The Polar Express!

One of Owen's favorite movies is "The Polar Express". Even in July he would ask to watch it. Not appealing to me but he was all about it. So we decided to try "The Polar Express" train ride this Christmas Season. It starts in Williams, AZ and goes for about a half hour one way and a half hour back. Their are chefs that bring cookies and hot chocolate, carols being sung, Santa Clause, and a majorly fake looking North Pole. Also, everyone is supposed to be dressed in their P.J.'s just like on the movie. We captured most of the night on camera as seen below:

So excited to get on the train! Here's us waiting in line.

...More waiting...

...more waiting... (love the cheese of that smile)



Finally boarding the train!




" Hot Hot ... Hot Chocolate"

Santa gave a bell to each child. There was a lot of ringing on that train!

The kiddos had a great time and did better than I thought. It was truly a magical night. It was a great way to start off the Christmas Season. Merry Christmas All!

Halloween 2010

Yes! Halloween is finally here! With so much anticipation through books, school projects, and school parties it was finally time to do some real celebrating!

Friday night we went to our ward's Trunk -or-Treat and had a great time. While getting ready Owen decided 1.) that he wasn't going to wear his costume and then 2.) Once we got there he refused to get out of the car. All this anticipation and build up must have been too overwhelming for our poor little guy. Needless to say I pretty much made him wear his costume and Dad talked him into getting out of the car and coming out to join the party. Once he warmed up he did great! I mean who doesn't love getting candy merely by saying "Trick-or-Treat" -way too easy.

Sunday we let the kids Trick-or-Treat around the block. I wanted to just hit a few houses but once we started walking, Owen had to finish our typical bike riding route. Needless to say the kids ended up with more candy than I anticipated. Owen was in character most of the night. He had on his stank face and when other kids came near him he shot them with his finger gun. It was awesome. Nya was really good both nights. Not much drama from Cinderella which is surprising -I know. Most of her drama came the following week. Too tired and too much sugar!

We told Soldier Owen to look tough and this is what we got.

Owen using his finger gun

and again...

Oh, so sweet little Cinderella

Dad tried to pose her. You should have seen him do a curtsy. Now THAT was funny.

Nya Turns 3

For Nya's 3rd birthday she wanted to have a Princess Party. My friend Kristen Anderson made this awesome castle cake for her. She invited 10 little princesses and we had a ball. They made necklaces, played games, ate, and of course opened presents. She just had one little tantrum (which is good for her) so all in all the day went pretty good!

Making Necklaces

Clockwise: Nya, Jenna, Chloe, Mya, Brielle, Ada, Marley and...

There's Kaydin

Owen getting in on the birthday goods

Nya was so excited to have a big girl bed. We were so worried that she would keep getting out all night but she has beens staying in her bed so good! [knock on wood]

There she is in her big girl bed.

Well we hope you had a good birthday Nya! You are such a little pill but bring so much joy to our lives also. You are so proud to be 3 and tell everyone you see! You will grab random people at church and tell them about your big girl bed or about one of your dolls that you got for your birthday. We love the energy and enthusiasm you have for life.

We Love You!

-Mom & Dad

The Haunting Memories of Halloweens Past

So Autumn is probably my favorite season. I love when the air turns crisp, the leaves change, Birthday celebrations, and Halloween. I have a lot of fond memories of driving through Ogden Canyon as a kid to play in all the fall leaves. I also loved being scared - Whatching scary movies, going to Haunted Houses, etc. Fall's my season. So I got a little nostalgic when Shad found this picture in his car. Awww, one of our first Halloweens together. I looked through the archives to find some fun Halloween pictures to share and this is what I came up with. Hope you enjoy...or do I? HAHAHAHA (said in a freaky voice)

We went to a Halloween Party that some of Shad's Co-workers were throwing. Mind you none of his work friends had met me so they were clueless as to who I was and who was under the Jack head. It made for an interesting evening of "tricking" others for Halloween. Good thing I'm not shy!

Just in case you didn't figure it out, I went as Wendy from "Wendy's" and Shad went as Jack from "Jack in the Box"

So who is this freaky family? MOM: Skeleton Bride; DAD: Escaped Convict; SON: Dracula Boy

NO! You can't make me wear this ridiculous costume!

OK, OK I'll do it...but ONLY for candy!!!

SUPER WHY! I am so fly in my cape! No pun intended.

Tinkerbell? More like Stinkerbell. Man she has kept us busy from day one. Only one year old here but skipped walking and went straight to running. LOVE YOU SIS!

