Bria & Bentley

I found pictures of the girls in the same outfits when they were about the same age. They are both little cuties.

Bentley - Christmas 2009

Bria - Christmas 2006

Covered In Snow

When we arrived home yesterday, this is the snow that we found in front of our house. We couldn't even get to the front door. We actually had to go through the yard by the clinic next to our house to get to the back yard and door.

The drift on the side of the house is about 12 feet tall.

D dug a path through the snow so we can at least get to the front door now.

Painting

These squeezable paints were one of the gifts Bria received for Christmas. She really enjoyed playing with them today. All day she has been asking to do it again. This is the first time Bria has ever painted, and it was lots of fun seeing her use them.

Bria said she was really glad she got paint for Christmas. That was her way of saying Thank You. I can see that there will be many pieces of art to come.

Christmas at Grandpa & Grandma's

We spent just under six days at D's parents over Christmas. We left home early the Wednesday before Christmas, got snowed in for a few days, and then stayed an extra day (until Monday) because of the road conditions. With the two babies, new Wii games, John Deere videos, sled rides, and tractor rides, everyone was well entertained even though we couldn't leave the house.

The two youngest of all the cousins, Cousin L and Bentley, in their Christmas PJ's.

Aunt S holding both babies.

While some of the adults played the Wii in one room, the kids watched a video on Grandpa's laptop in another room. It was a rare moment of quiet (somewhat).

We decided to open the gifts on Christmas Eve since there wasn't church. That way the kids would have all day Christmas to play with the new toys. They all enjoyed the toys that they received, and they graciously shared them with each other throughout the rest of our time there.

Some of the kids looking at their reflections in one of Grandma's Christmas ornaments.

All the kids that could stand on their own even got in on the Wii action. Bria was too light to make the Wii Fit games work, but she tried anyway.

Bria all dressed up in her snowsuit for one of the many adventures outside. This was one of the moments it wasn't snowing.

Grandpa laying in bed reading to Bria and cousin C.

There was lots of activity, and way more food than we could ever eat. It was a great celebration of the birth of our Savior.

Christmas at Home

Our Christmas with just the four of us was short since Bria and Bentley each only had one gift. They quickly opened their presents from Mom & Dad last week Wednesday before we left for Christmas at D's parents. Due to the weather we ended up leaving earlier in the day than we had originally planned, and we had to open our gifts in the dark. Because of the power outage the pictures are a bit dark and I wasn't able to get my hair dried (Oh well!). I was going to lighten them up with our photo editor, but that doesn't want to work right now.

Bria with her new computer. Cousin C had one that Bria loved, so we got one similar.

Bentley got a jingling toy that hangs from her car seat. Of course, someone had to help her open it.

Three Months Old

Our little sweetie is 3 months old (actually last week). We think she is absolutely adorable.

Every time something gets close to Bentley's mouth she tries to put it in there.

Bentley is always ready with a smile if you talk to her.

Bentley fell asleep while laying her in play gym the other day. One moment she was happy and playing, and the next she was out. We never saw anything like this with Bria.

"I love winter."

The other day when it was snowing Bria told D, "I love winter. And I love Christmas."

Every day she asks if she can go outside and play in the snow. She can go out by herself, thankfully, but it has been too cold to go out recently. That just means the snow will still be around when it warms up enough for her to go back out again.

We Are Here & Thanksgiving

We are still here. We were gone for a while, but now we are back. Obviously, it has been a while since I have posted anything. I finally have a couple of minutes to sit down, so now the blog can be updated.

Most of last week was spent at J's parents for Thanksgiving. We had a lot of fun with a lot of activity.

Thanksgiving evening we were going to be taking family pictures. Grandma put rollers in Bria's hair for me, but then Bria thought she should put them in Grandma and Aunt D's hair too. She was concentrating very hard.

The curls were very cute, but didn't last long. Thankfully, they at least lasted long enough for the pictures.

Some of the other activities included helping Uncle N hang the Christmas lights...

helping Grandpa with some unknown project...

Some sleep (especially for Bentley)...

And farming .


I don't have many pictures of Bentley's activities because she mostly just lays there. This picture was too cute so I had to post it. She is starting to do more, and is definitely working on rolling over. She always has a smile for anyone who will give her a little attention.

Silly Conversations

Bria has a little card table that is just her size that she uses for her kitchen, coloring projects, and various other activities. Today she went to sit at her table and this is the conversation that took place:

Bria - "Ugh! I'm frustrated."
Me - "Why are you frustrated?"
Bria - "She's sitting in my spot."
Me - "She's not real, so I think it will be OK."
Bria - "No. She is real." (Said while she is starting to sit in the chair.)


Some other funny things Bria says:
"...at that point"
"...that's the situation"
"If I have to tell you one more time."

