Taylor in 2011

Here are some Highlights for Taylor in 2011:

1- Caught his first fish
2- Got Baptized
3- Was in a 2nd Grade play as the spider that scares Little Miss Muffett
4- Got REALLY into Dr. Who and now owns 3 Sonic Screwdrivers
5- Learned the Dr. Who theme song on the piano and has played it about 200 times.
6- Earned his Wolf award in scouts
7- Took swimming lessons and got pretty good at it
8- Became famous at the elementary school for his "Chipmunks" impression
9- Learned how to play the card-game Magic and plays it with Dad and Carter
10- Took soccer and decided he likes defense the best
11- Got a score of 99/100 at the Piano Festival
12- Memorized and recited a Halloween poem at a College Poetry function.
13- Went to his first BYU Football game

Carter in 2011

Some of the year's highlights for Carter:

1- Finished Elementary school (4th grade)
2- Wrote about 30 volumes of a comic book called "The Nerd Herd"
3- Got REALLY into the show Dr. Who.
4- Learned the Dr. Who theme song on the piano and played it at least 200 times
5- Perfected the British accent
6- Started taking Ballroom classes
7- Started Middle School and met lots of new friends
8- Got his Weblos award and graduated from Cub Scouts
9- Improved a lot on the piano (mostly by playing and making up versions of the Dr. Who theme song)
10- Memorized the Witches' Double Double Toil &Trouble poem and recited it at a college poetry function.
11- Had dinner with Gary Schmidt.  (famous author that our family LOVES)
12- Went to his first BYU Football Game

Allen Riverdance

Just in time for St. Patrick's Day, our family has become a bunch of Riverdance fans.

It all started when Mallory picked up some Irish dance moves while watching "Angelina Ballerina."   We noticed that she actually looked like she knew what she was doing, so we showed the kids some Riverdance on YouTube.  Since then, it has become the new dance of choice when we "bust out the moves". 

I'm posting this video because there are some funny surprises besides Mallory's jigging - Wyatt posing for the camera, and Taylor showing everyone up at the end.

Taylor's Baptism

Taylor was baptized this weekend.  It was a great day.  It is hard to believe that he is growing up so fast.

Here are some pictures from the big day.  Among all the hassle, we didn't get any pictures with Kim and Bill's family, but they were there also.   Taylor's friends Owen, Seth, and Olivia were also there.  His friend Owen missed his last basketball game to come and see Taylor, which was really touching.  We have amazing friends and family.

 

The traditional "Baptism Cake" that Josh finds offensive.  (Our ongoing debate)

Carter's Boot

Carter tripped while going down the stairs last week.  (We keep telling him that he's got to come up with a more interesting story).  He either ended up with a minor fracture/crack in his ankle, or he sprained it really bad.  They couldn't tell from the X-ray, so he gets to wear this boot cast for a couple weeks.

The boot hasn't slowed him down a bit.  Sometimes we forget he is even wearing it.  Hopefully it can come off next week (the first week of February) because he is dying to get out into the snow.  They will X-ray it again at his appointment see if it has healed up.  Until then, he can enjoy a little extra attention and stay warm inside.

Click here for Carter's Retelling of the Story

Taylor's Birthday

 It is so hard to believe that our cute little Taylor is already 8.  Time flies too fast.  He has grown into such a smart, sweet, and thoughtful kid.  We love you and Happy Birthday Taylor!

The Birthday Boy

Taylor's First Birthday (Isn't he the most adorable little kid ever?)

Taylor at 4 yrs. 

Taylor's surprise present:  A Dr. Who Picture Almanac.

Taylor got lots of Legos for his birthday

Taylor's Birthday Cake.  He wanted a sledding hill cake to match the sledding party.

Taylor and his friends at his Birthday Sledding Party

Bigger and Better

This year, Josh and the boys decided to make a bigger and better igloo than last year.  Here are some pictures.

It is actually pretty roomy inside.  Roomy enough that we were able to get the whole family in there to eat dinner a couple weeks ago.  It was also surprising how warm it is inside.
 
Since the next igloo is going to have to be bigger and better than this year's igloo, Josh is considering plans for a 2 room deluxe igloo.