First Solids

We absolutely love her cheeks. They are so much fun to kiss!
Her hands tend to get in the way more than anything. She probably would like to grab the bowl or my hand but that makes a big mess.
The shirt she is wearing has an angel on the front. It is one of my favorite outfits.
I love this picture. She is a happy baby most of the time and we really enjoy her.
Emily is already 18 pounds and we decided that 5 months old would be a good time to try out solids. The pictures above are of her first feeding of rice cereal. She did really well. If you notice her hand is next to her ear. She has been struggling with ear infections since before Christmas.

Valentine's Day

These are the flowers Michael had delivered to me for Valentines Day while he was gone on a camping trip for work. They came through UPS in a box and were all closed up. It took about 24 hours for them to open up but then they lasted for 2 whole weeks. They were gorgeous.
These pictures are of Emily in her new dress from Grams and Grampa. She loves to have her feet in the air, in her hands, and sometimes even her mouth.
She has a great smile and loves to be around people.
This is a good wide-eye shot of her. These were taken the day before Valentine's Day so she was almost 5 months old.

Evan and Laurel's Birthdays

It is pretty hard to believe that Laurel is 10 already. She chose to have a bunny cake again this year. We had Grams, Grampa, Auntie Lindsay, and Uncle Ryan celebrating with us so I actually made two bunny cakes.
Emily loves to chew on her fingers. She is growing so much and loves to interact with her siblings whenever she gets a chance.
The kids have had so much fun playing the Just Dance for Kids Wii game. I tried it out with the kids one Saturday. It is a workout and always a good chance for a laugh.
Evan chose a chocolate cake with caramel and chocolate chips in it with chocolate frosting. He has a great appreciation for what is good when it comes to dessert and chocolate. It must have started with the Oreo his Uncle Jason gave him when he was less than a year old.
Evan turned 7 and has a great love of Legos. He discovered Bioncles on a birthday date with Grandmommy and now has quite a few. He loves to build the Lego sets and Bioncles whenever he gets a chance.

Christmas Time 2010

We had a great Christmas with Grams, Grampa, Uncle Ryan, and Auntie. It was freezing cold but we enjoyed the warmth of family. We missed those who weren't with us, but thought of you often.

In the afternoon Michael took the kids and the dogs to the park. You can tell from the picture below that it was very foggy and cold. It felt a little like the Christmases we spent in Sacramento as children.

Auntie Lindsay was the super helper. She helped all of the kids with their presents including several science experiments, putting together Legos, helping set-up MP3 players, etc
Jonathan got his long sought after pillow pet. He was in heaven.
Evan gives Grams a big hug after receiving some fun Transformers and the Lego set he wanted.
Grampa took on baby holding duties once Emily fell asleep during all of the present opening.
Lindsay my little chef got some new cooking tools to use.

Evan wanted Spy Gear this year. He especially liked his decoy listening phone and motion alarm to guard his room.
Laurel is the newest owner in our family of an MP3 player. She loved being able to pick through our music and decide what she wanted on her player.
Jonathan in his Christmas Eve pajamas. I love the cheesy grin.
Here are all 5 of the kids in their Christmas Eve pajamas. It is hard to believe that "they are all mine." The love these pajamas and a month later they are still trying to coordinate all wearing them at the same time minus Emily who has grown out of hers.

December 2010

We visited Grandpa Higbee in December. He loved seeing the kids and meeting baby Emily for the first time.

The kids love making gingerbread houses. This one had a lot of candy on it and they loved eating each and every bite.

Thanksgiving Time

These are pictures of baby Emily at 2 months. She is a delightful baby and we are all really enjoying her sweet spirit and her cute baby smiles.



Thanksgiving was kind of quiet this year. It was only our little family but it was a beautiful day and we enjoyed being together. I had lots of help from the girls and Michael so it wasn't too much work for me.

Blessing Day

Emily was blessed on Sunday November 7th. It was wonderful to have Grams, Grampa, Auntie Lindsay, Grandmommy, and Grandpa Higbee with us. We are so blessed to have such a loving and supportive family. Below are some pictures of Emily in her blessing dress. It is the same dress that little Lindsay wore for her blessing day.

I love her sweet little face in these pictures. She is such a doll. She is now smiling at us and trying to make sounds.

Here are all of the people who were there for Emily's blessing. What a good looking group!

We had to get a shot with Auntie. The kids were ecstatic that she came to visit. They miss her already and can't wait to see her again. I was so happy to see her as well. I am hoping she can move to Utah soon!

We are so glad Grandpa and Grandmommy could travel out for the blessing. Grandmommy just spent the last week helping us. We are so grateful for everything she did while she was here.

We are also grateful for Grams and Grandpa. It has been wonderful to have Dad retired and to get to see them more often. Mom was a great help while she was here. She even stayed the night when Emily wouldn't stop screaming to give Michael and I a much needed break.

A picture of the proud mommy and daddy.

This was the best picture of our whole family after the blessing. It is hard to believe that we have 5 kids.

Michael should win an award for Father of the Year. He is so helpful with baby Emily and all of the kids. Even his mom had a hard time getting Michael to let go of Emily so she could hold her. I am so thankful to have him as my husband and the father of our children.

This was just before church. It was challenging getting out the door. Emily was overtired and screamed while Michael put on her dress. I was trying to hurry and get ready.