These are probably only funny because we know exactly where she gets these phrases from. She has heard all of them "several" times.

Two Months Old

Bentley is two months old now, and her growing is right on track. She is 24 inches long (95th percentile) and 11 pounds (50th percentile). We can tell she has really filled out in the last month. It is always fun to see all of her other development, she smiles tons and is finding her hands.

Even though she smiles a lot it is hard to get a picture of her smiling.

I also had fun playing with our new camera while taking her pictures. The camera is more advanced than anything I have had, so it is going to take me a while to get used to it.

More Farming & Family

This last weekend and the early part of the week we spent at J's parents. J's sister and her boyfriend were back, and J's dad needed some extra help with harvest. There is always lots of activity when we are there, so here are a few of the pictures.

Aunt T and her boyfriend with Bentley. Grandpa snuck into the picture too.

The afternoon was filled with "Ring Around the Rosy" and "Duck, Duck, Goose" (or "Duck, Duck, Grey Duck" for those from Minnesota).

Riding in the combine with Grandpa is exciting, especially when the fields are as wet as they are. They almost got stuck. The other combine actually did get stuck while we were there.

Bria riding a short distance with Uncle N, who was operating the grain cart.

I wanted to get some pictures of Bentley out farming, but she slept the whole time we were out in the field. Hopefully, there will be more farming opportunities over Thanksgiving.

Farming

Yesterday, D helped some friends from church with their harvest. Because of the rainy/snowy fall, harvest is running a long ways behind and everyone is looking for all the help they can get. D loves to farm, so he takes every opportunity to help that he can. The weather was gorgeous, and we all enjoyed getting out of the house. This is Bentley's first farming experience. There will be more farming to come this weekend as we head to my parents to help with the harvest there.

Smiley?

Bentley has been very smiley these days. Bria and I were playing with Bentley and she was smiling a lot, until I got the camera.

Bria's attempt to make Bentley smile, that means getting right in her face.

I couldn't even get her to look at me, let alone smile. She's a cutie anyway.

In the last post I mentioned that this last weekend was Bentley's dedication, however, we don't have the pictures from the church because they are on grandpa's camera. That's what happens when you have two kids, you forget your own camera. Thank goodness for digital cameras and computers, which means we can get those pictures next time we see the grandparents.

What Bria Wants

This last weekend we had Bentley dedicated at church, so all of the grandparents and a couple of J's siblings were at our house. That means that Bria can get plenty of attention, and everyone will play what she wants to play. Some examples...

Grandpa playing basketball while lying on the bed.

Bria pushing Uncle N off her bed.

B making the Grandpas, Uncle N, and Daddy run around the leaf circles that she, Grandma, and Aunt D made earlier.

Family

We spent the last weekend at D's parents. All of the family was able to make it back, so we got to see our new nephew and everyone got to see Bentley. It was fun to have everyone together again, and to see how the family has grown. The house fills up quickly with this many people. However, there is lots of activity, laughter, and conversation that is priceless.

D's sisters holding the two newest additions to the family.

The oldest cousin holding the youngest cousin.

Grandpa made homemade ice cream that all the kids were enjoying.

The kitty that Bria named snowball this summer has gotten a lot bigger. Grandpa brought it inside for Bria to pet. She really loves animals.

Precious Little One

Bentley is growing very quickly. At her 1 month checkup she was 9 lbs. 2.5 oz. and 22 3/4 inches long. That checkup was already 2 weeks ago and I'm pretty sure she is now over 10 lbs.

She loves to lay on the ottoman in our living room and just look around. She has also started smiling at me, which I absolutely love.

After bath time. She doesn't seem to like her baths quite as much as Bria did, but they do seem to be getting better.

The Snow Is Here

Today we got some snow, enough to get a dusting. There is more snow in the forecast for the weekend. I think it is too early for winter, but I don't have a choice.

1 Month Old

Our little cutie is 1 month old. The last month has gone by very quickly.

It was hard to get any happy pictures because the camera flash kept making her cry.

Flying

Daddy's type of playing is always more active than Mommy's. Mommy is better at doing quiet play time activities. Good thing Daddy likes to horse around.

D holding Bentley up in the air like she was flying. She seemed to enjoy it.

Friends Visit

Some of our friends came to visit us this last weekend to go antelope hunting. The hunting was successful, and we were able to spend some time with our friends. Bria was especially happy because she could play with her best friend all weekend.

Two three year olds attempting to play Candy Land by themselves.

Bria and her friend reading books. We appreciated the calm activities.

Whatever one did, the other one had to do too. Both were sucking on ice and spitting it back into their cups.

Of course, when you get a couple of three year olds together there is bound to be a few fights over who gets to play with a certain toy. However, they both still had lots of fun. Bria was really sad when our friends were gone, but hopefully we can visit them soon.