COMING SOON: Seargent Owen & Nya Cinderella

Good Friends & Goodbyes

So I got the news that my good friend Kari was going to be moving. I think I am still in denial about it but the truth is that she is gone from our little neighborhood, our little babysitting co-op, and our not so little Ward. She really is a true friend and although I have been sad about her being gone I really feel like she will still be there for me when I need her.

She has been such a good example to me of service and genuine love. I can't imagine going through this life without knowing her. In fact I feel bad for those reading this that didn't. She has been there for me so many times and as I write this I realize how much I haven't reciprocated. She really is the friend I hope to be someday.

So to have one last hoorah (sp?) she let us take her to Cheesecake Factory. It was a fun night full of laughs. She didn't want any crying so we refrained from talking about how much we'd miss her and just tried to enjoy the evening.

Goodbye...sniff...sniff...

Some of my bestest homies

Nya & Her Randomness

Nya put on Dad's hat and Mom's oven mit. Interesting combination.

She wanted to put in curlers before her nap. I knew it would be a wasted effort but doesn't she look cute anyways? Sure enough as soon as she laid down she yelled "Get them off of me!"

A Simpler Reward System...Or Is It?

So Shad showed me a simple reward system in a magazine so we decided to try it. Each child has their own dry erase board and when they do something nice or when they are obedient, the parent draws a heart on their board. Once they get to 5 hearts they get a prize. We have used it on and off and it works pretty good (when I can remember).

After a few weeks Shad says, "Do you think you could draw something else other than a heart on Owen's chart...like maybe a baseball or something." So I think, OK, no biggie I'll draw something else. Pretty soon the kids requests started getting more and more complex as you can see below. Love those little monsters!

drawing #1: The pantry door

drawing #2: Owen holding a balloon

drawing #3: A ball hitting a bat

drawing #4: A bad guy

drawing #5: A canyon

OWEN TURNS 5!

For Owen's Birthday he wanted to have a Train Party so we decked out guests in bandannas and engineer hats and had train based games. He got lots of fun toys and my friend Kristen made him this awesome train cake!

I just had to put this pic of his stank face ;)


HAPPY BIRTHDAY OWEN!

My Muddy Buddy

Owen has been thoroughly enjoying the rain! At least the mud puddles it is leaving behind. After the 3rd set of clothes were trashed with mud for the day I told him he had to play in his undies if he wanted to go out there again. So he stripped down and headed outside.

Oh, look how sweet he is...

Don't let him fool you here he is trying to fling mud at me!

Leaving his mark

A Bunch 'O Birthdays

Shad and his older brother Jerel share a birthday and their sister Janel's is just 2 days before. Jerel was kind enough to take everyone out for their birthdays to celebrate. We went to Macayo's and had a great night full of laughs. I wanted some pics of the night so we took turns taking pictures of everyone. Suddenly the camera started taking pictures spontaneously while Camille was holding it. It was so funny to try and figure out what was wrong when she finally realized that the smile detector button had been pushed. Quite and interesting feature that I didn't know about.

So next we were all trying to figure out what is the camera detecting to take the picture? Teeth showing or can it really tell when your lips curve? So we did some experimenting and it made for a fun night and even funner pictures.

Happy birthday Campbell trio!

Jerel, Janel, & Shad

Jerel & Camille

Ok, so here come the funny ones -don't kill me Camille!

Test #1: Showing teeth, no smile Verdict: Smile detected

Test #2: Open mouth w/o teeth showing Verdict: Smile detected

Here's us celebrating at home with a Lemon Meringue Pie -Shad's fav

Happy Birthday! I love you! And age is just a number!

Some Firsts For Nya

So the summer was a bit rough for us all. Nya just really needs to be entertained and wants my attention every waking moment. Owen is much different. He plays great on his own and prefers it that way most of the time. So I have a lot of freedom to cook, clean, blog, or whatever. Nya however wants to be involved in the cooking, cleaning, and thinks she must sit on my lap while I am on the computer. Let's just say we didn't get along the greatest this summer. I could often be heard saying "Nya, I need my space." And she could be heard saying, "Mommy you not being nice to me" which is what she says whenever I tell her no followed by a tantrum.

So I decided to give myself more of a break and get her involved in a few things. I did feel guilty at first thinking I had over scheduled my 2 year old, so I opted for 1 day a week circle time instead of 2, and Dance as long as she is in Tumbling with me.

This picture KILLS me...is she really this old?

First day of Circle Time with Miss Jen. She LOVES going to school and asks to go almost every day.

First day of Dance with Miss Melissa. Apparently she behaves like an Angel at Dance...who knew?

So I said, "Nya, let me take a picture of you doing a dance move for your first day of dance" and this is what she came up with. Can you see the passion? Look, eyes closed and everything. LOL