is his latest find.
Annie is going through a "Put-Anything-I-Can-Get-My-Hands-On-In-My-Mouth-Including-Daddy's-New-Flashlight Phase". Enough said :)

And I guess you could say I'm going through a "Write-Really-Random-Stuff-On-Our-Blog Phase." So bear with me, if you will. It's just a phase :)

Easter Cookies

2010-03-28T12:17:00.000-07:00

Halle had a great time decorating Easter cookies.

Annie enjoyed herself by rolling around on the floor. Check out that tongue. She's always sticking it out with a big grin on her face.

Jellies

2010-03-27T21:42:00.000-07:00

Halle helped me reach a pretty big milestone yesterday...

Remember Jellies?

Yeah, I was not a fan growing up. My friends all wore them, but for some reason I had a big aversion to those sparkly plastic shoes. Well, there we were at Old Navy yesterday with a gift card burning a hole in my pocket, when Halle made a dash for the shoe section. She immediately fell in love with a green pair of...you guessed it...JELLIES! They've actually redesigned them so they're pretty cute nowadays and they're a lot more durable than Halle's "pretty shoes" that have been scuffed beyond repair. So why not? Halle got to pick out not one, but two pairs of shoes, green and purple. She carried them proudly to the check out until about half way there she decided she didn't like the green anymore and opted for hot pink instead. And here we are now. I'm finally in the Jelly shoe club.

On the Move

2010-03-27T21:29:00.000-07:00

Watch out, World...Annie's learning how to crawl!

Girls Will Be Girls

2010-03-23T09:24:00.000-07:00

One of Justin's friends put it well when he told him, "Dude, you've got too many girls at your house." He's a good sport and we love him for it :) He has to put up with lots of pink and lots of attitude. Growing up with boys, I wasn't really in to frills and princess stuff (sorry Mom!), but my girls are girlie girls through and through. And I'm loving every minute of it! One of the cutest things to see is how Halle plays with other girls. She has a couple of little boy friends that she adores, but it's different when she's with her BFF's. It's like watching miniature teenagers. They clap their hands, squeal, and hug whenever they see each other.

Shelby (aka Belle) and Halle (aka Cinderella)

Halle also has quite a fashion sense. She loves to pick out her own clothes. She's been dressing herself for just about a year now, but I thought this outfit was worth posting.
It consists of two purple leotards, rainbow tights, a rockstar skirt, and underneath it all is her favorite swimsuit. Oh yeah. This outfit rocks. And then there's our sweet little Annie.
She still continues to brighten the world with her smile. She's even started cheesin' it whenever she sees a camera. I wonder if she knows how adorable she is?

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

2010-03-17T10:31:00.001-07:00

Wishing Everyone the Luck O' The Irish from our little Leprechauns!

In Like A Lion

2010-03-17T10:15:00.000-07:00

I know the lion and lamb thing is usually meant to describe the weather, but this cold and flu season has been a BEAST! Annie still managed to find something to smile about despite having a pretty high fever. She must know that sunshine is on its way. Halle is excited for that, too. She's been wearing her "rain soup" (translation: swim suit) every day, just hoping for it to get warm enough to pump up the pool and do some swimming.

Making Time Stand Still

2010-03-13T08:18:00.000-08:00

Wow! What a fun and exciting whirlwind the past few years have been, more specifically the past seven months! Having two little girls is such a dream come true. Amidst princess dresses, hair bows, and lots and lots of pink, life is wonderful. I just wish it would slow down for a minute! Annie is already seven months old and Halle is quickly approaching three years. I wish I could make time stand still, but since I haven't figured out how to do that yet, I'll just have to make sure I keep a better record of what's happening.
Justin is working and going to school full time right now. Busy, busy, busy! School is tough, but he's discovered some hidden talents along the way. He's an amazing artist and a very entertaining writer (maybe he should take over the blog!). We are very proud of him and grateful that he works so hard for us. He'll definitely need a fishing break come summer time. Heather is still playing the piano in Relief Society (and sometimes Sacrament, yikes!), doing Cub Scout stuff, and keeping busy with the girls. Halle is a hoot! She has developed quite an imagination. She spends her days playing with her friends, singing "Qwinkle Qwinkle Little Star", defeating monsters and Swiper the Fox, and changing clothes three dozen times (at least). Annie is the very definition of sweetheart. One smile from her will melt your heart and she gives them freely. She loves to laugh, eat books, growl, and roll all over the house. She is sitting by herself now and is trying to figure out how to crawl. Halle and Annie love each other very much. Annie loves to watch Halle dance and sing, and Halle showers Annie with hugs and kisses. These two are well on their way to being best buds forever.

2009-07-07T06:06:00.001-07:00

Friends, Fish, Four-wheelers....and Killer Mosquitoes!

2009-07-07T05:37:00.001-07:00

The three of us spent a fun Fourth of July weekend with Melissa, Mitch, Heather, and James (and two adorable dogs) at the Campbell family cabin in Island Park. Not only did we enjoy some very delicious food (dutch oven cake is to die for), we also went on a float trip, did some fishing, four-wheeling, and explored West Yellowstone. This was Halle's first real four-wheeling experience and at first she didn't want a thing to do with it. But once Justin got her going at a whopping 10 mph, she didn't want to quit. Every morning she woke up and requested, "Four-wheeler?" On the last ride of the trip, she was enjoying it so much that she turned to him and said, "Daddy, Halle's happy." The float trip was also very cool. We started at the top of Big Spring and floated down the Snake River to Mack's Inn. The scenery was unbeatable. We all finished at different times. Our boat took the longest because Justin lost his rowing partner once Halle fell asleep in my arms and he was left to try to fish and steer the thing by himself. I think though, one of the highlights was watching everyone try out the Buddy Bike in West Yellowstone. It's like a side by side tandem bike that really doesn't look suitable for riding. My big belly makes my balance a little unsteady, so I had to sit this one out, but I thoroughly enjoyed just observing. All in all, it was a great trip! The one and only drawback came from some uninvited visitors: Mutant mosquitoes who are apparently immune to citronella and bug repellent! And they were everywhere! At one point in the trip, we saw a man wearing a mosquito net hat. He looked a little silly, but you can bet we were all pretty envious of him by the end. Still, even the killer mosquitoes couldn't ruin a fun weekend in Island Park. Thanks again Campbells!

Ready, Set, Go!

2009-06-27T16:15:00.000-07:00

Not only is that Halle's favorite saying, it's also our current motto as we are preparing for our new addition. We're on the home stretch! Less than 8 weeks before the arrival of our new little girl! We are very excited. Anyway, welcome to our Blog! Thanks for visiting, we will try to give you something interesting to check out every once in awhile, whether it's a picture of Justin's record breaking catch of the day or Halle's latest adventure. We hope you enjoy, and we hope this will be a fun way to keep in contact with our favorite people! So please, feel free to make comments and let us know how you are doing! Haha, J, all these exclamation points are for you, because I know how you love them. Anyway, until next time....enjoy!