yup, we're partiers

Spring Break always comes a little early in Moscow. Even though we had near-record lows last week and still had snow on the ground, that didn't stop the dream of Spring! We filled our time with fun stuff and I think we played too hard...look at their eyes in these pictures!

Ryanna and Dawson read books and played with Eddie the Puppy.

Carter partied in his highchair during lunch, nearly falling asleep.

And the best part was that we got to run up to Hayden to visit Grandmother Velta and Papa!! It's always a huge party at their house, it was fun to see them. We haven't been up in several months and we were due to get out of town for a day! It's always too fast of a trip, but certainly nice to see them.

The soft Mauve Stairs that every grandchild has spent hours on. Countless hours were devoted to playing, sliding, jumping, etc down these things!

Ryanna received a beautiful porcelain doll that she named, "Morgan."
Dawson was so excited to get a Little People Airplane that flashes lights and sings.
Carter got a Little People Bus that flashes and sings too. Plus an alphabet train connected by magnets. The boys loved it!

P.S. Mom, she loved her Pearl Ring that you gave me to give to her...as did I! She let me wear it for a couple hours and now I want one! Holy Stinking Beautiful, Batman!

family pictures in yuyuan garden

When visiting Yuyuan Garden in Shanghai, you have to go dress up and take pictures in this gorgeous 400-year-old place. I think it was only 20rmb for you to get into their traditional costumes. Can't remember for sure.

And the clock began! You have 15 minutes to get into the courtyard and pose for the pictures you want. We took a little bit longer than 15 minutes because:

-Someone got a little high-and-mighty

-Someone was goofing off for the camera (you're adorable, Mom!)

-Someone couldn't figure out how to dress themselves (it was a lot of fabric!)

-Someone was having attitude

-Someone wasn't looking at the camera

-Someone was too busy pondering words of Confucius

(Sorry for the sideways picture....I have tried to tinker with the picture and it will NOT turn. I have uploaded it about 12 times and still is sideways...oh well)

-Someone kept trying to poke eyes out

-Someone had girls giggling and flirting with him (and the impressive part? Aaron could talk back and understand what she was saying!)
(She took several pictures ATTACHED to him. She wouldn't let him go!!!)

-Someone was always getting in the way of the pictures! They didn't care if they were standing next to us or right in front of us. Seriously, we were quite the attraction!

-Someone was pulling out their Kung-Fu moves

-Someone was still trying to poke eyes out!
After the initial giggling and non-coordinating attempts, we got these:



-Me and Ry



-Aimee


-Mom and Dad...er, I mean The Emperor




-Mom and Aimee

-Mom, Dad and Aaron

-The Boys

-The Girls

-The Entire Gang


What a wonderful way to spend the afternoon. In a beautiful ancient garden with my family! Stay tuned for more pictures and the history behind this incredible place.

four and four and four

Alright, this was the fourth picture in my fourth folder in my files. Ironically, I believe that baby Carter is actually four months old in it. Do I get extra credit?

bubble faces

Carter and I played with bubbles yesterday and I loved each of his faces that he made. Definitely post-worthy!

quickie down to Boise

We ran down to Boise last week for a couple things: Ryan had a job interview (THIS is the one we want...fingers, toes, and eyes crossed!!!) and my sister was ill so I went down to be with her.

On the way down, per tradition, we stopped in Grangeville to touch The Rock.

Now in these next few pictures, do you see a recurring theme? See Ryanna? She's not just walking. She's bouncing, singing, bounding, hopping, doing anything from what a normal person would do. It is totally her!

It was so fun to stay at my in-law's house and be together for a couple days. We played with their new dog, new motorcycle and new truck. It was an exciting time! The kids (and Sabrina) took turns riding it.

And we got to see my nephew, Hunter. He's so cute, he shares so well and talks like I've never heard!! He can carry on a full-blown adult conversation without blinking. He's so cute! I'm just not quite sure why both of MY boys look drunk in these next two pictures.